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Chapter Text

            The young fae girl scowled as she peered down to the joyful celebration below, tugging on her shoulder length purple pigtails as she twirled them around her pointer fingers slowly, anger boiling at the unfairness of it all, the betrayal. She really thought they were friends, and not just any friends, but best friends. Apparently, the other girl must not feel the same as she was sitting up here all alone instead of at the party down in the pavilion below with all of the rest of the Isle kids who had all gotten invitations to the birthday celebration.

            “Mal?” She dimly heard her mother’s voice call from inside. “What are you doing out here?” Her mother’s floor-length dress swished softly as she came to stand in the doorway. “Mal?” She repeated when she didn’t answer, instead opting to grip the railing tightly while fighting back the tears that were fueled by a mix of hurt and anger. Maleficent let out a heavy breath, almost sighing, as she realized that Mal was very upset about something. She approached slowly and gently ran her fingers down her child’s cheek, wiping away a stray tear that had escaped before tilting her chin up so she was facing her. “Maladia, what’s wrong?” she asked, looking into her child’s sad tear-filled eyes.

            She tried not to sniffle and instead of speaking, she pointed down over the edge of the balcony railing to the wonderful decorations, fit for a (certain) princess’s birthday. Maleficent’s eyes scanned the party, “So it is Genevieve’s birthday today then? Maladia, why didn’t you tell me sooner. I would have helped you prepare a present and get ready for the party.” She ran her fingers through the loose ends of one of her purple pigtails.

            “But mother, I-” she slumped and her bottom lip trembled, “I didn’t get invited.” her voice is small and she looks down towards the ground by her feet. She doesn’t want to see the look of utter disappointment on her mother’s face at her crying over not being included, so she studies the stones instead, staring at the flecks of color embedded in the gray cobblestone of the balcony. “Not invited?” Maleficent’s nose twitched at the insult, memory flashing back to the last time she was uninvited to a celebratory event, “Well then,” she lets out a slow breath, “I guess that makes us party crashers then.” She announced, standing straight, Mal starts in surprise and looks up to her mother’s face quizzically. “Party crashers?”

            “Yes darling, that means we’re going to go down there even though we didn’t get an invitation.” She smiles, “Not being invited is a high insult you know, and we’re going to give them a piece of our minds.” Her large wings fluff, and Mal knows she is going to take to the sky to fly down there even before she is given the instruction. “Come now, let’s fly.” Her mother takes off, but waits for her daughter to join her to practice the short flight it would take to get down to the ground from the castle balcony, her large wings flapping just enough to keep herself steady in the air. It takes Mal another few moments to get herself up into the air to follow, but once she is steady her mother leads her. The whooshing of the air as it passes her is a newer thrill to the six-year-old, her mother only just beginning to take her higher to really practice the intricacies of flying quickly and steadily in the open air recently, diving and twisting would be next on the list. Before this she had stayed closer to the ground to build up strength and trust in her wings before she could be going to any real heights. If there was one thing she knew about flying, it was that you had to be able to trust your wings and your instincts.

            Silence rings out when they land amongst the people. Her mother barely makes a sound when she descends and her feet meet the ground. Little Mal marvels at the smooth grace of her mother, wondering how long it will take her to learn how to do that too. She fidgeted with her hands while she stood behind her mother, almost hiding in her cloaking skirts as she stayed close. Maleficent opened her mouth, but before she could speak, to call out the gross insult of not inviting them, the little birthday princess’s voice rang out. “Mal! There you are!” She squealed, “I was wondering when you were going to get here, I didn’t want the party to start without you.” Her shoes tap lightly against the pavement as she hurries over and to Mal’s side, spotting her dark purple hair even amongst the black of the dress. “But mama said that sometimes fae like to make late arrivals, so I thought maybe that’s what you were waiting for so I thought maybe the sooner we started, the sooner you would get here!” Her hands are tight in little fists as she shakes them by her chest in an excited manner, rambling to her friend.

            Now Mal is more confused than before. She wasn’t invited, she didn’t receive one of the pretty invitations delivered by pretty vultures. She thought maybe Evie didn’t like her anymore, so why was she so excited now? Acting like Mal had been invited and not snubbed? Was this some kind of trick witches liked to play? “But I… wasn’t invited?” Mal’s voice was still small, but in the silence of the square it seemed to ring and echo.

            “Yes, you were?” Evie looks confused too now, and Mal doesn’t think she’s faking, and the two six-year-olds frown at each other, both wondering what was going on. “We sent one for you.” She tells her, “Didn’t you get it?” her nose scrunched up as she asked.

            “No.” Mal shakes her head, “You really sent one for me?” She takes a breath and feels hope rise, her stomach no longer feels the sourness of all the hate, anger, and jealousy she’d been feeling moments before up on the balcony. Perhaps it was all a mistake and Evie really did still want to be her friend. She couldn’t help but feel a little badly about how awfully upset she’d been with Evie, especially over a misunderstanding.

            Grimhilde had approached, the only other person besides her daughter and the two fae who had moved since the duo landed, and was now standing next to her daughter. She reached a hand out to Maleficent, putting her hand on the shoulder of her long-time friend. “I’m terribly sorry for the confusion, and for causing you to feel slighted.” she apologizes, “We sent one, to invite you both to come. I don’t know what could have happened to it if you didn’t receive it.” She frowns, she spoke in an almost murmur, “That really is strange, the vultures are usually so efficient and the most trustworthy messengers.” Shaking her head she decided to attempt to investigate the lost invitation later. “I’m glad you decided to come down here to yell at me and crash the party. A party is not truly a party without one’s best friend there you know.”

            Maleficent returned the smile, though hers was a little rueful. She had the same feelings as her daughter did earlier about if her closest friend no longer wanted her, and now she felt poorly about her wavering faith in her friendship, “And I should not have doubted the closeness of our bond. I should have known that you would never truly not invite us on purpose.”

            “What do you say? Is all forgiven? Shall we put this misunderstanding behind us?” Grimhilde questioned, and Maleficent readily agreed.

            “Yay!” Evie squealed delightedly and threw herself at Mal, embracing the other girl in a tight hug. “We get to stay best friends!” Mal unfroze after Evie said that and tightly hugged her best friend back, grinning gleefully, her sharp teeth glinting. The sharpness of her teeth made it a dangerous looking smile, even on a child, and it was one that would have Auradonian’s looking at her in questioning fear. Suddenly she gasped as she remembered something she had been saving until her best friend had arrived, “Now that you’re here, it’s time to cut the cake!” She held onto both of Mal’s hands as she bounced in place. “I didn’t want you to miss the cake! It has sour apples in it!” Excitedly Evie pulled her best friend along with her towards the two-story cake, both of their mothers following after them. A chorus of excited squeals followed as a gaggle of children surrounded the table with them as the cake was distributed to children and adults alike, everyone wanting a piece of the delicious and luscious looking treat. After the cake had been devoured, the children began to run wild with merriment that one would think unusual to see in such a gloomy looking place, enjoying the scary awesome playground and activities that had been erected for the birthday celebration.

            Evie stopped by a box with dress-up items in it. Pulling out two scarves, she draped the purple and green one around Mal’s neck before draping the other one that was blue and red around her own. “Look, we match!” She giggled, and Mal smiled as she fingered the pretty scarf, it was her favorite colors and she liked the look of the frayed edges. “Yeah!” she agreed. The blue haired princess gasped and exclaimed, “They’re matching best friend scarves!” Mal’s smile widened and her eyes lit up, “Yeah!” she crowed back, and they hugged each other close again. “You’re my best friend ever Mal!” Evie admitted, “Can we stay best friends forever?”

            “You’re mine too Evie!” Mal responded happily, “Yeah! We should stay best friends forever and ever!” She agreed. A steady spooky drumming sound started and the two broke apart, and they looked around for the source. Their eyes traveled towards the puppet theater that was set up, and with glee they realized Dr.Facilier was going to be starting his show soon and the drumming was a signal for them all to gather round.

             The two shared a look before racing over, plopping themselves down eagerly among the other children who had also rushed over. “Dad told me I couldn’t tell anyone which ones he’s doing, so don’t ask.” A girl next to them greets them with a slight pout, but her excitement overshadows it and she proudly exclaims to Evie, “But he also said I could help with the shows as your birthday present! How cool is that!”

            “You’re going to help put on the shadow shows for my birthday?” Evie squeals excitedly, “That’s scary cool, Freddie!” It wasn’t always easy to come up with gifts on the Isle, there wasn’t usually an abundance of things that came in from Auradon’s leftovers that was suited for such a thing, and because of that many people gave gifts in the form of actions. “Your mom let me and Carlos help make the cake!” Jay told her as the two boys joined them. Who would have guessed that the young son of Jafar would not only turn out to be good at baking, but also enjoy it?

            “I’m going to sing for you!” her cousin Uma announces, “And I’m going to help Harry do a sword fight as his present for you too!” Looking at the scrawny girl, you would think she wouldn’t be strong enough to even hold up a heavy metal sword, but size isn’t everything and as she got older people were quickly growing to realize they shouldn’t underestimate the tiny daughter of Ursula. The aforementioned Harry grinned devilishly from his spot next to Uma, in only the way a child pirate could do. “I told Uma she should sing for you.” he announced, “She has the prettiest voice on the whole Isle!” He looked through his lashes at her adoringly and she swatted at him with a pleased roll of her eyes. Evie nodded in agreement to the pirate’s words, beaming at both Harry and her cousin. “I know! She does!”

            The drumming began to get louder and louder, drawing their attention back to the dark screen, until it stopped suddenly, all of the candles in the area being doused, plunging the courtyard into gloomy evening darkness. Delighted gasps came from the children as lights were lit behind the makeshift screen, and Freddie jumped up excitedly as her father called for her. “I’m coming daddy!” She hurried, going as fast as her six year old legs would take her to join him behind the screen. Even with young Freddie’s wavering shadows and untrained help, the shadow play enthralled everyone there, and Dr.Facilier was proud of his dear daughter’s determination and first attempt at helping him tell a story with his shadow plays.

            Tonight, the topic of the stories was specially requested by Grimhilde herself. Tonight, the stories were all about Evie’s father who had been released from the Isle of the Lost shortly before her birthday due to the unrest his imprisonment was causing his domain and fellow Gods and Goddesses. Tonight, the stories were all about the Lord of the Underworld himself, Hades. Evie wasn’t the only one enraptured with her father’s stories and exploits, and Dr.Facilier and Freddie told story after story after story, until the children’s eyes were drooping and the parents had to call it a night, carrying them home to their beds.

            Uma grumbled as she was lifted by her mother, “But I didn’t get to sing for Evie or fight with Harry yet.” she spoke in a yawning voice, and her mother chuckled, shaking her head. “You will just have to perform her presents for her tomorrow, my little tadpole.” She eyed the boy in question, “Besides, I think your partner in crime has already fallen asleep.” She informs her, only to look down when she doesn't grumble an answer to find Uma herself had also fallen asleep.

            The parents began to trickle out of the courtyard, each amused with their sleepy children, each agreeing and telling their children that tomorrow, they could all come back to take their turns to perform their gifts for the little princess. And with that, the party was over, and for the first time in years, the gloom that settled under the dome allowed the light from a single star to shine in the sky, unnoticed by all but a sleepy blue haired princess, who wished upon it. Wishing that someday the dome would come down so she could see more of them. She would never forget the brilliance of the lone star that shone in the sky on her sixth birthday.

Chapter Text

            It was that time of year again, school was winding down, spring was getting ready to bleed into summer as everyone rallied for the annual boat racing competition. This year the boat race happened to fall on Uma’s thirteenth birthday, and the students of both Serpent Prep and Dragon Hall congregated down by the docks in excited anticipation. They had been preparing for months, each student, or team of students, who signed up to participate in the race were required to build their own boat to use in the competition. Because lumber and materials weren’t always easy to come by and didn’t get resupplied from the Auradon trash barges very often, every year the boats were deconstructed, and salvageable material recycled and reused. (All except for the top three, if the winners wanted to keep them of course.)

            The grand champion prize this year was handcrafted blueprints, drafted up by Captain Hook and his first mate Mister Smee themselves, for building a magnificent sea-faring vessel that would dare to rival his own. Second place this year was a full custom-made outfit, designed and crafted by the Princess of Fashion herself, Evie and her protege Lady of Accessories, Dizzy. And finally, third place this year would be multiple day passes to use at Doctor Facilier’s arcade.

            Uma knew exactly which one she wanted, and she was absolutely determined to get it. She side-eyed her best friend Harry, “So, what do you say we up the ante on this little wager?” The inseparable duo had challenged each other this year, each one betting they could beat the other. She knew he would accept her terms, and she was determined to be the victor, getting exactly everything she wanted.

            “Well, my dear, just what do ya have in mind?” The fifteen-year-old drawled, tilting his head as he turned to eye her.

            Evie, Mal, Carlos, and Jay joined them on the docks by their boats. The four of them had elected not to participate, Evie because she was going to be making one of the prizes, and the others because they didn’t really feel like doing it without her this year. Ignoring their puzzled looks Uma responded with a bit of a smirk, “In our original bet, the loser has to do whatever the winner says for a full month.” She reiterated the deal and he nodded for her to continue, “Well, since we’re both pirates and we both know we’re going to start our own crew,” she pauses for dramatic effect,”I say whoever crosses the finish line first becomes captain, and whoever crosses second becomes first mate.” She proposes her new terms, watching the glint of intrigue and determination light up in his eyes. “So? What do you say?” She asks, her voice nonchalant as she diverted her attention, pretending to study her aqua nails before looking back at him, “Do we have a deal?”

            Harry barks a laugh, “Are ya sure ya wanna make that deal with me lass? We both know I’m gonna win.” He devilishly smiles at her again, his teeth perfectly white and glinting in the light reflecting off the clearest water off the coast of the isle, which wasn’t all that clear compared to the water right outside the barrier. “Oh, I’m sure.” She grinned back, “Because you’re wrong.”

            “Oh?” he cocks an eyebrow at her, tilting his head, still grinning at her.
            “Yeah, because I’m going to win, and you’re going to be my first mate.” she shoots back.

            “More like first date.” He flirtatiously teased, and Uma laughed this time. “In your dreams Hook.” It was a game of question and rejection for the two, and Harry’s flirting had been incessant since becoming teenagers, and even before that he had all but worshiped the ground she walked on as children, and as children sometimes do had even proclaimed that he would marry the sea goddess one day. She moved closer so she almost had to crane her neck to keep eye contact, reaching out and she gave the lapels of his red jacket a quick tug, a motion akin to popping the collar of a shirt or jacket, before smoothing them back down gently, her eyes never leaving his face.

            “Oh, every night my darling.” he leaned closer, his flirtatious voice a lilting and attractive growl to her ears. She wouldn’t admit it, but it sent thrills down her spine and almost imperceptibly she swayed on her feet.

            “Oh my gosh just kiss already.” Evie groaned at the same time as Mal teasingly complained with mock horror, “You two need to get a room. Nobody should have to see such lovey-dovey flirting, it’s disgusting. I mean seriously, think of the children.”

            “Oh shove off you two.” Uma rolled her eyes, regaining her controlled focus for the matter at hand, “So, Hook, do we got a deal or not?”

            “Oh, without question.” He still grinned at her with wide eyes, using his hook to brush her braids away from her face, curling a single braid around it, bringing it to his lips to kiss it before he let it slide off the sharp metal. If you didn’t know him, you’d think he was genuinely insane just by the look on his face. In Auradon it would petrify someone, but on the Isle it sent the hearts of many a teenage girl, including Uma herself, racing. (Again, not that she would admit it of course.)

            “All competitors to their boats!” The voice of Captain Hook loudly rang out above the idle chatter of teenagers and other spectators alike. “I guess we gotta go back to the stands now.” Evie pouted, they’d barely been out on the docks. “Good luck you guys.” Mal grinned and winked at Uma, the action telling her she hoped she was the victor, before the two girls turned to make their way to the spectator stands. “Yeah,” Jay grinned at them, “And may the best man, or woman, win!” He teased and Carlos chuckled with him before he put in his two cents, “Harry you’re going to get your butt handed to you. You of all people should know, never try to outdo Uma, and to never underestimate her.” He reminded and the two boys left the pair alone by their boats. They grinned competitively at each other, both confident as they lowered themselves from the dock into their small boats and waited for the signal.

            With a crack the bell was sounded and off they went, unfurling their sails made from curtains and sheets and pulling out their oars. Thankfully there was plenty of wind today, and off they went, everyone was in close range of each other. Voices filled the air as people cheered on who they wanted to win, and Uma’s determination only grew the closer they came to the finish line. She and Harry in the lead, the only two competing who spent any real time in and on the water. They were neck and neck, and neither was very sure anymore just which of them would come out on top, then Uma pulled ahead just in time to undeniably be the first to cross the finish. She let out a breathy laugh, throwing her fists up in the air victoriously! “Yeah!” She cheered, she knew she could do it if she put her mind to it and wanted it badly enough, and sure enough she won.

            As the contestants docked their boats, she relished the sound of her name being cheered. “Uma! Uma! Uma!” They cried as she leisurely brought her boat in, her heart still racing from adrenaline and she tried to catch her breath. Harry, who had already gotten out of his own boat stood there waiting for her. Like a gentleman he offered her his hand to help her up out of her own boat. When she had both feet on the docks he grinned at her, refusing to relinquish the hold he had on her hand and placed a lingering kiss on the back of it. She grinned at him, instead of the cliched Auradon feeling of 'butterflies' in her stomach, she likened the feeling to what she imagined the coiling of her tentacles contained to the pit of her stomach might feel like. He spoke with his lips still touching her skin, and although he only said two words as he acknowledged their new roles, the combination of the almost sultry purr of his voice and the feeling of his lips on the back of her hand sent thrills up her spine.

            “Congratulations, Captain.”

Chapter Text

            Three years later, in the middle of August, came announcements delivered to five teenagers, directly from Auradon of all places. The teens gathered together to read them, suspicious and uncertain.

            “What do you think it is?” Evie asked, poking the prestigious looking manila envelope with her finger before looking around at the faces of her friends. Carlos, Jay and Mal, and Freddie were the only other ones who had received them so far.

            Uma rolled her eyes and snatched it up, “Well, if you’d all stop being such babies and just open the studpid things, you’d know what it is.” she waved it carelessly before looking at the loopy words written on it.

            “Uma’s right.” Jay scowled at the offending piece of mail. “We should just get this over with.” He agreed, but he didn’t make a move to touch it.

            Uma groaned when nobody made any real move to open them, just intensely looked at the four pieces of mail sitting in between them on the table. Freddie’s fingers nervously twitched as she pulled hers closer. “Here, I’ll open Evie’s.” the pirate captain announced, and without her needing to ask Harry offered her his hook. In a swift motion, she took the hook and opened the letter before placing the weapon back in Harry’s hand where it belonged.

            Clearing her throat, she put on her best “Auradonian snob” acting voice and began to real. “Dear Genevieve, Daughter of the Evil Queen,” she read with a flourish, waving one of her hands in the air, adding to her dramatic reading and continued, “Congratulations! Under the proclamation of Prince Benjamin to give the children of villains a second chance, you have been among the first selected to attend Auradon Preparatory Academy for Royalty starting in the fall semester of the upcoming school year. Courtesy of Prince Benjamin, you have been granted a full ride scholarship to attend the academy.”

            “A what to do what now?” Freddie made a face between disgust and confusion, scrunching up her nose as she blinked up at Uma, who had begun to walk around the table as she read. Uma paused in her steps, looking at Freddie she answered, “It’s saying they’re gonna pay to make Evie go to their perfect little preppy school.” Freddie nodded, and Uma took a moment to let her think before shushing the group. “Now hush up and let me finish. Okay, where was I…”

             After finding her place she continues, “The scholarship will include the cost of living on campus, including, but not limited to the following: dorm housing, athletic services, food programs, and infirmary care. To allow you time to settle into life at Auradon Prep before you begin your classes, staff will assist you with moving into the dorms a week before the semester. It is imperative that you pack only what you need and are ready to leave by the designated time. A vehicle will be sent to pick you up from the bridge gate at 7:30AM on Sunday, August 25th, so please be considerate and plan to arrive at the designated location between 7:00-7:15 so you are ready when it arrives. Academy orientation for new students will occur between the hours of 8:00AM-2:30PM, Monday, August 26th through Friday, August 30th. We look forward to seeing you on campus this fall. Signed, Headmistress Fairygodmother.” She finished reading and silence enveloped the seven teenagers.

            “Are they serious?” Uma finally asked after rereading the letter silently to herself, Harry’s chin on her shoulder as he read it too.

            With less hesitation the other four teens all ripped open their envelopes to find the same messages, just addressed with their names in the greeting lines. “They’re not even asking us to accept or decline their scholarship offers.” Carlos scoffed, “They literally aren’t giving us a choice.”

            “You know, I’m not a legal expert or anything, but I believe that’s a big no-no in Auradon called kidnapping.” Freddie spoke up as she looked up from her letter, an eyebrow raised as she stressed the word.

            “Yeah, seriously.” Jay frowned at it, “They’re supposed to be these goody-goodies, but they want to take us away from our homes and families, for what? And why now?” He asked, pulling on his red beanie.

            Uma suddenly snapped her fingers a couple of times in realization, biting her lip in utter annoyance, “What is it love?” Harry asked his captain, his chin still on her shoulder. “The first line said that Prince Ben made a proclamation to ‘give the children of villains a second chance’.” She responded immediately, not really trying to hide her upset.            “Yeah, so?” Jay asked, scratching his cheek.

            “SO,” she emphasized the word and she got angrier and angrier as she continued to speak, “That means they suddenly realized they’ve treated us like fish bait our whole lives and now they wanna swoop in and play the hero card by saving us from our villainous parents.” She said the word ‘villainous’ like it personally offended her, and really? It did. Their whole lives had been luck of the draw on the Isle, you never truly knew how long a child, or an adult for that matter, would live with the improper clothing and housing and vile food scraps they were ‘gifted’ by Auradon’s elite. The people of Auradon didn’t care that they were children, just babies really, who they were locking up in the dismal and miserable place. They saw them as villains from the day they were born, and that was the only box Auradon ever allowed any of them (or their parents) to ever be put in, yet they had the gall to put up posters telling them to “Be good! Because it’s good for you!”. And now, when most of them were teenagers nearing adulthood, now they wanted to make a change? Uma’s blood boiled in righteous anger.

            “Those, those- UH!” she wanted to hit something, and she almost crumpled up Evie’s letter in her fisted hand before the blue haired girl gently pried it away, saving it from certain destruction. Harry moved his head off from it’s resting place on her shoulder and gently began to rub her shoulders soothingly, a soft kiss to the back of her head pseudo-ignored by the other teens in the room. “Calm down Captain. Ye need ta take a breath” he murmured into her hair, his fingers working some of the tension out of her shoulders. She rubbed her eyes and took a deep, shuddering breath, listening to the advice of her first mate.

            “So, what do we do?” Evie looked defeatedly at the words on the page, “Uma, cousin, what do we do?” she looked at her, fighting tears, “Do we just let them take us? Do we fight them? What can we even do? Do we even want to go? Do you think they’ll let us come home if we do go?” Question after question tumbled from her trembling red lips.

            “I honestly don’t know Evie.” She sighed and leaned her back into Harry’s chest, letting the closeness of her first mate keep her grounded as she tried to think, her thoughts churning trying to find the potential good in the situation.

            Finally, she spoke again, “Evie, you’ve always wanted to go shopping at a store with actual new clothes, to try ice cream, feel the grass between your toes, smell real flowers, see the stars and go on cutesy little dates.”

            Second, she looks at the boy with a face full of freckles, “Carlos, you love tinkering with anything you can get your hands on, and I can guarantee that you’ll be able to get your hands on technology that hasn’t already been broken if you go. And they have videogames Carlos, you would love that.”

            Looking to Mal next she continues, “Mal, you’ve always wanted to see how high you can fly, how far you can go. You’ve always wanted to see a cloudless blue sky, feel the magic in your veins, and get twirled around in a pretty dress by a boy who likes you for who you are, mischievous fae and all that comes with it.” Mal makes a protesting sound, making a face at her, “Don’t make that face, I know you Mal, it’s something you’ve always wanted even if you don’t want to admit it.”

            Her eyes meet Jays and his dare her to come up with something for him, so sure she won’t think of anything. “Jay,” she starts, and he knows she’s thought ahead, “you love to explore, and hike and rock-climb, and try new things. You like sports, a lot, you’d do so great as part of a team, I know you would. You could go visit the home of your family; you could go see Agrabah for yourself like you’ve always wanted.”

            She turns to the last of the five, “And Freddie, oh my gosh Freddie, you love the theater, you’ve loved it since before your dad let you help him put on shadow plays at Evie’s sixth birthday party. Girl, you belong on a stage, and in Auradon you can join the Theater club or acting guild, or whatever the heck they actually call it and you can show them what it means to be a storyteller.”

            Her voice was thick with emotion and she licked her lips, pausing to take a breath before spreading her arms, gesturing around to each of them as she tries to keep her composure. She screwed her eyes tightly before furiously trying to blink away the tears that were welling up in her eyes as she continued, “I know you guys don’t really want to leave home, and it’s terrifying and stuff, but you would all thrive if you weren’t trapped under the barrier.” The five teens wrestled with the emotions Uma stirred up inside them, and her words struck a chord in their hearts and minds and they knew she was right, because she was Uma and of course she was.

            “This is why you’re the Captain, Uma.” Harry told her, and she scoffed, a bitter edge to her tone. “No, I’m captain because I won a boat race, remember?”

            “No, Uma.” he shook his head, pressing a kiss to her shoulder. “You may have started out as the captain because of the boat race, but you stayed the captain because you’re a natural leader who cares about all of us.” he tells her, still standing immediately off to the side behind her, a hand trailing down her arm to lift her hand up, and he kissed his way along her arm to reach her hand, making sure not to bend her arm awkwardly to avoid causing her discomfort. “Nobody had to follow you. You didn’t amass a crew the size you did because of just a silly little boat race. You amassed a crew the size you did because people see how you lead, they see that you’re a smart and competent leader, they see that you care about them and have compassion, and they want to be a part of that.” He repeatedly kissed her knuckles in between sentences, an action only he had been granted the ability to do. She hesitated and swallowed thickly, and they could all see the argument bubbling in her, her insecurities ready to tear down the very idea that she deserved her captain-ship.

            Harry moved around to face her, his larger hands cupping her cheeks, “You are a natural born leader who takes care of her own, so much so that people follow you willingly of their own accord. All of us kids on the Isle, and even most of our parents, didn’t elect you leader of the Isle and name you our Queen for a silly little boat race, we did it because of your heart.” A chorus of agreement rang out loudly from the table in front of her, and suddenly there were five people other than Harry whose arms were wrapped around her, crushing her in the center of a group hug.

            “We love you Uma, your crew loves you, your people love you.” Evie told her.
            “You always know just what to say and do to make things better.” Mal added.

            “Yeah, without you I didn’t think the Isle could be organized, let alone the pirates, Carlos teased and Jay, feeling like he would stumble over his words if he tried, squeezed her shoulder, the action being his contribution and he tried to convey everything he felt with his eyes.

            “You are the most supportive and genuine person on this Isle.” Freddie piped up, “And I don’t think any of us would have come this far without you there behind us to encourage us and force us out of our comfort zones.”

            The mood was less somber now that it was before, as the supporting words and love between the group flowed. “What do ya say we go for a little swim, aye captain?” Harry suggested, knowing being in the water was likely to do Uma good. A slow smile spread on Uma’s face as she tried to accept the love and support her friends were offering, as she tried to accept the words they spoke as truth, and she looked back at Harry, his eyes on her as usual.

            She wet her lips before responding, “I say that’s a fine idea Harry. Let’s just forget about Auradon and school for a little while longer and go down to the beach.” she stood straighter, shaking out her braids and truly looked like the captain she was as she grinned. Mal was the only one who stayed out of the water, she hadn’t learned to swim growing up, and was terrified of learning now. The waves could be terrifying and deadly, and with her wings, she would only struggle even more. The friends took turns sitting out on the cool sand with her, everyone laughing and enjoying the rest of their afternoon, only bidding each other goodbye when it began to get too dark to stay out.

Chapter Text

            The week following the arrival of the five pretentious cream letters was a busy and rushed one for all those affected by it. When parents were informed the morning after they were received, they agreed with Uma It didn’t sound like a request at all, and in fact did sound like a demand. It was a stressful week of packing, unpacking, and repacking as the teens tried to figure out what they thought would be essentials since the letters specifically instructed them to ‘only bring what you need’. With every day that passed, the more anxious about leaving home for Auradon they became.

            Despite their feelings on the matter, Monday came quickly and found the teenagers and their families, led by Uma, standing huddled in groups in the chilly early morning by the bridge gate. The captain wasn’t about to let her people be sent off without proper goodbyes or protection. She stood tall at attention, her watchful eyes frequently sweeping the area. Before arrival she made sure each one of them had small weapons they could use in an emergency, just in case. She didn’t want any of those pig-headed, small-minded Auradonian snobs getting the jump on one of hers.

            “Are you going to be okay by yourself?” Carlos’s voice was quiet as he asked his mother the question. “Oh my sweet pup,” She smiled at him fondly, and you wouldn’t recognize her as the wild and crazy woman who wanted to make a dalmation fur coat if it weren’t for her hair. “Grimhilde is going to keep making my medicine in her daughter Genevieve’s absence, and Jafar will be making sure I take my daily dosages.” The two made an unlikely pair of friends, discovering they had similar interests in lavish lifestyles and design, and common background that came in the form of experience in running empires; his was with Agrabah and hers was with her DeVil fashion empire. Carlos nodded, his worry for his mother soothed by the promises of her friends.

            Jay slung an arm over Carlos’s shoulders and gave him a friendly squeeze, “Don’t you worry my friend, your mom is going to be well taken care of while you’re gone.” he grinned down at him, and Carlos found it too infections not to smile back at him. His mother chose that moment to embarrass him, “You better keep an eye on my little boy, Jaylen.” she gives them a look, “Keep him out of trouble.”

            Carlos scoffed teasingly, “Shouldn’t he be keeping himself out of trouble first?” Jafar let out a bellowing laugh.

            Jay put on an exaggerated face of offense, “I’ll have you both know I don’t look for trouble, trouble looks for me.”

            “Sure, sure.” Freddie rolled her eyes at the two, turning back to her own small family. “Do you have to go?” Celia fretted, anxiously picking at her already chipped nail polish. The ten year old didn’t like the idea of her big sister leaving, and hadn’t hesitated in saying so when she found out about the Auradon invitation. “Yeah Cee, I do.” Freddie sighed, slightly slumping shoulders. Despite the six year age gap between them, the two sisters were actually very close.

            A horn sounded and when they all collectively looked for the source, they saw a golden vehicle pulling into one of the few places wide enough for it to turn around. “Uh, what is that?” Freddie leaned back with crossed arms before pointing at it skeptically as she asked her question.

            “Oh, I know!” Evie answered her, “It’s called a limousine, or limo for short. It’s a very long and very fancy type of car.”

            “Well that’s... “ she eyed it and Evie offered up some descriptive words, “Extravagant? Opulent? Sumptuous?” Freddie gave Evie a look before finishing flatly, unimpressed,  “ I was gonna say flashy or unnecessary, I mean, there’s literally only five of us.”

            The drivers got out and the doors and truck were opened. The islanders stared at them with narrowed eyes, and they exasperatedly sighed before gesturing to put their bags into the trunk. Jay dropped his and Carlos’s bags in after clasping hands farewell with his father. Mal held her small purse tightly  not wanting to separate from it, her spellbook hidden inside. Her duffle plopped in next to the boys bags and she turned back, throwing herself into her mother’s arms. “Don’t be scared to fly dear one.” her mother’s elegant voice in her ear, “You'll be too busy enjoying life outside the barrier to be scared, and before you know it you’ll find your father out there. Or he’ll find you.” She smiled up at her mother from the security of her embrace. “I know you’re right mother. You’re always right.” she admits, and out of the corner of her eye she sees Evie with her mother. Grimhilde slips something shiny to her daughter, and Uma stands aside, awaiting her turn to say final goodbyes to her cousin. Softly Maleficent brushes stray hair from her face and kisses her forehead. “Go on.” she urges, and Mal forces herself to leave her safety and she too gets into the Limo, joining Carlos and Jay, Evie following immediately behind her.

