A/N: Hey lovely readers! Hope you love the story so far! The reviews mean a lot to me! I know last chapter was kind of boring, but this chapter, in my mind, is pretty interesting. At least the second half of it is. I think you guys will agree with me.

Also, good news, at least for some of you. I just started writing the wedding chapter. In fact, I was in the middle of writing it when I realized I needed to post this chapter. I would like it if you guys would tell me if you think this story every gets too cheesy or mush. I'm scared that it might happen to the wedding chapter, but we'll see.

I also need to do a disclaimer. The underlined portion in this chapter is a direct quote from DC's Arrow on the CW Network. I take no credit for it. I felt it was fitting for this chapter, and you'll see it again in another chapter. Anyway, enough chatter, here is Chapter 13, titled "Love is The Most Powerful Emotion."

After running back to her room to retrieve the enchanted lake painting from earlier in the day, Mal dropped it off in Ben's room and left to spend some time with Evie, who had been dying to go over other details for the wedding. Evie had become the unofficial wedding planner. Once Mal had left, Ben was left to his own devices. Luckily he had a plan. He was going to work on his wedding gift for Mal. While the proposal was spur of the moment, he had been planning on this gift for months. He had known he would propose to Mal eventually, so he had started working on his present early.

Ben made his way to the suite that he and Mal would soon share after they had wed and let himself in. Fortunately for him, Mal didn't know about the suite just yet. She had assumed that they would stay in Ben's current room, but this wasn't the case. Like his parents, this suite was more like an apartment. It contained a decent sized living room, a medium sized kitchen, a small bathroom to the side, a master bedroom, and another smaller bedroom with its own bathroom. In the master bedroom, there was a grand bathroom, two large his and her closets, and one spare room. None of the other suites in the castle had this spare room in the bedroom, but Ben had chosen this suite specifically. He was going to use this room to make something special for Mal. Thankfully, he was almost done with it. On the right side of the room was a large panel of one way windows. One could see everything from the inside, but no one outside could see in. The view from these windows was of all of Auradon, the sun's rays enveloping the kingdom in light. On the left wall was shelves from about a foot off the floor all the way to a foot away from the ceiling. These shelves ran the length of the room. One wall next to the door had a large couch in front of it, and the wall on the opposite side of the door had several different sized canvases stacked in front of it. The wall across from the door was bare, except for the magenta paint that Ben had first applied to all the walls when he started this project. In the middle of the room was his current part of the project, a large wooden desk. It was flipped upside down with only two legs currently attached as well as a few drawers built into it. He began sanding the third leg that he had previously spun on the large lathe he had brought in.

He worked diligently, knowing that he had to finish this project before the wedding so he could surprise Mal with it. He still had a few other things to build before he was even close to being done, such as the easel he was going to build for her. He also needed to make sure that he had time to buy the supplies that Mal would need when she would put this room to use. He was a busy man, between having to run the kingdom, being there for Mal, and this project. However, it was all worth it. He loved his life, and wouldn't trade it for anything. He was determined to complete this project and still have time for the woman he loved as well as for the job he was meant to do. This determination helped him keep his focus as he worked despite his physical and emotional exhaustion. In the end, this was all for her, so he had to do it right. Unfortunately, his focused was interrupted by sudden blackness covering his vision. He heard the lathe turn off, but he knew he wasn't the one that had done it.

"What are you working on?" a spine-tingling voice asked.

"What is going on? Why can't I see?" Ben wondered aloud.

"Oh, I apologize. I'll fix that for you."

Slowly, in the darkness, a tall, slender, dark-skinned man appeared. He wore a black top hat with a skull and cross bones on it, and a deep red suit jacket and pants with a magenta shirt. In his right hand he held some kind of staff. It took a moment, but Ben recognized him. It was Dr. Facilier, Mal's father. Ben wondered why he was suddenly seeing Dr. Facilier now. He certainly wasn't in the room with him, or else he would have noticed that. Was this all in his head? Were both he Dr. Facilier in his head? That was the only way any of this could be explained. Dr. Facilier had made himself appear in Ben's mind using some kind of spell. Ben was trapped in his own head with Dr. Facilier. Why was this going on? Then again, Dr. Facilier was invading his mind, and that was rather concerning. Ben slowly approached Dr. Facilier but still kept a distance between them. What the hell was he doing in his head?

"What are you doing here?" Ben asked carefully. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he wanted to be cautious about how he approached this.

"I asked you first. What are you working on young man?"

"If you're in my head, shouldn't you know?"

"You're right, I do know, and it is a nice thing you are doing for Mal, but that doesn't make up for what you did."

"What did I do?"

"I know about your little excursion with her around 7:30 this morning, and I am beyond furious. I am livid. You corrupted her, and took away her innocence. You hurt her."

"I would never hurt her, but you did. You struck her this morning. I should kill you for that, and if you were actually here, I'd do that right now. Both you and her mother hurt her enough."

"Maleficent will soon pay for that as well, but for now, it is you who will pay for your actions."

"What are you going to do?"

"Nothing at the moment, as I don't have everything I need just yet to proceed with my plan. I have to be present for it all to work. However, I am technically not anywhere near you, but rather, I'm in your subconscious. If I was there, you'd already be dead."

"Why are you telling me all of this?"

