Chapter 12 – Here in my Arms

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Gil managed to distract himself with little things. First he'd taken a shower because he hadn't the night before and he was caked in dried sweat, his hair oily from the dance marathon he had put it through. By the time he'd gotten out of the bathroom breakfast was waiting for him, waffles waiting under a silver platter, a bowl of grapes nearby. There was fresh whipped cream for both of them and even a small vase with flowers because Mrs. Potts knew he loved those, and it warmed his heart to think that she'd give him this even though he'd clearly messed up. He never should have spoken about the Isle, but he didn't think he could have faced Uma again if he hadn't. It was his duty to his captain, even if he wasn't Gil, second mate to Uma. He wasn't even Gil the explorer or Gil the ambassador.

Now he was just Flynn.

And Flynn spent his days drawing and reading, then working through all the things he had been taught on his quest to explore. He ran through the sword forms General Fa had taught him, tested his penmanship by listing all the different gems and dwarven runes he could remember and each potion component in Evie's cabinet. He used Queen Belle's books to review the music theory King Naveen had taught him in Maldonia, he danced until he was too sad to continue, then ran through Jay's 'exercise routine' so he too could get better at jumpy and flippy things. He tried to think of all the things his mo- that Queen Rapunzel could have done while she was locked in her tower and ended up sketching pictures of the revitalized Dark Kingdom. He wondered what improvements he could make, what the Moonstone would allow him to do. He wondered if the others missed him, then remembered that he should return about the same time he'd left, so it was just him who missed them.

Gil kept his hair loose because there was no one there to hide it from, and he spent a week like that before his silence was interrupted.

Strangely enough, it was Queen Belle who intruded on his seclusion.

"Flynn!" she greeted with a cheerful intensity that startled Gil, like they were old friends catching each other in the streets by happenstance, like nothing had gone wrong. "There you are, sweetheart. Come along."

"Um…" Gil didn't get up from his perch near the window. He'd been sketching Belle's Harbor. "I uh… don't think I'm supposed to leave."

"Nonsense." Her hand was firm on his elbow as she pulled him up, gliding through the room like, well, a queen inspecting her kingdom. "You're our guest. And as a guest, you deserve some warm air and sunshine."

"O-kayyy." Gil scrambled for the bandana that had been tucked in his pocket (more as a safety blanket than anything else) and blinked dumbly when Queen Belle plucked it from his fingers, tucking it into one of her many pockets. "Um."

"It's too hot for bandanas," she said, handing him a hair tie. It was better than nothing so Gil took it, pulling his hair back in a low ponytail and hoping they didn't run into anyone. Hoping they weren't actually going outside because the sun made his hair gleam, seemed to draw focus as much as he didn't want it.

"I've had a chat with my husband," she explained halfway through their walk, and Gil didn't quite trip on nothing but it was a near thing. "It seems we had some miscommunications, but the problem's been solved now. You can stay wherever you like."

"Even…" Gil swallowed. "I mean, where I was?"

Queen Belle looked at him, her unyielding cheer melting into something softer, her eyes warm and fond. "Even with Ben, yes," she allowed. "They've missed you. And, I suspect, you've missed them as well."

"Of course I-" Gil snapped his mouth shut when he realized he'd said too much. He missed the old versions of them, he missed these young ones. He just- he liked them no matter how they were. He was pretty sure it would be impossible for him not to. "They're my friends."

Gil could say that here and it wasn't a weakness. He could say he had friends and not worry about them being targeted or used against him. Didn't have to worry about them stabbing him in the back later.

"Yes," Queen Belle hummed, hooking her arm through his elbow, taking him out towards the back gardens. "And we are quite lucky that they are, I think."

Gil kept his shoulders back through sheer force of will, Uma's voice coaching him in the back of his mind to not show fear, to represent the crew with pride. The sun felt warm on his face, and he knew it was just his imagination that made his hair feel like it was buzzing, because Queen Belle hadn't noticed anything and Gil had to trust that.

They wound their way through the gardens, until Gil heard the distant sounds of a string quartet. Which was weird, but no weirder than the soft murmur of people, and then the queen pulled him around a corner to reveal some kind of fancy garden party taking place on the hills – clusters of small, elegant tables set up amongst the polished stone. It seemed like he had gotten there while it was winding down because most of the people attendants were lounging on picnic blankets scattered across the glossy lawn, soaking up the sun.