            Freddie stood still as she stared at the limo, she was the last one. Her life was going to change drastically, and she didn’t know if it was going to be good changes or bad ones. Standing there in front of the limo, it was a daunting feeling. Her stomach in knots, she felt like she they were asking her to jump off of a cliff to her death instead of get into a car to go to school. Her fear was mostly dispelled when she was startled out of her trance by her father’s hands on her shoulders. “You alright there Fred?” He asked. Her throat felt tight and she was about to force out an answer to tell him she was fine, when he continued, “You know it’s okay not to be, right? Just because you have to go doesn’t mean you have to be alright with it.”

            “You’re right dad.” she bit her lip, “I’m not alright with this, I’m really not. I don’t want to go.” she shook her head as she spoke before turning and hugging him as tightly as she could. “I don’t want to leave you and Celia, daddy, I don’t want to.” She almost sobbed into his chest and he just held her, running a hand along her back soothingly. Celia’s bottom lip wobbled as she heard her older sister cry, and she threw herself at them, making it a hug between the entire Facilier family. “I know you don’t babygirl, I know you don’t.” his smooth voice was soothing and he pulled away, his hands brushing her hair out of her face and cupping it gently. “But you have to, it’s not a choice. You understand?” she nodded, tears still tracking down her cheeks, “You’re going to see so many things. Everything’s brighter out there and without the barrier blocking you, you have the chance to practice real voodoo magic out there. You’ll have some of your friends with you to help you, you aren’t alone in this, not by a long shot baby.”

            He smiled solemnly at her, “Now let’s dry those eyes baby girl, cause you’re going on an adventure you could only dream of.” He pulls a handkerchief, seemingly from thin air, and she does as instructed. “Remember who you are out there, you are Francine Nadine Facilier, and there ain’t nobody who can take that away from you.”

            “I love you daddy. I love you Celia.” she hugged them both as tightly as she could, one last time, before tearing herself away. Before she lost her nerve she put her bag in the trunk and climbed inside with the others.

            Hey E,” Jay spoke as Freddie sat down, “Where was your shadow today? Ya know, that kid, Dizzie?” They felt a jolt as the vehicle pulled away, beginning the trek back to the campus.

            “I spent last night saying my goodbyes to her.” Evie smiled fondly, “I didn’t bring her because she would have never let go of me if I did. I made sure to say goodbye to her before I left this morning though, she was mostly still asleep, so I don’t know if she really heard me.”

            They turned to look out the tinted window in the back, and together they waved at their families, staring at the spot until they could no longer make them out.

            Turning back in her spot Freddie sniffled and bit her lip, reaching up to cover her mouth with her hand to muffle the sound as she fought her emotions for control again. Losing sight of them making her resolve crack as it hit her again.

            Evie and Mal put themselves on both sides of her, taking her hands and leaning into her. None of the others had any siblings, so they couldn’t truly understand exactly how she was feeling. Everyone on the Isle was close, especially family. Even close cousins sometimes felt more like siblings than anything else, but it was still different for them than it was for Freddie.

            Evie came the closest, having recently taken a young paint splattering stylist under her wing, so to speak. Even in the short amount of time she had known her, little Dizzy Tremaine had so closely attached herself to Evie that Evie had begun to feel like she was rapidly gaining a pseudo little sister of her own. She knew if she felt terrible about leaving Dizzie, then Freddie must feel even worse. “Just breathe Freddie, just breathe.” Mal coached her, helping her pace her breathing to keep from hyperventilating, “We got you girl. We got you.”  

Chapter Text

            Even in the lavish and expansive space the limousine provided, the island teens stayed huddled fairly closely together, riding along in relative silence. They all needed the safety and calm that their system of support provided, Freddie most of all at the moment. They wanted to be strong for their parents, needed to be strong for themselves and for each other, but it was hard to be strong when you were in the dark.

            Carlos poked at the brightly colored packages lining the side of the limo in abundance, wrinkling his nose at the sound the plastic made under the slight pressure. Warily he picked up one of the closest ones, uncertain what exactly was in the baggies and what it was for. If the stylistic drawings on them were any indicator, some of them held some kind of food items, but not any that he recognized. The package crinkled in his soft grip as he maneuvered it to try and find print. Unable to find any he cursed his rotten luck, and pursed his lips as he studied the image on it for clues instead.

            “Whatcha got there C?” Mal was the first to ask, and Carlos shook his head. “I’m not sure, but I’m positive it’s some kind of… food?” He passed it to her for inspection. When she had no answers she passed it back with a shrug. “I think you’re probably right.”

            At that moment Carlos’s stomach grumbled softly, and he winced at how the quiet sound seemed so much louder here. He sighed as he looked at it, twitching his nose as he thought. “Should we try it?”

            “No, I don’t think we should.” Jay shook his head this time, “I mean, we don’t know what it is, why it's here or what could be in it. They aren’t above kidnapping us, so what’s to say they’re above poison?”

            The younger boy looked at it with wide eyes, listening to what Jay said, immediately dropping it back where it came from. The teens shied away from it, Jay’s concerns valid and familiar warnings, already being broken by the fact that they had all gotten into the limo.

            Don’t go anywhere with strange people you don’t know unless they could tell you your safety word. Don’t go willingly if someone tries to take you, fight back and draw as much attention as you can. Don’t take food from strangers that you don’t know where the source is. Even the food from the barges was questionable, but you could usually tell it was safe because Auradon might give them garbage, but they gave them their garbage, which came from stuff they made for themselves which obviously weren’t going to be poisoned or bad. Don’t leave your friends alone, always pair up in groups.

            If you didn’t listen to your parents, you might not come back.These warnings were drilled in very early on, after all, even though their parents were good to them and they cared, that didn’t mean there weren’t some truly awful and despicable people locked on the Isle. To be cautious and wary was to be safe. To be too trusting was a dangerous thing, and could very well be a death sentence.

            “How much longer do you think it is?” Evie asked, she already sounded drained. The only response she got was in the form of shrugging shoulders. None of them had an accurate way to keep track of time with them. After all, batteries weren’t very commonly thrown away with any charge left, and not often were they the rechargeable kind either. So things that the people in Auradon considered a norm, like wristwatches, simply weren’t for the Islanders who had to make due with a lot of things. If you had something that was broken, you’re best bet was to send it to Carlos. And if it couldn’t be saved? The parts could still be salvaged and repurposed.

            They didn’t have to wait much longer, the limo pulling around into the ornate courtyard entryway to Auradon’s prestigious preparatory academy. It was with no fanfare that the children slowly and cautiously exited the vehicle once the door was unlocked and opened for them by one of the drivers, Jay going first because with his strength and size he could easily give his friends a few seconds of extra time if they needed it. The only person besides the drivers, who were already dumping their bags and climbing back into the cab of the limo, was a somewhat stout woman in light blue.

            The limo peeled away, leaving the teens in it’s dusty wake. “Rude.” Evie huffed under her breath to herself, “Somebody needs to teach those two some manners.” Her comment went unheard by the woman, who was smiling brightly at them and clearly trying to hide her apprehension behind hopeful optimism and her cheery attitude. “Welcome to Auradon prep kids!” her voice was sunny, and the group shared a look, displeased at being called ‘kids’. “Well, grab your things! We have a lot of ground to cover this week, so we’re going to get started! Just the tour for today.” Turning on her heel she started marching forward and the teens quickly snatched up their roughly discarded luggage and followed.

            Even with the sunshine, clear blue sky, and beautiful foliage, the campus had an eerie silence to it as they hurried after the mystery woman. “So, I kinda assumed that we would be meeting Prince Benjamin right away, since, you know, he’s the one who wanted us to come here.” Mal hefts her bag higher on her shoulder, trying to take in some of the campus as they passed.

            “Oh, why yes.” She let out a laugh, “He wanted to be here to personally greet you, but there were some things that came up that needed tending to, and as he’s getting ready for his coronation, that meant he had to deal with them.” she informs them with a wave of her hand as they hustled into the school.

            Footsteps sounded, and a boy began coming down the stairs as they went up. He was the first person they’d seen their age so far, and the only other person besides the blue lady they’d seen on campus. His nose was in a book and he didn’t look up, even as her voice echoed while she rambled on about the architecture and history of the building. It wasn’t until they were passing each other that he had the presence of mind to look up. His eyes met Evie’s and she turned to look over her shoulder to hold the eye contact as she continued up the stairs. She offered a small wave and timidly smiled at him, hoping to appear friendly. “Hi.” she managed to whisper out to him as they passed before being swept along in the hurry to keep up with their guide lady.

            “You thought he was cute, didn’t you?” Freddie quietly teased the princess under her breath, already recognizing how echoey the hallways seemed to be. “Stop.” Evie shook her head and she received a small shove and sheepish grin for her efforts. “OOoh, somebody’s got a crush.” Carlos sung under his breath with a snicker.

            “Is something funny Mr… De Vil?” the woman abruptly stopped and whirled around to face them, taking a wild guess as to Carlos’s identity. It was only through luck that she got it right on the first attempt. “Uh, no.. ma’am?” he tried and shrank in on himself a little, the suspicious scrutiny of her gaze making him uncomfortable. “That’s what I thought.” she almost huffed before turning and continuing on.

            The twists and turns of the hallways began to get confusing, and the teenagers tried to keep track of it all but everything looked so much alike that they might as well have been going in circles for all they knew. In and out and up and down they went, trudging along dutifully, still carrying their things. The tour seemed to take forever, and finally ended up at the dorms, and were relieved to find out they would have the rest of the afternoon to settle in.

            “Genevieve and Maladia, you are rooming together in room 201. Carlos and Jaylen, you are rooming together in 112. Francine, you are in room 225.” She tells them as she hands them each a key to their room, “Boys are not allowed in the girls dorms after curfew begins, and vise versa. Curfew is at 10 o’clock sharp, which means you should give yourself the proper time to get back to your rooms before that.”

            “Do I have a roomate too?” Freddie halfway raised her hand nervously as she spoke, to help draw attention.

            “Uh,” her smile faltered, “Well, um, actually you don’t, not yet anyway.” she shrugged, trying to be nonchalant. “You still might get a roommate, and if you do you will be informed and introduced.” She looked between the faces of the students, “Any more questions? No? Alrightly, then I will see you bright and early at 8am down in classroom hall number 101 where we’ll begin our formal orientation. Toodles!” she turned and waved over her shoulder, and before they could speak up she rounded the corner and was gone.

            “I was going to ask about dinner, but I guess it’s fine.” Carlos sighed and they turned back to the hallway lined with doors. “I guess we’d better find our rooms, huh?” The teens shared a nod of solidarity before striding down the hallways to find their rooms. It didn’t take long for them to locate the correct numbers even in the maze of dorm hallways. The boys splitting off to inspect their room while the girls continued on. Freddie found hers next, but she followed Mal and Evie into their room, not wanting to be alone just yet.The trio dropped their bags together before plopping down on one of the mattresses together, thoroughly exhausted they fell asleep quickly.

Chapter Text

            Morning came far too early once again, and the teenagers grumbled even as they hurried through getting ready. “Come on, let’s get the boys.” The girls rushed from the room, Freddie already with them since they immediately fell asleep, so she spent the night in their room instead of her own. The two groups almost collided head on in the hallway in their hurry to find each other. “Ready?” Carlos asked them. Freddie snorted and Evie sighed her response “As we’ll ever be, I suppose.”

            They made their way through the maze of a castle school, slipping and sliding over the glossy floors and stairs, hoping they were on time and not late for their first day of orientation. They didn’t want to be here, not really, but they also didn’t want to make poor first impressions either. “Man, what do they do to the floors here?” Freddie grumbled with a scowl as she nearly fell for the umpteenth time. They rounded the corner sharply and Evie shrieked as she slipped backwards, wildly throwing her arms out in a fruitless attempt to steady herself.

            “Woah!” A voice called as they caught her. The teens started in surprise, it would seem someone else was also in a hurry this morning. Evie looked up to see who caught her, their arms under her own and she was at an angle which made it easy to tilt her head slightly to see. “Hi.” she smiled sheepishly at the boy above her. “You okay?” he asked, looking down at her, then he seemed to remember he was still holding her up at an angle and turned red, “Oh, sorry.” he apologized, helping her get righted.

            “She’s fine.” Mal answered for her friend who was blushing like mad and seemed to have lost her ability to speak. “Thanks to you, that is.” Evie twisted her hands in front of her stomach nervously, “Thank you for catching me.” she managed to shyly thank him. “Oh, um, of course.” he scratched the nape of his neck nervously as he blushed even harder and Mal decided she quite liked him. “It was nothing.”

            “I’m Maladia, but you can just call me Mal, everyone does.” she decided to start proper introductions with her best friend’s savior, and new, clearly reciprocated, crush. “This is Jaylen, but he goes by Jay. That’s Carlos, and Francine goes by Freddie.” she pointed to each in turn, “And the girl blushing like mad who you just saved from a nasty fall is Genevieve, but you can call her Evie.” 

            The boy nervously smiled at each of them, noting the name with the person indicated. Something in his mannerisms and the way he paid rapt attention to their names told them that he didn’t have a lot of friends, or he wasn’t used to making new ones. “My name is Douglous, Doug for short.” He introduces himself, pushing his glasses back up on his nose, another nervous tick.

            “So, where are you guys rushing off to at…” he paused to look at his wristwatch, “seven o’clock in the morning?” The teens blinked at him, “Wait, it’s only seven?” Jay groaned, “We were told to be there at eight, what are we supposed to do for an hour?” Carlos’s stomach chose that moment to rumble loudly, and in the quiet stone hall it’s echo seemed almost deafening to the villain kids.

            “Why don’t you guys come to breakfast?” he offered, “To be honest, that’s where I was going to guess you were heading to.”

            “Breakfast?” Carlos asked, intrigued. “Are we allowed?”

            “Of course, all students and staff are welcome to grab something to eat whenever they’re hungry. I mean, there are always snacks available in the cafeteria and in the vending machines, but standard meals are served at breakfast, lunch, and dinner.”

            “Um, what’s a cafeteria?”  Freddie asked skeptically. There may have been a ‘cafeteria’ at Serpent Hall and Dragon Prep, but because of the lack of food readily available to provide students, it wasn’t called a cafeteria and was instead used as a space for students to hang out in between classes or during free periods.

            He looked at them oddly, but thankfully didn’t comment other than to answer their questions. “A cafeteria is a place that serves food. It’s a big room with tables and chairs, and you usually go through a line to pick out what you want.” He watched as they took stock of his answer before offering, “You guys want to join me? After all, you’ve got about an hour before you have to be wherever it is you were going.” He reasoned, hoping they would take him up on it, but trying not to make them feel like he was pressuring them into it. Just because he wanted to make friends didn’t mean they did.

            They shared a look as they came to a decision. “Actually, that’d be great.” Mal smiled at him. They all paused for a moment, looking around the hall, “Okay, so, we’re actually lost.” she turned back and admitted with a wince, “That lady yesterday kinda rushed through the tour, and honestly? Everything sorta looks the same.”

            “Yeah, I wish she would’ve given us a map or something.” Freddie readily agreed.

            “Oh, you mean Fairy Godmother?” He asked, “Yeah, you’d think she’d give better tours and stuff, you know, being the headmistress and all.” he shook his head as they looked at him incredulously. “That was the Fairy Godmother?” It was Jay’s turn to ask skeptically, “We’re talking about the same person? Short, brown shoulder length hair, covered in pastel blue?”

            “Yeah.” Doug let out a short laugh, “That’s her alright. She didn’t introduce herself? That’s weird, but she can be forgetful sometimes if she’s distracted enough.” he confirms before waving them to follow, “Come on, I’ll show you where the cafeteria is.” Evie immediately latched onto his arm when he offered it to her, her hand gently hanging around his elbow. “Lead the way, Doug.” She smiled softly at him when she spoke.

            They walked at an easygoing pace as Doug gave them a chance to take in some of the hallways they passed through. “I’m not much of a guide.” he tells them, “You should talk to Jane though. She knows this place like the back of her hand. She’ll have you guys navigating it like old pros in no time.” he assures, “You guys are new students, so I think I’m actually your student class guide.” he continues, “You know, to help with your class schedules and point you in the right direction or find you a tutor if you need help.”

            The six students walked into the cafeteria, and Doug watched as they marveled over the high ceilings as their eyes explored the large open space. “Did you guys not get to see the cafeteria on your tour yesterday?” he asked, and received a chorus of “No’s” in response. “Oh. My. Gosh.” Freddie’s jaw dropped as she spotted the buffet line, “Guys look!” she pointed and the rest of them followed suit, gaping at the food on display. “Are we really allowed to take whatever we want?” Evie asks incredulously in a small wonder-filled voice. “I’ve never seen so much food in one place before.” He barely heard Mal murmur. “And it’s not covered in that white or green fuzzy stuff.” Freddie murmured back. “That’s called mold Freddie.” Evie informed her quietly, and he started in surprise at what they were saying.

            “Oh, uh, erm.” he stuttered as he tried to get over his astonished shock enough to answer her, “Of course.” he nods, “Anything you guys want, you just put on a plate and take to a table to eat.” he leads them to the start of the line, handing her a plate. “The plates are kinda small, but don’t worry about filling them up on your first time. You can always come back up for seconds.” He informs them.

            At that they immediately descended upon the table, and everything they could fit went onto a plate. Although the temptation to just pile the plates as high as they could, take as much food as possible to stash for later, they warily kept in mind that he said they were allowed to come back for more if they wanted it, and now that they knew where this place was, they knew they would plan to come back with proper bags to take as much food as they could carry.

            They turned and assessed the room, looking for the best spot, and Jay nudged Mal with his elbow, nodding in the direction of a table he though would be good, and she nodded her consent at his choice back. The table had quick and easy access to an exit and they would be able to see the whole room from it. Doug watched them contemplate for a minute, and trailed behind them to their table of choice.

            Upon sitting down the teens tore into their breakfast with gusto, delighted at the burst of freshness and flavor in each bite. “You have to try this.” Freddie and Evie both exclaimed at the same time; Freddie shoving a tart at Evie who in turn shoved a strawberry at Mal. Food exchanged plates, what someone didn’t care for went to another until it too was finished off. By the end, their plates were completely empty, and they had finished off whatever was left on Doug’s plate too which he had readily handed over, admitting that he was stuffed so full that he couldn’t eat anymore. Absolutely nothing went into the trash from their plates, everything had been absolutely devoured.

            Even when they were bursting from the seams from being so full that they felt sick, they still looked at the buffet with regret when they walked back out of the cafeteria to go meet with Fairy Godmother.

Chapter Text

            “Well, here’s your stop.” Doug announced as they slowly came to a halt in front of a large door with a few minutes left to spare before eight o’clock. “I guess this is where we part ways.” he smiled right next to him at Evie, now slightly pouting, who had once again walked with him, her hand in the crook of his elbow, “For now anyway.” he amended and flushed at the way she immediately perked up, her expression brightening once more. “Do you guys know when you’re meetings with Fairy Godmother are done with for today?” he asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

            “Honestly? Not a clue.” Mal frustratedly breathed out of her nose. “It’d be nice to know what kind of schedule we’ll be on for this orientation stuff.”

            “Hmm. I suppose she’ll probably tell you today, but just in case I’ll see if I can find out.” he hummed, “If anyone knows, I’m sure it’ll be Jane.”

            “Who’s Jane again?” Jay asked him, not the only one racking his brain to remember.

            “Jane Goodfairy, she’s actually Fairy Godmother’s daughter.” he explains, “You know what, why don’t I see if I can find her and send her up to meet you guys when you’re done? Or maybe if you’ve got a break for lunch or something I can come up with to introduce you guys.”

            “That’s a great idea Doug.” Evie smiles again, “That’s really sweet of you to offer.”

            “Ah, it’s nothing.” he assured with a small chuckle, “Really, I’m glad I can help.”

            “Ah, there you are.” a voice startled them, “I thought I was hearing voices.” They They almost whipped around to see Fairy Godmother peeking out of the door to the classroom. “Well, don’t dilly dally, come on in!” she encouraged as she pushed the door open wider and gestured for them to pass her to enter. “We have a lot of ground to cover!” She basically sang and Freddie raised an eyebrow, looking at with confused amusement, why was anybody’s guess. “Is she always this perky in the morning?” she whispered to Jay with a small chuckle, which seemed to go unheard by the older fae woman.

            It was with great reluctance that the teens tried not to sigh as they nodded their goodbyes to Doug and filed in. “Well, don’t be shy, go ahead and pick a spot to sit while I finish getting my things ready.” The older woman cheerily laughs, waving them forward towards the tables as she breezes to the front of the room.

            Mal tried not to scowl at how much energy the woman seemed to have while she herself felt like she was barely trudging along after having eaten breakfast. She wondered if it was normal to feel this tired after eating until she felt like she was going to burst at the seams or if it was just her. A side-eyed glance told her the others were beginning to feel it too.

             The tables were smaller, only seating two students at each, and the group plopped down into the seats with soft sighs, trying not to grumble. Carlos and Jay took the first with Evie and Mal taking the one next to it and Freddie taking one by herself right behind them. Since she didn’t have anyone at her table, Freddie leaned back in her chair and put her feet up on the empty one next to her, trying to get comfortable and act natural like everyone else. Jay slid down and slumped back in his chair while Carlos slouched and hunched slightly. Mal hunched her shoulders and leaned over the desk. Evie was the only one among them sitting up straight and tall in her seat, like the princess she was. Although they received the same education, unlike many of her peers, her mother’s intensive lessons on etiquette were heavily ingrained into her mannerisms.

            “We’re going to be starting off our orientation week with the history of Auradon Prep!” Fairy Godmother announced cheerily, “And since I don’t know what kind of schooling you received prior, we’ll go over some basic Auradon history as well as it relates to the founding of our prestigious school.” The teens tried to be attentive as they listened to her drone on and on about the perfect history of Auradon after all the villains were locked up, but their stomachs were full and their eyes were heavy. Even Evie was slowly beginning to slouch ever so slightly in her tired exhaustion.

            They were so intently focusing on trying to stay awake and listen to what Fairy Godmother was saying about historical events that would lead to the founding of the academy that they barely registered the soft creaking sound of the door opening slowly. A yelp and thud resounded in the room and the startled teens jolted upright, more alert now as they turned to see what made the sound. A girl with bobbed hair was on the ground, thick binders splayed out in front of her, some of the papers scattered. “Are you okay?” Doug crouched down to help her as she frantically tried to gather her things. “I’m fine, I just tripped is all. Thanks Doug.” she smiled a tight-lipped smile as if she refused to show her teeth.

            “Doug? Jane?” Fairy Godmother blinked in surprise, “What are you two doing here? You’re not supposed to be here until two thirty.” From her vantage point she hadn’t been able to see Jane on the ground when she looked up, only knowing she was there when she heard her daughter reply to Doug’s question. Having heard her daughter affirm she was alright, she trusted her to tell her if she truly was hurt and decided to leave it at that.

            “Uh,” Jane raised an eyebrow as she stood and straightened her skirt with one hand since her other arm was filled with half of the binders since Doug had picked up some as well. “Mom? It’s two thirty.”

            Fairy Godmother blinked and turned her wrist to look at the watch she wore, “Oh! Goodness, would you look at that!” She chuckled with a wave of her hand, “It’s already two-thirty. Looks like we missed taking our mid-day break..”She hummed with a shake of her head. “I’ll watch the time better tomorrow.”

            Her gaze panned across the Isle kids and she gave them a smile, “I suppose this is as good a place as any to stop for now. We’ll pick up where we’re leaving off tomorrow morning. I recommend you use your free time this week to get yourselves acquainted with the school grounds and acclimate yourselves to living in Auradon.” With that she turns it over to Jane to distribute the binders she brought with her and tells her daughter that she will see her later at supper.

            Jane nods to her mother as she passes and breezes out of the room before she steps forward with Doug and sets the binders down. “These are Auradon Prep’s student handbooks, I know they look huge.” she agrees when the look at them with wide, almost concerned eyes. “Umm..” Carlos tilted his head and scrunched up his nose as he lifted the edge of one. “What exactly is a handbook?”

            “A handbook is basically just a fancy word for a book with rules in it.” She answers him. “You’ll find information on the dress code, cafeteria hours, curfew and dorm room rules.” she lists a few topics. “These papers,” she holds up the papers that had flown out of her binders before, “are just quick maps that I put together earlier this morning just to get you by until I can make some actually decent maps for you.” Quickly she passes copies to each of them. “Each page is labeled for which floor level of the castle it is, and I tried to label any of the rooms and routes you might be needing for this week.” she explains, pointing to the highlighted marks. “I’ll also make maps for the other buildings on school grounds and a map of the town as well so you can have a hopefully easy to follow guide to help you navigate while you learn the layout.” she smiles warmly at them and they feel a warm and fuzzy sense of welcome, though Mal notes she still kept her lips closed when she smiled as if avoiding showing off her teeth.

            “I imagine you guys just kind of want to rest a bit, but if you’re up for it we can wander around campus for a while, give you a chance to explore with some guides along so you don’t feel too lost.” she offers, but scrutinizes their faces for a moment, seeing the tired bags under their eyes but a hesitation to say no and she offers an alternative. “Or, since you guys look super tired, why don't you back to your dorm rooms to get some rest and Doug and I can pick you up for dinner and then we can wander for a while after?”

            “I’m not that tired.” Freddie tried to insist, but failed in convincing anyone when she yawned as she emphasized her last word. The teens all shared looks, some of the skeptical of her statement while others were a silent discussion on making a decision. The quintet agreed to the latter of the choices after a few moments of silent deliberation, although they wanted to continue to get to know their two new acquaintances (friends, they optimistically hoped) they had to admit they were all quite exhausted and needed to rest.

            Once they reached the dorms, Doug went with the boys and Jane with the girls. “We’ll see you in a few hours.” Doug reminded them with a smile before they willingly retreated into their shared room to collapse. “Thanks man.” Jay nodded with his thanks and waved as the other boy took off down the hallway, it wasn’t until he rounded the corner that they closed the door. “How does six o’clock sound?” Jane asked as they stopped at Mal and Evie’s room. “Sounds good.” Mal spoke first as Evie unlocked the door.

            “Can I stay here with you guys for awhile?” Freddie pipes up as the door swings open wide. “I’m just, I’m still not used to the idea of not sharing a room yet, you know?”

            “Of course, Freddie, you’re always welcome with us, you know that.” Evie warmly smiles and squeezes her shoulder comfortingly.

            “Oh, do you not have a roommate?” Jane asks with a tilt of her head.

            “No.” Freddie confirms, “I think they just didn’t have anyone else willing to room with a villain, you know.” she tries to laugh it off, but her laugh sounds more bitter to Jane’s perceptive ears than anything.

            Jane hums, “You know, I don’t have a roommate either.” she admits, “My mother was worried about my ears, you know, fae hearing in the dorms and all.” she brushes her bobbed hair behind her ear and gestures to the appendage as they see the pointed tip for the first time. “But I found these really good ear plug remedies that dim sounds really well for fae. I tried them out a few times last semester when I spent the night in Jordan’s room and they really do work wonders.” she bites her lip nervously, “Maybe, if you’d like, I can request a room transfer and we could be roommates?” Jane doesn’t dare be too hopeful, even though she really wanted to have a roommate she doesn’t want to overwhelm her potential new friend with her presence, lest she become bored or annoyed with her.

            “You, you would really want to room, with me?” Freddie looks incredulous, but happy Jane notes when she nods. “I- I think I’d like that.” She grins toothily at her and for the first time Jane grins back, her teeth shining and Mal’s eyes widen and she recoils as she realizes why the other fae girl refused to show her teeth. The shine made her look inhuman, but that’s not what made Mal’s heart sink in abject horror. Her heart sank because her teeth had clearly been shaved down, recently too and she couldn’t help but stare, sucking on her own still sharp teeth. Her eyes flickered to Jane’s and suddenly the other girl widened her eyes and clamped her mouth shut in a thin-lipped smile, telling Mal she wasn’t willing to talk about it, at least not yet. They were still almost strangers to each other.

            Mal winced as her back hit the door after Jane left. Running her tongue along her teeth she tried to figure out just how quickly fae teeth regrew and resharpened and how often Jane was shaving her teeth down. She shuddered at the thought, racking her brain for possible reasons why she would do that to herself, but coming up with none.

            “Is something wrong Mal?” Evie’s voice called her from her thoughts, and she looked up to see both the other girls had shed their shoes and jackets and were already cozying up on the plush bed, just waiting on her. “Yeah.” she nodded, “But we’ll talk about it later, okay? Maybe after we get some rest I’ll be able to think about it more clearly you know, see it in a different light.” She reasoned, hoping that she could help Jane somehow, but not quite sure how to bring it up or get her talking about it.

            “If you’re sure.” Freddie offers the chance to change her mind and Mal shakes her head, “I’m sure. Let’s get some rest.” Her shoes hit the floor with a thunk as she pulls each of them off and her jacket drapes over a chair along with Freddie and Evie’s before she plops down on the bed with them.

            It doesn’t take long for all the Isle kids to fall asleep and they are out like a light soon after they curl up together.

Chapter Text

            It was a soft knocking at the door that gently roused the trio of girls from their afternoon nap. “Hmm? What time is it?” Freddie hummed as she scrunched her eyes shut tighter.

            “I dunno.” Evie hummed back, pulling her blanket tighter as she mumbled back.

            “Well somebody gotta check.” Freddie responded with a small groan and Mal huffed before shoving herself up off the bed. Squinting she tried to read the clock. “Oh.” she blinked when the knock sounded again, this time followed by a soft and welcome voice. “Mal? Freddie? Evie? Are you three up yet?”

            “Oh, it’s already six.” She stumbles over to the door, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she opens it and waves the other fae inside. “Give us a minute or two, we’re just waking up.” she tells her.

            “Oh, take your time.” She smiles, and Mal can’t help but notice the way she seems to be more careful and conscientious about avoiding showing her teeth. “I don’t mind waiting, and Doug is getting Carlos and Jay right now. I thought you might still be sleeping, so I told Doug we would meet them down right outside the cafeteria.”  she shrugs nonchalantly.

            “Okay.” Freddie nods sleepily as Evie runs a brush through her blue hair, smoothing it back out from the mess it had become while sleeping. Looking to Freddie she held back a giggle, “Freddie,” she starts, “girl, your hair is a mess coming out of your pony-tails. Can I redo it for you?” she asks.

            “Eh.” she receives a shrug and a yawn in response, “Why not. Go for it.” Evie makes quick work of Freddie’s hair, taking out the old pony-tails, brushing her hair, and redoing the twin tails. “All done.” she tells her, satisfied with her handiwork fixing Freddie’s hair before she glances over at Mal. “You need your hair brushed out too Mal.” she tells her, “Can I?” she holds up the brush as she asks and Mal sighs, knowing she won’t refuse the request. Without really answering she walks back over and sits in front of Evie who happily runs the brush through her purple hair, years of experience making it easy for her to maneuver the brush around the base of her horns until it too is smoother and untangled.

            It only takes a few minutes of hair brushing for the trio of girls to slowly wake up. Now, feeling more refreshed and ready to go, although they still don’t feel hungry they once more follow Jane through the winding hallways to the school cafeteria to meet up with the boys. It had been a long time since they hadn’t woken up hungry, no matter what time of day it was, but that didn’t make them any less internally wary of Auradon.