"To torture you. Knowing that I can access your mind at any time I please should drive you nuts because you can't do a thing about it. Also, keeping in mind that your death date is approaching should keep you on edge. I wouldn't want to spoil that surprise. That wouldn't be any fun," replied Dr. Facilier, a smug look on his face.

"If you hurt me, you'll hurt Mal. She loves me, and losing me would hurt her. I don't think you want to do that."

"What makes you so sure that she loves you?"

"She's told me that she loves me. She's proven it too."

Ben hated having to tell Mal's father what they had been doing, but it was the only way to prove his point. He had to get it across somehow, and telling him that she had proven her love for him in a physical way was the best way to do that in this moment. He wished that he didn't have to reveal it, but there wasn't a point in hiding it anymore. Dr. Facilier already knew.

"How has she proven it to you?" Dr. Facilier asked worriedly.

"I think you know the answer to that, but you don't want to admit it."

Dr. Facilier grimaced at the images flashing through his mind of what Ben and Mal had been doing together. Being in Ben's mind, he could actually see what happened. That was not how he wanted to see his daughter. He preferred her wholesome yet evil image. He wanted Mal to be evil, but he didn't want her doing such risqué things.

"However," Ben continued,"that isn't the only thing Mal has done to show me she loves me. She's been so kind and loving to me. She's given me her heart and soul. She's opened up to me emotionally in a way that she wouldn't with anyone else. She trusts me, but I don't think she trusts you."

Suddenly, Ben realized what he had just said. He had just talked himself into a minefield. Why did he say that? While it was true, he shouldn't have said it. It just made things worse.

Dr. Facilier frowned. Why didn't Mal trust him? Sure, he had his faults, but he loved her and would do anything for her. In his mind, that should be enough. Why wasn't it? How could she trust Ben more than him? It angered him to no end, but he wasn't going to let Ben see that. He didn't want Ben to see the nerves that he had struck. Any sign of weakness would defeat the purpose of his visit. He wanted to scare the boy, and that was what he was going to do. Dr. Facilier glowered at Ben with dangerously bloodthirsty rage filled eyes.

"How dare you! How dare you tell a girl's father that she doesn't trust him! You have no right to tell me how she feels about me! You have no right to see her or touch her! You have no right to be in her proximity! I swear if you touch her again, I'll…" Ben cut him off.

"You'll what?" Ben growled in a beastly tone, approaching Dr. Facilier with clenched fists at his sides and a lethal look in his eyes,"you'll beat me? You'll torture me? You'll kill me? I will never give you that chance. You don't scare me!"

Ben really wasn't afraid of Dr. Facilier. Ben knew Dr. Facilier was going to try and take Mal away from him, but he wasn't going to let that happen. He would fight like hell for her, and he was sure that Dr. Facilier would too. She was worth fighting for, even if it meant taking on her father. There was nothing that Ben wouldn't do for her. Dr. Facilier could see that too. He knew he had a real challenge ahead of him trying to get Mal back, but there was no way he was going to let Ben win this battle. While both were motivated to have Mal on his side, Ben had one distinct advantage: he had Mal's love. Together, they could take down Dr. Facilier. Yes, he could do it on his own, but having Mal stand with him made him feel stronger.

"You will not hurt either of us!" Ben snarled as he stood face to face with Mal's father,"You can't hurt us! I am stronger than you will ever be, and so is Mal, despite your dark magic! I have the one thing that is stronger than your magic: Mal's love. Love is the most powerful emotion and that makes it the most dangerous. I am a very dangerous man when it comes to Mal. If you even try to hurt either one of us I will rip you apart with all my beastly strength! Don't you ever try to cross me again. Now get the f-ck out of my head!"

Dr. Facilier had no more words, as he couldn't seem to find them. He had underestimated Ben. He had forgotten that Ben was part beast. That beastly side was showing now. It was obvious now that there was no way to intimidate the boy. Ben was stronger than he had thought but not nearly as strong as himself. Or so he thought. For now though, this was a waste of time. He waved his hand and returned Ben to his conscious state.

Ben woke up, realizing now that he had passed out next to the lathe. He stood up with shaky legs. Dr. Facilier really had him concerned, but not scared. He was worried about him returning to his head and what he would do to him physically when he had that chance. Ben knew how much that would hurt Mal knowing that her father had paid him a visit and could visit him in his head again. He wasn't even concerned for his own safety. He was more anxious about how Mal would react if her father tortured him. He hated keeping secrets from Mal, but he didn't want to worry, especially not now. She was finally getting to a good place. However, he knew that she needed to know what happened. Secrets are what destroy relationships. While Mal had not told him everything about her past, it wasn't because it was a secret. She just wasn't emotionally ready to tell him some things yet. So technically, she wasn't keeping secrets from him, and he wasn't going to either. He was going to tell her about what just happened, although he would leave out where he was and what he was doing. That was a surprise.

In the meantime, he decided to text Evie and see where Mal was at. He didn't want to bother Mal just yet. He wanted some time to process what had just happened. Texting Evie instead of Mal would give him just a few extra moments to do that. Unfortunately, Evie replied rather quickly. They had finished up wedding discussions for the day, so she had left Mal in their room while she went to go spend time with Doug. Realizing he needed to talk to her about this situation now, he headed off to her room, wondering how he was going to talk to her about all of this.