"I hope you don't mind," Queen Belle said, as though she had ever done anything Gil could consider offensive. "I decided to host a little get together for the kids while their parents were still in town. It doubles as networking and a nice stress reliever, which I think they all appreciate."

Networking? Why would-

It crept up on Gil slowly, when he noticed the quality and variety of the clothing being worn, realized he recognized some of the faces. They were the young royals he had seen at the ball the week before. Some of them had even been on the balcony, and Gil shouldn't be here, he'd ruined the- even if they said he hadn't, he knew he shouldn't be here.

"It's okay, Flynn," the queen said quietly, as though sensing his panic. And then, she raised a hand. "Look who I found!"

It was Jane who he saw first. Jane, lingering on the edge of the party at one of the abandoned tables, the bow in her hair a bright sort of pink that went against the dull look in her eyes. She immediately shot to her feet, shyness forgotten as she bolted across the grass. "Flynn!"

"Hi, Ja-umph." Gil felt the wind knocked out of him when the young fairy slammed into his chest, and he let go of Queen Belle so he could wrap his arms around her, hold her close.

"You left us," she murmured into his chest, stubbornly holding herself away. "They said you needed space-"

"I mean." Gil shrugged, feeling his cheeks warm under the afternoon sun. "The king thought I did, and who am I to argue with him?"

"Knew it," she muttered, giving him one last squeeze before pulling away, taking the arm he offered her. "Ben was upset. We all were. Doug's been burying himself in statistical analysis about the Isle, and Ben's been pulling strings to get early access to the Isle regulations. I was helping him, but my mom wanted me to um… mingle."

"That reminds me," the queen hummed. "I've got another guest to pick up. Jane, could you keep Flynn company?"

"Of course, your majesty." Jane dipped in a curtsy, and Gil bowed with her, so they could match. "I'd be delighted."

Queen Belle did the equivalent of a royal wink. "I thought you might."

And with that, she was gone.

"So…" Gil began as Jane tugged them towards one of the unoccupied blankets. "Garden party?"

"Ben said they do this kind of stuff." Which meant Jane was relying on Ben's knowledge because she didn't actually know from her own experience. "Since most of them will be on the council someday, it's important that they um… learn to mesh in a safe environment."

"I can't really think of a less intimidating place," Gil mused, his heart feeling lighter with Jane nearby, with the castle's flowers and trees now easily in view. It was so much better up close. "So strategically, that works out."

"Yeah." Jane leaned close to him, as though reminding herself he was really there. "Did they… did it hurt, when they…"

"Oh." Gil blinked. "No, Mrs. Potts came and got me. She explained the um… situation. I didn't fight it." The settled down on a large blanket near a collection of flowers. "I meant what I said about not wanting any trouble."

"It's so dumb," she huffed, getting back some of her characteristic feistiness. "That he can just make decisions without consulting you."

"He's the king, Jane," Gil said quietly, tracing the petals of a nearby flower to ground himself. "And I'm one of his subjects. He's allowed to give orders he thinks are for everyone's benefit. That's his job."

"Still doesn't mean you deserve it," she groused.

It was cute, seeing her get worked up like this.

Gil decided to change the subject. "Want me to braid your hair?"

For whatever reason, Jane was self-conscious about her bob, though Gil didn't know why. But like, Jane could wear a potato sack and he'd think she was the bee's knees, so maybe he was just biased. She seemed to like it when Gil braided her hair, though, because it made it 'prettier', like the world could handle Jane being lovelier than she already was.

Jane blinked. "Um… yes, please."

"I could add some flowers too," Gil said as he settled himself behind her, combing her hair carefully with his fingers. "Since it is a garden party."

"I'd like that," Jane said, and that was how he came to give Jane a half-braid, tucking pale pink blossoms in just above it. He'd had to sacrifice his own hair tie to secure it, but it had been worth it to see Jane glow, opening up like a flower towards the sun.

About that time, Ben wandered over to them.

"Flynn." He seemed relieved, like he did when Mal returned to him after a hard day, like he wasn't sure if she'd come back. "Sorry, I had to wait until I could pull away naturally, I-" It looked like there was so much he wanted to say but couldn't, because he was Prince Benjamin here, the future king, and there were certain standards he had to hold up to. "You both look very lovely."