            Although quiet, the walk was comfortable in it’s silence. Jane’s bobbed hair barely moved as she walked right in front of Mal, Freddie by her side. Mal pursed her lips, it was another thing she thought was odd to see in a fae. She didn’t know much about other types of fae, having never had much of an opportunity to meet one before coming to Auradon, but she did know the majority of fae had an affinity for lengthy hair. Mal herself wasn’t an exception, but she was still growing hers out as long as she could with the unhygienic circumstances long hair often had due to living on the Isle. (Uma and even Freddie were two of the only people she knew who put up with it, but Freddie’s hair was thinner and easier to manage while Uma’s was thicker, and since she kept her hair in braids, it was easier for her to keep her hair long and take care of it.) Jane, it would appear, wasn’t growing hers at all.

            “Hey, Jane?” She tilted her head as she got the other girl’s attention. “Yeah Mal?” she answered over her shoulder as they walked. “Can I ask why you have very short hair?” she tried not to sound timid in her questioning, “It’s okay if you don’t want to tell me.” she hastily added, not wanting to make her uncomfortable in her quest to satisfy her curiosity.

            “Uh,” she paused in the hallway and turned halfway around. “Well,” she licked her lips, “My mom thinks short hair makes us look more normal you know? Helps us blend in.”

            “But you don’t like it.” Evie states, observing the flicker of sadness in her eyes as she fingers the tips of her hair.

            “No.” she shook her head, “But it’s okay. I mean, my mom only wants what’s best for me, and with the anti magic laws and King Adam sort of breathing down her neck about it, she’s worried I’ll get ostracized by my peers or scare someone just by being and appearing as I am, as fae. Fae usually have such beautiful hair, and I don’t because it makes me appear more inhuman.” she tries to explain, and Mal realizes this extends to other aspects of her appearance, such as her teeth too.

            “Can I- Is that why- I know we barely-” she tries before taking a breath as she decided to ask now instead of later with the topic partially brought up., “I know we barely know each other, and I don’t want you to feel like you have to answer any of my questions.” she reminded, “But, is that why you’re teeth are shaved down? Does your mother make you shave your teeth?” her voice wavers with emotion. Tears well up and she bites her lip as she nods. “Oh, Jane, honey.” Tears actually do spill and the wild fae pulls Jane to her tightly. Evie and Freddie barely take a second to join into the embrace, turning it into a group hug as all the Isle girls cry for Jane.

Chapter Text

            They eventually make it down the rest of the way to meet the boys outside the cafeteria, stopping at a restroom along the way to wipe the tear tracks and smeared makeup from around their eyes. With soft requests, the girls get Jane’s permission to play with her hair, and Mal decides to help grow her hair out. “Beware, forswear, replace the old with new long hair.” she repeats the words, familiar from so many readings of the spell book that she has this one memorized and Jane twists and turns, throwing her head down and up and suddenly she has the most gorgeous long hair Mal has ever seen.

            It was easy for the boys to tell something had happened between the girls as they approached, not only because of Jane’s new do, but also as they were now walking more closely linked and as a unit than they had been just earlier today. It looked like Jane had always been there with them, like they’d been friends for years instead of hours. A fierce protectiveness shined in Mal’s eyes as she kept her arm linked with Janes, eyes darting through the entryway of the cafeteria, hoping she wouldn’t have to see her mother so soon after their conversation and little hair magic intervention.

            “Hey Jane, nice hair” Doug comments, “your mother said she had to go deal with some stuff up in her office.” he tells them as they approach. “She told me to tell you not to worry about supper tonight, that you should stay down here and hang out with your friends.” He happily reiterated the message and Jane blinked in surprise, she was sure she would be told to join her in her office so they could have dinner together while she worked. It wasn’t that she wouldn’t enjoy having dinner with her mother, it was that friends were such a rarity to Jane that what she really wanted was to keep stay down here and keep bonding with the ones she was making. Sometimes her mother could still surprise her, her mother knew her better than she thought she mused, somehow knowing Jane was going to fit in well with these students and was easing into the beginnings of friendship.

            With that the teens entered the cafeteria and entered the buffet line. The Isle teens once more loaded up their plates with food, ignoring the fact that they weren’t particularly hungry yet. Together they followed Doug, who pointed out that their table from breakfast was open (although so were the vast majority of the tables available as school wasn’t in session for about another week yet). It was a comfort thing, he could tell, returning to a singular spot in the room like that. For whatever reason, he realized, they had decided that specific table was safe, and was more than happy to sit there every day if it meant they were more comfortable in the cafeteria, despite his usual spots being on the other side of the room.

            The teens were quick to take over the table, Evie claimed the spot next to Doug and Mal followed. Jay took her other side while Freddie and Carlos sat across from her and Evie. Jane timidly, which the girls were sad to quickly realize was a normal state of being for her, slid into the spot next to Carlos across from Jay, gently pulling her hair to one shoulder and brushing it with her fingers. As they began to eat Doug noticed they weren’t shoveling their food into their mouths with as much gusto as they had that morning. Jane fidgeted, an uncomfortable look on her face while she nibbled at the food on her tray and Mal hoped she wasn’t changing her mind because she was intrusive earlier. She side eyed Jay, or maybe it was Jay’s inability to chew with his mouth shut, she decided, twitching her nose. Suddenly amidst the chatter Jane turns to Carlos next to her and blurted, “You smell nice!” her cheeks turned red and she immediately widened her eyes and froze at her own outburst.

            “I… do?” Carlos looked at her incredulously, tugging the collar of his leather jacket and t-shirt underneath up to sniff lightly at the fabric, but looked even more confused, “I don’t smell anything?”

            Mal inhaled deeply, curious what Jane was smelling. She blinked before gaping at the girl, “Is that why you tripped earlier?” she asked and Jane met her eyes, “Oh my gosh it is!” she instantly cackled and grinned almost evilly as she looked at her friends with unrestrained glee. “I know what it is.” she snickered teasingly, “Jane and I, being fae, have stronger senses of smell than you guys do.” she announces, and everyone rolls their eyes, “Yeah Mal, we already know that.” Jay scoffs, taking a bite out of a bread roll as he speaks.

            “Pheromones dudes.” she cuts to the chase as she reveals this to the confused and heavily embarrassed fae on the other side of the table, “You like the smell of Carlos’s pheromones.”

            “Uh, so?” Carlos asked and Jay barked in laughter, “Means she wants to kiss you dude!” he teased the duo who both turned bright red. “Jay! No!” Mal smacked his arm, “I mean, yes, it’s kind of an attraction thing, but what it really means is that you two are very well suited.” she gives Jay a look to keep quiet, “Like, I dunno, a soulmate thing for fae almost?” she shrugs and Evie speaks up this time, “Fae are only ever like that super attracted to exactly one person’s pheromones, or in other words their, uh, subtle natural scent. So yeah, it’s basically like a soulmate thing for fae.” she confirms what Mal said.

            Jane isn’t sure whether to be horrified or ecstatic that the cute boy next to her that she’s only just met and already continuously made a fool of herself in front of in the short time span was essentially her soulmate. Carlos looked back at her in surprise, and she mentally berated herself for just staring dumbly at him with her mouth hanging slightly open. But then the look he gave her, a look of utter amazement and happiness made her feel like she was melting and she practically swooned. “Cool.” he says simply, and that’s that as the rest of the table give them the illusion of privacy by moving on in their conversation.

            Jane bit her lip, and inched closer to Carlos who seemed to beam brighter at her the closer she got. Their knees bumped and she decided that was close enough for now, and she jumped in surprise when he subtly took her hand underneath the table, entwining their fingers as their hands rested atop both of their knees. He grinned softly at her and she couldn’t help but give a toothy grin back at him. She almost snapped her lips shut when she realized they were parted, but then he spoke, “You have such a beautiful smile. “The compliment alone was enough to make her smile widen.

            The teens managed to finish the food on their plates once more, now feeling more sick than full, but they still wandered the halls for awhile with Jane and Doug before retiring to their rooms, with the promise that Jane would try to look into switching to Freddie’s room the next day.

Chapter Text

            The middle of the night found the teens waking after only a few peaceful hours of sleep, nausea rolling in their stomachs in waves. “Oh man I don’t feel good.” Mal lurched from the bed, stumbling with a hand on her stomach. She tried to breath in deep, exhaling slowly, but it didn’t help and she “Oh man, I’m gonna hurl.” she covered her mouth as she turned and rushed to the bathroom, not bothering with the light. She could see well enough for the moment with her enhanced level of vision.

            “Mal?” she heard Evie groan, “Mal I don’t feel so good.” she wiped her mouth before leaving the bathroom, her stomach wasn’t any less topsy turvy now than it was before. Her eyes found her willowy framed friend curled in on herself, still on the bed, with her arms crossed and pressed around her stomach. Freddie turned slowly and a short sound pained escaped her as well. “Guys, my stomach hurts.” her voice whined.

            Mal hurried back over to them, “I think you guys should go lie on the cool tiled floors in the bathroom. It might help.” she leans over them, “I’m going to pick you up Evie, okay?” she asks the bluenette who nodded her assent. Easily she lifted her up and deposited her on the bathroom floor, the sound of her retching met her ears as she returned for Freddie to bring her in too. The poor girls were so small and malnourished that they were almost skin and bone, hardly weighing a thing, and Mal really wasn’t all that much better off than they were. The only reason she was able to easily lift and carry them was because of their low weight and her own natural fae strength, although she wasn’t as strong as she should be for her age, she was strong enough to defend and fight on the Isle.

            Freddie immediately pressed her cheek into the floor as Evie slid down to lie next to her, doing the same. Mal made one last trip back to the room and grabbed blankets, dragging them with her back to the bathroom and dropping them on the floor in between the other girls for them to use as pillows or wrap around if they got too cold. Wearily, she got down to the floor herself, and the trio of girls stayed the rest of the night on the floor, each of them falling into a fitful sleep.

            In the boys’ side of the dorms, Carlo sand Jay were very much in the same boat, both finding themselves in their bathroom, groaning on the floor, and also like the girls, neither got decent sleep the rest of the night.

            Yet the morning still found all five teens making their way down to meet Doug and Jane for breakfast once more. They approached the entry and a frown settled on Carlos’s face. “Hey Doug, where’s Jane?” he asked, hoping that she wasn’t too embarrassed or frightened away by having him be essentially the equivalent of a fae soulmate for her. “I’m not sure she’ll be joining us this morning.” The taller boy admitted with a grimace. “She texted me saying that she was meeting her mom before breakfast, you know, about the roommate thing, but I’m especially worried about how her mom will react to the magically altered hair thing.”

            Mal’s already upset stomach was in knots, “But she wanted long hair!” Evie protested, “And she looks fabulous with it!”
            “I know, and she definitely looks more herself and is happier with it.” Doug agreed, “But her mom is worried if she even gives a hint of fae in her appearance, a hint of being magic, that people will turn on her.”

            “But she regularly does magic?” Jay scrunched up his nose, “Like for ceremonies and stuff, that’s always broadcasted on tv.”  

            “Isn’t that a bit hypocritical?” Evie asked, although her question was more rhetorical than anything, and the others contemplated silently, they didn’t have to think about it much to all agree with her.

            “Wait, does-“ Mal wet her lips, “-does Jane even know how to fly? Does she even have wings or did her mother take them from her too?” She was angry, just as angry as she’d been before when she discovered Jane’s teeth were shaven down from their natural point.

            “I don’t- I don’t know.” Doug admitted when they looked at him expectantly, “She doesn’t talk about it, all I know for sure is that Fairy Godmother absolutely refuses to teach her even a touch of magic.” He frowns, “I don’t think she realizes how stir crazy that makes Jane. It’s also just not good for her in general, I mean, she is basically pure magic and is being told she can’t expend the energy that builds up within her. It’s already exploded, at least on small scales. We’ve always managed to clean up the mess before anyone notices, Jane was too afraid of getting in trouble for doing magic that she didn’t listen to me when I told her we should talk to her mom. Since King Adam’s anti-magic laws are so strict, she doesn’t realize that it’s not her fault, she’s never been taught how to regulate her powers or channel them into anything, only how to push them down, which obviously has really bad explosive repercussions, not only outwardly but also inwardly. It affects Jane’s health.”  He ran a hand through his hair as he sighed.

            “We should get some breakfast before it’s too late.” He finally says after a moment of silence echoes in the hallway. “You guys should get something to eat before you have to sit through another day of history and rules.”

            With shoulders slumped, even Evie’s albeit they were slumped so slightly that you may not even notice, the teens followed Doug and got into line. In their queasy tiredness they grabbed a small bit less than they had yesterday, and breakfast found them sitting solemnly together, wracking their brains for solutions and coming up empty handed.

            With great reluctance they trudged up the stairs and made their way to the classroom. Halway down the hall Mal stopped abruptly, grabbing on to Evie’s arm with wide eyes. “What is it Mal?” she asked softly. “I hear Jane and her mother, they’re fighting.” She frowned, “Or Fairy Godmother is doing a lot of yelling at least.” They shared a look and rushed the rest of the way, pressing themselves around the door to hear what was going on.

            Fairy Godmother was yelling, and she was very upset. She wanted to know why Jane would go get extensions (they breathed a sigh of relief, somehow, she didn’t know it was magic). Evie shook, she wanted to cut it all back down to her chin again, enough to hide her pointed ears and make her look normal, or as Jane would have put it, make her look like a ‘plain Jane’. Freddie flinched, hearing that she didn’t want her daughter rooming with anyone, let alone someone like her. She curled up into herself dejectedly. Carlos looked like he was thinking, he realized she had avoided saying where they were from, explaining what she meant by that statement.

            Then Jane did something unprecedented: Jane’s careful composure cracked. She fought back, and she fought back hard. She screamed at her mother, plenty of girls had long hair and she finally felt pretty. It was her body and should be her choice what her hair looked like. But she absolutely rained down on her for dismissing Freddie and her new friends like that. She was one of the only people who had met her and actually liked her, who wanted to be friends with her. Fairy Godmother was silent as she listened to her daughter scream that people thought she was worthless, useless, plain, kept around for nothing more than her eidetic memory and meek pushover attitude that she had drilled into her since she was a child.

            She stormed out, brushing past the group of six students outside the doorway, tears in her eyes as ran away. Besides the sound of Jane retreating, an unbearable silence fell.

            Quickly they came to a decision. “Carlos and I will go after Jane; she needs friends right now.” Mal spoke hushed, “Tell her that we weren’t feeling well this morning.” Freddie’s lips thinned, she wanted to protest and go with but understood that they couldn’t all just ditch right now, someone had to be here. Mal was fae like Jane and Carlos was basically her soulmate, so logic followed that they should be the two to go find her and ditch.

            “I have to go see if I can get your schedules yet.” Doug sighed, wishing he could be of more help, but acknowledging that Jane was in good hands. “I’ll be back as soon as I can” he promises and the teens break circle, going their respective ways.

            “Carlos, we’ll find her faster if we fly.” Mal turns to her small friend. “Can I carry you?” he nods. “Under the arms, holding hands, or scoop?” she asks and he shrugs, “Since we’re inside it’ll be easier to maneuver to do scoop.” She gives him a nod and moves to scoop him into her arms.

            Spreading her wings she crouches slightly as she readies herself to fly, the span of her black feathered wings pretty well takes up the whole hallway. With Carlos in her arms, Mal zooms through the hallways and soon they find Jane when Carlos spots her through a window. Mal takes them outside and around, landing right in front of Jane, setting Carlos down on his feet gently.

            “Jane!” he stumbles forward, her name a breath of relief that they made it to her side, falling to his knees next to where she sits on the stone bench. “Jane, are you alright?” he reaches up hesitantly, and with shaking hands he wipes away her tears.  She just cries harder, holding onto his hands as he cups her cheeks. “We’ve got you Jane. We’ve got you.” Mal moves to stand behind her, wrapping her arms around her shoulders and resting her chin on the crown of her head. Her wings curl around to shield Jane on each side, leaving only the front exposed where Carlos sits.

            They sit still with her, slowly her sobs turn to soft cries, and then she swallows thickly as she breathes slowly, in and out, a calming technique. “Do you want to talk about it?” Mal asks softly, rubbing the pads of her thumbs smoothly along her arms, soothing. She doesn’t see it, but she feels the girl shake her head no in response. “Ok.” She whispers, she wouldn’t push her to talk. Jane would talk about it when she was ready to do so, but forcing her before she was ready wasn’t going to help them.

            “Jane,” she breathes, “do you want to fly with me?” she removes her chin and retracts her arms to brush her fingers softly through her long hair. “Flying usually helps me feel better when I’m down or calm me when I need to cool off.” She explains the offer to the girl, frozen in place. “I-“her bottom lip trembles, “I don’t know how.” She admits in a soft voice that even Mal barely hears.

            “Then I’ll teach you.” She comes around as she speaks with conviction. “I’ll teach you.” Jane looks up to her, still being held by Carlos. “You will?”

            “Of course.” She smiles, “You and I, we are two of a kind. Besides, friends help friends.”

            Carlos smiles at her encouragingly when she looks at him, “You want to, I can tell.” He nods, “Why not give it a try? Who’s going to tell?” He smile turned impish and mischievous a laugh bubbled out of her.

            “Yeah, yeah, okay.” She agreed, and he took her spot sitting down while she stood across from Mal. “Okay, let’s start with some basic wing movements.” She instructed, “Just let them uncurl from your back, slowly.” she emphasized. “So you can really focus on the movement, how it feels. That will tell you more about your wings, how they flutter or flap, how you should move them and more.”

            Jane nods, taking a breath and exhaling slowly as she allowed her wings to fade through her clothes and uncurl into the fresh air, feeling each and every movement, they made. When she opened her eyes, Carlos was looking at her in wonder, “Wow.” He breathed. Glancing over her shoulder she saw her wings glittery and shining out of the corner of her eye. They were so beautiful she wanted to cry. Mal watched as her expression changed and she realized Jane had never even seen her wings before, just the outlines etched into her back.

            “Are you ready?” she asked as her attention was turned back to her. “Let’s take it easy for a first flight, nothing over the trees here in the garden for you, okay?” Jane nodded in agreement.  “You’re wings move slightly differently than mine to, but it’s a similar motion. Watch what I do, but listen to your body and instincts, that will guide you to flight.” Mal’s wings widened and she crouched slightly, bending her knees to help her push off into the air. In a swift motion she took to the sky, making a loop before coming back to hover in front of Jane as she waited for her. “Now you try.”

            “Okay. Okay, I can do this. You can do this Jane.” She muttered to herself as she fought her nerves. “You can do this.” With her eyes shut she listened to her body and following Mal’s lead she spread her wings and bent her knees the slightest bit. Fluttering her wings, she pushed off the ground, hovering. Opening her eyes, she saw the proud look on the other fae’s features. “You’re doing it Jane!” she cheered, “Now, let’s get you moving!” Eagerly she followed Mal’s movements, and the duo swept through the sky at a leisurely pace, one after the other.

            Eventually the two landed, not wanting to push Jane too far past her limits with her first flight and the first thing Jane did was tackle Mal in a hug. Her eyes widened and she barely kept them both upright from the force of the impact. Slowly she hugged the other girl back as she repeatedly thanked her for doing this.

            “It’s what friends are for, Jane.” She told her, “You don’t have to thank me.” Standing back she watched Jane retract her wings with slow breaths, “I can’t have my mom, or anyone else for that matter, seeing me with my wings out.” She lamented, “Can we do this again sometime?” she looked hopeful and Mal nodded, “You don’t even have to ask.” Jane looked relieved and the trio returned inside, making their way to the

            Over the rest of the week Jane avoided her mother, hiding out in Freddie’s room and with her friends when they weren’t in orientation. The teens brought lunch back to her every break so she wouldn’t risk running into her mother, and every afternoon they snuck from the castle to the woods for Jane and Mal to fly together while the others relaxed with them.  

            Orientation was much of the same to the Isle kids with history and rules all muddling together. This school was insane, they all agreed, but they were glad that she at least remembered to get their lunch break in. As relieved as they were to have their mid-day break to go eat more of the fresh, flavorful food Auradon Prep’s cafeteria offered, they continued to feel queasy. As the week progressed they slowly lessened the amount of food they piled on their plates, ut it would take a while for them to be truly used to the food itself, with it being so fresh and flavorful in ways that their palettes and bodies were unused to from a lifetime of just barely edible food, scraps, and mold.

            Finally, on Friday Jane’s mother conceded to the fight and not only allowed Jane to keep her longer magicked hair, but also move in to live with Freddie. She wanted to start off the first day of school on good footing with her daughter, missing her greatly the week she was being avoided. Though she claimed it would only be a trial run to start with, the two girls were ecstatic and roped everyone into helping move the rest of Jane’s things into the space that hadn’t already found themselves in the two-person dorm while she hid out there.

            That was also the day that Doug was given their schedules, and they were confused to see a class titled, “Remedial Goodness 101” listed at the top. It turned out they would need to go through and pass this class before they would be allowed into their general curriculum courses. Apparently, the council insisted the school board do it, they didn’t want villains being put into classes with their children until they were vetted, and they could be assured it was safe.

            It would seem they weren’t being trusted as much as they thought they would be with this so called “second chance”, not really allowed to mingle with the rest of their classmates outside of mealtimes. All for the sake of “safety”.

            Doug and Jane were puzzled by the class title, it didn’t make sense to them why a class like that would even exist let alone why their friends would be in it. Timidly, it was Evie, who explained that they were from the Isle of the Lost and that she thought maybe that was why they made this class. She shrank in on herself, as did the others, so sure that they would now lose the friends they had just grown so close to.

            Suddenly it all made sense to the two Auradonian kids. Their mannerisms screamed that they weren’t from Auradon, so where else would they be from but the Isle? Doug and Jane would eventually dig deeper into the matter and find out the truth of where all of Auradon’s garbage was really sent, why the other teens ate like it would be their last meal, why nothing went to waste, and they weren’t feeling well, especially after mealtimes. But for now, they just embraced their friends, making sure they knew they didn’t think any differently of them based on where they were born, telling them that they would like to hear more about their lives on the Isle and their families when they were up to it.

Chapter Text

            Once again, Monday rolled around far too soon for the VK’s, although it was more bearable now that they had friends, they were disappointed yet again by the fact that they wouldn’t get to join them in class but instead would continue to be isolated until they measured up to Auradon’s idea of goodness and passed the Remedial Goodness 101 course.

            It didn’t surprise them in the slightest that they were back in the same room they had been in for a week and Fairy Godmother was the teacher who waltzed in. Mal scoffed under her breath, like gliding around like that wasn’t a giveaway that you were fae, she thought bitterly. Hypocrite.

            Over the course of the morning Fairy Godmother went over the class syllabus she had put together, list of assignments and tests, and what their time together would look like. She made sure to put emphasis on classroom rules and expectations, especially when it came to class participation and assignments, particular emphasis on the no tolerance for cheating, among which copying other students work and plagiarizing was included.

            After she got through all of that, a slideshow was put up onto the board and she asked, “All right class, can any of you tell me what it means to be good?” she looked at them with bright optimism, she was sure she could turn these dark and gloomy villain kids into shining and good Auradon kids in no time, or rather bring out the good in them that she hoped was there under all those layers of leather and dye. (It wasn’t actually dye; their hair colors were quite natural, thank you very much.)

            “Ooh, oh!” Evie’s hand shot up and she grinned at the easy question. “Yes, Genevieve.” she called on her, happy that at least one of them was already starting to participate. “Being good means being better.” she beamed, thinking of her cousin Uma. What she meant was being a better you, but her wording didn’t set right with the Fairy Godmother, who didn’t understand what she was trying to say.

            “Yeah,” Jay agreed, “It means being so good at what you do that people follow you.”

            “People look to you.” Carlos nodded and Mal agreed, “Yeah, being good means everybody loves you!” To them they were describing how they felt and what they saw with their fearless leader Uma back home. To them she was the perfect definition of good, the ideal. People looked up to her for her caring nature and good heart. They loved her and followed her because she cared. She helped everyone become a better version of themselves, she made them want to do better, to be better. She took care of them.

            Unfortunately, this is not what the Fairy Godmother heard. To her their comments meant they thought you had to be better than others, it meant having subjects follow you because you were powerful, it meant people treating you like you ruled the world because they feared for their lives and safety.

            They didn’t notice her smile thinly at them as she spoke. “Being good means a number of different things. Being good means having integrity, honor, decency. It means being honest, trustworthy, respectable. It means being fair and kind, compassionate and thoughtful, patient and polite.” she listed off various terms, writing each on the board, and the teens looked at each other with excitement, all those things described Uma just like they said. The first question and they had gotten it right. “There are many more different ways to describe being good, but for now, as your first assignment I want you to take a dictionary and find the definitions of the words I just told you.” Looking back at them she continues, “Then I want you to search for more terms that I didn’t write on the board that could be used to describe being good.”

            She panned her gaze over them as the bell rang for lunch. “I have afternoon classes to teach, so I will give you until tomorrow for the twelve terms I’ve given you and Wednesday for the terms you are finding on your own.” they nod, showing they understand the assignment. “Remember, I don’t want to see copied answers.” she reminded, “You are doing your own work on this assignment.” Jay snorted, they might help each other, but they weren’t cheaters. “Enjoy lunch, I’ll see you all tomorrow morning.”

            With that, their first day of class was over. “Hey, should we go to the library to get a dictionary after lunch?” Carlos asked and was met with agreement. “Sounds like as good a plan as any to me.” Freddie shrugged, “But can we think about it at lunch? I’m kind of hungry.”

            Evie finishes copying down the terms from the board, using paper and a pen she snagged from the desk. “Okay, we’re good to go.” she turns and smiles as she folds up the list to put into her pocket, zipped in securely. “Let’s go meet up with Doug and Jane.”

            The lunchroom was a lot fuller than it had been over the past week, they noted as they heard the crowd and peeked inside before entering. Jay gazed around the room, his eyes meeting with those of a girl with straight deep brown hair. He blinked, offering a smile and wave in greeting  and he saw her tilt her head as she observed him before leaning her head into her hand and almost shyly waving her fingers back at him. He continued to pan the room before he finally spotted Doug and Jane, they had already entered the cafeteria, gotten lunch trays, and snagged their table.

            “Doug and Jane are back at our table.” he informs the others and they relax in relief, “Great! Let’s go.” together they enter the lunch buffet line and grab some food before heading over to their table to meet the duo already seated. The brunette girl’s eyes followed them as they moved and she felt intrigued by the new students, she didn’t recognize them at all, but she also hadn’t heard anything about there even being new students this year. Her gaze lingered the longest on the long haired boy wearing a beanie hat who had cheekily smiled and waved at her, and debated going over right away to introduce herself. He met her eyes again across the cafeteria and her decision was made for her.

            Just as she began to move, about to collect her things to go over there and join them, Audrey had already gotten up. She looked to the daughter of Aurora and by the look on her face knew something was about to go down. Wide eyed she fumbled and quickly set her phone to video record, discreetly aiming it at their table. It was an awkward angle, but you could still clearly see, and miraculously, hear what was happening.

            “Welcome to Auradon Prep.” Audrey’s voice was sickeningly sweet and fake as she greeted them. “I’m Princess Audrey.” she stressed, “I’m Prince Ben’s girlfriend.” she stressed the words, emphasizing her title. Evie, thinking she was supposed to respond in kind stood to greet her, ready to dip into a friendly non-formal curtsey as she greeted her, “It’s a pleasure Princess Audrey, my name is Princess Genevieve.” She smiled as she introduced herself by her full name. About to dip down for the curtsey, but shrank back instead, her smile faltering and fading at Audrey’s response “Princess? Ha!” She laughed before patronizingly looking down at her, “I don’t want there to be any misunderstandings, So I’m going to make this very clear for you.” she sneered, “You’re no princess. You have no title here. It will do you good to remember that, learn your place.” Her demeanor changed like flipping a switch, “Capiche?” she was back to the sugary sweet fake tone she had originally greeted them with, “Oh good. Toodles.” she finger waved before turning on her heel and leaving the lunchroom, hostile looks and glares following her out.

            The girl hit end on her recording, she would feel numb if this was the first time she had witnessed Audrey being a jerk, but sadly it wasn’t. She bit her lips, as she looked down at her lap, uncertainty about what to do swirling. Taking a breath she cleared her head, pulling up Ben’s number on her phone and sending the video of Audrey to him. This was solid proof she was being a bully, and he needed to see it. She barely glanced up as she collected her things and turned, finally looking at the new teens again as she navigated the oblivious crowd and dropped herself down right next to the guy in the beanie hat, breaking the gloomy silence of their table.

            “Hi.” she smiled, and she couldn’t blame them for looking wary until Jane and Doug smiled at her. “I’m Lonnie.” she introduced. “I’m sorry about Audrey, she’s such a bully but nobody ever does anything about it.” she lamented, “None of the teachers see it and she acts like an angel around adults and Ben.” Jane and Doug nod in agreement. “I’m sorry I didn’t come over here and stop her, but she’s about to get a rude awakening.” she grinned mischievously.

            “What do you mean by that?” Evie eyed her.

            “I mean that I recorded the whole incident and sent it to Ben.” she proudly told them, a wicked gleam in her eye. Right then Jay decided he liked her, she was on their side. “I couldn’t stop it or I wouldn’t have gotten the proof we need to do something about her, and for that, I’m sorry.” she apologized yet again, she wanted to emphasize that she wanted to try and step in, but that since she didn’t Audrey was going to get reprimanded for her actions.

            “So, what are all of your names?” she looked around at them. “That’s Carlos.” Jay pointed at the boy next to Jane, “Freddie is on the other side of Jane. That’s Mal on the end and this is Evie.” he gestures individually.

            “And you?” she prompts.

            “Oh uh, right.” he rubs the back of his neck, cheeks turning pink embarrassed that he had forgotten to include himself in the introductions. “I’m Jay.”

Chapter Text

            After lunch the teens went to the library, only Lonnie in tow since she had a study period. She puzzledly listened as they described their assignments to her. Words that can be used to describe being good? How silly of an assignment was that. It sounded like something you would ask a kid, not a high schooler. “What class is this even for?” she snorted in amusement.

            “Remedial Goodness 101.” Jay answered with a sigh and she looked at him in confusion. “Remedial Goodness 101?” she asked, it sounded ridiculous. “Why on earth would they make you take a class called Remedial Goodness 101?”

            “Maybe cause we’re from the Isle.” he shrugged, trying to be nonchalant as he mentioned it to her. The teens waited with bated breath for her reaction.

            “The Isle?” she asked, “Of the Lost?” at their nod of confirmation she shrugged, “I still don’t see why they’re making you take a goodness class. I mean, c’mon! If anyone needs a class like that it’s Audrey.”

            She shook her head, and Mal eyed her hair. The bangs and bob were similar to what Jane had, and like with Jane the cut really didn’t Lonnie. “Hey Lonnie?” she edged closer as she got her attention. “No offense, but like, that bobbed cut just doesn’t suit you? I mean, I’m not trying to be mean or offensive or anything it just doesn’t fit with the vibe I get from you.” she realized mid-sentence that she may be coming off as super rude and winced.

            “I know.” she groaned. “I don’t know why I let Audrey of all people talk me into it.” her nose wrinkles. “We’re like, sort of friends? But it’s more for show than anything. She likes to look like she’s top dog, you know the most popular girl and everything and likes to make sure her so called ‘friends’ don’t look as good as she does.” she uses air quotes.

            “I can, um, magic it up for you?” Mal offers, wagging her fingers and Lonnie’s eyes widen. “You can do that? But what about King Adam’s no magic rule?” she whispered and Mal shrugged. “I honestly don’t care what that man child beast thinks.” she blinks dumbly for a second, her mouth opening and shutting in a gape. “You know what, I actually kinda agree with that.” she admits. “His anti-magic laws aren’t the only ridiculous thing he’s done. You know, my mom was totally against the Isle’, she thought everyone deserves a chance to change, and from what she saw before the Isle thing, most people had. It only happened because King Adam convinced everyone to live in fear, convinced people that their ‘villains’ were going to come back for them so they had to be taken out and locked up.” she shares, ashamed of Auradon.

