Disclaimer: I do not own Disney Descendants nor its characters, just this fic.

Valentine's Day. The one day of the year everyone seemed to suddenly find someone to profess their undying love for, regardless of whether they intended to stay together or not. It was also a useless sentiment the people of the Isle never saw a point to, or more Mal had never seen a point to. Year after year certain boys had attempted to gain her favour through gifts that were promptly destroyed or tossed to Jay if she considered them useful. Of course, everything was different this year.

On the Isle, love was Anthony Tremaine hoping a lace handkerchief would give him a few moments with her in a dark closet. It was the Gaston twins thinking she wanted a pretty bit of broken glass in exchange for them being able to parade around with her on their arms. None of the boys on the Isle actually bothered to get to know the real her and she had no time for idiots she felt were beneath her, but she wasn't on the Isle anymore.

Auradon had been a big change for her and her friends, the biggest of which was Ben. For the first time ever she'd found a guy who actually wanted to know her, not just be seen with her to boost their status. Ben loved her for who she was, sarcastic comments and all, and for the first time in her life Mal was actually excited about Valentine's Day. Not because she wanted presents but because she'd actually be able to spend it with someone she loved, someone who loved her back, and that felt pretty special to her.

Valentine's Day had been easy when Ben was dating Audrey. She wanted romantic gestures and she wanted them when the most people would be able to watch her receive them. The day would start with a bouquet of red roses delivered to her during her first class so she could carry them about with her all day, lunch would be a gift of expensive jewellery from the list of items she'd had her eye on, and it finished with dinner for two at a fancy restaurant. The problem was, that wasn't Mal.

Mal didn't care about anyone else seeing how happy she was, she just wanted Ben. He knew his musical production after Jay and Carlos's first tourney game had embarrassed her, Lonnie had told him after the coronation, so any big theatrics were out. Still, this was her first real Valentine's Day and he wanted to make it special for her.

Sitting at one of the tables in the dining hall for breakfast Mal grinned the moment Ben sat down beside her. "Happy Valentine's Day Mal." He muttered, kissing her cheek while offering her a single lavender rose.

Pressing the bloom to her nose the fairy inhaled deeply. "It smells so good, thank you Ben." One glance at Evie and the girl leaped out of her chair to pin it into Mal's purple curls. Red was traditional but Mal wasn't a traditional kind of girl and purple was her favourite colour.

For the rest of the day Mal found little tokens waiting for her in each of her classes. Her first class had a small ceramic lion barely an inch tall, another class had a matching dragon, one class had a tiny model of Ben's scooter waiting for her, lunch saw a small box of strawberries waiting for her, after lunch there was a snow globe of the Enchanted Lake while her last class had one of the glowing rocks from the lake residing on her desk. Grinning at the collection of little things Mal made her way up to her dorm. To anyone else they looked like useless trinkets but it was Ben's way of reminding her of their first date, and that meant more to her than all the gems in the world.

Walking up to her door Mal paused at the sight of a strange cloth hanging from the doorknob. A blindfold made of the same fabric as Ben's swimming shorts, well this was going to be good. With a snort Mal entered her room to find Evie waiting for her with an outfit already laid out. "How did I know you were in on this?" Shaking her head Mal let Evie get her ready for whatever Ben had planned for the evening.

Opening her door Mal smiled at Ben looking rather dapper in his blue suit, a bunch of lavender roses in his hand. "It seems we both had the same idea." Mal told him softly, putting the flowers in a vase of water before passing him his gift. It was a painting of the Enchanted Lake the way she saw it the moment he let her open her eyes. "Happy Valentine's Day Ben."

Ben couldn't stop staring at the painting, it was perfect and he knew a spot on his desk that needed a touch of colour. "I love it, thank you Mal." Setting it down Ben grabbed the blindfold, carefully tying it around Mal's head before escorting her out of the building.

After what felt like an eternity Ben finally let Mal remove the blindfold. It wasn't a fancy restaurant, it was a gazebo in his mother's rose garden with hundreds of candles filling it with a golden light. A table was filled with all of Mal's favourite food, Ben gently leading her to her seat.

Mal probably ate more than she should've but everything looked and tasted so good. Ben shifted the table and chairs to one side before slipping his ipod into a set of speakers. "My lady." Bowing to Mal he took her hands, gently guiding her through a waltz. The pair danced until Ben's alarm went off, signalling the need to return before curfew.

Walking her up to her dorm Ben kissed her softly on the lips, a perfect end to a perfect night. Dressing for bed Mal flopped down on her mattress, taking a few moments to arrange Ben's gifts on her bedside table. There was nothing expensive or sparkly amongst them, but each meant the world to her. Muttering a quick spell Mal grinned at the lavender bloom in her hands, now perfectly preserved so it would never wilt or die, one final token to remember her first Valentine's Day with.

May your thoughts and creativity flow

-Lady Ami DragonHeart