Gil ducked his head, knowing Jane would blush enough for the both of them. "Thanks, Ben," he murmured, pretending to tweak Jane's braid so his hands could stay busy. "So um, how have you been?"

"Terrible," Ben whispered, like that wasn't a huge bombshell, and then the relative safety of their blanket was shattered when company decided to join them.

"It's you," Princess Fairuza greeted, a boy with similar features following behind her, likely her older brother Aziz. "The wise traveler. I'm glad to see you're okay."

"Sorry if I worried you." Gil pulled away from Jane so he could sit beside her; let her be guarded on both sides by himself and Ben. "And sorry for the uh… commotion, I guess. That wasn't my intention."

"What's a party without a bit of commotion?" The guy-who-was-probably Aziz said, spreading out on the blanket as though he owned it. "You just said what we've been thinking for years. I mean, our father started off as a thief. By today's standards, he would have been shipped off to the Isle of the Lost long before he met our mother, and then where would we be?"

"Non-existent," Fairuza mused. "We should be focusing on rehabilitation. On separating crimes by severity and distributing appropriate punishments to fit them instead of a one-size-fits-all banishment."

"I couldn't agree more." Ben's smile was genuine, and it might have only been a week since Gil had seen it but still it was a balm on his soul. "That's one of the policy changes I would like to put in place when I ascend the throne."

"Then you shall have our support," Aziz stated, like it was that easy. "Agrabah's vote is with you."

"Hear, hear," Fairuza said, holding up a glass full of lemonade in a mock toast. "And Agrabah will work on winning over Apheliotia."

"Who will eventually win over the Olympians, because Apheliotia just can't say no to us," Aziz declared. "Hooray revolution, it's a lovely thing."

"Don't speak of such things," Fairuza chided. "There are some who may take you words to heart."

"Wait, you guys…" Gil flushed when he realized he had spoken, uneasy under their joint focus. "You want to help the Isle?"

"It is as you said." Fairuza's tone was sure and even, every inch her mother's daughter. "They had no more choice in their circumstances than we do ours. It is not just that we want to help, it is our duty to do so."

"Hey!" Gil sensed the approaching body half a second before it crashed into him, and soon he found himself with an armful of giggling Princess Agot. "You're okay! Ben said you were okay and I believed him but I'm glad to see you're okay myself and will you braid flowers into my hair too?"

This all came out in one big rush that Gil managed to absorb nonetheless, because Agot wasn't all that different from her mother, whose measure of enthusiasm could be ranked at a hundred percent every hour of the day. Gil knew that and he hadn't even gotten to visit Arendelle yet, that was how pervasive her cheer was.

"Um…" Gil blinked sort of helplessly. "Yes?"

"Kennet," Fairuza sighed as a young blond boy trudged after Agot. "Control your sister."

"You try telling her what to do," Kennet scoffed, nodding at Aziz's sympathetic smile before settling down next to his sister, who was already undoing her current set of braids. "You'll have Arendelle's support too, by the way. Aunt Elsa is ready to push for reform as it is."

"And where Arendelle goes, Corona is sure to follow," Fairuza noted. "And the Southern Isles, likely out of guilt."

"Eh." Aziz shrugged. "There are worse reasons to do things."

"Corona will definitely help," Agot declared, shifting restlessly as Gil began combing out her hair. "Ruby's like, my best friend. We can count on her."

"Ruby isn't crown princess yet," Kennet said without inflection, his eyes narrowed against the sun. "But hey, Aunt Rapunzel will definitely be with you, Ben. With Uncle Eugene's background, she's all about rehabilitation reforms."

Gil kept his gaze focused on Agot's hair, forcing himself to detach from the situation because Corona politics didn't concern him, no matter what Cassandra had said. It wasn't- he couldn't think of it as home. He had a home, and that was with Harry and Uma and Jay – and now Ben and Jane and Doug, if they'd have him, and he thought they might, if they could ever forgive him.

He looked up when he felt the weight of someone's stare on him, and fought back a flinch when he realized it was Kennet's assessing gaze, his eyes seemingly fixated on Gil's golden locks brushing against his shoulders.

"Your hair's nice," the young prince said out of the blue, and though Gil barely knew the guy he had the feeling he didn't give out compliments often.

"Thanks." Gil worked another flower into Agot's hair.

"You had it hidden at the ball," he noted, and this drew the interest of the two Agrabah heirs.