            Trying to lighten the mood she takes the paper from Evie, “So what terms did she give you? We can look them up with an online dictionary. It’ll go so much faster than using one of those bulky dictionaries on the shelf.”

            “A what?” Carlos asks, looking intrigued as she pulls out a chair in front of a computer. “Wait, is this a computer?” he continues before she can answer his first question. He’d never seen a computer that wasn’t broken before.

            “Yeah, it’s an Apple computer.” she nods, “you can use the internet to access anything really. An online dictionary is literally just that. It’s a dictionary where you type in the word you’re looking for and it comes back with the definition. Some of them also give you synonyms and antonyms too, which is perfect for this assignment.” she explains as she pulls up a website, pointing out the features. “Why don’t each of you log into a computer? Then you can use microsoft word to type up your answers and print off the assignment instead of hand writing it.”

            “Print?” Jay asks before Carlos can.

            “Yeah. Here, I’ll show you.” she plugs in a small oblong thing and pulls up a picture. “I’m going to copy this picture into the document.” she talks as she is doing it, giving them an easy visual to follow. “So now I’m just going to resize it.” she hums as she moves it, “Okay, so I just click here where it says print, choose my settings. I’ll do just one copy in color, and this printer here is the only one connected to this computer.” she points to the side, “It’s just over there. So now I’m done.” she clicks print and they jump as the machine whirrs to life, and they gather around, watching as the picture is printed on the paper.

            “Wow.” Carlos gapes at it, “That’s so cool!”

            “I know right? It makes things so much easier.” Lonnie agrees, “But if you think that’s cool you should really see a 3-D printer.”

            “A 3-D printer?” Carlos looks over the moon, curious and excited about the new technology that she’s showing them.

            “Yeah, a 3-D printer.” she grins at his enthusiastic attitude, “But first, let’s get you guys learning your way around the computer and paper printer.” she laughed, “We can get your homework out of the way pretty quick.” she assured, “Then later we can try to go down to the labs to see the 3-D printers on campus.”

            After they finished their assignments they fooled around on the computers, Lonnie showed them the different kinds of things they could search for. News, articles, puzzles, games, videos. Everything was at the tip of their fingers, easily within reach. With a smile Lonnie pulled up Youtube, playing them funny video after funny video until she had to leave for her next class. “I’ll see you guys later. You’re going to sit in the corner table with Doug and Jane like at lunch, right? Okay cool, see you then.”

            “Oh wait.” Mal sighed when Lonnie was gone, “I was gonna magic her hair.” she pouted.

            “Why don’t we invite her back to our dorm tonight.” Evie suggested. “You can do her hair in privacy then. Less chance of getting into trouble, you know.”

            “I know.” she nodded in agreement, “My mom would be so disappointed in me if I got into trouble for something I could have easily hidden, and besides, I’d hate to get into too much trouble and get sent home before I get to meet my dad.”

Chapter Text

            The second day of school and the five teens managed to be in the classroom before Fairy Godmother. Evie collected their assignments and neatly stacked them on the front table for her, divided by which assignment it was before returning to her seat next to Mal.

            “I’m glad Lonnie joined us for breakfast again, aren’t you Jay?” she turned and called to him specifically with a teasing lilt and mischievous grin.

            Jay rolled his eyes at Mal’s blatant accusation, she clearly thought he liked her already. (To be fair, she wasn’t wrong.) “Shove off Mal.” he scoffed at her, crossing his arms and leaning back defiantly.

            “Oh grow up you two. Jay, it’s perfectly fine for you to like someone you just met. Mal, must you always tease us about the potential of a crush?” Evie huffed at them, taking her seat.

            “Oh yes, I must.” she insisted with a smirk, “I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t.” she shrugged, and the other two groaned, knowing she had a good point. (How come Mal hadn’t jumped on her obvious crush on Doug, she wasn’t sure.)

            “So, he ask you out yet?” she turned to Evie and she cursed her luck. (She just had to ask, didn’t she?) “Mal.” she almost whined, “Doug and I are just friends.”

            “Oh, but did I say anything about Doug?” her grin was wicked, and Evie gaped at her.

            “She got you there, E.” Freddie chimed in and she turned to glare at her. Freddie shrugged from where she sat with her feet resting on the desk. “Hey, I’m just saying, you walked right into that one.”

            By the time Fairy Godmother walked in they were still laughing and teasing each other. Mal was so busy giggling that even she with her fae hearing didn’t hear her enter the room. “Evie’s already designing the outfits in her head.” Freddie declared with a teasing laugh, and Mal joined in, “I bet she’s already started making them.”

            “Oh, hush you.” Evie lightly smacked Mal’s arm, Freddie was saved by the fact that she was far enough away to avoid being hit. Since she was safe, she continued to cackle, doubling over in her laughter.

            Standing at the front of the room Fairy Godmother watched them tease one another. Children, they really are just children at their core she realized as she watched them interact. Part of her didn’t want to interrupt the good-natured lighthearted teasing, but as a teacher she knew she should start class. Softly she cleared her throat and greeted them. “I see you’re all here early this morning.” When she smiled this time, Mal swore she could actually feel the warmth behind it. They all wondered what had her in such a good mood this morning.

            “Good morning Miss Fairy Godmother Ma’am.” Evie smiled, sitting up straight with her hands folded on the desk in front of her. “I collected all of our assignments and put them on the front table for you, divided by the terms you gave us and the terms we searched for.”

            “Why thank you, Genevieve.” she nodded as she looked back to find them sitting there, perfectly straight. “That was very kind of you.” she collected them and filed them away in her briefcase to review later. “Today we will be doing a PowerPoint questionnaire.” she informed them, “You’ll be given a question and I want you to pick the best option out of the choices listed.” she looked back up, “Does that make sense?”

            “Yes Ma’am.” came a chorus of voices back to her.

            “Francine, feet off of your desk please.” she called back to her before she turned to set up her slideshow of questions. Slightly confused, a puzzled Freddie slowly pulled her feet down with a frown on her lips. She did it at home all the time and she was comfortable, so what was the problem?

            She saw something move out of the corner of her eye and she whipped her head around to see what it was, only to be met with nothing out of the ordinary. Great, now she was going insane too. Auradon sure was a wonderful place. Freddie shook her head and turned back to face the front.

            “Okay.” she clapped her hands, “First question, are you ready?” Evie nodded enthusiastically, yesterday was so easy, surely this would be too and soon they could join Doug, Lonnie, and Jane in their general education courses.

            “So, you see someone struggling to cross the street. Do you A, ignore them completely. B, push them over. C, offer to help them. Or D, none of the above.”

            “Oh that’s easy, A, you ignore them.” Jay said decisively.

            “Care to explain how you came to that answer Jaylen?”

            “Well, what they do is none of your business anyways, so it’s best to keep your nose out of other people’s stuff,  but if you offer to help them they might be offended that you thought they needed it, my dad was like that sometimes.And some people might need the help, but they won’t accept it anyways and would just refuse you either way.” He explains and Fairy Godmother can’t help but see the valid arguments he was trying to make.

            “I see..” she trailed off, “Although I can see what you’re saying, this is not the answer I was looking for.”

            “It’s C, you should offer to help them, and they’ll tell you if they don’t want it, but most people will be glad to have the help.” Evie retorted, “But Jay you’ve got some good points. It’s daunting to offer help to somebody if you aren’t sure if they’re just going to yell at you for trying.”

            “Question two, if someone hands you a crying baby do you A, curse it. B, sell it. C, lock it in a tower. Or D, give it a bottle.”

            “I mean, the closest is D, give it a bottle.” Freddie shook her head, “But that might not be what the baby is crying about you know. They could have a soiled diaper, they could be tired, they could, like this implies, be hungry, they could be bored or colicky. You never really know until you test things and learn the differences in the individual baby’s crying.”

            Fairy Godmother looked at her in surprise. “Why, that’s exactly right. How do you know all that?”

            Freddie looked down, clenching her fists as she warred with herself and her homesickness, missing her family.

            “Freddie has a little sister.” Evie told her quietly.

            “Her name is Cecelia.” Freddie spoke, “She’s ten.” She sucked in a breath. “May I go get a drink of water?” she asked, feeling the need to get out of there for a few minutes. “Of course, dear.” she dismissed, and Freddie flew out the door as fast as her feet would carry her.

            “Next question.” she clicked to the next one and looks at the slide in confusion. It wasn’t a slideshow she made, but one that the school board had approved for testing what kinds of choices they would make. Sucking in a breath she read, “You’re not invited to a christening. Do you A, curse the baby. B, curse the parents. C, curse both the baby and the parents. D, attend the party anyway and bless the baby. Or E, don’t go because you weren’t invited.”

            Mal scowled, but even she saw that the fae woman was reading it for the first time. She hadn’t made most of the questions for this questionnaire, but it was clear to her who likely proposed this one.

            “Oh that’s easy, you crash the party because the father broke your heart, tore your freaking wings off and refused to return them, and never apologized for any of it.” she snapped.

            “Excuse me?” she blinked at the purple haired fae.

            “You heard me.” she nearly growled back as she slumped in her seat.

            “The father tore your wings off…?” she repeated, confused. “Maladia, what are you talking about?” she approached the desk and spoke gently. This was clearly something traumatic, and wild fae were more sensitive to lies, they were like very accurate lie detectors, they could sense a lie when it was told. Fairy Godmother didn’t feel a lie coming from her, even though her sense wasn’t as strong as a wild fae’s would be, she still had very good judgement, and this girl wasn’t lying to her. “

            “Not my wings, my mom’s.” she clarified, "That guy Stefan? Yeah, that rat, he drugged my mom and tore her wings off so he could marry Princess Leah and become King.” she seethed, “Then had the gall to claim superiority over her and not invite her to the christening of the princess. A snub like that after he took her wings? She was generous in her curse, most other wild fae would have done so so much worse.” she continued in her rant, “Not to mention the whole true loves kiss thing? It wasn’t Prince Philip who woke her up, it was my mom. The only reason Princess Aurora lived past infancy with those inept, useless pixies is because my mother kept her from dying. And when she fell asleep? My mother drug Prince Philip there and watched as he attempted the whole true loves kiss thing. She was devastated and kissed Aurora on the forehead to say goodbye and you know what happened? Beasty woke up.”

            A soft hand was placed on Mal’s shoulder as she tried to calm down. “I- I believe you.” she told her. “You do?” she was incredulous. “I don’t know if anyone else will, but I do.” she continued, “We can try to take this to the council, see what we can do about getting your mother off of the Isle.”

            “But it’s not just my mother who didn’t do anything wrong.” she blurts, “There are so many innocent people who were cursed and manipulated into being bad or doing something wrong. And not to mention all of the good people who changed and the children who didn’t do anything besides be born. What about them? Will you help them too?” she looked up, fighting tears from filling her eyes.

            For a moment she didn’t know what to say, but another voice rings out and they are startled by it, all of their eyes darting towards the doorway, “Yes.”

            A boy their age is standing there, “I promise you I will do everything I can to help.” he speaks and Mal feels the truth and sincerity roll over her in waves, this boy was serious. “Prince Benjamin.” Fairy Godmother smiles at him, “You came just in time, didn’t you?”

            “What can I say, I have a knack for being in the right place at the right time.”  he shrugged and turned back to Mal, “I’m serious. I might not be able to do much until after my coronation, but I think we can at least start working to figure things out and maybe get the groundwork laid in the meantime.”

            Mal’s heart soared and it was like she was flying. Her feet barely touched the ground as she threw herself across the room, wrapping herself around the boy tightly, “Thank you, thank you.” she cried, all she wanted was to take down the barrier so they could have magic and sunlight, but this could mean they could do more than that. They could have more than the bare minimum. As she held tightly to him, she found herself relaxing, a deep breath confirmed what the back of her mind had told her before she’d even breathed in his scent. This was her attractive pheromone scent; this was her soulmate.

Chapter Text

            Although she could see the humanity and goodness in the teens, Fairy Godmother was still required to continue on with her Remedial Goodness 101, satisfying the tasks she’d been given to determine how safe it was for them to be integrated into the general student population. She had been given books to read about great and good heroes, moral dilemma discussion topics to show what kinds of decisions they would make given the chance to think up the solution themselves, basic worksheets about goodness and other writing tasks.

            So, for the first half of their morning class they would go over whatever it was Fairy Godmother was given to teach them, but since Ben’s free period started during the second half of class he would come in and they use the time to talk while Fairy Godmother sometimes stayed and sometimes went to work on other things to try and advance them through the course as much as she could. On Wednesday she had stayed, and they discussed what the council was and what kind of say they would have over Ben. On Thursday it was just the teenagers.

            “So why did you choose to make us come here anyways?” Carlos finally asked.

            “What do you mean?” Ben looked puzzled at the question.

            “I mean, like, why did you choose to have us come here? What was the reason and why now? And why didn’t you give us a choice?” He tried to elaborate, and Ben nodded in understanding of the question, though he still looked puzzled.

            “I looked over to the Isle and I didn’t think it was fair that you weren't given the same chances that we were here. We’re very privileged, and I recognize that, but not everyone does. It’s not right that you were isolated from the rest of society for something that you had nothing to do with. Why now? Because I’ve been thinking about it since I was a kid, and since coronation is at the end of this school year that finally gave me the opportunity to try to do something about it with my first proclamation.”

            “Yeah, some of our parents didn’t really have anything to do with the stuff that happened either.” Jay snorted under his breath, but it wasn’t an attack aimed at Ben, who now that they started talking knew about Maleficent. Soon he would know about many more people on the Isle condemned for the actions of others.

            “What do you mean, didn’t give you a choice?” he looked contemplative, “I wanted to give you a choice, it was supposed to be an offer not a demand.” He tells them.

            Evie pulls out her letter and passes it to him. “You still have that on you?” Freddie asked, she would be incredulous if it wasn’t Evie. “Yeah, I thought I might need it, and look, I guess I was right.” she gestured in front of her towards Ben as he reads the letter.

            “That’s not quite right. It was supposed to be sent out mid-summer and request your responses, not demand that you come here.” he shook his head, “And that’s not how Fairy Godmother would have worded it either. She definitely didn’t write these ones. It’s close but doesn’t fit the standard welcome letters that both new and potential new students receive. ” he was frowning now. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say, but I'm sorry.”

            “Hey, it’s all right Ben.” Mal tried to soothe him but he shook his head defiantly, “No, it’s not alright. We took you from your homes without your consent, we basically kidnapped you!”

            “Basically?” Freddie deadpanned. He dropped his head to his hands in frustration. The teens were silent. Prince Ben hadn’t meant to do this to them. He had meant to give them a choice, and although they were loathe to admit it, had they been given a choice they may have come on their own. Or Uma would have urged them to go, which would have also pushed them to accept.

            “If- if it’s any consolation, I think I may have agreed to come had it been my decision to make.” Mal is the first to admit, sitting down next to Ben, a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Me too, I think.” Evie nodded and Freddie sighed, begrudgingly admitting, “My dad would have probably encouraged me to try it.” they looked at the boys who shrugged, “Who’s to say.” they agreed. “Anything is possible.”

            The bell rang shrilly once more, signaling that it was time for lunch. Mal winced at the sound, she still wasn’t used to it and it hurt her sensitive ears.

            “You okay?” Ben looked at her with concern.

            “Heh, I’m fine.” she tried to brush it off, “It’s just the bell is really… high pitched and my ears just aren’t used to it yet, fae hearing and all.” she gave a small laugh and waved her hand in nonchalance.

            “Hey, if it’s bothering your ears, we should find something to help dim the sound.” he looked serious. “If it’s hurting your ears when it rings then it might eventually damage your hearing. We should talk to Jane; she’s got something that helps her with the bell too.”

            Mal tried not to but her mouth fell open slightly. Compassion and empathy rolled off this boy in waves, and he was all hers, not that he knew that yet of course. “I uh, thanks.” she nodded, biting her lip, “For the tip.”

            “We’ll ask her at lunch.” he stood and offered his hand, “You guys ready.”

            “Are you joining us today Prince Ben?” Evie teased with a smile, happy that it seemed they really were gaining another friend.

            “Yeah. I don’t have anything scheduled during lunch today, so I’m all yours.” he paused, doubt crossing his face momentarily, “If you’ll have me, that is.”

            “Oh, Benny boy,” Freddie threw an arm around his shoulders, “Now that you’ve said it, you’re stuck with us for like, ever.” she insisted. “Ride or die.” he blanched, and she good-naturedly laughed at his nervousness. What was a little teasing among friends? “It means we’re friends Beast Boy, through thick and thin, you know? Like, we don't abandon our friends when they fall on hard times and stuff. We got each other’s back.” she tried to explain, and he looked more comfortable and let out a relieved and breathy laugh.

            “No offense Freddie, but that sounded just a little threatening for a second there.” They were quickly learning the people in Auradon and the people of the Isle had very different speech patterns and slang terms, no wonder they got strange looks when they spoke sometimes.

Chapter Text

            It was lunchtime on Friday. They did it, they survived their second week in Auradon and first week of school at Auradon Prep. Granted, they weren’t in the general education courses yet, but they were still pleased with themselves.

            Lonnie slid into her spot next to Jay, “Hey guys!” she greeted, “Carlos, I looked into the possibility of getting into the labs.” He tried to hold back his excitement, “And?” “I signed us up for a reserve! We’ll have the labs to ourselves for like an hour tomorrow afternoon.” she paused in her own excitement, “Oh, uh, is that okay with you guys? I probably should have asked when you wanted to go.” she grimaced at her perceived plunder. “No, hey, that’s perfect!” Carlos quickly assured her, “It’s not like we had any time restrictive or pressing plans.”

            She perked up and beamed at him, “Great! I signed us up for two to three pm.

            “Hey, do you want to come with us, Ben?” Carlos turned and invited their new Princely friend who smiled, “Sure, I’d love to join you guys.” thankful he didn’t have something scheduled yet.

            Mal took a second to close her eyes and inhale, relaxed. When she opened them her eyes met Jane’s and a sly look spread across her sweet features. She connected the dots and knew what Mal hadn’t said yet.

            “Hey Ben.” she maintained eye contact with Mal and the horned fae cursed her friends for teaching Jane how to tease like they did, which of course involved calling Mal out with Ben. Since she herself had done so to Jane, it was fair game.

            “Hmm?” he looked up, “Yeah Jane?”

            “Did you know that fae are attracted by pheromones?” she asked innocently.

            “Uh, no, I don’t think I did.” he shook his head. “That’s interesting.”

            “Very.” she agreed. “Well, each fae is attracted to exactly one specific person’s pheromones in the whole world. It’s sort of like… soulmates.” she looked back to Mal again. “Isn’t that just so interesting?”

            “Wow, that’s some insane odds right there.” he whistled. “Only one person in the whole world who’s your match.”

            “Yeah.” she nodded, “Pretty slim chances huh?” Jane agreed and Mal sniped in, discreetly calling Jane out for her own ‘pheromone soulmate’, “Jane tripped because she was distracted by Carlos when she met us.”

            Jane smiled sweetly at her and Mal knew she wasn't deterred. “Well, Mal here definitely found her match too. Bet you can’t guess who it is.” she nearly sang the words before she smiled widely, and Mal forgot for a moment that she was sniping with Jane and beamed at her for proudly showing her teeth. Carlos looked at her softly, glad to see she was already becoming more comfortable with herself and with being fae.

            Ben, bless his soul, looked confused, but then at Mal’s embarrassed refusal to look at him a look of dawning realization crept over his face. His eyebrows shot up and he pointed at himself, still in disbelief. Jane nodded, her grin turning to a soft smirk.

            “Okay.” he nodded, “Okay. Mal, why didn’t you tell me?” he asked, with a tilt of his head.

            “Um...” she hummed, “Well, for starters, you’ve got a girlfriend and I didn’t want to like make you feel forced into anything, like you had to say yes to me just because of it.”

            “I-I don’t have a girlfriend?” he informed her. “Who told you I had a girlfriend?”

            “Have you not seen the video I sent you yet?” Lonnie leaned around Jay as she inquired.

            “Video? What video?” confusion filtered through the group, “I never got a video from you?” They all shared a look.

            “Here.” she took out her headphones and plugged them into her phone, she didn’t think the others really wanted to relive that particular moment in time, especially Evie. “Watch and listen.” she passed it to him. A range of emotions filtered across his face as the video played. He was not happy with Audrey.

            Just as the video ended Audrey skipped up, holding her tray with a fake smile plastered on her pink lips. “Speak of the devil, and she shall appear.” Freddie grumbled under her breath to the amusement of Jay.

            “Oh Benny Boo!” she crooned as he removed the headphones, “I know you look awful comfy over here, but I haven’t seen you all summer. You were soo busy.” she laughs, “Why don't you come join me at my table.” she encourages, so sure that he’ll follow her.

            The angry look on his face as he stands causes her plastic smile to falter. “Is something the matter, Benny Boo?”

            “Yeah, there’s a lot of things that are the matter Audrey. Starting with your attitude.” The look he gives her has the teens with him internally cheering as the cafeteria went silent, his calm anger making his voice echo in the lofty space. They didn’t know how he could do it, stay so calm and levelheaded when he was also clearly so angry. Actually, when they thought about it, it sort of reminded them of Uma.

            “First of all, you had no right to say those things to Evie.” he gestured to the bluenette girl sitting at their table meekly.

            “Oh Benny Boo I just didn’t want there to be any misunderstandings later.” she laughs innocently as though it justified her behavior, but it’s hollow. Even she knows she’s been caught, but no way will she go down without trying to fight it. “You treated her and everyone at this table as if they were less than. You’ve been doing it for a while, but this is the first time I’ve seen it.”

            “What are you talking about Benny Boo? I didn’t do anything wrong?” she tries.

            “Yes, you did.” he emphasizes the words as jaw clenches visibly. “Lonnie taped it all. He gestured to the girl in question. I saw and heard everything from Monday. Clear as day.” he tells her and she is rooted to the spot under his disappointed gaze.” You’ve been bullying practically everyone in this school, Lonnie, Jane, Doug.” He gestured to the friends who sat next to him as an example. “This video is going to be sent to the school board and to your parents for disciplinary action.” he informs her.

            “Oh, and Audrey?” he catches her attention as she turns to flee. “We aren’t dating, we dated for a few months last year and broke up. You need to stop lying and manipulating people. I’m not your boyfriend, and after everything you’ve done it’s hard to tell right now if I even want to call you my friend. The Audrey I was friends with would never treat somebody like this..”

            “I’m sorry Benny Boo.” she tried, and he shook his head. “Don’t call me that.” she swears his gaze is looking right into her soul. “And it’s not me you need to apologize to.” he widens his arms as he speaks simply. No anger in his tone, just expectation and disappointment in her. This wasn’t the Audrey he grew up with, not by a long shot. This was the Audrey Queen Leah had molded her into.

            A distraught Audrey turned on her heel and bolted, tail between her legs so to speak. She’d been caught in her lies and now Ben had seen her for what she was becoming, a bully.

Chapter Text

            The following week Princes Aurora and Prince Philip would visit the prestigious campus.

            Aurora didn’t think she’d ever been so mad, especially at her sweet darling baby girl. She was loathe to admit it, but she was partly to blame for her daughters corrupted and vile behavior. She was the one who had allowed her mother to baby Audrey. She thought that by giving her mother Queen Leah the right to baby Audrey as much as she wanted that she was somehow making up for the fact that she didn’t have the opportunity to raise Aurora from infancy herself. She thought it would do her good, she thought it would do them all good. Clearly, she was wrong. Her mother hadn’t let go of her vengeful and spiteful ways, she merely put on an act and taught Audrey to follow in her footsteps.

            Her husband in tow, she stormed Auradon Prep, making a beeline for Headmistress Fairy Godmother’s office. She was enraged to find that her mother was sitting there, acting as though nothing was wrong and someone else was the culprit. Now, Aurora was no fool, even if she hadn’t seen the video with her own two eyes, hadn’t heard her daughter tear down that other girl, she would have investigated, searching for the truth.

            “Mother.” Everyone in the room flinched at the tone of voice, there was a harsh biting edge to it. Aurora never spoke like that, with such harsh anger thinly veiled in her voice. Even Queen Leah seemed on edge, though she hid it well. The last time she heard her daughter angry it was when she advocated for the creation of the Isle and pushed to send Maleficent there. 

            “You can leave anytime you know.” It was clear she wasn’t making a request. “You have lied and manipulated all of us for years and have been teaching Audrey that it’s okay to think of others as less than simply because she’s a princess. You lie to my face about how you feel and what you think, you think of me as a child who cannot make important decisions, and you took my Godmother away from me.” she was seething. “I want you out.” she ordered with narrow eyes.

            “I think it’s time for you to leave.” Philip Spoke with authority as he locked eyes with Queen Leah, “We will be informing the school that you are no longer under Audrey’s list of emergency contacts or allowed visitors. You will not go near her anytime soon.” he promised.

            Queen Leah huffed as she stood, cheeks pink in anger. With a whirl her cape billowed as she stalked from the room, allowing the heavy doors to slam behind her. Audrey jumped, a frightened look in her eyes.

            “Audrey, honey.” she looked at her daughter with disappointment. “Why would you bully someone Audrey?” she asks, “I know we did not raise you to think bullying was acceptable.” Audrey looked at her lap in shame. “I know mom.” she whispered, the weight of her actions starting to settle on her shoulders only with her mother’s disappointed gaze. “I’m sorry.” she whispered again.

            “I don’t think it’s your mother that you need to be apologizing to, young lady.” Philip spoke, a hand on Aurora’s shoulder. “But I do.” she replied, “I'm a disappointment to you both.” she slouched in her chair, shoulders rolling forward as she hunched in on herself.

            “Sweetheart.” She looked at her sadly, “Sweetheart you could never be a disappointment to us. We are disappointed in your actions, yes, but we will always love you.” she brushed her hair lightly. “Now, please, talk to us.”

            “Grandma told me I had to do something to show the new kids I had authority over them.” she admits.  Philip sat on her other side and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and they were appalled when she flinched away from their soft touches.

            Something in her stance was very familiar to the Fairy Godmother, something she had seen in another girl, years ago. “Audrey honey,” Fairy Godmother looked at her with concern, “Audrey,” she got her attention, “did your Grandmother ever hurt you.”

            Her eyes widened in panic before she expertly covered it with faux anger, but not before they all saw it. The teen sputtered, “What? No! My Grandma would never-No! Why would you even ask me that! My Grandmother- no!  How dare you! You’re insane!” she jumped up away from where she was sitting. “I’m not going to sit here and listen to you accuse my Grandma of- of- of that!” she snarled and whirled away.

            “What was that about?” Aurora turned to the fae woman. “What are you talking about? Why would you ask her that?”

            “Something in the way she hunched herself, the look in her eyes when she was speaking before and after you got here, how tense she was with Queen Leah’s presence.” she listed, “It was all very familiar, and I wish it wasn’t.” she shook her head, “Those are all similar indicators of abuse that I saw with- with Cinderella when she was young.” she admits. “I think Queen Leah has been manipulating your daughter with verbal abuse, making her want nothing more than her affection and praise. Based on how she flinched, I think she may have also physically hurt her in the past as well.”

            Aurora was horrified. “How could I have not seen my mother doing something like that to my baby girl.” tried to wrack her brain for memories of their interactions, instances that had seemed off to her but that she didn’t question it too much at the time.

            “Some people are very good at hiding things, and you already know your mother is one of those people. She manipulated you and showed you what she wanted you to see. She was your mother and you wanted to trust her, you needed to trust her in order to let her have so much access to Audrey. Audrey was probably so scared of getting hurt or losing her love and praise that she was too afraid to tell you.”

            “What do we do?” Philip asked the headmistress.

            “Right now, unless Audrey talks to us and is willing to testify about what her Grandmother did to her, we can’t do much. But we’ll do whatever we can to keep her away from Audrey. You’ve already said she isn’t allowed to visit, that takes away her main opportunity to get close.”

            “But she’s on the school board and council, what about that?” Aurora asked as she remembered that fact.

            “I’m not sure. I can try to call a meeting with the school board, sans Queen Leah, and see if we can’t get her access limited or revoked entirely.”

            The trio of adults continued to discuss their options, the meeting taking a darker turn than they had thought possible when they came in. Gloom seemed to settle over the school, as though the weather itself recognized their mood.

Chapter Text

            The month following the visit from Audrey’s parents were a blur. She avoided everyone, especially Ben and the Isle kids saw hide nor hair of her. They were busy barreling through the Remedial Goodness 101 course to really wonder about it anyways. It was a good thing Jane, being the daughter of the headmistress and a very good administrative assistant, had ample reason to come into the class frequently. There were times that communication became an issue between the teens and her mother, and thankfully she could translate what they were trying to say to each other into terms the other understood. With the rate they were going through the material the school board had given her, they would be admitted into the general population very soon.

            Trying to juggle dealing with her duties as headmistress, the new class, and the Queen Leah problem had Fairy Godmother stretched thin. She was thankful Jane was so bright and trustworthy that she was allowed to help in any capacity she could, at least with the Remedial Goodness 101 course. That left her more time to figure out what to do about Queen Leah and Princess Audrey.  She had thus far been unsuccessful at convincing the school board to suspend her for the duration of an investigation, let alone hold an investigation. They were wary of crossing Queen Leah too it would seem, but they also acted appalled and outraged that such a high-ranking member not only of the school board but of the council would be accused of such an awful thing. She wasn’t making any progress and it angered her. So far, she had yet to see Queen Leah try to use her authority on the school board to come anywhere near Audrey, but she was smart, she’d figure out that she wasn’t blocked on those grounds yet soon enough.

            It certainly didn’t help her case tha Princess Audrey avoided her like the plague. She refused to accuse her or admit that her Grandmother did anything to her, which meant they had no proof or witness testimony, only what she herself had seen and recognized as signs. She couldn’t even get her to meet with her own two parents. They too were being avoided at all costs. In fact, she’d barely attended her classes in the past month, calling in sick most days. Yet, there wasn’t much she could do about that either, the girl was doing all her homework and continuing to pass her classes even in absence.

            It was quite by accident that Mal caught wind of the situation, her fae hearing came in handy sometimes. She would be among the first to admit it was both a curse and a blessing. Although she was still pissed at Audrey for her behavior towards them, towards Evie, she hurt for the girl. Not all of the kids on the Isle had as good of a guardian as she did, there were still some pretty awful people who refused to change, so she had a pretty good idea of what she was going through.

            That was why, as October blended into November, Mal went to see Audrey. “Go away.” she was ordered when she identified herself. “No.” she stood her ground, “Look, I know you don’t like me, and that’s okay, I’m okay with that, but I know what you’re going through and I know what you’re feeling. I think you could really use a friend to talk to right now while you’re working through some of it.” she told her, “I'll wait here as long as I have to for you to let me in.” At no response she spoke again, “You hear me Audrey? I’m not going anywhere.”

            The door opened in a flash and Audrey looked at her with narrow eyes, her usually perfect makeup smudged and ruined, a snarl on her lips. “How could you possibly know what it is that I’m going through? How could you possibly know how I feel?”

            “I don’t.” she said simply. “I had a good mother, a good family. But some of the other kids on the Isle? They weren’t so lucky.” She’s blunt in her words and intentions, knowing that’s what Audrey needs to hear from Mal to know she can talk to her right now. “You’re not alone in this. You don’t have to be. You shouldn’t be.”

            “Why should I trust you? You’re the daughter of Maleficent, your mother cursed my mom to sleep for a hundred years.”

            “Maybe because the only reason your mother was cursed was because your Grandfather tore off my mother's wings and it was the only way she knew to get revenge without killing him. Maybe because my mother is the only reason that your mother is still alive, by all rights living with those three inept fairies she should have died as a baby. Maybe because my mother is the only reason your mother is awake. Maybe because your mother calls my mother Godmother.” She makes a list of things that she knows are truth. Her mother is not the monster she was made out to be.

            Her words resonate and finish shattering the false preconceptions she’d been holding up lofted so highly, even though she had seen the falsity in her Grandmother’s words her word had been law. Who was she to question the law her Grandmother laid down? She had learned very early on in life never to contradict her because contradicting her meant… she didn’t allow herself to finish that thought, just finishing it in her head would be akin to admitting the truth, and she wasn’t ready to admit it just yet.

            Something in her eyes makes Audrey’s outward mask crack and she yanks her into the room. “You have five minutes. I suggest you talk fast.” she plops down on her bed, her knees to her chest as Mal calmly takes a seat at the foot of the bed, takes a deep breath and begins. “Let’s start at the beginning. When your grandfather Stefan and my mother Maleficent were just children.”

Chapter Text

            Over the next two weeks Mal secretly continued to visit Audrey. She had yet to really open up and admit or talk about her Grandmother and what she’d done. They kept it lighthearted or talked about their parents, and they quickly began to develop something almost like a friendship, it was rocky but Mal knew with attention and care it could strengthen and grow.

            Mal was thrilled to learn that, although it was only a dim memory, Aurora had told her about Maleficent and wanted them to meet. She’d only ever been to the Moors but once in her life, and that disappointed Mal greatly. It was no doubt, all Queen Leah’s doing. Taking over raising the princess as much as she could to indoctrinate her into her way of thinking and brainwash her into her own perfect little doll that she could have complete control over. Freddie would have liked it to making a voodoo doll, pulling the strings behind the scenes and making the individual do your bidding.

            Her friends knew she was up to something, but if she didn’t want to tell them it wasn’t their business to make her. They had asked her of course, and she said she was trying to help somebody, so they left it at that. She would tell them more when the time came, and if it never did then it never did. Mal was a big girl who could make her own decisions, not everything she did revolved around them.

            Next week was Thanksgiving, which meant it would be Family Day at Auradon Prep. Everyone’s families gathered at the school and celebrated together, most, if not all of them, attended the Thanksgiving Feast and Ball that were thrown. Today, Audrey was staring blankly at her duvet, biting her lip in an uncharacteristic way.

            “Something is bothering you today, isn’t it Audrey?”

            “I…” she trailed off, “I’m just nervous I guess.”

            “What are you nervous about?” she asked lightly, “Midterms?” she wagged her fingers spookily. She could see it was more than that, but the joke helped calm the pink princess and elicited a short laugh.

            “No.” she shook her head and returned to her almost disconnected state. “It-” she licked her lips, “It’s nothing like that. It’s just, I’ve never been this nervous for Family Day.” she admitted.

            Mal knew it was about her Grandmother, but sometimes it was beneficial to pull the truth from people slowly, and she wasn’t above asking question she already knew the answer to. “Aren’t you excited to see your parents?”

            “I mean yeah, of course.” she looked up for a second before casting her gaze back downwards, towards her toes. “I- I don’t know how to describe it.” she murmured into her knees.

            “Are you… afraid of something happening?” Mal asked hesitantly, not wanting to move the conversation too quickly for the other girl to handle.

            “I-” she stopped herself, about to refuse, and instead thought about it, letting the question sink in and roll about in her mind.

            “It’s okay to be scared you know?” Mal comforted. “You don’t always have to be perfect and brave. Sometimes you can be vulnerable and broken and scared.” she smiled encouragingly, “And you know what? It’s okay.”

            “I guess I’m afraid of how my Grandmother is going to act.” she admitted, and Mal nodded thoughtfully. “Act how?”

            “Like towards my mom and dad, I mean, they did tell her she wasn’t allowed to come near me anymore. My mom was pretty angry, and my mom is like never angry.” She didn’t raise her voice in the slightest, still muffling it into her knees. “She accused her of lying to her and manipulating her and stuff, and I mean I’m sure she’s really mad about it. My Grandma really holds onto a grudge like you wouldn’t believe.”

            “Oh, I bet I could believe.” After a pause Audrey looks back up at her, only moving her eyes. “You know, It was justified, but my mom still holds a grudge against King Stefan.” she admits. “She’s never forgiven him for all the things he did to her.” Mal allows her to think for a moment before asking with a teasing smirk, “You have any grudges you’re holding?”

            Her scoff comes a beat later, “No, of course not.” Mal hears the lie in her words but doesn’t press. She was coming around and starting to trust her, she didn’t want that fragile link to break all because she was a little too pushy. After a moment she eyes her and curiously asks, “Why? Do You?”

            “Yeah.” Mal shrugs, “I’m sure I’ve got plenty of grudges, but my biggest one…” she trails off, “I don’t know if I should tell you.” she winces.

            “OH well now you have to tell me.” Audrey sits up and pushes, looking at her expectantly. She was after all, still a girl used to getting her way.

            “Well, promise you won’t like hate me?” she asks, and Audrey nods at her to continue.

            “My biggest grudge.” she takes a breath, “I hold grudges for myself and on behalf of my friends. My biggest personal grudge though is against King Adam and Queen Leah.” she admits, “Queen Leah advocated to send my mother to the Isle and King Adam is the one who executed the plan.” she smiles thinly, “And because of that, I grew up in… the worst kind of place… without my dad.” she finishes. She loved her mother with all her heart but growing up she ached to meet her father. She hoped hearing her grudge against Queen Leah might make her more receptive to the idea of admitting her own grudge, which she was sure was against the same woman.

            She didn’t say anything, instead leaning back, a look of contemplation on her face. She wouldn't argue against Mal’s grudge. She knew now just what had happened to her mother, she knew it was a well-deserved grudge that Mal held. Audrey was surprised to learn that Mal didn’t know her father, or at least had never met him. She felt her heart hurt for the fae, she couldn't imagine life without both of her parents in it.

            “Hey, you know, I would love to join you for Family Day.” Mal drew her attention away from her swirling thoughts. “I’d love to meet your parents. You know, If you’ll have me that is.” she offered her presence, the extra layer of protection in her corner.

            “You know what?” A smile tugged at Audrey’s lips, “I think I’d like that. I think I’d like that alot.”

Chapter Text

            It was finally the Thanksgiving Family Day event at Auradon Prep, and excitement was buzzing in the air as students and staff alike rushed to put the finishing touches on all areas or preparation for the event. The Isle teens were excited because they had finally gotten through the mounds of assignments the council and school board threw their way via Fairy Godmother. The only thing they were waiting on was the grading of their final papers about what it means to be a hero and the people they look up to as heroes, preferably in their own lives. If all went as smoothly as it had been all semester, with Jane helping grade the papers to translate anything that Fairy Godmother would misunderstand, they would be joining their friends in class very soon.

            “Are you done yet, E?” Jay chuckled as Evie dug through piles of clothes and accessories, going back and forth from one side of the room to the other. “Ben’s going to be here soon.” He reminded her.

            “Oh no no no no, we’re not ready yet. I’m not done.” She froze, “Everyone’s parents are going to be there, we have to make a good impression.” Evie began to frett.

            “Evie.” Carlos took her wringing hands, “We all look great thanks to you.” He smiled comfortingly as Freddie came out from the closet. She was wearing the heels Evie told her to fetch. Thankfully for her, they were platforms with thick heels, easy for her to walk in. Evie eyed her, “Hmmm.” she shook her head, “You know what I like the other ones with it better.” she tells her. Freddie groans as she once more returns to the closet to switch her shoes.

            “Carlos is right E. I think you just need to take a deep, calming breath.” Mal spoke up from her place, laying on her stomach as she flipped through the spell book her mother gave her. Looking up she smiled as the other girl did as she was bid, “Feel better?”

            “A little.” she agreed, looking back at what they already had on speculatively, she was notably less frantic and panicked than before. Evie stood up and approached her new vanity, biting her lip in excitement as she gingerly picked up the small gold tiara that she had left sitting there and put in on her head where it belonged. She fluffed her hair and smiled brightly into the mirror before her expression suddenly changed and soured into sad uncertainty. Quickly she nearly ripped it off her head and stared at it in her hand, Mal’s eyes narrowed as she followed the blue haired girls’ movements.

            “E?” Mal raised an eyebrow.

            “I just-” she wet her lips, “Is it too-” she started to respond, about to ask a question, when a knock at the door interrupted her. “Ah, Ben must be here.” Mal slid up from her bed and reached the door in a few long strides, opening it she smiled and gave a small wave. “Hey Ben.” she warmly greeted the young prince.

            “Hey man, thought you were going to forget about us up here.” Jay joked with a wave from his spot on the floor.

            "Yeah, sorry I'm late guys. I didn't think you guys wanted to sit around bored while we reviewed our presentation last minute." He apologized, "We tried to make the run through quick, but I guess we didn't really succeed. It's a musical number, we're doing 'Be Our Guest'." He continued, "You know, to welcome everyone's families."

            Ben smiled at Carlos as he held onto Dude. It had been quite happenstance that he had heard Carlos was interested in dogs, and watching the pair when they interacted for the first time he knew his judgement that they would be a good fit was correct. Dude bas basically a school mascot, and obviously needed a caretaker. It was only fitting that a student would take on the job. (He made sure Carlos received everything he needed like food and equipment to care for the small dog and even turned it into a listed job in the database directory, so he had begun getting paid for it too. Carlos was dumbfounded when he received a check for the first time, he hadn’t even realized he was working or that Ben set it up just for him.)

            "So, are you guys ready to head down?" he paused, "Or did you guys change your minds?"

            Mal chuckled, “Yeah, just about ready. We didn’t spend all morning let Evie get us ready to just not go.”

            Ben glanced over at Evie who fiddled with the tiara before turning to set it back down, deciding that it would be easier if she forewent it for the event. Ben surprised them by approaching her. His hands met hers, stopping her from setting it down, and he gently took it from her. “Here, let me.” He smiled at her as he gently set the tiara back in its proper place on her head. “There.” Evie almost beamed at him from the calm happiness he radiated and the simple action of validating her by encouraging her (or demanding, depending on how you look at it) to wear her tiara. “I want you to remember this, Evie, it’s something my mom taught me when I was younger that has always stayed with me. You guys too.” he looked at the others before holding Evie’s hands between them again, looking into her eyes. “I want you to remember that nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent.” He tells her sincerely, “You’re an awesome person with so much joy to share with the world. I’d hate to see the light in you squashed because you listened to somebody who was jealous and trying to tear you down.” Her eyes water and an uncertain smile tugged at her lips.

            His smile faltered after a moment and he once again looked apologetic, “I’m really sorry about what Audrey said to you before when you got here. I’m sorry she made you feel like your heritage didn’t matter and made you feel like you weren’t allowed to wear your tiara.” he stepped back, and she blinked at him in surprise, the words sinking in.

            “How do you know how I feel?” She finally asked, looking away, trying, and failing to not shrink in on herself, rubbing her hands over her forearms, remembering the insult and shame Audrey tried to force her into.

            “I could see it when I watched the video, right after she said it your face just fell.” He tells her, wringing his hands a little as he admitted, "I'm ashamed to say this isn't the first time she's insulted someone like that. It’s just the first time she’s been caught on camera and I’ve seen it.”

            “Really? I mean, you kind of mentioned it before back in September but you didn’t really talk about it, none of us did, after she left the cafeteria.” Carlos asked, although none of them were actually all that skeptical, it sounded truthful and lined up with what they already knew of Audrey’s behavior.

            “Uh, yeah.” Ben nodded in confirmation before listing off a fee examples, “She’s insulted Lonnie over not being royalty, about being a scholarship kid, and about being from a military family. She’s insulted Jordan over her heritage too, and Ally for being what she deemed was too ‘weird’. She’s insulted Jane and has been bullying her for years actually. Not only am I amazed I never saw it, but I’m amazed with the levels of patience and forgiveness that girl has.”

            “She’s been bullying Jane for years?” Freddie gaped, looking equal parts furious and incredulous that someone would pick on her roommate that, pick on Jane like that, the sweet and innocent girl that she was, and that Jane would still call her a friend. “If she’s been bullying Jane for years, why didn’t anyone put a stop to it?” Carlos asked, agitated with the people of Auradon, especially the adults who were around.

            “Honestly? I don’t know? Nobody has reported anything to Fairy Godmother or any other school faculty, and Jane herself denies it. When asked about it, she tells them Audrey says teasing things to her all the time, that they sometimes come off mean if you don’t understand the inside jokes, but she claims that’s it. Just innocent teasing among friends.” He looks so beaten down, and Carlos realizes he’s been trying to help Audrey, still wants to help Audrey, hoping that a good influence would help her change her attitude, and, although he hoped it wasn’t true, he was also  trying to find proof so that he could help Jane and other students who Audrey might be picking on too. After everything, even though he had said otherwise, deep down he still wanted one of his oldest friends to succeed and become a better person.

            “Audrey should be the one apologizing, not you.” Mal replied, she wasn’t going to make an excuse for her behavior. Just because she understood what was going on didn’t excuse Audrey from taking responsibility for her actions. Looking into Ben’s eyes she could tell he had no idea what Audrey was keeping from him. Ben meant well, he really did, but she thought that if he knew about this, he would push her too far when she wasn’t ready in his quest to get justice for her that it would blow up in his face.

            Evie relaxed her posture and timidly smiled at him, “Thank you, for talking to me about this Ben. It means a lot to me that you care so much.” Before she could second guess herself, she moved to wrap her arms around the slightly taller boy, hugging him tightly to try and convey just how much his words to her and his actions meant to her.

            Once they were downstairs Mal turned to the group. “I’m actually meeting up with Audrey and her family.” Mal informed them as they neared the entrance to the gardens. With a look it was understood that this was what Mal had been doing, where she’d been going and who she was trying to help. Ben looked surprised and confused, bless his heart, but didn’t ask.

            “Okay, we’ll you’ll know where to find us.” Freddie shrugged in nonchalance and the fae nodded her thanks. “I’ll see you guys later then.” She parted ways with her friends, in search of a certain royal family.

Chapter Text

            “You know, I hate to do this to you guys, but I need to go meet up with Jane and Fairy Godmother about something.” Ben winced, he had only just met up with them, he felt bad for ‘abandoning’ them so soon, but he had a special surprise planned just for them that he wanted to help get ready.

            “Hey, it’s okay man.” Jay shrugged, “I was thinking I’d go look for Lonnie, and I know Carlos is definitely gonna wanna go check out that dessert table over there.”

            “Dessert table?” Carlos’s mouth watered at the thought. By far, his favorite thing they offered here was the chocolate, and he would definitely find that at the dessert table. ”Yeah, over there.” Jay uses his hands, placing them on both sides of Carlos’s face while he directs his gaze in the right direction. Since Jane was busy, that’s where he’d be.

            “Okay, we’ll I guess we’re splitting up for a little bit here, huh?” Evie shrugged as the boys split, sharing a look and a shrug with Ben. “It’s just you and me then Freddie.” she turned to look at the other girl who is gazing across the lawn at something, “Or not.” she sighs, “Whatever you’re looking at, go ahead.” she waves the other girl on, but she startles and returns her gaze to Evie, blinking rapidly. “What?” it doesn’t take a genius to figure out the other girl wasn't paying attention before and hadn't heard a word she said.
            “I said go ahead. I’ll be fine.” she encourages, “You know what, I think I’ll look for Doug.” She decides, “You sure?” Freddie asks, although knowing she’ll be happy to go find Doug. “Yeah, he’s been so busy with band that I haven’t seen him much the last couple of days.” she assures, and now knowing her own path she parts with Freddie in search of Doug.

            Evie strolls along in the gardens leisurely, her mother would love all the beautiful decorations and flowers, she was sure. A pang of sadness hit her, it was Family Day and yet, here she was alone. Granted, she had her friends, but she was still ultimately alone. Her mother was behind a barrier and her father was in the Underworld. It was unlikely they’d extend an invitation to the Lord of the Underworld, Hades. They were far too wary, too afraid to do something like that. And besides, invite him for what reason? She didn’t think a single one of them knew he was her dad.

            So lost in her thoughts Evie nearly barreled right into someone as she walked. “Hey!” Hands caught her arms, “You okay there?” she blinked, her vision focusing on the person in front of her and she flushed, embarrassed. “Uh, yeah.” she tries to shake it off, “I’m fine.” she smiles, “I was just a little lost in thought for a minute there. But before that I was actually looking for you.”

            Doug smiles back at her, “Well that makes two of us.” he jokes, “Because I was looking for you.” He turns to stand by her side, facing the same direction and offering her his arm, which she of course accepted, and they started to stroll together now.  “You look lovely by the way.” he compliments after a moment, and the blush of embarrassment turns to something else.

            “Why thank you Doug. You don’t look too bad yourself.” she teases back, stopping for a moment to ‘fix’ his tie that didn’t need fixing. He knew it and she knew it, and she knew that he knew it, but he didn't call her out for it. Instead a like blush burned it’s way across the back of his neck.

            “I’ve actually got someone who wants to meet you.” he tells her, “She wants to meet all of my new friends of course, but she just had to meet you. I guess I must talk about you a lot.” gave her a look as he made the admission. “Oh, do you now?” she giggled, a pleased lilt to her voice even as she wore a teasing smirk. “Well then, we mustn’t keep her waiting.”

            “No, we mustn’t.” he laughed in agreement, “Right this way, Princess.” She couldn’t help but let out another soft giggle, she was a Princess and he had always treated her like one. Is this what her mother meant when she said to find herself a Prince? More important was to find herself someone who valued her heart and her mind and treated her like the princess she was, which is what she had always thought a true Prince would do. And yet, Doug wasn’t royalty. Could you be a Prince in all but title? It would certainly seem so.

            “Evie, this is Snow White.” she turns to greet the woman, her breath caught in her throat. She felt very undignified when a squeaked out, “Hi.” is what escaped her. Her cheeks flamed red and she blinked with wide eyes at the other woman in front of her. Skin white as snow, hair black as a raven, and lips as red as blood. There was no denying that this was indeed Snow White herself. “I um, I’m Evie.” she cleared her throat quietly and tried to speak, but the words don’t make it out. She knows she looks nervous and she hates that she looks nervous. A princess was supposed to be nothing if not poised. Where was the courage and civil poise she had back back on the Isle when she needed it?

            Doug looks at her fondly, and she’s surprised he doesn’t seem as embarrassed as she feels. In fact, he doesn’t look embarrassed at all, which perplexes her. “This is Princess Genevieve.” he takes the initiative and introduces her with her title. (She supposes it’s fitting given that she’s wearing her tiara.) “Evie is fine.” she manages to say, and the woman looks at her in wonder.

            “Please, call me Snow.” she invites, “I’m so pleased to meet you Evie.” she tests the nickname, putting the name to the girl, and finds both fit rather well. She reaches out before halting her hand midair, “May I?” Evie blinks stupidly but nods slowly although unsure what she is asking for. With a smile she brushes her fingers through Evie’s blue tresses gently as she moved closer and studied her face. “Oh, darling you look so much like her.”

            “Who?” she almost croaks.

            “Why, your mother of course.” she laughs, “You look so much like Grimhilde.” In a motion she wasn’t expecting, Snow White stepped even closer and wrapped her up in a hug that oozed love. “We’re stepsisters you know.” she tells her when she releases her. “My father was married to your mother when he died, so I suppose it’s only a technicality, but I’d still like to call you my sister, if that’s alright with you of course.” The warm smile and tight embrace of a sister left Evie’s mind reeling and she scrambled to pull it back into order. “Yes, yes of course, I-I would love that.” Evie gasps and stumbles over her words in her haste to agree.

            “Wait, you don’t, you don’t hate my mother? You don’t hate me?” Evie pulled back and the fearful side of her brain rushed back at her with rational doubt.

            “No, why would I?” she shook her head, “Grimhilde was my mother too, she treated me as her own and raised me from the time I was six years old. I may not have recognized it at the time, but when I look back I can see that she was affected by dark magic.” She calms Evie with a soothing voice. Doug moves closer, a gentle hand on the small of he back to keep her grounded and let her know he’s still right there with her. “Her magic mirror.” she purses her lips, “it was a self-esteem thing when she created it, she told me so.” the admission isn’t a shock to Evie, she already knew that fact.

            Snow takes a breath before she continues, “When I look back on my memories of the mirror, I clearly remember the good and light feelings that radiated off of it. The magic was clean and pure and full of good intentions. But after some time, there were dark and sharp edges spiking out of it, it was no longer the same magic and it corrupted her mind. Someone cursed her mirror. I know that now.” she looks sorrowful, “I never wanted her to be sent to the Isle, I didn’t think creating it was a good choice, but I never thought it would get the backing it needed to pass. I wanted her to come home.” she meets Evie’s eyes and she sees the years of pain and regret built up within them.

            “Maybe someday,” Evie’s voice shakes even as she speaks with confidence, hope lacing her voice. “Maybe someday, you and I can make that happen.” The women smile tearfully at each other and clasp hands, it becomes a vow, a promise that they would try.

Chapter Text

            After parting ways with Evie, Freddie wound her way around the gardens, taking her time as she made her way to her target, giving herself time to calm the nerves jumping about in her belly. She hung back, her uncertainty getting the best of her as she watched and listened to the spectacle in front of her. The soulfulness of the music and exactness of the footwork called to her the same way being a puppeteer with her father had in her childhood. Uma was right as usual, at her core Freddie was a performer, she belonged on a stage.

            A man was playing a small stringed instrument as he danced around with a lithe woman. Two teens, a boy and a girl she hadn’t met yet but had seen on campus, danced around with them. If her gut was correct, and it wasn’t often wrong, then that meant that this was King Naveen and his wife Queen Tiana.

            She didn’t have to tell them who she was, she reasoned to herself. She could just ask to join their lively circle of music and dance. She leaned back, partway in the shadows she narrowed her eyes as she thought. The movement of their shadows in the light caught her next and she watched them move with them for a moment before they changed and spread out tall on the pavement, as though approaching her in blocky lines. The sound of static chatter reached her ears, growing in volume as the shadows approached her, it was like they were all trying to speak at once. Perhaps it had been a long time since they’d been around a Shadow Witch like she was, far too long since they’d last spoken to someone who could understand them. Although she couldn’t understand them yet, this was something that gradually happened the more you listened, and Freddie was definitely a good listener.

            She watched, transfixed with wide eyes. The shadows swirled up into the air around her and she almost gasped as she jolted in surprise. What kind of shadow magic was this? She lifted a hand towards one and stopped to stare at it instead. Confused awe filled her as she turned her hand around, this way and that before reaching into the sunlight and pulling back to the shadowy shade. It was like shadows licked up her skin while was among them, and it was one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen.

            The music changed beat and she looked back to where the royal family was continuing to have their fun. Biting her lip she blended back into the shadows. It wouldn’t be fair to them to go over and interrupt, not when she might just ruin their day entirely by being here, she knew how one-sidedly people here tended to think about history, especially their own.

            How could she walk up to them and tell her the only reason her father had done what he did was because they needed a villain in their story? Her father was a shadow man, by nature magic was his trade. People didn’t pay a lot of mind to the streaks of darkness that followed them around, but they saw, and they heard and oh boy did they talk. He knew Tiana and Naveen before he ever met them, knew who they were at their core and what they needed to learn to bring it to the surface. He saw glimpses of possibilities, knew the only way they would grow was with some interference and the only way they would end up with their ‘happily ever after’ was together, but they would never get there if he didn’t step in. If they didn’t see him as the villain of their story, they would have scoffed at him with his insane way of trying to help and never grew to learn what it is they needed to. So he played some nasty tricks, knowing they would be all the better for it.

            She knew the truth, she doubted they ever figured it out. But how could she tell them all that? How did you get someone so sure of what they knew to listen to what you’re trying to tell them? How do you get someone to listen when you’re telling them they’ve only got half of the story? With a sigh she turned away to leave.

            “Hey, wait!” An energetic and out of breath voice laughed out, she froze as the footsteps sounded in her direction. “Why don’t you join us?” She turned to see the Prince she’d been watching dance had come over and was offering her his hand as he caught his breath.

            “Oh uh-” she was going to decline.

            “C’mon, I saw you watching us for a while, you know you want to.” he enticed, and she relented to his insistence. “Yes.” he pumped his fist happily when she accepted. He pulled her along, her hand lightly in his. “You’re Freddie, right?” he asked, and she nodded dumbly, wondering how he knew her name in the first place, especially when she didn’t know his. “I’m Nicholas.” he told her with a smile as they joined his family.

            “Everyone, this is Freddie.” he introduces her.

            “It’s nice to meet you. Are you joining us, Freddie?” Tiana smiled warmly and she hummed her affirmation. “Uh-huh.”

            “Ooh, Nicky got a crush?” the girl teased quietly, but she still managed to hear it.

            “Grow up Mara.” He rolled his eyes at her and she ignored him, leaning around to greet Freddie. “Hi, I’m Tamara. It’s nice to meet you Freddie!” She waves and Freddie nods shyly, waving back.

            They fall back into the swing like they never stopped, and Freddie loses herself in the flow. She hadn’t had such fun since arriving in Auradon. As soon as she was allowed into the general ed classes she was going to pester Doug about what clubs were on campus. She was hoping for theater, and maybe dancing or music if she had the time.

            It took round after round of dancing and music to tire them out, and Nicholas saved her from having to interact with his parents too much by pulling her away to take a walk with him instead. They laughed together as they collapsed by one of the fountains, although they were still out of breath.

            “You know, you should really join Auradon Prep’s dance troupe.” he tells her. “You’d fit right in.”

            “Maybe.” she mused, “I love dancing and singing, but storytelling? That’s more my main thing.” she shrugged.

            “So why aren’t you in any of them yet?” he looked curiously at her. “They're open clubs to join.”

            “I ah, well.” she licked her lips. “I have this one class I gotta pass before they let me do stuff like that.” While she’s feeling brave and truthful she elaborates, “I’m an uh, transfer? Is that the right word? A transfer from the Isle. Uh, I have to pass this class called Remedial Goodness 101 before I am let into anything else.” she looks anywhere but at him while she talks. She doesn't want to know, doesn’t want to see the disappointment as his face falls, especially when he connects the dots of her parentage.

            “Oh, yeah.” he nodded, “Lonnie actually told me a little bit about that, I guess I kinda forgot you weren’t quite done with it yet.”

            “You know Lonnie?” she blinks up at him.

            “Yeah, of course. Everyone knows Lonnie.” he laughs, “We bonded a lot over feeling out of place. She doesn’t fit into the stereotypical girl mold that Auradon expects her to, you know?” She chuckles in agreement; she had seen Lonnie go from being poised and graceful with Evie to taking down Jay in two seconds flat before. Li Lonnie was definitely not like a lot of the preppy Auradon girls she’d seen around campus. “I think Lonnie’s going to try to get Jay to try out for R.O.A.R.”

            “Why?” she asks, though she doesn’t know exactly what R.O.A.R. even is.

            “R.O.A.R. is this sport we have on campus; it’s an all guys team and Lonnie has always wanted to join it. But with that dumb rule, she can’t, so she’ll probably try to get Jay to do it and live vicariously through him.”

            “Okay, you’re sidetracking this conversation now.” she snorts, amused. “What about you? Why do you feel different? What made you feel out of place Mr. Charisma-man?” she poked him in the arm, emphasizing her point.

            “I had a hard time making friends when I first started coming here, I’ll admit.” he shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck as he made a face. “A lot of the guys here are very… rough and tumble, I guess would be the one of the best ways to describe it. A lot more than me. Sports are so ingrained into their interests and they aren’t even in mine that I couldn’t really relate to anybody at first. I was the weird new kid who carried around his mini guitar.”

            “I fail to see how either of you would be considered weird.” Freddie shakes her head, almost in denial. “I mean, I’ve known you all of what? A half hour? Little more? And you’re impossible not to like and get along with. I bet you literally bleed charisma.” He bumped her shoulder and shook his head, and she laughed, bumping him back. “I’m serious you know.”

            A calm and contented silence fell over the pair as they observed the festivities, families laughed and enjoyed each other’s company, treats were eaten, games were played, and children ran around like wild. A ball rolled over and hit her foot, and she looked at it in surprise. A little girl came running forward towards her with a toothy grin. Returning her smile Freddie picked it up and held it out to her. “Thanks, miss!” Her eyes lingered as she returned to her game.

            “Hey, can I- um can I ask you something?” her voice was thick as she fought the emotions that bubbled up, homesickness and longing to see her own family once more too hard to ignore.

            “Uh, yeah. Sure, anything.” he responded, “Go right ahead.”

            “I ah, well you’re from the Bayou De Orleans, right? That real far?” she picked at the polish Evie painted on her nails. Since it didn’t chip right away when she lightly scratched at it with her nails that meant it was the good stuff, far better than what she’d had on the Isle.

            “Eh. So-so.” he used his hand to gesture as he spoke, “It’s sort of far, so I don’t get to go home alot, but it’s not as far away as it could be. You know?” she nodded contemplatively, “But that’s not really what you want to ask me about? Is it?” he looked at her with knowing eyes and she fidgeted under the gaze, unable to keep it in.

            “No, you’re right.” she admitted, “I-” she sucked on her teeth, “I was going to ask you how you deal with it? Being away from home, I mean. What do you do to get rid of homesickness?” her voice was tiny, afraid of being laughed at for the very notion that someone could miss the Isle, or more importantly the inhabitants.

            Nicholas surprised her by throwing an arm around her shoulders in a half hug. “When I’m away from home too long, I try to remember just why that is. What is it that I’m doing here and how it’s going to be worth it when it’s said and done.” he meets her eyes, “I also find that talking to my friends helps? Why don’t you tell me about home? Tell me about what it is you miss.” her bottom lip wobbled, nobody else seemed to notice the unrest in Freddie, the overwhelming desire to just not be here. It was like after Mal’s revelation about her mother that it had been forgotten that she even mentioned she had a little sister. (Such a large bombshell shattering the foundations of reality and their knowledge of history that they had spent years believing in? Yeah, she supposed she would forget whatever happened right before too.)

            “I-”

            “C’mon Facilier. Talk to me?” he pushed; it was for her own good that she let it out. She was only hurting herself by internalizing the pain. He opened his mouth to continue but was cut off by a gasp and he froze, he’d recognize that person anywhere. Footsteps stomped as she rounded the fountain to stand in front of the pair, angry eyes glaring down at them where they sat.

            “Facilier?!” she hissed, with a disgusted look as she eyed Freddie. “You let the daughter of the man who cursed our parents come near us? You let her dance with us? You knew who she was, and you still invited her into our circle? How dare you.” Mara kept her voice low as she hissed the words at her brother, “How dare you.”

            “And you, how dare you.” She turned on Freddie, jabbing her finger at her with each sentence, “How dare you come near us. How dare you smile and act like your family has done nothing wrong. How dare you trick us into thinking you were just some shy girl Nick had met.” Freddie found herself shrinking backwards with each blow and with the last one she let out a shriek as she fell backwards into the fountain. As she sat up she violently couched, spitting water from her mouth as she tried to regain control of her breathing. Wiping the water from her eyes, she thought she saw a flash of regret cross Mara’s face before she masked it with her anger once more.

            “I hope you know I’m telling mom and dad about this.” She informed Nicholas before turning and disappearing through the crowd. He ignored his sister, instead turning to Freddie and reaching to help her climb out of the fountain. Water sloshed around as she tried to pull herself out without having to stand up directly in the water, she didn’t want the shoes Evie picked out to get waterlogged. She was already stuck in wet clothes; she didn’t really feel like being stuck with squishy and sticky shoes. Freddie’s shoulders slumped dejectedly when she was sitting safely back on the edge, listening to the pitter pattering of water dripping from her hair.

            It seemed that for the first time since she’d met him, Nicholas was at a loss for words. He grit his teeth, as he tried to figure out how to comfort the disheartened girl.

            “You know,” he started, “I spent a lot of my life believing the stories, convinced you were this… thing to be feared.” He winced as she shrunk, the very words now left a foul taste in his mouth. “But” he pressed on, stressing the word, “But the more I heard about you from Lonnie the more I realized something.” She looked up through wet hair and lashes to meet his eyes. “You aren’t the monster under the bed. You’re a teenage girl. You’re just a person.” Freddie bites her lip and sniffles slightly, “That’s when I started getting really curious about you and your dad.” He admitted and her brows knit together. “I pressed Lonnie for more details about you and I started researching what it meant to be a Shadow man, Shadow Priest or Priestess, and Shadow Witch or Worlock, and I really learned a lot.”