"It's um… kind of bright," Gil said, shrugging.

"Well, I think it's pretty," Agot declared (Gil was getting the feeling that everything she said was a declaration, and you had to appreciate that kind of certainty about someone). "It's all silky, like Ruby's hair."

Ruby, who was maybe Gil's sister. So he guessed that made sense.

"Thank you," he repeated. "It gets tangled easily, though."

"Does it?" Kennet asked. Somehow, it seemed like more of a statement than a question.

Which made it a relief when Doug finally wandered towards there group like a man lost in the desert searching for water. He settled in the space on Gil's free side, his gaze fixated on the pirate's hair while offering a weary smile. "Hello."

"Hey, Doug." Gil grinned. "I heard you've been researching up a storm."

"Doug's been analyzing all available records from the Isle transactions," Ben explained to the others.

"Excellent," Fairuza decided. "And what have you found?"

Doug sighed. "Nothing good."

"Tell us," Kennet pressed, so wonderfully serious like his Aunt Elsa, focused in a manner that boded well for Arendelle's future.

"Please," Agot added.

"Right." Kennet took the chiding for what it was. "Tell us, please."

And Doug did.

-:-:-:-:-:-

It took a few days for them to settle back into the swing of things, but when they did, it was almost like Gil had never left. They still spent time doing research on the Isle, Ben consulting with Fairuza and Kennet via video chat as they did their own investigations and tried to come up with potential solutions for the issue that was the Isle.

Of course, Ben's mom still only allowed for them to do so much planning a day as the weeks of summer slowly passed on, because they still needed to indulge in normal things like group mealtimes.

Gil wasn't sure whose idea breakfast 'with the family' was, but he suspected it was Queen Belle, who wanted to give King Adam and Fairy Godmother an opportunity to see their children in an orderly fashion before they were whisked to the winds of whatever summer duties struck them at the time.

Breakfast was a great idea because by that point they were still shaking off the dredges of sleep and probably weren't coherent enough to start any fights, and it got all the social niceties out of the way for both parties so they'd have the rest of the day to do… whatever. The point was, Gil understood her logic. And he liked the polite formal breakfast well enough because it allowed him to dust off his ambassador skills with the place settings Doug had actually taught him with. Which meant he didn't get the tea spoon mixed up with the soup spoon (which was actually used for porridge as soup didn't exist in the morning apparently) or the butter spreader mixed with the regular knife.

Which admittedly wasn't that impressive because everyone else also didn't get them confused, but it was a personal victory for Gil.

If things were strained after Ben's post-ball argument with his dad it didn't show, everyone being nice and quiet and clad in pretty pastels that would have made Gil feel self-conscious but Jane had picked out his outfit and Doug had found him a matching bandana and who was he to rain on their fun? He looked like a real Auradon kid, which would have made Uma snicker – Harry certainly wouldn't have recovered, goading Gil until the day he died. But for um- stealth purposes, it helped, because he blended in. So. Win-win.

Queen Belle was in the middle of outlining some charity function she had lined up when Jane sneezed, which in itself wasn't a notable action because people didthat but Jane was a full-blooded Fae, which sometimes called for the occasional burst of magic.

Or, in this instance, causing the sugar in the small serving dish to explode all over Gil like a fine mist of pixie dust.

Gil blinked out of his stupor and yep, he was covered in sugar.

Jane looked mortified. "I'm so sorry, Flynn. I didn't mean to. I-" She turned to the king. "It just happens sometimes."

"We're working on her control," Fairy Godmother soothed, offering her daughter's shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"Hey, it's alright." Gil used his napkin to clean off his face, resisting the urge to shake off like a dog and share his sugared state with Doug right beside him. "Magic backlash happens, it's no big deal."

"Magic backlash?" Doug echoed, immediately zeroing in on the intellectual curiosity, his breakfast temporarily forgotten. It would stay that way until his mind was either A) sated or B) someone forced the food upon him, but Gil was sort of busy with all the sugar so he went with option A.

"It's when magic-enhanced beings ignore their powers for long periods of time," he explained. "The magic's always there but without an outlet it builds up, until it can come out in bursts like-" He motioned to the sugar dish. "Bam – magic backlash."

"You sound well-versed on the subject," King Adam noted, his hand stilled against the table. Ignoring his breakfast, just like Doug.