            “Yeah? What did you learn?” Almost hesitantly, trying not to scoff, Freddie asked.

            “I learned that you can actually talk to our shadows, that they tell you things. I learned that Shadow people” he used a generalized term, trying to encompass various names they were called, “Can sometimes actually tell the future. It’s part of why they do card readings and fortune telling’s, it’s because they divine some of it from our shadows and the rest from the innate magic inside of them.” With a look he tried to reassure her, and she let his words wash over her.

            “Are you trying to tell me…” she paused as she licked her lips, “that you understand the whole story?” He nodded, “I wanted to get to know you and have them get to know you without judging you for what they perceive as being the whole truth.” He admits, “I wanted them to decide they liked who you were before they knew who your family was, and I wanted for us to tell them the truth about it all together as a team.”

            “I don’t think that’s really going to happen now.” Freddie shakes her head, “Thank you, though, for caring about setting the record straight.” She smiles at him.

            After a moment of comfortable silence, he speaks again, “You’re like, really wet.” And she snorts, “You think?” Together they burst into laughter, “Come on, we should get you dried off. Or maybe you might be better off changing clothes? That’ll be faster.” He shrugs and she sighs, “Evie is going to be disappointed. She worked so hard getting us all dressed up nicely this morning.”

            “Why don’t we grab her quick on our way up?” he suggests and she shrugs, “You know, I don’t really want to bother her, she looked like she’s having a good time hanging out with Doug when we passed them over there.” She shakes her head as she stands, “But I definitely think I want to get into some dry clothes.”

            Together they start the trek across the garden grounds quietly.

            “So, are you going to tell me what was bothering you before you took a swim in the fountain of youth?” He joked and she cracked a smile at his corny joke. “You don’t have to talk if you don’t want to. But this is what friends are for you know.” He reminded, “What was it Lonnie said you like to say?” he paused to contemplate the wording for a moment, “Ride or die? Friends stick together when the going gets tough.” The knowledge that this boy hadn't even met her yet but had remembered random details Lonnie shared and looked into her family’s brand of magic made her feel more wanted in Auradon than she had almost the entire time she’d been here. This boy barely knew her, and he knew who she was and was still willing to sit next to her as she cried all over him, all for the sake of her sanity. Was willing to stand next to her in front of his family, face the backlash of not only standing up with and for a villain kid, but for the villain kid of his parent’s story. She could talk, he would listen.

            As all of these feelings roll over her, Freddie decides to answer him, he deserved to know, and she wanted to share this with him. Her sister would love him, she just knew it. “I have a little sister. Her name is Cecelia, but she likes to call her Celia, and she’s ten years old.

Chapter Text

            When it came to looking for Lonnie, it didn’t take a genius to figure out where she would be. Out of all the attractions set up for Family Day there was only one Jay could say without any hesitation she'd be at. He could guarantee it. She’d be found at the obstacle courses; he knew it as an absolute. Lonnie and physical activity went together like Evie and fashion, Mal and flying, Carlos and chocolate, Doug and learning.

            He leaned back on the sidelines watching as Lonnie lapped the boys on the track and he could hear them groaning and complaining that she was making them look bad. It irritated him that they wanted her off the track. She was the best among them, so why didn’t they want her around? It puzzled Jay to no end why she wasn’t on the R.O.A.R. or Tourney team sports she raved about. She was clearly the best here; she would dominate on the fields. They should be begging her to lead them. It was the obvious choice, or so he thought.

            With a hearty laugh he joined her on the track, racing side by side, “You ready for some actual competition?” He teased her and she smirked before teasing right back, “Oh yeah? You think you can beat me?” Her ponytail swinging behind her.

            He had to laugh, “Not even if I tried.”

            Lonnie raised an eyebrow, bewilderment behind her cocky expression and he in turn shook his head at her confusion. “Lonnie, you’re the best on campus, and I’d bet off campus too. So, trust me when I say this, but no matter how hard I try I know you are going to absolutely kick my butt. You’re just that good.” He doubted there was a single person on Lonnie’s level, and in his mind, even he himself could never measure up.

            It took him a moment to realize she had abruptly stopped in the middle of the track, her movements grinding to a sudden halt as she froze. Those words showed her the clear cut admiration he had for her, but although it made things clearer for her, this was unfamiliar territory for her and she was still a little uncertain of the underlying emotions she’d been seeing in him.

            Instead of continuing on and climbing the wall ahead of him, he jogged back to stand with her. “You okay Lonnie? Something wrong?” This was unlike her when they were competing.

            “Uh, yeah, yeah I’m fine. I was just surprised is all.” she tried to insist, embarrassed now and wanting to just breeze past him and ignore the fact that she froze up when he complimented her.

            He raised an eyebrow and narrowed his eyes at her, deciding if he was going to let this go or not. “You were really surprised that I genuinely think you’re the best and most dedicated to sport and physical activity on campus? If that surprises you, then Lonnie you don’t hear it enough. You’re worth ten times any of those jocks, and I mean on and off the field.” He stressed, both hands softly resting on her shoulders enough, so she feels the weight. “I don’t know what it is about Auradon that insists only guys can play their school sports and stuff, but on the Isle, as long as you want to you’re in.” he shared, “It didn’t matter who you were, if you were good or bad, you had a spot on the team if you wanted it. If you were good you were great and if you weren’t so good, you got help to get better. No one was left behind or on the sidelines unless they wanted to be.” He clenched his jaw while he spoke, it upset him that one of his best friends in Auradon wasn’t allowed to do something simply because she was a girl.

            “You know, I think Auradon has it backwards.” a voice joined in, approaching. “It would seem to me that Auradon is the one who should be ashamed of themselves and not those who are from the Isle.” They both looked, “Mom?” Lonnie blinked at her; she hadn’t been entirely sure they were going to be able to make it to Family Day. “You’ve shown more kindness, loyalty, and willingness to include people than most of the people here have ever shown us.” Mulan smiles at him and Lonnie feels relief blossom as she lets out a breath, her mother’s approval has always meant a lot to her.

            “Will you be joining us for Dinner tonight?” she asks lightly, “I’m sure it would be quite easy to arrange another spot at our table during the Thanksgiving Feast.” She assures and Jay finds himself at a loss for words, he hadn’t even been sure if that was something he was going to, let alone that he could go at all.

            Before he could decide Lonnie did for him, “Yes! That would be great!” She bounced on the balls of her feet with a smile on her face. “Please join us Jay?” When she turned her excited, sparkling eyes and hopeful smile on him, he found himself unable to refuse. “Anything you want, Lonnie.” he gave a half shrug, smiling softly back at her.

            “How about stay forever?” Lonnie’s grandmother murmured under her breath to Mulan who chuckled. It reminded her of her own grandmother. She hadn’t quite heard what it was her grandmother had shouted at the time when she met Shang, but her mother didn’t hesitate to tell her later. It was almost a family joke now, asking if something would stay forever, but she could see that there was a hint of seriousness in her mother’s voice. Something told Mulan that anything Lonnie asked him for, she would get.

Chapter Text

            Carlos wasted no time, eagerly making a beeline for the dessert table to snatch up some of that chocolate before it was all gone. He scooped up a strawberry and held it under the fountain, dousing it in the sweet and gooey substance. He hummed, delighted with the bursts of flavor. Dude barked at him, “What?” he looked down at the small dog, holding the treat closer protectively. “You can’t have this.” he shook his head, “No.” he repeated when the dog whined. “Don’t you whine at me.” He gave the dog a pointed look, “Look, fine, I’ll get you something, it just can’t have chocolate in it.” he relented, knowing he would have given into the dogs ‘puppy-dog- eyes’ sooner or later, and apparently it was sooner.

            After he wiped off his face and fingers, he scoured the table for something he knew Dude could have. He was excited to find that there was more than enough present on the tables that was edible for dogs. With a hum he piled some onto a plate and made his way towards the open rolling grass where he saw other people with their pets.

            He warily eyed the family with what he thought was a tiger before plopping down underneath a shady tree, Dude yapping happily as he followed.  “Roll over Dude.” Carlos instructed with a smile and laughed as he chased his tail before he dropped down and rolled actually over. Before looking at him expectantly “Okay, okay! Here you go buddy!” he plucked a treat off the plate and offered it to Dude who snatched it from his fingers.

            “Who gave you a dog?!” A shrill voice almost shrieked and he flinched at the sharpness. It took him a second to realize they were talking to him. Looking up from Dude who had crawled back up into his lap, trying to get treats from the plate he was holding out of reach above his head he saw a girl his age glaring down at him. It took seeing the dalmatian puppy at the end of the leash in her hand for him to realize who she probably was. “Um, excuse me?” he asked, although he had a pretty good idea what this was about. “You heard me. Who. Gave. You. A. Dog?” she repeated, breaking up each word as she emphasized it.

            Two people (Roger and Anita he presumed) came up to stand behind her. “Riley? What’s going on over here?” her mother asked her in what Carlos would describe as being almost a stereotypical sweet motherly voice.

            “Who in their right mind would give the child of Cruella De vil a dog?!” she asked them in response. With wide eyes they looked from their daughter to the boy sporting black, white, and red with two-toned hair and immediately their minds flashed back to Cruella. They gasped at seeing Dude in his lap. Dude seemed immune to the tension in the air, and Carlos stayed frozen with the plate in his hand above his head as Dude wriggled about in his lap.

            “You- you’re holding a dog?” Anita almost stammered, tapping Roger’s chin when he continued to gape at the boy. “Where did you- who let you have-” she didn’t finish either question and Riley surged forward, her hands lightning fast as she snatched Dude from his lap while he Carlos was continuing to be as still as a statue.

            Carlos gaped at her, “Hey!” he dropped the plate, desserts forgotten as they fell into the grass as he scrambled to his knees as he reached for the small dog. Dude whined in her arms and Anita too was gaping at her daughter. Roger came out of his stupor, nodding approvingly at his daughter, it was their job to rescue dogs from poor owners and homes that didn’t meet their needs properly (or sometimes at all), “What did you do to this dog?” he glared down at Carlos as Dude yipped unappreciatively at Riley. “Did you hurt him?” Carlos blinked rapidly at the man and shook his head, “No! I would never! Dude’s my friend!” He tried to defend himself, but his words fell on deaf ears. Ignoring Carlos’s plea to give him back, the duo turned on their heels and started away, their own dogs’ leashes tugging lightly as the puppy and older dogs followed.

            Anita paused in her turn as she met the boy’s eyes and took in his expression. The look on his face was devastated, his eyes told her that they were taking away his best friend. She was torn, she knew Cruella had taken their puppies with the intent to skin them and turn their fur into a luxurious coat, but Roger and Riley hadn’t actually given the boy much chance to answer for himself. After a moment of staring each other down, Carlos silently begging her to help him, she turned and followed after her family, pondering if she could trust what she was seeing in him. After her experience, it was only fair that she be skeptical.

            Carlos sagged back down against the tree, watching helplessly as they left him there. He wanted to yell and fight back, but that just wasn’t in his nature, that was Jay and Mal and Uma, not him. He didn’t want to make them think less of him than they clearly already did, so he tried to stay calm as the girl had ripped Dude form his lap. He tried to tell them that Ben turned Dude over into his care, but they weren’t listening to anything he tried to tell them. Anita though, she at least looked thoughtful and regretful, maybe she was going to talk them into giving Dude back? He doubted it.

            He knew he should get up and find Ben or Jane, but he knew they were busy and although Dude was one of the most important things in his life, he didn’t want to bother them while they were working, not over a misunderstanding. Although they basically stole Dude from him, he was still trying to look at this as a misunderstanding. They didn’t know his mom was sick when they knew her, they didn’t know that she was off her medication, they didn’t know that played such a big part in why she thought a dalmatian puppy coat was a good idea. It didn’t matter that Anita had been her longtime friend, she had been worried about what she would think of her if she knew. A childish fear, but also a very valid and real one; she had seen people dropped for much less. And finally, they didn’t know Carlos and they didn’t know that he loved Dude. 

            They just didn’t know.

Chapter Text

            Mulan and her mother parted ways with the two teens as they went off to locate her husband, Shang. “I thought I’d find him over here with you on the course.” Mulan shook her head as she admitted, “I’ve barely seen him since we got here.”

            “Have you checked over at the Swords and Shields arena practice fields? I heard from Doug it was going to be open, and you know how much Dad enjoys the sport.” she shares a laugh with her mother, “Like father like daughter.”

            Once they leave Lonnie and Jay return to the obstacle course, uninterrupted and not freezing up this time. Repeatedly they run through the course, and like Jay predicted, no matter how hard he tried, he was hard pressed to come out on top in a competition against Lonnie.

            Lonnie was amazed with Jay’s resilience. Instead of throwing a fit or giving up with each defeat, he just continued to try and try. After a while of running through the track he almost pouted at her when they called it quits, and she realized he was enjoying himself. Even though he was repeatedly losing, he was enjoying every second of it, and he was enjoying it because he was spending time with her. The very thought made her blush, but thankfully it hid well because of all the exercise they’d just done.

            “Want to go check out the Swords and Shields fields?” Jay suggested and she hesitated. She really wanted to, but she knew that even if she went down there and they let her on the fields they still wouldn’t even let her pick up one of the spelled weapons. She bit her lip, “Maybe later.” she replied, and relaxed when Jay simply shrugged, accepting her decision.

            “Okay, is there anything else you can think of that you really want to do right now?” Lonnie thought about his question, was there anything she really wanted to do right now? She didn’t think there was, besides spending more time hanging out with Jay that is. “No, not really.” she shook her head, “How about you?”

            He shook his head too, “Not really. Maybe we should go meet up with some of our friends?” he suggested, and for a moment Lonnie selfishly wanted to say no, part of her wanted Jay all to herself and she would have to share his attention when they rejoined the group. He seemed to read her thoughts, or maybe he had the same thoughts she did because he then said, “Or maybe we can just wander the gardens for a little bit first before we go find them?”

            She laughed, her lips curving up into another smile. “Yeah, okay. Let’s do that.”

            Now in agreement, the two teens take off randomly, leisurely strolling through the beautiful gardens. Stopping her for a moment he holds his hands up for her to wait. She gives him a look and rolls her eyes, but waits for him as he turns and runs out of her sight. Crossing her arms she gazes around as she wonders what it is he’s up to.

            Just as quickly as he left he came back to her side, putting a flower in her hair. “Wha--?” she started to ask and he interrupted her, “Your favorite flower. The Mag-something or other, I don’t remember what you said it was called.” he admitted sheepishly and she took it from her hair too look at it. She tried not to notice the pout when she removed it, but she pretended not to notice as she inspected it.

            She smiled down at the beautiful flower in her hand, it was indeed her favorite. “Magnolia.” she tells him as she puts it back into her hair, “It’s called a magnolia blossom.” she looks at him fondly and quickly kisses his cheek before she can change her mind. Jay looked both embarrassed and flattered as he rubbed the back of his neck.

            As the resumed their walk, Lonnie slyly put her hand in his. She caught him look at her and then their hands in surprise, he didn’t say anything about it but his smile seemed brighter to her somehow.

            They hadn’t been wandering long when she caught sight of a familiar looking tiger. Lonnie tried not to stare as she thought, but her eyes were drawn back to the potential problem. It was Rajah lying over there, and where there was Rajah there was Sultana Jasmine and her family. She didn’t know what Jay thought about it all, but she knew they probably wouldn’t be too happy to see him, turning her back to it she attempted to be subtle as she suggested they go look for their friends now. Of course Jay agreed, he seemed to be willing to do pretty much anything as long as it was Lonnie who suggested it.

            She barely made it two steps, Jay about to turn to follow her, when he was knocked over by the giant feline. “Oof!” he groaned as the tiger held him down and growled in his face. “What’d I do?” He asked, although it was more of a rhetorical question than anything.

            Sultana Jasmine followed her pet and stared him down. “Lonnie.” she said thinly, “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay as far away from this one as possible.” she narrowed her eyes as she spoke before looking up at Lonnie’s face. “Do you understand me?” She used her authoritarian voice, commanding her acquiescence and agreement.

            “No I don’t! Jay did nothing wrong!” she told the older woman. The Sultana and her family were some of the only ones who really understood Lonnie’s own family, they got along really well together and she was sad to see this would likely be a very dividing disagreement.

            “I know his father! Who do you think raised him!” The Sultana said evenly, her lips in a thin line as she argued her point to the teenager. “If you knew about half of the things that Jafar said and did to me, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

            “Jay is not his father.” Lonnie shot back, “Jay is the sweetest, most loyal and dedicated person I think I’ve ever met! He’s kind and thoughtful and compassionate.” she begins to almost rant at her, listing off various traits that people considered to be heroic.

            “That’s what he wants you to think.” Jasmine was almost seething, she couldn’t fathom why this girl simply would not listen to her.

             “Look I know my dad is arrogant and has a superiority complex or something, and I’m sorry for what you went through, but I really didn’t do anything.” He insisted sincerely, even with the tiger holding him down. Jay wasn’t the kind to sugarcoat things for people. He would say what he meant, and he would mean what he said. “Honestly, as much as I hate to admit it since the Isle  wasn’t a great environment for growing up, but the Isle was really the best thing that ever happened to my dad. He relearned everything and he’s a much better person now than he was when you knew him.” He informed her, “He really has changed.” He assured the Sultana, and she couldn’t deny he sounded sincere.

            “Not that it makes it any better, but when he was Grand Vizier your father had been acting rashly and impulsively and it was having a negative effect on the Kingdom of Agrabah, you just weren’t privy to see and know that. From what he could tell, the only logical course of action at the time was to dethrone your father and step in as Sultan.” he rushes to continue as she opens her mouth to speak, “But the plan was only to sit on the throne until you were trained and ready to accept your responsibilities as Sultana.” he explains, “It was the snake staff that made everything spiral out of his control. It corrupted him. He, in his infinite knowledge about magical artifacts, didn’t realize that his beloved staff was not only a magical staff but also a cursed one that would warp your mind so that you both became suspicious of everyone but also power-hungry.”

            When he had started talking Aladdin himself had joined them, he looked more curious than anything at first. He nodded along, trying to puzzle together what he was being told with what they had seen and experienced. It did fit with the way he’d seen the snake eyes seem to hypnotize Jafar on more than one occasion, and he had to admit he’d met plenty of men who had similar beliefs at the time. Prejudice could be hard to erase, even now there was still negative stigma around him from having been a ‘street rat’ most of his life. There were some members of royal families he’d met who had seemed to look down their noses at him. Over time he’d seen some of them grow and change, but he never forgot the way they looked at him at first.

            After a moment of silence, Jay spoke up again, “Uh, yeah, can I maybe get up now?”

            Jasmine was trying to mull over what he said, and she didn’t know that she could trust him. “Hey, I know I haven’t earned your trust and respect yet, but please, allow me the opportunity to at least try?” he pleaded. Amongst Jay’s weaknesses was an intense need to be liked by those around him. It was why he blended into the atmosphere of a group so well, it was why he was versatile in his interests. It was why he so badly wanted the approval of the man and woman who were looking down at him with uncertainty and disdain.

            “Not everybody has to like you Jay.” Lonnie would tell him later, “You don’t have to like them and they don’t have to like you. You don’t owe anyone anything, and if they can’t see the jewel that you are then they aren’t worth your effort. You shouldn’t have to change who you are just so that somebody will like you. You are perfect, just the way you are.”

Chapter Text

            There were so many people milling about that Mal was beginning to get irritated, would she ever find Audrey and her family? She felt like she was going in circles (she kind of was) and getting nowhere (she was right).

            Although she hated it, today she was thankful that people were avoiding her and getting out of her way when she passed by. Knowing that her obvious fae features made people uncomfortable and fearful really cut Mal deep, it hurt to know that’s what they thought of her. She wanted to stop and scream at them for their prejudiced and biased behavior, she was a teenager and they didn’t even know her, but they were ostracizing and avoiding her because she was clearly a wild fae. Somehow though, she didn’t think Audrey would appreciate the extra eyes that would join the ones already looking her way when Mal joined them. Auradonian’s were nosey, she’d noticed.

            Finally, she breathed a sigh of relief when she spotted the familiar sunshine-y golden curls that cascaded down Aurora’s back and the pink and blue motif that Audrey had adopted from her mother and wore with pride. Her relief was only short lived. As she approached, she felt her blood boil, Audrey was pulled behind her parents in an instant and she was sure a screaming match was about to begin.

            “You can’t keep me away from my grandchild!” Queen Leah’s voice was a screech to Mal’s ears.

            “Oh yes we can!” Philip argued right back, a look of venomous rage in his eyes. “We told you that you weren’t allowed anywhere near Audrey!” Aurora chimed in, her delicate voice managing to be seething.

            “I have every right! I am her Grandmother! I am the Queen!” she fought, enraged that she wasn’t getting her way. No longer would Aurora meekly sit by and let her mother walk all over her. It was her time to stand.

            Mal’s wings fluffed, the feathers hackling up as she stomped forward. “You don’t have any right to be near Audrey!” she snapped at the older woman, allowing her sharp teeth to show as she snarled and hissed. It had the desired effect and Queen Leah visibly recoiled “You!” she screeched yet again, “How did you get off the Isle?”

            “I was invited, unlike you!” Mal was quick to snap-ishly retort.

            “Mother. Meet Mal, Maleficent’s daughter.” Aurora informed her, “She is another child that I don’t want you anywhere near.” She spoke authoritatively and Queen Leah looked at her with a sneer, “Like I would want to be anywhere near the spawn of the devil!”

            “Too bad you can’t stay away from yourself.” Mal jibed at her as she jabbed her finger in her face, her voice sugary sweet and innocent although she was openly mocking and insulting the Queen. A few gasps at the insult rang from the crowd that had begun to gather round, too curious for their own good, but all Audrey heard was the sound of a smack. Her ears rang and her eyes unfocused as she tried to breath, the sound made her feel like she’d just been slapped herself. Soft hands held onto her, making sure she didn’t fall.

            Audrey fought to regain her sense of focus, and her senses returned she realized who it was who had caught her. “Chad?” She was surprised he’d even come close. She’d spent years pushing him away, especially when he started showing a romantic interest in her. Her Grandmother hadn’t liked that very much, not when she was adamant that Audrey was going to marry Ben, no if’s, and’s, or buts about it. It was hard to reject an offer of love when you returned the budding feelings and so desperately wanted to accept, which was why she continually tried to push him away, though he stubbornly never stayed far for long. “I’ve got you Audrey.” he murmured in a comforting and soft voice, only for her ears.

            She shook her head and scrunched her eyes shut in an effort to finish clearing the ringing from her ears and when she opened them, her eyes focused on Mal, or more specifically the red marks on her cheek. Audrey saw red and she gasped, her protectiveness bubbling up and without any warning she turned on her grandmother and cried out in anger. “How dare you! How dare you hurt my friend!”

            Everyone was taken aback by her outburst, her own cry of anger silencing the crowd who had begun to chatter. Queen Leah’s face was comical, she had rarely heard someone speak to her in that tone, and Audrey hadn’t raised her voice at her since childhood. It took her a moment to realize she was moving, and even though fear coiled itself tightly in the pit of her belly she found herself standing in front of the fae teen as she planted her feet and jabbed her finger into her Grandmother’s face and snarled. “How dare you hurt Mal!”

            Mal almost gaped, she hadn’t expected Audrey to stand up for her, let alone stand up for her to her grandmother. Blindly she reached to pull her back, but just as her fingers grazed Audrey’s arm, another loud smack threw the crowd into an uproar. Audrey cried out in pain, reflexively flinching backwards and shrinking in on herself, her hand flying up to touch her cheek gingerly. “Audrey!” Chad was by her side in an instant, followed by both of her parents who firmly put themselves between Queen Leah and Audrey.

            Panic bubbled up in Audrey and once more she retreated into herself. She finally stood up against her grandmother, and instead of Queen Leah backing down it was Audrey who was struck back down. Words like pleas began falling from her lips in an almost inaudible tone as she almost hyperventilated. “I-I-I didn’t mean- I didn’t- I didn’t” she shook as she cried, “I didn’t meant to- I didn’t- please don’t- no-no-no-no-no- Don’t-- Isle-- please no” nothing truly comprehensible or finished left her, but Chad seemed to understand. “I’ve got you Audrey, you’re okay, you didn’t do anything wrong.” he repeated calming words to her, maintaining a soothing tone as he spoke into her ear softly, his arms wrapped around, loosely enough that she knew she wasn’t trapped but enough to show her that he wasn’t going to leave her alone. Tears streamed as she came back around and she turned and buried herself into his chest with a strangled sob as she wrestled herself and tried to calm down.

            The soft hand on Mal’s shoulder signaled Ben had arrived and that she could relax on her defensive stance and she leaned back, lowering her wings and tucking them closer to her body to allow Ben to be closer to her side instead of being pushed away by her wingspan. “What’s going on over here?” although young, Ben knew how to demand respect and get answers out of people. He was also both resilient and determined, they were some of the things Mal liked about it. His voice was low and there was almost a hint of a growl to it that Mal liked, it showed a rougher or darker edge that she hadn’t seen come from the sweet prince yet. She thought it was likely that he already had half of the story based on what he could observe as he approached, but it was best that he drew the whole thing out.

            In that moment Queen Leah turned her anger onto the young prince. “You! You foolish boy, you brought the daughter of Maleficent here!” she snarled, “How many villains did you bring to our beautiful home? That thing provoked me and called me vile names! It is despicable! What did you expect to happen, that they would be able to change? Ha! Once a villain, always a villain! They don’t belong here! They’re going to hurt us!” She raved and Mal thought she rather looked like it was she who could shift into a dragon on her own, without her mother’s magic shifting her from one form to the other.

            He had but to take one look at Mal and Audrey to know that both had been struck, and if he had to guess Queen Leah was the obvious perpetrator. “I think you’re lying.” he said simply, trying to rein in his anger, “I think it’s you who provoked her.” he shook his head, “Besides, you’re wrong. The people of the Isle? Many of them aren’t the villains you made them out to be.” A look of disdain crossed his features when he looked at Queen Leah, “Between you and them, you are the despicable one here. You are a bigot, you are biased and judgmental, and you physically assaulted two people today, one of which is your granddaughter. They have done nothing wrong, they have been polite, friendly, inclusive and accepting of everyone they’ve gotten to meet so far.” he compared, his descriptions a slam against the Queen. “I think it’s time you leave. You’re not welcome on the grounds of Auradon Prep anymore.” he informed her simply and she guffawed at him.

            “You cannot do that boy! I’m on the school board and have every right to be on this campus!”

            “Not anymore.” The smug voice of the Fairy Godmother cut in, “Gentleman, please escort Queen Leah to her vehicle and see to it that she leaves the grounds.” The guards with her followed instruction, moving to stand next to her. “Effective immediately you are no longer welcome on these grounds any time and are henceforth removed from your positions on the School Board as well as the Royal Council.”  it had taken far too long, but she finally managed to get total access revoked until the investigation was over, with the events that just occurred it looked like this would be a permanent situation for the angry Queen. With no more power to fight, Queen Leah scowled at her and Ben. The guards urged her forward and since she didn’t want them man-handling her, she huffed and started off stomping towards her limo.

            Ben was actually a very perceptive person, especially so when people were being honest with themselves about who they were. Now that Audrey’s mask had cracked and slipped, he could see what he couldn't before. He finally had the missing piece of the puzzle to understand what was going on regarding Audrey.

            Something in Chad’s gaze made him not say anything else on the matter, Audrey was finally calming down from the ride her rollercoaster of emotions just took her on. It would hopefully help cheer up at least a few people, mentally he optimistically included Aurora and Audrey with the Isle teens, now was as good of a time as any for the special surprise they had set up for them. The drama was over, and people dispersed. He thought it was ridiculous, they stayed for the show but left when it was time to clean up the mess after.

            “I have something to show you guys, if you think you’re up to a surprise that is.” he looked between their faces and at their silent acceptance he led them towards the outside cafeteria terrace, hoping that if anything, this, at least, would go over well.

Chapter Text

            Jane had a spring in her step after she parted ways with Ben and her mother. Their surprise was practically ready, they just had to gather all of the Isle teens. Her first target, of course, was her sweet boy Carlos, though it would seem he just might be the last person she found.

            Jane almost literally ran into Freddie as she and Nicholas were heading inside. She couldn’t help when her jaw dropped as she asked, “What in the world happened to you?” Freddie glowered and Nicholas chuckled, leaning in and holding up a hand next to his mouth, mock whispering as though Freddie couldn't’ hear him, “She fell into the fountain.” The glowering girl smacked his arm, “I can hear you, stupid.” she scowled at him when he just laughed more. “Hey, after you get something dry, come down and meet us all by the cafeteria terrace.” She received a short nod and knew they would be back as quickly as she could change.

            She barely made it onto the garden lawns when Jay and Lonnie came high tailing their way across the lawns in the direction of the swords and shields training practice fields. After flagging them down, she decided not to ask what exactly it was that they were running from yet. Jane knew she could find a way to weasel it out of them later. After she sent them on to the meeting point, she immediately crossed paths with Evie, Doug, and Snow White. She was quite pleased that the two girls seemed to already bet getting along fabulously well.

            As she watched them go, she eyed the way Evie almost leaned and hung off of Doug’s arm. It was a familiar sight, and yet Jane wasn’t sure if the boy knew Evie was totally head over heels for him or if it was Evie didn’t know that he felt the same. The duo had been cluelessly circling each other since day one, and Jane for one found it amusing. It seemed everyone in their group of friends has some unspoken thing going on with one another.

            With a small smile on her lips she turned and swept her gaze around, searching for one face in particular among the sea of visitors. Finally, she did a double take as she found him sitting below a tree. At first her heart skipped a beat when she located him, something which was becoming a usual occurrence, but then it sank when she took in his posture. Something was wrong. He was sitting hunched over, elbows on his knees and head angled downward. She was sure if she could see his face it would either be blank or speak volumes about exactly what kind of upset he was feeling. The next thing she noticed is that she didn’t see Dude by his side, in fact if she listened hard, she couldn’t even hear him either.

            With light feet Jane almost flew in her hurry to get to him. “Carlos.” she greeted him as she dropped to her knees in front of him, setting herself down between his legs. Her hands moved to gently rest upon his elbows and he looked up to her with a distraught expression. “What happened Carlos? What’s wrong?” she spoke softly as she reached up to take his face in her hands, cupping his cheeks in her palms as she used her thumbs to wipe away his tears. She leaned forward and he moved his arms from the crossed position they’d been in over his knees, so they hang limply at her sides. His fingers grazed the soft fabric of her dress as she shifted.

            “Carlos, please talk to me?” she asked again, urging and pleading to know so she could help. Jane had a pit in her stomach when she asked her next question, suddenly sure it had something to do with the small dog. “Carlos, where’s Dude?”

            He shook his head as he opened his mouth to speak, but he closed it and swallowed thickly instead. In a quick motion he pulled her to his chest, arms wrapped tightly around her middle as he buried his face in her hair and inhaled deeply, the scent of her relaxing to him. The deep breathing helped him calm himself down enough to clearly tell her what had happened.

            Her hands rubbed soothingly along his back and threaded into his hair, brushing her fingers through it gently as she waited for him to speak. “They took Dude.” he whispered into her skin as he pressed his face into her neck. She froze. “Who?” she responded, “Who took Dude?”

            “The Radcliffe’s.” he mumbled. “Their daughter Riley just ripped him right out of my arms.” he tightened his grip, “Maybe she's right. Maybe I don’t deserve to have Dude.” her heart broke for Carlos as he spoke in a hushed voice, “They thought I hurt him, they thought I’d done something to him Jane.” he cried, and she held onto him tighter.

            “You didn’t do anything wrong Carlos.” she insists, “You take wonderful care of Dude and he loves you so much.” Jane pulled herself back and forced him to look at her, “You deserve Dude, don’t listen to what some ignorant and prejudiced people think. They don’t know you and they don’t know how you are with Dude.” she once again wipes his tears before she gets up to her feet.

            “Where are you going?” he still looks so hurt as he looks up at her, from his place sitting on the ground. She wants to sit back down and wrap him up and sit with him until he is okay, but it won’t be okay, not until Dude was back where he belonged.

             “I’m going to go get Dude back.” she informs him, “You go over to the Cafeteria Terrace, okay? I’ll meet you there.” his eyebrows knit together, but he sees the steely glint in her eyes and knows she means business. He for one wasn’t going to stand in the way of Jane Goodfairy when she was on a mission, but he also felt he should go with her, and after getting to his feet told her so. At the shake of her head she cupped his cheek and reiterated that she would meet him at the Cafeteria Terrace. She wore a reassuring smile on her lips, and he nodded, trusting her completely.

            Quickly she leaned in and gave him a kiss on his cheek. “I’ll be right there.” she promises. “Don’t you worry about a thing.”

            It didn’t take her long to find the Radcliffe’s after she left Carlos. Seeing Riley holding onto Dude, now leashed and an annoyed attachment to her wrist, Jane saw red and her (finally sharpened) teeth ground together. Angrily Jane marched forwards, “Riley!” she barked out the other girl’s name to get her attention.

            It infuriated her more when she blinked up at her and smiled innocently, “Hey Jane. What’s up?” She scowled deeply at her and was satisfied to see her smile falter and concern in her expression.

            “What’s up?” she seethed,” What’s up? As if you don’t know!” she snaps at her. “How dare you!”

            “No, I don’t know what’s up!” she protested, “And how dare I? How dare you! You come over here yelling at me and accusing me of who knows what.” She threw up her hands in irritation. “I mean, seriously, what’s wrong with you?” she scoffs.

            Jane’s nose twitches and she snarls, baring her sharp teeth at Riley. With wide eyes she immediately steps away with a gasp, of surprise or terror Jane didn’t really care. “I’m not accusing you of anything. I can clearly see that what I’ve been told is the truth, not that I doubted the source.” She steps closer and Riley steps back. “How dare you steal Dude.”

            A look of utter disbelief flits across Riley’s face. “Steal Dude?” she scoffs as though that was the most absurd thing she’d ever heard and Jane growls back, “Yes, steal.”

            “I didn’t steal Dude from anybody. I saved him from the awful son of Cruella De Vil, or have you forgotten she kidnapped and tried to have our dalmatian puppies killed for their spotted fur.”

            Fury bubbled and she tore into her. “You are an absolute dingbat! You stole Dude from Carlos, who was granted full permission to care for him by Prince Ben and accuse him and his mother of being awful people without knowing them.” She spits. “And you, you were friends with her, how could you not see she wasn’t herself? I mean come on, I know she never told you, but you were close, you should have seen the signs.” She shook her head in disappointment in Anita, who although she doesn’t have all the pieces of the puzzle, she looks like she’s starting to put it together and looks quite ashamed of herself.

            “When Cruella went after your puppies, that was the first time you’d ever seen her off her meds.” She informs them, “Something with her board of directors happened to make her stop taking her medication and she had no one to catch her from the fallout or make sure she took them. Without her medication, she spiraled and that’s when she took your puppies. She was sick and none of you saw the signs or you just didn’t care, because after all, “she sneers at Roger, “She’s Cruella de Vil. What was it you liked to sing? If she doesn’t scare you, no evil thing will?”  His eyes are wide as he blinks at her in surprise. “Yeah, she knew all about your little... mockery behind her back. Yeah, imagine that, it actually hurts people’s feelings when you make fun of them like that.”

            Turning back to Riley she glares venomously at her as she crouches down, scratching Dude behind the ears as he excitedly wagged his tail. In a swift motion she unclasped the leash from around his collar and scooped him into her arms. With one last sweeping glare she told them, “If either of you ever come near Carlos again, I swear, you’re going to regret it.”

            Anita looked so crestfallen to know she’d missed the signs that her friend was silently crying out for her help and that she’d just stood by while her daughter and husband mocked her dear friend and her son. “Anita,” she looked up watery eyed as she made eye-contact with the fae teenager. “She doesn’t blame you; you know.” She admits, “She blames herself. She wishes that she would have told you, but she was afraid you wouldn’t want to be her friend anymore. She was afraid of your rejection.”

            “I’m so sorry.” She can’t help but apologize, “I wish I’d seen the signs, but I was too young and stupid to see them.” She berated herself, “Is it- is it all right if I come with you?” she asks hesitantly, “I’d like to apologize to Carlos for my behavior and actions… or lack thereof.”  She held her breath as Jane took a second to scrutinize her, and, observing her genuine regret and disappointment in herself she nods.

            Anita takes a shaky breath as she joins Jane, who gives one last snarling look at the father-daughter duo before they begin to make their way across the campus to meet up with Carlos and the rest on the Cafeteria Terrace.

Chapter Text

            Jane wasted no time in her quest to make it back across the campus gardens to the Cafeteria Terrace where Carlos would be patiently waiting for her to meet him as she had instructed. She hoped she hadn’t taken too long while she was chastising the Radcliffe’s, he would worry if she had and that was definitely not what she wanted.

            Sparing a glance to the woman walking solemnly with her, she knew she was rethinking everything of her own past, particularly everything that happened regarding the woman she had called her closest friend of years. As the gears in her mind turned and she analyzed her memories, Jane could see the utter dismay that she had inadvertently pushed away and hurt her own friend while she was in her hour of need. She had thought Roger was just teasing, she had known after all that the two didn’t get along well, but she hadn't thought much of it before. (If she were to ask, she’d find out ultimately it all came down to Roger. It was his fault they didn’t get along.)

            Jane allowed the woman to spirit herself off into her thoughts as they made the trek more slowly than it would be if it was just Jane, but she wasn’t going to let Anita fall behind.

            “Remember, she doesn’t blame you for not seeing.” she placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, “She doesn’t blame you for it because she knows she should have told you, she should have trusted that you wouldn’t have turned her away.”

            “How do you know all of this?” she asked in a small voice.

            “Carlos, he told me what he knew. Cruella, when she was on her meds, was a very eloquent journal-er.” she explains, “Everything is written down.” She saw the look in Anita’s eyes, “They don’t get medicine on the Isle, and although her medical history was documented with her physicians, it is not common knowledge so the people in charge, like King Adam,  wouldn’t have known or thought about the idea that she’d need it. They wouldn’t care.” she tried not to let the venom of her dark emotions sink into her voice too much, after all everything that had ever happened to her, to them, it had all happened because King Adam was too afraid of magic since being cursed into a beastly form, which, if you asked her, was entirely his own fault.

            “Oh.” Anita was heartbroken. She hadn’t known about this part of her friend, but even those who had, even her doctors hadn’t gone and fought for her, hadn’t tried to make sure she was given her medication even while on the Isle.

            “The people on the Isle, they make do and try as best they can.” she smiles, “Evie is incredibly smart you know. She tried and tried and managed to come up with a medicine that is working for Cruella. She’s doing better. Evie’s mother is making it while she’s here and Jay’s dad is helping make sure she takes her daily dosages.”

            The relief that her friend is being taken care of is mixed with the mild horror that they’ve had to do this on their own, and she’s not even sure what kind of supplies they get. “Anita, I need you to calm down.” she tells the woman. “Okay? We are going to meet up with Carlos and some of my friends. I put together a surprise for them and I really want it to go well.” she explains, and Anita takes a few calming breaths, readying herself to formally introduce herself and apologize to Carlos. “You ready?” she asks and Anita nods slowly, once more following alongside the teenage fae girl.

            Jane finds Carlos immediately this time and gets the privilege of seeing his expression change, his eyes absolutely light up when he sees her. At first, she thinks it’s because she has Dude but his eyes linger on hers before she sees them flit down to the small dog in her arms. Bending down she sets Dude free. Immediately he runs right to Carlos, leaping up into his arms.

            With a big grin Carlos loops around his friends, making his way to Jane. Jane beams at him as he approaches. He maneuvers his hold on Dude, so he holds him in one arm. Reaching out he uses his free arm to pull her to his chest and she wraps her arms around his neck. She lets out a slight ‘eep’ of surprise when he lifts her feet right off the ground as he holds her as tightly as he can around her waist, his face buried in her neck, but this time she can feel the smile on his lips against he skin instead of the tears and her heart soars.

            He takes a few more seconds of holding her tight before he gently lowered her back down, her feet in the grass beside the terrace cobblestone. He brushes his fingers through her long barrel curled hair, and she relishes how he’s looking at her. Then his eyes flicker over her shoulder, and she realizes he’s seen Anita standing to the side. She lets out a soft breath she barely recognizes she was holding in when she sees he doesn’t look upset with her in the slightest.

            Anita takes his prolonged eye contact as her cue and steps forward, “I’ve come to apologize.” she tells him, “My actions towards you and my inactions to stop Riley and Roger from taking Dude from you are unacceptable.  I horrible to you and I was a horrible friend to your mother, and I should have recognized that something was wrong.” She apologizes, and there is nothing but absolute sincerity and regret in her words and looks.

            “It’s hard to stand up against someone you care about.” Carlos relaxes his shoulders and sets Dude back down on the grass before he meets her eyes again. He puts his arm around her shoulders, keeping her close. “Especially when you don’t understand the whole picture.” He pauses, “I forgive you.” he accepts the apology, “But you should know my mother never thought you were a bad friend, Anita. She loved you like a sister.”

            Anita smiled at him, teary eyed at the admission. Jane may have already told her that but hearing it from Carlos made it more real for her.

            “I-” she hesitated for a moment, “I’d like the opportunity to really get to know you, if you’re willing of course.”

            “I’d like that.” he accepts with a nod and a smile, “I’d like that a lot.”

Chapter Text

            With practiced ease, the teens began to arrange themselves on the bleacher benches in much the same manner they did during lunchtime as they settled in to wait for Freddie and Nicholas to get back downstairs and for Lonnie and Jay, who were also apparently taking their sweet time getting over here. With smiles they waved the new additions to the group to insert themselves and find themselves a seat

            Freddie and Nicholas bounded over, laughing at something or other, and took seats together with ease as though he had been hanging around with them the entire time. “Freddie? What happened?” Evie put her hand on her shoulder, looking at her with concern. Her clothes weren’t the ones she had picked out that morning and her hair was obviously damp at the ends. “Oh, I uh, I kind of… fell.” she admitted hesitantly, “Into a fountain…” she watched Evie’s reaction closely, “I didn’t want to stay in wet clothes, so I just changed into your second choice.” The other teenagers shared a frown, there was definitely more to the story but Freddie seemed almost reluctant to talk about it. Freddie let out an exasperated breath at the narrowed eyes and leading look Evie gave her to continue speaking. “You guys, I’m fine.” she looks around at them, meeting her eyes. “It was an accident and it was just water.”

            That’s when Lonnie and Jay came jogging up, and Lonnie threw her hands up with a whoop as she beat Jay there. The pair were breathing hard and Mal rolled her eyes. They had taken a quick jog before coming to see the little surprise that they were told was waiting for them. “What happened to you?” Lonnie raised an eyebrow at Freddie as she and Jay plopped down, breathing hard as the exhaustion from all the exercise and laps they’d run on the obstacle course finally catching up to the both of them.

            “I fell in a fountain, okay?” Freddie snapped and threw her hands up in the air, “Yes, I’m fine, and no, I don’t feel like talking about it.” Lonnie winced, she could tell the other girl was deflecting. Whatever had happened clearly bothered her. She scowled and immediately wrapped her arms around her knees as she pulled them up to her chest.

            Nicholas’s nose twitched, but he remained quiet and Audrey narrowed her eyes as she puzzled it over in her head, she was a master at reading people after all, it was a necessary skill to have in order to gain the upper hand in a situation and establish herself as the alpha princess like her grandmother always wanted her to. Her lips pressed together in a thin line and after a moment of hovering silence she spoke up “It was Tamara, wasn’t it?” Audrey pressed the two for confirmation as she leaned forward, chin in her hand and elbow on her crossed knees.

            Freddie opened her mouth to object, to deny, to tell her to mind her own business, but nothing came out. Nicholas bit on his lip and nodded, “Yeah, she uh, she wasn’t very happy that I brought Freddie over, knowing who she was.” he admits and his shoulders slump. He hopes they can avoid them for the rest of the day, but it will be a lot harder to avoid when he’s obviously seated at the same table as the rest of his family for the feast tonight.

            “Can we um, can we just not talk about this? Right now?” Freddie stares down at her knees and digs her nails into her skin as she tightens her grip on her legs, a lump in her throat making her voice sound thick. Evie reaches over to cover and puts a hand on her knee. After a moment she moves and they clasp their hands together in support.

            “So,” Evie speaks up, “Jane? What’s this surprise you wanted to show us?” she looks over her shoulder at the fae girl who is sitting with her back against Carlos’s chest, his arms wrapped around her comfortably. Evie wished she had a camera or something, it was just too cute. Maybe she could get Mal to draw it later, after all, the girl had both an eidetic memory and an affinity for art.

            “Well,” she gestured to the large screen set up in front of them, “Ben, would you get it? You’re closer.” She smiled in thanks as the boy in question nodded and got up, retrieving a remote and passing it up to her. “Thank you.” she smiled and he returned it, “No problem.” before taking his seat by Mal’s side once more. The other fae girl leaned closer to him when he sat and he grinned at her, throwing an arm around her shoulders, allowing her to curl up next to him. Jane was impressed with Audrey, the pink princess didn’t even bat an eye, didn’t even glance in their direction. In fact, she was far more interested in watching whatever it was Chad was doing on his cellphone to spare anyone else a glance.

            Deciding that was a conversation for later, she continued with her explanation as she began to set up the television screen. “We were thinking about it, you know, it’s family day and we didn’t want you guys to be left out. Since we couldn’t bring them here and you couldn't go there, maybe we could try something a little different.”

             “What do you mean?” Evie tilted her head, looking at her curiously.

            “That’s where the tv comes into play.” she clicked some buttons on the remote and squinted at the screen as she tried to get it to work. “It’s a relatively simple way to get ahold of people who are far away. We are doing a video chat.” she replied with a triumphant grin as the screen came to life as the video feed finally connected. All of the Isle teens blinked at it in surprise, on the screen was one of the main courtyards on the Isle. It was among the better kept ones, and as such it was usually go to location for events. Evie remembered her special sixth birthday being held there, among other events. Lights were strung through the air and people were chatting in the background. It looked like they were certainly set up for some kind of event, and the teens wondered what it was for.

            “Did you get it? Is connected right? We don’t want it cutting out on us because it’s not connected right.” They heard a voice say from off camera. “Mom?” Carlos smiled, hearing his mother pestering someone, probably Jafar if he had to guess. “Carlos?”  he heard her respond and suddenly her face was peeking in front of the screen, although she was far too close. “Carlos? I don’t see you? Where are you?”  He let out an amused chuckle, “Mom, mom you’re too close you need to back up.”  Seeing Cruella’s face light up when she finally saw Carlos made more than just Anita’s heart melt. It had been far too long since she had seen her friend, let alone seen her friend so exuberantly happy.

            “Are they there? Did it work? Ooh, let me see! Let me see!” Evie brightened at her mother’s excited enthusiasm. “Hi mom!” she almost bounced in her seat, waving back at her. “Evie baby! Oh! I’m so glad to see you!” she caught sight of the woman seated next to Evie, “Oh, Snow Darling! You look so grown up.” she fawned over her stepdaughter. Nearly twenty years really did change a person, she supposed. Snow White beamed at her, “Now there’s the stepmother I remember.” she was relieved, she wasn’t sure just how much like herself Grimhilde would still be after everything.

            “Oh Carlos, you look so happy, that makes me so happy.” Cruella interrupted and she sounded like she was trying (and failing) not to coo at her teenage son. It took another moment to realize there was a small girl in his arms, and when she brushed her hair back over her ear she could see the pointed tip made a connection to who she was. “Ohhh, and you must be Jane!” she remembered the notes from the girl, trying to set this whole thing up. “ I’m really so happy you did this for us.” she thanked her, and the fae teen smiled softly at her but shook her head. “No need to thank me. After all it is family day and you all deserve the opportunity to be apart of it, even if you can’t be here with us.”

            Her gaze flicked to the side when Anita shifted, having stayed relatively still before. She didn’t want to draw attention off of the kids, and now that she was face to face with Cruella, she felt at a loss for words to tell her how sorry she was. “Oh Anita!” her smile aimed at her now, and it was exactly how she remembered it. “Anita, oh that cut looks lovely on you.” she complimented, and Anita chuckled with her, the suit jacket and skirt was reminiscent of the ones Cruella had designed and picked out for her in the past, but she’d been so hesitant to try them before. After everything, she had begun to wear the cut and style as a way to quietly honor her friend with an eye for fashion. 

            “Cruella,” she started, her face falling as she tried to begin her apology, “Cruella I’m so sorry. I-” she tried to find the words to continue but it didn’t seem to matter because she was cut off by the very friend she was apologizing to. “Anita, Anita, Anita…” she tsked, “I don’t want your apology. It’s not your fault any of this happened. It was mine, and mine alone. I didn’t tell you about my condition because of a silly and childish fear of rejection, so when I was being coerced into going off my meds by my board of directors I was alone and foolishly listened to them. I should have told you before and I should have turned to you when they came after me like that. It’s not your fault for not knowing, It’s my fault for not sharing it with you.”

            “Well, if you won’t accept my apology for that, then at least allow me to apologize for not standing up when Roger would say such cruel things to you and about you. At the time I thought it was harmless teasing and trading barbs between the two of you, after all I could tell you didn’t get along, but now that I look back on it that wasn’t just--” she tried to think of a word and Lonnie supplied on, “Frenemy? Like friend-enemy.” she explained quickly and Anita thought it fit quite well with what she was trying to say. “--frenemy behavior. It went down a lot deeper than that, it was downright nasty and cruel at times. So, I’m sorry. I”m sorry I was such a clueless young girl who couldn’t see what was going on right in front of her. I’m sorry I was so naive and foolish. I’m sorry I was such a bad friend.” This time, Cruella let her finish and when they met each others eyes again, both were misty and brimming with tears.

            “I forgive you Anita.” she tried to blink back her tears and was handed a handkerchief which she used to dab at her eyes. After a moment of composing themselves she spoke up again, “Anita, can you do something for me?”

            “Anything Cruella.” she nodded, “What do you need?”

            “Can you just, keep an eye on my boy for me? Be there for him?” she asked, and Anita nodded in agreement. “As long as he’ll have me around, of course.” she glanced to the side to see Carlos smiling at them, and ne nodded to show he would be fine and happy with the arrangement. Most teens would balk at the idea of their parents having someone check in on them, but Carlos was only too happy to go along with it, especially since his mother was asking and he missed her. This would make her feel a bit better about not being around and would give some time for him to get to know Anita like they’d just agreed to.

            “Jaylen! My boy!” Jafar clasped his hands in front of him as he greeted his son, deciding it was his turn since they’d been talking for awhile.  “Dad.” Jay greeted with an easy smile and his father looked around him, “I see you’ve already made some friends.”

            “You could say that, yeah.” Jay laughed, they’d made quite a few friends in their time here so far, more than they expected quite honestly. “This is Lonnie.” he introduced her first, partially because she was closest and partially because he wanted his dad to meet her first. As he continued to speak, out of the corner of his eye, Jay noticed Jasmine had edged her way over to see what was going on “She kicks my but like every day.” he announced and Jafar bellowed in laughter. “You do, do you?” he asked her and Jasmine was surprised to see them sharing a grin, “You whipping him into shape?” he jokingly teased and she drawled out, “Well, somebody’s got to, I mean look at him.” she gestured with an eye roll, “Poor thing can barely make a six minute mile.”

            “Har-har.” Jay snorted, “You guys think you’re so funny, ganging up on me like that.” He didn’t look as annoyed as his words implied, in fact he was happy to see them getting along already, even if that meant they would be teasing him relentlessly. He could live with that.

            They didn’t notice Jasmine eye them with confused suspicion, but Jafar did and he grimaced at her in embarrassed regret before he addressed her. “Sultana Jasmine.” he greeted with a regal bow before getting on his knees to beg forgiveness, “I would like to apologize to you for my actions against you.” he spoke, “I was a fool for I did not see what I did not know, for I did not see what I thought was the truth of the world was really false, for I, in my ignorance of the staff’s curse, allowed myself to be corrupted by it.” He kept his gaze downward, “Sultana, although I beg for it, I do not truly deserve your forgiveness for my actions. I have learned much in the time I’ve spent on the Isle, cured of the staff’s poisonous curse, but that knowledge and growth comes too late to change how the story went, to change how you think of me.”

            Jasmine didn’t know what to think or how to feel, the man who had dehumanized her and treated her with such disrespect was apologizing for his actions against her. Her emotions ran at opposite ends of the spectrum and her mind whirled in confused panic, unsure of herself for the first time in awhile. Tension and anxiety bubbled inside of her and her breath caught in her throat as she fought for control and a sense of certainty, but she found herself unable to do so. She couldn’t think straight, couldn’t form a truly coherent thought and although he was apologizing now, it would take time for her to come to a decision on whether or not she would forgive him, and so she turned on her heel and bolted.

            Jafar heard the retreat and slowly he stood back up. Her reaction was not startling to him, nor to the other individuals present, in the slightest. It was justifiable that she would not know how to respond and need time for it to churn in her head and settle. Until she could focus and think, she would not be able to make a decision.

            Mal smiled when her mother appeared on screen then, making a dramatic entrance as per the usual, rolling her eyes at something off screen. “Maladia, my child, how are you enjoying your time in Auradon?” She took a breath as she formed her response, answering honestly she admitted, “More than I thought I would.” She sent a sideways glance at Ben who smiled sweetly back at her, which her perceptive mother didn’t miss, and Mal knew her mother knew what he was to her by the softness of the smile she sent their way as she appraised him. “Hmm?” she hummed, an urge for her daughter to continue, so she does “We’ve made some really good friends since we’ve been here.” A light pink blush worked it’s way across her cheeks and neck, and she cleared her throat almost silently as she decided now was the best time for formal introductions of everyone present.

            “That’s Lonnie over there by Jay. Doug is next to Evie. That’s Jane up with Carlos. Nicholas is right next to Freddie. And this is Ben.” Pointing out who was who among the teens. She included Nicholas in her introduction, seeing how close Freddie already seemed with him. The way they seemed to lean on each other before showed a level of support, and she could tell that whatever had happened with his sister he had stood his ground and tried to defend Freddie, and that made him okay in her book.

            “Oh, and Mom, this is Princess Audrey” After a moment she introduces the girl seated near her as well, “and of course, you know her mother and father, Princess Aurora and Prince Philip.” she did so mostly for their own benefit, knowing her mother had already caught sight of them. She rarely missed anything. “Beastie, my how you’ve grown.” she greets the girl who breathes out her own greeting, “Godmother.” Prince Philip nods his head, “Maleficent.” he greets her too, he may still be wary of her since she was after all a wild fae and he did not have the opportunity to really get to know her at all before the creation of the Isle, but since he knew how Aurora felt about her and for him to trust her. “Philip.” she replied before turning her attention to Audrey. “So this is yours, Beastie?” she asks as she takes Audrey in. Aurora smiles and nods, using her fingers to brush through some of Audrey’s hair.

            Audrey feels nervous under the watchful and knowing gaze of the fae woman and she hesitantly raises her hand and squeaks out, “Hello.” She bites her lip and Chad bumps his knee against hers in a subtle reminder for her to take a breath. “I’m Chad.” he gave a small wave of greeting.

            “Hello.” Maleficent replies with amused mirth dancing in her eyes. “Pleasure to meet you, Princess Audrey. Prince Chad.”  With her gaze she silently asks Mal if she’s met her father yet and Aurora if she knew where Daival was. Almost imperceptibly her shoulders drop the slightest bit in her disappointment, but it goes unnoticed by all but Aurora, Mal, and Jane who had always been a rather perceptive girl having to stay on the sidelines and observe more often that participate growing up so she didn’t come off as being too fae enough to bother people.

            Freddie’s eyes searched the screen and she didn’t even realize she had taken Nicholas’s hand, gripping it with anxious impatience as she wondered where her own family was. She’s about to ask when a shriek pierced through the air on the other side of the screen. “Evie!” the girl squeals and suddenly a ten year old covered in paint splattered clothes is shoving he way to the front of the crowd around the screen. “Evie!”

            “Dizzy!” Evie squeals back in excitement. She glances to Chad for a moment and decides to formally introduce them. “Chad,” she gets his attention, “This is Dezyn Diamanta Tremaine.” she tells him, “But we like to call her Dizzy.” she looks at the pigtail haired girl, “Dizzy this is Chadwick Charming.”

            “Oh, are you my cousin? That is so cool! I didn’t know if I had any besides Anthony!” she once again squeals and Evie lets out a small laugh. This was Dizzy alright, hyper and excited about everything. Evie eyed the turquoise and gold accessories in her hands, “So, what are those for?” she raises an eyebrow as she holds them up. “Oh! Right!” she bounces, “I wanted to show you and see which ones you liked better.” She holds them up clearly for inspection. “They’re all so pretty, Dizzy, I can’t pick just one.” she compliments but then gasps in realization. “Are they for..?” she trails off knowing the question will be understood. “Yep! We found the dress you made just fine. Evie it’s so pretty! I just wanted to make something to go with it!” Months ago, Evie had made a dress just for this. She was hoping she’d be there of course, to help get ready and see it in person, but she was glad she wasn’t going to miss it.

            “Why don’t you go over there and see what she says? I think it will be up to her what she wants to wear.” she encourages her and Dizzy nods vigorously, “Okay!” she grins before disappearing from the screen as quick as she’d appeared. Evie chuckles at her protege an insane amount of energy.

            “So, that’s my cousin?” Chad asks, blinking at her and she nods. “Yeah, Dizzy is ten and as you can see, she’s a literal ray of sunshine.” she grins, “I can make that comparison now and actually know what it’s like.” she murmurs to herself thoughtfully after a moment. It feels absurd to her, going her whole life up until now not knowing what sunlight was truly supposed to be like. Doug squeezes her hand lightly, a reassurance that they were going to try to get everyone else on the Isle the same opportunity to experience it, to experience basic things that Auradon had to offer that they should have been getting all along.

            “Freddie! Freddie!” The girl in question perked up at hearing her name, she had been getting discouraged, wondering where her own family was, anxiety telling her they didn’t want to see her for some reason. She shared a look with Nicholas right before her sister appeared between the adults, “Celia!” she sat up straighter and leaned forward, not wanting to miss a second of time with her baby sister. Her eyes and smile both widened when another figure- tall and gangly- followed behind her onto the screen, his hands resting on the ten-year-old’s shoulders. “Daddy!”

            “Ma cherie.” he greeted her, letting out a breath of relief to see his baby girl sitting there with a smile on her face. “They been treating you well on the other side?” he asked her and she shrugged, “Yeah..” she agreed, just because she didn’t feel she fit in or was welcomed didn’t mean that most of them weren’t treating her well enough. “I still want to come home though.” she admitted, “I miss you.” she tried not to pout and Dr.Facilier smiled sadly at his daughter and Celia immediately piped up, “Does that mean you can come home soon?” There was mischief and hope mixed in the little girl's eyes.

            Doctor Facilier shook his head slowly as he looked down at his youngest, “Sorry ma petite cherie, Freddie still has a lot left to do in Auradon.” he apologized, “She’s gonna be there for awhile yet.” Freddie nodded sadly, “Yeah.” she agreed, “It’s gonna be awhile til I get to come home Celia.” There is regret and apology in her tone, and it takes her a moment to try and mask her own disappointment for the sake of her sister. “Celia, this is Nicholas.” she introduces him and he grins at her, “Hi Celia, I’ve heard a lot about you.” he tells her and she looks at him in wide-eyed wonder to know her sister talked about her to someone that much. “Really?”

            “Yes really.” Freddie chuckled at how adorable her sister’s reaction was. He leaned forward and put up a hand between him and Freddie, mock whispering as though he was getting Celia in on a secret plan, “Hey, I hear you’re really good at talking people into things. You think you can help me convince her to join dance?” Freddie rolled her eyes at him as Celia grinned at him and nonchalantly turned to her sister and bluntly said, “You should join dance.”

            “Oh? And why is that?” she raised an eyebrow and pushed her sister to come up with a reason.

            “Because you’re a good dancer.” she shrugged, And because I want you to.” An amused soft sigh escaped Freddie as she accepted her fate, the puppy dog eyes worked wonders on her every time. “Alright, alright. Only because you asked though.” Then Celia added with a mischievous glinting grin “And then you’d get to dance with your cute friend.” Freddie nearly choked and put her face in her hands as Nicholas barked in laughter, “Oh man, you really are quick on the draw, aren’t you?”

            Maleficent tilted her head, listening closely to something, and if Jane and Mal focussed, they could almost hear it through the speakers too. “Hmm.” she hummed, “It’s about to start.” she announced to the group, “Move out of the way so they can see.” she instructed and with quick waves and excited looks the group of adults (and Celia) moved out of the way so the courtyard was in full view once more.

            Evie bounced in her seat in excitement, she had figured out what the event was when she was talking to Dizzy and dawning realization crept in on the others as they watched her joyful impatience, eyes glued on the screen with rapt attention.

            “What’s going on?” Doug tried to ask her as the thrumming of drums met their ears. People crowded around and formed a very large and open circle around the edges of the courtyard, and they could feel the buzz of excitement in the air.

            Harry Hook made his way through and took up his place in the courtyard, his grinned as he made eye contact with them through the screen. His classic torn shirt and distressed jacket were replaced with ones of much finer quality and his eyeliner was pointed sharp instead of smudged. Sword on his hip and hook in his hand he stood relaxed as he waited for his captain to make her appearance.

            The crowd parted for her and she stepped silently into the circle as it closed back up behind her. Harry closed his eyes and let out a small laugh to himself, having heard her enter. He took a breath, licked his lips and opened his eyes before turning slowly to meet her. They could see half of his face when he caught side of her before his back was to them. He looked equal parts awestruck and lovesick, as usual. Uma was wearing her signature teal-turquoise color, the dress with thin stripes and semi sheer fabric with bronze-y, brown, and blue corset laced comfortably over it; boots reached her knees, just shy of where her dress ended and her hair was taken out of the zillion braids she’d had it in for so long. Evie knew immediately that Dizzy had been the one to do her hair and makeup for the day. Atop her head was a crown, instead of her usual captain’s hat, that was composed mainly of shells. Behind it her hair was braided into a crown of its own before it fell over her shoulders in curls. She managed to look like a fierce pirate and a princess at the same time.

            With practiced ease the two got into a fighting stance, their swords at the ready, Harry adjusting his grip on his hook as they waited for the other to make the first move. Slowly they circled each other, keeping their distance and looking for openings. Then the fight truly began, the two parrying and trading blows, the clanging of their swords ringing in the air amidst the rhythmic sound of the drums. She was not going to go easy on him, he knew it and everyone else knew it.

            Finally he did it, he managed to get the upper hand and end the fight. His hook rested under her chin, the point of it touching the soft skin there as he held his sword at the ready aimed at her. Her own sword was raised up behind him, and they were at a stalemate, both could be the victor, but as they froze in place, chest heaving and breathing hard, she had to make a decision. Would she attempt to deflect or would she yield. Harry tilted his head, keeping eye-contact. If this had been a fight to the death he would not have halted the swing of his hook, and as they both looked at each other they agreed, even if she had continued her own downward swing she would have still been dead first with the hook under her chin.