Maybe he was curious too.

"Not really." Gil shrugged. "I'm friends with a few fairies, though." And a witch? He wasn't sure what Evie was. Jay was a sorcerer-in-training though, and that was cool. "They explained it to me."

"Then they also likely understand the importance of the magic ban," King Adam continued. "Unless you have another differing opinion?"

It wasn't like Gil talked to the king on an average day, but ever since the Midsummer ball things between them had been especially strained, though Gil suspected that was because he had turned his son against the king accidentally.

"It um… might not surprise you to hear I do." Gil admitted, leaning forward so he could brush some of the sugar onto his plate. A few servants had already arrived to help clean up the excess, but that didn't mean he couldn't help them. "I think the magic ban, much like the Isle of the Lost, comes from a place of good intention, but the execution of it leaves much to be desired."

"How so?" It wasn't angry, more of a neutral probe, and Gil felt confident to continue.

"Well, the reason the magic ban was implemented in the first place was to protect against magic-based villainy, but the truth is that anyone who was going to use magic to hurt people – thus breaking the law – probably wouldn't have any issue ignoring the magic ban – yet another law. So really, the ban only hurts magically-inclined individuals who are law-abiding citizens. You took a part of them, claimed it was bad and forbade it, but you couldn't stop it from, you know, existing. So it's like they've got this extra arm, I guess, and it's part of them, a natural part of them that the universe gave them, but you made a law that said this third arm was bad and couldn't be used ever. So they have to tie it up or hide it, but there's nothing wrong with it, and they wouldn't use it to hurt anyone."

"I think that's a simplistic view of things," the king didn't mutter, because he was a king and that wasn't what they did, but his voice was cool and level, and would have cut Gil to the core if he hadn't been raised by a man who despised him.

"Maybe," Gil allowed. "Look, I get it. You get individuals like Jafar who use their magic to hypnotize people against their will and think – that's a thing that needs to be stopped, and you're right. But for every Jafar, there's a genie to help save the day. To get Aladdin a chance to rise up and meet the Sultana. For every Maleficent, there's a Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather to lessen the curse from death to sleep, to keep the kingdom in stasis. And if you look at things like they're black and white, it seems like a no-brainer to forbid magic, because if Jafar and Maleficent hadn't had their powers in the first place then we wouldn't have needed good fairies or genies to help save the day."

Gil pieced together the argument slowly because this was his alone – Evie and Mal had never had to go up against King Adam like this. They had councils they had to argue down of people who were considered their peers, but they never had to stand toe-to-toe with a goliath while covered in sugar. That was Gil's unique experience alone.

"The problem is, magic is like- it's like grass." Fairy Godmother blinked at him, but Gil didn't let that slow him down. "It's part of this world and it's everywhere. And you can forbid it, say it's bad and try to burn it away, but it's just going to start growing somewhere else because it's natural. It is a natural part of our lives. And I…" He tried to steel himself. "I understand your concern, because magic did some horrible things to you. It made you a beast, it made everyone forget about your kingdom, it turned your staff into animated objects. But um… without that curse, you probably wouldn't have met Queen Belle. You probably wouldn't have changed, because why would you have needed to? You had everything." Everything and still wanted more when others had nothing. "And if you think of it, without that curse, without changing, maybe instead of the hero, you would have become the villain."

Gil could feel the deathly silence that had fallen over the room, but Gil-

He'd faced Cassandra and he'd faced Gaston and this fight, this one here, it was a battle that had already been won by Evie and Mal and Uma and Ben. Gil wasn't doing anything terribly difficult, here.

"Maybe you wouldn't be king at all," Gil said. "But we'll never know that, because you had been cursed. Because an Enchantress – guided by no nation – wandered near your castle and knew you needed to change. I think-" Gil swallowed. "I think when you ban your people from using their magic; you take away their chance to train a part of themselves. You take away their chances to learn how to use part of themselves in a safe environment. You say they're wrong, that it's a shortcut, and you take away the chance for the next Fairy Godmother to emerge and contribute to the world. The next genie, the next blue fairy, the next enchantress. You take that away-"

"I think," King Adam began. "That's enough."

"It's just-" But Gil couldn't stop now. "Lady Tremaine doesn't have magic."

This seemed to make them all pause.