            Everyone around held their breath and the drums halted when they had stopped moving so suddenly. Evie gripped Doug’s hand tightly and held her hand in front of her mouth as she waited in anticipation, bouncing her leg in an un-princess-like manner. Uma’s lips twitched and the barest hint of a smile could be seen as she yielded and slowly lowered her weapon and the crowd erupted in cheers. Evie squealed, and Mal was glad that Jane had shared her secrets for dealing with sound, she knew she’d have been flinching otherwise.

            Amongst the chaos on the screen you could still see Harry as he got down to his knees in front of Uma and took her hand, immediately silence rang again waiting to see what she’d say. He may have won the right to ask, but she still had the right to make her own decision. “Uma.” he reverently breathed her name “Ummmaa.” he repeated, he loved saying her name and he knew she loved the way he said it. The softness of his voice meant only for her (and those who had higher levels of hearing) as he spoke again to ask his question, but you could read the words on his lips. Those words were “Will you marry me?”

            She curled her fingers around the hand still holding her own, giving him a soft smile before leaning down, free hand on the back of his neck, as she kissed him soundly on the lips, her answer clear as she whispered her acceptance into his lips. Their little game of question and rejection had finally come to an end.

            Once more there was cheers in the crowd and the celebration began. The adults in Auradon balked at the screen, they were clearly teenagers, how could they allow them to get engaged so young, but with the high mortality rates and living conditions of the not so distant past the Islanders saw things a bit differently. In their eyes, they were looking at two people who already knew what they wanted, and just because they were getting engaged didn’t mean they would get married right away. It was simply a promise that they loved each other.. Besides, even at sixteen Uma was their leader and Harry (two years older than her at eighteen) was her second in command. It wasn’t a matter of if, it was a matter of when.

Chapter Text

            They were happy for Mal and Evie, they really were. (Okay, maybe Freddie was a touch jealous, or alot jealous, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t happy for them. Both of them got to have their father’s escort them to the Family Day Thanksgiving Feast and Ball because they were outside the barrier, were here in Auradon. Even if they didn’t admit it, Carlos and Jay were a little jealous too, all three of them would have liked to have gotten to keep spending time with their families, but since it was a video feed eventually they had to put an end to it.

            Once more the teens gathered in Mal and Evie’s dorm, Lonnie and Jane with them this time, and they tore through the piles of tuxedos and dresses they had been gathering just for this. Evie had pouted a little when Doug couldn’t join them since his cousins and other family had wanted him to join them, she had wanted to color match with the dwarf.

            The horned fae had also invited Audrey to tag along if she wanted, but she had glanced to her mother and decided she wanted some time with her, without her grandmother’s interference, and she could see Aurora was ecstatic with her decision. She loved her daughter greatly and wanted nothing more than to just be there for her, even if it meant letting her go to do her own thing with her friends. “Are you sure you don’t want to spend some time with your friends, Audrey?” she had asked, encouraging her to with them if she wanted to. “No, I’m good. I think I want to spend some time with my momma.” she had smiled and leaned her head on her shoulder as she hugged her arm.

            Sitting still as the girls played around with her hair and make-up, Mal tried not to bite her lip or her perfectly manicured nails or brightly colored lips which the girls had painted up for her, both bad habits she thought she had broken back before she hit middle school. Mal was very nervous, so far they hadn’t run into Ben’s parents, King Adam and Queen Belle of Auradon yet (honestly they were all pretty amazed they hadn’t even seen them before let alone today) and she was sure she would have to meet with them, being Ben’s new… girlfriend?... and all. Honestly, she wasn’t even sure that’s what she was to him yet since they hadn’t really talked about it, but she liked the sound of it.

            They had kicked the boys out to go back to their own dorms shortly after arriving, Evie wanted a little bit of surprise with their dresses, hair and makeup. Admittedly, she knew what their tuxes were because she picked them, but they knew she had an eye for it and knew just what their styles were and didn’t mind that there wasn’t much ‘surprise’ for their outfits. (After all, Evie was the most fashionably inclined one among them.)

            They had also figured out that in Auradon you didn’t usually change clothes in front of your friends if they weren’t the same gender as you apparently, so the boys were sent away in case their other friends might be uncomfortable with it. (Evie, Mal and Evie had side eyed each other in silent agreement, they also saw how Jane and Carlos as well as Lonnie and Jay acted. They were well on their way to being official couples, so they could see why they might feel embarrassed by the idea of changing in front of each other, especially so early into the friendship and potential relationships.)

            She and Jane (and even Freddie) had wanted to try practicing some more magic for this (among other things), but Evie rolled her eyes and insisted they do it the non-magic way this time. “Guys, everyone in this room, sans Jane and Lonnie, it’s our very first feast and ball in Auradon, I want us to have the full experience of getting ready for it.”  Freddie had scoffed and replied, “You just want more time to make up some potions beforehand, don’t you?” Evie looked at her, “Uh-Duh. Definitely.” she laughed and shrugged, “But also, I’m at least semi-serious about wanting the full getting ready experience thing, next time we’ll go wild with magic, I promise.”

            The girls humored their friend and took their time getting ready. Suddenly there was a knock at the door and the girls looked at each other in bewilderment before glancing at the clock. “Oh my gosh that must be the guys, it’s already time to get down there!” Jane gasped, shooting to her feet. “Are we ready?” Lonnie turned to Evie and asked the stressed looking girl. Evie quickly looked everyone up and down and sighed, “As we’ll ever be I suppose.” Standing straighter, “Well? What are we waiting for? Don’t want to keep the boys waiting in the hall too long.” she nodded to Mal who pulled open the door.

            “Hey guys.” she greeted Jay and Carlos. “Ben couldn’t make it up, he had to go with his parents since they enter the party together.” Carlos explained, “And Doug couldn’t get away from his family either, but they both said they’d meet up with us down there as soon as possible.” Jay nodded along with what Carlos said, not supplying any other information since he felt he had covered everything they were told to pass on.

            He blinked and found himself staring at Lonnie for a moment, “Wow.” he breathed, it wasn’t until Carlos elbowed him that he came to his senses and promptly blushed and stumbled over his words, “You look really nice Lonnie.”

            Lonnie for her part, also blushed, “You don’t look so bad yourself.” she teasingly laughed, covering her own embarrassed nerves. She still wasn’t used to having a boy she liked compliment her on skills, let alone her appearance. Lonnie’s dress was draped very flatteringly. It was a beautiful yellow fabric that shimmered with hints of blue when it moved. It contrasted very nicely with Jay’s maroon-ish colored tux and tie whose fabric matched that of her dress.

            Jane sported her signature baby blue color, her dress was tiered and flowed in waves all the way to the ground. Her sleeves were delicate slightly poofed caps. Carlos was in a black and white tux ensemble, she noted he lacked the usual pop of red and instead he too sported a tie that matched her dress.

            Mal’s dress, unlike most of the things in her closet, didn’t have any purple on it at all. Instead, she went with her secondary signature color, green. It had a keyhole neckline and a semi open back that allowed her to more easily wear it with her large feathered wings.

            The only ball gown amongst the group was worn by Evie. The bottom of her dress was one of her favorite blues to match her hair and the top hooked around her neck, also giving her a more open backed dress. The top sparkled with the faux shiny gemstones that were sewn into the fleshy colored mesh to decorate it and an apple pin was put on her waist to complete the look.

            In a shade of purple, Freddie wore a deep plum colored dress which was decorated with white dotted fig leaves all over. Her dress, like the others, was floor length. It had a halter neckline and open back as well as a slit that went up one side of the straight skirt.

            “Shall we?” Carlos asked, offering Jane his arm the fae girl hoped she wasn’t turning red like Lonnie was as she took his arm. “We shall.” she agreed.

            “Hold up, one sec.” Mal interrupted, noticing one thing was still missing. “What’s up?” Lonnie turned to her with the question. “We’re still missing something.” she replied, but Freddie beat her to it, “Hey Evie, where’d your crown go? You were planning to wear it, right?”

            The teens looked at her quizzically.

            “I-I wasn’t sure if it really went with this.” she tried to laugh it off, “Besides, I know for sure I’m going to meet Doug’s family down there and I don’t know,” she shrugged, “I thought it might be a little much? You know, since the dwarves don’t exactly like my mother.” she winced and was met with shaking heads. “Nah girl, you remember what Ben said before, you’re wearing it.” Freddie insisted and Mal plucked it up from where it rested on the vanity table, giving Evie a direct look as she approached, tiara in hand.

            “Ok.” she pressed her lips into a thin line, wondering how irrational and silly she was being to seemingly frustrate her friends over something that was probably inconsequential. Once it rested perfectly on her head Mal nodded, “Alright Princess, let’s go rock this party!”

Chapter Text

            The group huddled together, almost protectively, as they made their way into the ballroom. It was the grandest looking place the Isle kids had seen thus far, and that was really saying something since most of the buildings and places in Auradon were fairly grand, especially when compared to the ones on the Isle.

            Immediately they began to scan the room for their other friends’ parents that were there, as well as potential quick escape routes besides the way they’d just come. They didn’t want to worry about not having an out if another person decided they wanted to come after them, like a few had already done earlier in the day.

            “Hey guys!” a cheerful voice greeted them, far warmer and more welcoming than she had really ever been towards them before. It seemed just being alone with her mom (without the interference of her grandmother) had already done her some good. “Hey Audrey.” Mal was the first to greet her, “Wow, that dress is so gorgeous!” Evie chimed in, gushing. Audrey’s dress was a bright pink. The skirt was full and had some tall embellishments spaced along near the bottom of it. The top was beaded and sparkly and had a V shaped front with laces up it and spaghetti straps over her shoulders.  “Aww, thank you!” she proceeded to squeal over their dresses, talking fashion with Evie, “But you guys look so so good too! I love those dresses!” Evie was hit with a wave of inspiration as she looked between Audrey and Jane’s dresses as Chad snuck up and silently joined them, standing protectively behind Audrey. “Oh! Jane! I should have had you wear this other one! I completely forgot it was in the back of the closet!” she lamented with a pout.

            “We don’t have time to go back up and change, sorry Evie.” Jane shook her head, wondering what dress she could be thinking of.

            “OH! I think I know which dress you’re thinking about.” Mal grinned, “Why don’t we just magically switch them?” she asked eagerly, “We definitely have time for that, don’t we?” she turned with pleading puppy-dog eyes to Jane, wanting the opportunity to work some magic once more. Freddie nodded with her excitedly, maybe they’d get to do a little bit of magic after all.

            Jane looked at them hesitantly, she too thought it would be fun to try, but was wary considering where they were surrounded by people who could see them and report them for their blatant disregard to the anti-magic ban laws, not to mention the fact that King Adam himself was supposed to be around here somewhere. “I dunno…” she mumbled, wholly uncertain.

            “Please?” Mal urged, “Let me play Fairy Godmother for you.”Jane had always wondered what it would be like to be on the other side of things, have a fairy godmother for herself instead of wondering if she was destined to be a magic-less fairy godmother because that was what her mother was now, with the exception of any magic that benefited the King however. So, she was won over by those seven simple words, a plea for the chance to do more magic from a fae friend.

            Mal was not the only one to look ecstatic, and even Audrey and Chad looked intrigued as they watched and waited with bated breath to see the spectacle. Evie leaned over and described something to Mal so quietly that Jane didn’t hear it. (Not that she was really paying attention to what Evie was whispering of course, she was paying more attention to the expression and personality change Audrey had seemingly gone through.

            Freddie offered her hand to try to help Mal with the magic spell, and her hopeful offer was accepted. Together they performed the simple spell and in a sparkly whirlwind Jane (and the others) watched in utter awe as the dress was transformed right in front of their very eyes. Instead of the straight skirted dress layered with tiers, she now wore a strapless ballgown with a beaded accent that went around the entire top edge of the dress. She had no words, the dress was just as beautiful as the last and so was the magic used to change her between the two.

            “Wow.” Lonnie and Audrey were amazed by the magic and stared, slightly slack-jawed as Jane seemed to sparkle. “That was so cool!” Lonnie grinned at the duo, since the last time Mal had done magic was on her to help fix her hair, she didn’t have the opportunity to really see it in action before now. The two were looking quite pleased with themselves, their work and finally having another opportunity to practice magic. (Freddie couldn’t wait to start reading about shadow magic since she had finally seen the shadows move and heard the buzz of what felt like a million voices trying to talk to her at once earlier that same day. Before that she had been starting to think she didn’t have shadow magic, if any at all.)

            It seemed that luck was on their side because just as they performed the magic, the trumpets sounded, and attention had been drawn to the grand staircase. The loud booming voice calling out for attention continued with the introductions and they caught the tail end of it. “... and their son, Prince Benjamin.” Mal whirled around to face the stairs, excited that Ben was finally here. Ben was, of course, in the royal colors of Auradon, matching his family in royal blue and gold. The suit fit him well, and as they descended the stairs, she caught the gleam of something pinned to his lapels, It was a broach of some kind and she was thrilled to see it glinting green, just like her dress. When she looked up, she realized he was already staring at her and her heart skipped a beat. His eyes never left hers as they made their way down to the floor.

            “Tonight, Prince Benjamin will open the ball.” King Adam started, “For soon he shall be crowned King of Auradon, and as such this duty, among countless others, will too fall to him. This shall be the first of many balls, my son.” he looked back to him and smiled, though it looked more patronizing to the Isle kids and their friends than a parental one. “Choose your dance partner, so that you may officially open the ball.” he instructed, waving his song forward

            Without even the slightest hint of hesitation, Ben immediately started in Mal’s direction, still holding eye contact even as he weaved his way over. Gently he took her hand and kissed the back of it. “M’lady.” he smiled softly at her, “Would you care to open the ball with me?” he asked and Mal smiled back at him, “I should be delighted, your highness.” she smoothly replied (also a little thankful for all those years of etiquette classes courtesy of Evie’s mom Grimhilde. Sure came in handy right about now.) As they danced, she let herself ignore the fact that King Adam was there and watching her like a hawk, she ignored the curious scrutiny of his mother. (She only hoped she was standing up against the kind, smart woman’s expectations.) She didn’t think about any of that, instead she just let herself be whisked around and around, following familiar steps of the dance with Ben as her guide.    

            The pair glided around the dancefloor with practiced ease that could only come from years of dance lessons and the right partner. As the first dance came to an end, people automatically moved to claim a partner to join in for the second dance. Evie was delighted when Doug too weaved through the crowd, escaping his family and making his way to her side. She tried not to beam too openly in happiness when she noted that his tie was the same shade of blue as her dress. As Evie was whisked to the floor by a blushing Doug, so too was Lonnie whisked to the floor by Jay, Jane by Carlos, and Audrey by Chad.

            Freddie hung back, uncertain if she was grateful or sad at the fact that she was the only one without a partner yet. Across the room, she spotted a pained looking Nicholas with his family and boy did they look upset about something. She wasn’t sure if it would make it any better, but she made the split-second decision to go over there and ‘rescue’ him if she could. “Hey Nicholas!” she greeted and tried not to laugh when they all jumped in surprise. “Did you want to dance?” Her question came out nervously as a wave of hesitation hit her just as he turned to look at her, the look on his face said he at least was happy to see her. She hoped her halting tentative smile was somehow still open and inviting to the others instead of cautious and reluctant. “That’s a great idea! Let’s go Freddie!” he jumped on the chance and she let out a small yip of surprise as she was yanked by the arm in his rush to get away from the conflict that was brewing up with his family (ironically over the girl who just saved him from it).

            The teens stayed on the floor as long as possible, occasionally switching partners amongst them and allowing parents to cut in for a dance here and there, but mostly staying with their original partner. They only wished they had more of their friends there in which to share their merriment, like Uma and Harry whom they wished they could have spent more time celebrating the duo’s engagement earlier in the afternoon.

Chapter Text

            Mal’s world was spinning, but the dizzying feeling felt good rather than bad. She and Ben spun around until she thought she might fall over from the dizziness, but she trusted Ben to keep her from succumbing to the feelings of unbalance and falling over. Their spinning slowed and he twirled her into his chest as the music too began to slow and Mal instinctively knew it was going to be a much slower song for a much slower dance. Although she loved the spinning, she felt grateful for the short reprieve in which she could shake the dizziness away and not feel like she would stumble and collapse from it.

            “She tucked herself into him, laying her head on his shoulder while they danced, his arm securely around her waist. She was surprised by how little her wings had been getting in the way of their dancing, Ben, although unused to dancing with someone with appendages like hers, somehow managed to still be graceful and never miss a beat. As the first slow song came to an end another began and she heard footsteps approach at the same time that Ben saw the person come close.

            “May I cut in?” Mal opened her eyes and smiled widely at her father as Ben half-bowed as he released her, telling Diaval, “Of course.” Mal’s hand was taken by her father and she was swept into the next slow dance with him. “You look like you’re having quite the good time, dear one.” he spoke with a soft hint of a smile on his lips. “Yes, quite.” she agreed, and he laughed with her before he spoke again, “You also look quite smitten with that boy Prince you have been dancing with. I dare say people will talk.” he teased with a lilt.

            The fae couldn’t fight the blush that covered her cheeks, “How did you know that?” her mother had told her that her father was a rather perceptive being, but she hadn’t realized she was that overtly obvious in her feelings for Ben either.

            “I’m your father. I’m supposed to know these things.” he replied with a tease and a smirk before replying more genuinely, drinking her in, cupping her face in his hand and brushing his thumb along the skin of her cheek. “And I know how you feel because it’s the same way your mother would look at me, and I’m quite certain that the way your Prince was looking at you would mirror how I look at her.” Diaval was honest to a fault, he would never lie to her. Her father was soft-spoken, his voice low and lovely to her ears, and Mal was only all too eager to listen to her father speak more, content to just be next to him and listening to his voice. “Tell me about how you met mother?” she asked, “I know the story, but I want to hear it from you.” she added when he raised an eyebrow at her.

            “Of course, dear one.” he acquiesced with a slight bow of his head. “I should be happy to tell you everything you wish to know, though I too should wish to hear all about you as well.” He informed her before telling the story as they slowly continued their dance, in time with the others on the floor.

            “It’s not a long story, and I’m sure it’s not very different from the one your mother would have told you.” he warned before continuing, “As you know, my original form is that of a crow. The day I met your mother is the day she saved my life from a pack of dogs,” he gave a soft chuckle before finishing, “by turning me into a man.” He gave a slight shake of his head. “At the time, I was quite angry.” he admitted, “For I did not want to be a man, nor did I feel I needed saving and when your mother saved me, I became indebted to her. She saved my life so my life would belong to her from then on. I was a faithful servant. Although it took me quite some time to become used to being in the body of a man, it did not take me long to fall deeply in love with your mother.”

            He paused and Mal waited. “I waited to tell her how I felt because when I realized what my feelings had become and what they meant; she was still not ready to accept them nor was she ready to recognize her own enough to return them.”

            “How long did you have to wait?” Mal asked, curious. “I waited for almost sixteen years.” he admitted and Mal was surprised. “That long?” she tried not to gape and he nodded, “She was not ready until after she woke Aurora from her slumber.” he informed her, “It was then that she realized true love was truly real and that not only did she feel that love as Aurora’s Fairy Godmother, but that she also felt it for me.”

            “How do you become so patient that you can wait for such a long time? How did you know that what you felt was true love?” she asked him.

            “When you love someone as I love your mother, as you love your Prince, you will do anything for them. You would wait a thousand years if you had to, go to war and even perish, all for their sake, and when it’s true they will return that in kind. People are often not honest about their feelings, both to themselves and to others, but even so, you will know in your heart that what you feel is true.”

            “Tell me more?” she almost begged, just wanting to keep hearing her father speak to her.

            Diaval was unable to deny his daughter anything, just as he was unable to deny Maleficent. “Let’s walk the gardens, and I shall tell you everything you wish to hear.” she accepted his arm and together they went into the crisp evening air.

Chapter Text

            The teens were ready to drop from all the dancing they’d been doing, so they decided to search out their table placements in the grand dining hall so they could sit for a while before dinner was officially served. Ben parted ways with the group to find Mal and her father Diaval to make sure they knew the time for supper would come rather soon. The rest of them quickly found Lonnie, Jane, and Doug, Chad, Audrey, and Nicholas’s places and Ben was obviously at the head table with his parents, but as they walked up and down the rows of long tables they couldn’t seem to find Mal, Carlos, Evie, Jay, Freddie, and the two last minute parental additions of Hades and Diaval’s places.

            Freddie paused in her search for a moment, listening as the shadows shifted and pointed for her. “Back there.” she pointed in the direction they were. “How do you know?” Nicholas was the first to ask and she shrugged, “I didn’t, but the shadows are telling me to go back there.” They all followed Freddie as she followed the shadows all the way to the back of the dining hall towards the tables that were spread the furthest. She approached one and reached out, plucking the place card from the table and read aloud, “Francine Facilier.” she tried not to twitch, “Looks like this is us you guys.” she looked back at her friends and saw Audrey raising an eyebrow.

            “All the way back here?” she shook her head, “You’re so far away from the rest of us! We’re all within, like, a table of each other.”

            Whoever planned seating clearly thought that putting the Isle teens (and the two parents) way in the back would minimize potential problems or drama. Like putting them away from all the others their age, all of their friends, would hide them from those who didn’t want them here or something. Jane’s nose twitched, there was no good reason she could think of that they would be placed way back here, away from all of their friends. There were plenty of spots still up closer to the rest of them, even if it would potentially means splitting the Isle kids up they would still be sitting with their friends.

            Lonnie eyed the empty chairs and a plethora of open seats without place cards thoughtfully. “Hmmm.” she hummed, “Why don’t we all just switch up the seating arrangement and come sit back here with you guys instead?” she suggested, “Then we all get to sit together and it’s not like we’re taking anybody else’s spots anyway since most of them are open.” Originally, she had been going to get Jay moved to sit by her family since her mother invited him, and she wasn’t certainly wasn't going to object to having Jay join them, but now seeing how far away their table was she didn’t want to leave the others back amongst strangers and empty seats.

            Doug readily agreed, and Evie tilted her head at him in surprise, “Don’t you all want to sit by your families?” she asked him and he shrugged, “I’m kind of mad at my dad today, and my uncles aren’t any better to talk to right now either. I’m pretty sure Snow kind of wanted to sit next to you too, so she’ll probably be back here too.” he explained but neglecting to tell them what the fight was about. If he didn’t want to tell them right now, they weren’t going to push.

            Audrey hummed as she eyed the way Evie hung off of Doug’s arm, she had a pretty good guess what it was about. She didn’t think the dwarves would be as easy to forgive or even just to listen as Snow White was. She glanced over her shoulder slightly to meet eyes with Chad, both discretely and inquisitively she raised her eyebrow at him and he gave a half shrug in return, telling her it was up to her and she nodded her head slightly in confirmation. They would join the pack back here too, after all, what better time to mend fences and really get to know each other more than at dinner when you were all having fun? The merriment from dancing usually overflowed well into dinnertime at these events, though with the discovery of how spread out the seating arrangements were, she wasn’t sure if it would start off so smoothly.

            “I’ll be right back.” Lonnie tried to discreetly squeeze Jay’s arm, though in a group of rather perceptive teenagers it was hard to successfully be discrete. (You might think you were successful, but the others just chose not to call you out on it.) Quickly she left, weaving her way around the room and then back through the ball room still crowded with other guests. Finally, she found the first person she was looking for. “Hey Ben, can I talk to you for a second?” He looked back at her and smiled, “Hey Lonnie. Yeah of course. Excuse me.” he told his parents before stepping away with her.

            “What’s up Lonnie?” he asked her more seriously now, he had heard the slight edge to her voice.

            “All of our new friends got sat way far away in the middle of nowhere and there’s almost nobody back there.” she told him, and he twitched in unhappiness at the revelation. “So, what I want to do is move all of us back there by them. Nobody is being displaced, so it shouldn’t be a big issue, right?” He thought for a moment and gave a half shrug, “I think that sounds doable. Shouldn’t cause any problems to have you guys moved.” he confirmed. “Alright, cool. Do you think we can just grab them and move them ourselves?” she asks hopefully, and he takes another moment to think, “Yeah, I think you should be good to do that too. Meals are pretty standard unless there was an allergy, pretty sure none of you guys needed something changed or anything so we shouldn't have to pass on to the kitchen serving staff that we’ve moved you.”

            She nods. “Okay, awesome.”  she pulls out her phone and shoots Jane a text to go ahead and grab all of their place cards. “I know you always sit with your family being the head of Auradon and all, but do you want to break tradition and join us instead?” she tempted, and he hummed. “You know I would love to sit with you guys, but where I want to sit isn’t really a battle I want to pick with my dad.” he sighed, “Right.” Lonnie nodded, “You have to pick your battles.” she shook her head slightly, “You want me to come over and ask you in front of your parents? You know your mom will totally say yes and then your dad will probably relent and let you move seats.”

            “It’s alright Lonnie.” he looks at her fondly, “I appreciate the thought though.” he tells her, hand on her shoulder gently. She sighs softly but relents. “I’ll catch up with you later then, right?” she asks, and he nods, “Good. I have to go talk to my mom really quick, let her know I’m moving seats.” She tells him before giving him one last smile and weaving her way back through the crowd to find her mother. Hopefully her mom wouldn’t be upset that they were moving tables. Who knows, Lonnie mused, maybe her mother wouldn’t be opposed to the rest of the family moving back there too.

Chapter Text

            In all truth, Hades did not mind the idea of sitting in the back amongst empty chairs, he wasn’t usually too fond of all the attention or fawning that could occur when placed in close proximity and in places that indicated power or importance (such as closer to the front). He wasn’t necessarily all that fond of all that attention, but from being both the Lord of the Underworld and eldest sibling of Zeus and Poseidon he was used to putting up with it. He didn’t often enjoy the idle or vain chatter which occurred at these functions; he’d attended far more than any of these mortals may ever attend in their lifetimes, so he knew the ins and outs of it all.

            Although the seating arrangement could be seen as a slight, that being said he was also a late invitee and wasn’t bothered by it, so why put up a stink? This type of insult to him was inconsequential, he had after all been treated far worse by the family (father) of the young host. Had been treated like villainous scum for far too long just for the domain he happened to be the god of. His family torn apart for little more than the jealousy and hatred of vile kings.

             The fact that he was even allowed to be here, that the young princeling had even somehow known or figured out who he was and willingly invited him to come and see his daughter was far more than he ever could have expected. Admittedly he acknowledged the hypocrisy even he fostered for he too had held false assumptions about the boy because of who his father was and what he had done, although he was hopeful that the influence of his mother Belle would counter the bad of his father. It would appear it more than countered it. This boy was nothing like the monster of a father and was everything like the bookish, gentle, and caring mother.

            In the time since he’d been allowed off the Isle he had since reunited with an old flame (they were fighting and not together when he went to the Isle) and they were engaged to be married. Persephone, for all her sweetness was a force of nature, and insisted that they would not marry until his daughter could be a part of the ceremony. She loved Genevieve and she had never had the opportunity to meet her. Persephone’s heart always had room for another person to love and he was glad that his daughter was among those. He hoped to soon introduce the pair, though for tonight it was just him watching over the teen. He already did not like how close she had been living to the Beast King, and he didn’t want him to know any more than necessary. Hades was optimistic that the news that he was Genevieve’s father had been passed along, and that this would deter any negative actions against her in the future, knowing that her father was a God, the Lord of the underworld, and not contained to the Isle like most the other parents.

            He watched from the shadows while Genevieve danced with her friends, keeping a watchful eye on them all. He may trust the boy prince, but he had no such trust for his father Adam. The beast was a monstrous creature, he didn’t like the fact that the school was under the King’s rule. As he watched he wondered just how they treated her, he doubted they treated her like the Princess she was. (Well, her friends certainly did, but everyone else? He wasn’t so sure.) Unseen he sent hateful glares towards the Beast; he didn’t want him anywhere near his daughter. He had already condemned a mass number of children to live in squalid conditions on the Isle and they were only infants at the time. That almost begged the question, what would he do to a girl of sixteen that crossed him now? Hades didn’t really have to guess, he’d seen his fair share of people pass through the underworld who had been either personally killed by this monster or their deaths were orchestrated by him.

            He smiled as the teens grinned mischievously at each other and darted about the room to gather their place cards. Amused, he joined them by the table, greeting his daughter with a warm smile. Hades was rewarded with a beaming look before the sixteen-year-old quickly launched herself at him and wrapped her arms around his middle. Letting out a small chuckle he hugged his daughter back. Evie was a smart girl, she knew that even if she didn’t see her dad before he was still there, she could feel it. She knew that there was always a reason for everything Hades did, and if he wasn’t spending time with her, she figured out he was likely still watching over her.

Chapter Text

            It didn’t take long for the teens to inform their parents and families of the swapped seats. Doug was right, Snow eagerly accepted the invitation to join him in sitting with Evie and her father. (She wasn’t sure what to think of the fact that Hades was Evie’s father, but she was keeping an open mind, ready to welcome them both with open arms.

            At Audrey’s puppy-dog pout Aurora and Philip joined them as well. They hadn’t wanted to infringe upon her time with her new friendships, but Audrey wanted her mother and father to come sit and get to know Mal (and the others) with her. Anita was touched Carlos asked her to join them and of course Lonnie’s family jumped at the offer. Jay was originally going to be moved by them anyways, so why not instead simply reverse that so they moved seats instead?

            Craftily the teens physically moved the tables so instead of small circular tables being so spread out, they were much more closely knit and organized like the tables near the front were. There was room, and then some for people to sit and join them. Mal and her father Diaval arrived just as people were beginning to trickle in to find their seats as dinnertime came closer and closer.

            “Today is a great day.” King Beast’s voice echoed loudly in the grand dining hall. “Today we celebrate our families and share our gratitude and our thanks for the people in our lives, the things we have and can do, and for our great Kingdom of Auradon. Today marks the first day that my son, Prince Benjamin hosted and opened one of our celebratory balls. Each day brings us closer to his impending coronation this spring. Benjamin, my boy,” he turned and raised his glass, “You still have a great deal to learn before you take the throne, but I know that with my guiding hand, you shall feel more than ready when the time comes for the crown to rest upon your head.” he toasted and polite applause filled the room.

            Ben bowed his head to his father as he stood up at the head table, sending a smile their way as everyone clapped. He began his own speech only after the polite clapping subsided. “Thank you, father, I hope I shall be a wise King when I take the throne.” he nodded his head humbly as he spoke before raising it and picking up his own glass. “Today, I am honored to have the chance to host our Family Day celebration as my first ball to host in true royal capacity. I want to thank each and every one of you who could come out today to celebrate and spend time with your students here at Auradon Prep. Being away from your family for lengths of time can be hard on anyone, and we are all very grateful to you for being patient with us while we attend our classes and for taking the time to join us here today. So thank you.”

            Ben paused in his speech as the crowd clapped before continuing. “I also want to congratulate our students on making it halfway through the first semester of the year.” he starts, “not just our returning students, but our new students as well. Adjusting to life at Auradon Prep can be difficult at first, but once you have the chance to get used to it you find there is so much that you didn’t know you were capable of.” He smiled again as he met Mal’s eyes.

            “I want to specifically congratulate our transfer students who have come from the Isle of the Lost to attend our school. They have gone above and beyond to meet the goals set for them by the Royal Council and the School Board and I am pleased to announce that starting on Monday they have been cleared to begin attending classes with the rest of their peers. Congratulations you guys!” he raised his glass to them, and Evie beamed as their friends and guests cheered for them. Mal’s ears hurt from the noise, but she couldn’t bring herself to really care. Freddie shrunk in on herself, she was used to attention back home but in Auradon it was foreign to her. Lonnie ruffled Jay’s hair and teased him about having to attend classes like a normal person now and Jane kissed Carlos’s cheek.

            “Now, I won’t keep you waiting any longer. Without further ado, waiters and waitresses if you please.” he motioned for them to go ahead. “Ladies and gentlemen, dinner is served.”

Chapter Text

I am considering trying to continue this fic by first revising and editing past chapters in order to find a storyline to continue on with.

Is there still interest in the continuation of this story?

What are you hoping to see? What is something I should change when I go back?

Please let me know in the comments!