"There wasn't one magical thing about her," Gil continued, and he could feel Fairy Godmother's eyes hard on his face, as though peering into his soul. "And yet it still took Fairy Godmother's help to get Queen Ella to the ball. Not because they were against an evil wizard or a scheming sorcerer, but because Lady Tremaine had taken so very much from Queen Ella that the only way to possibly restore balance was for a Fairy Godmother to light the way. To give someone who was kind and gentle, whose heart was pure, a chance to meet her prince and lead their country to prosperity. I-"

He knew King Adam wanted him to be silent, but now that he had started, there was just so much to say.

"Queen Elsa was born with her powers. And she was terrified of them, she tried to hide them for years, but in the end-" He saw Queen Belle nod slowly, and that show of support was enough to see him through. "In the end it was only accepting her powers, in loving that part of herself and what it could bring her kingdom – that saved Arendelle. Because magic isn't wrong, it can just be used poorly. And instead of punishing the whole due to the um – abuses of the few – maybe proper regulations should be put in place to ensure the protection of innocent individuals that doesn't involve just banishing it altogether. Because that isn't fair, and this place, Auradon-" He motioned around them. "That's what it's supposed to be about, isn't it? It's supposed to be better."

King Adam made to stand, but Gil was faster.

"No, um- I'll go. Since I'm-" He motioned to himself. "Covered in sugar. Um-" He bowed. "Thank you, for the invite. It was delicious as always."

With that, he beat a hasty retreat, shedding sugar dust as he went.

He could practically hear Cogsworth crying.

So much for an uneventful breakfast.

-:-:-:-:-:-

Gil was half-tempted to pack up a bag and return to his royal banishment room, but he knew Queen Belle would likely track him down if he tried it. Knew Ben and the others would probably hunt him down too, so instead of running he retreated into the shower, dumping his sugared clothes into the hamper before sliding under the water. When all else failed, hot water magically falling from a pipe seemed to be a soothing recipe for Gil, and it worked this time too. He knew it was dumb to get worked up over things that had already been fixed, but it was hard to stay silent when he had a chance to speak up. It was what Ben's ambassador program was all about, in the end. Even if Gil had felt unqualified for it, he and Jay had done their best. Not always to the best results, but they had tried.

He realized he'd forgotten to bring a change of clothes with him when he was toweling off, so he slid into Ben's fluffy robe (it was kind of the best, and also plaid) and walked back into the bedroom.

Of course by then the others were waiting for him, Jane tugging at a loose strand of hair while she and Doug more or less cuddled on the couch reading books. Ben was pacing the length of the room, his eyes lost in thought, only blinking into awareness when Gil crossed over towards the dresser.

"Sorry," Gil offered before they could say something like 'It's not your fault'. "You didn't yell at your dad again, did you?"

"No," Ben sighed. "And you don't have anything to apologize for, either."

Gil shrugged, not bothering to deny him because then they'd just get into another impossible argument before he started digging through the drawers for fresh clothes.

"Do you really believe all that?" Jane asked, rising to her feet. "I mean, obviously you believe it, but just-" She pressed her hands together. "Do you really think I'm shutting down a part of myself?"

Gil blinked. "Yeah. I mean, your magic's part of you, like your hair or your hands. And there isn't anything wrong with it, it's yours."

She stared down at her fingers in wonder, as though taking his words literally. "Mom always told me magic was a shortcut."

"I mean, it might be." Gil shrugged. "The same way wings might be a shortcut for birds. It's just something you can do that no one else can, but like anything else, it's all in how you use it."

He pulled out a new outfit at random and made his way towards Ben's closet.

"We've been reading up on the magic ban," Doug explained, because that was what Doug did when presented with a problem, he researched. "I hadn't realized how stifling the regulations were."

"It's um- kind of messed up if you look into it," Gil said, projecting his voice so it could carry through the cracked open door while he changed. "There are literal races that are classified as lesser because they're magic proficient. It's real bad."

"I know." Doug sighed. "My father- his people are one of those races."

"You guys are probably going to punch me if I say 'I can't believe it'," Ben griped. "But I honestly never thought about this. What kind of prince does that make me?"

"A fallible one?" Gil offered, strolling back out of the closet, Ben's robe hooked over his arm. "You're human, Ben. And young. Learn from this and move on."

"But how?" Jane asked. "Can we even lift the magic ban?"

Gil said nothing, though he knew for a fact that Jane and the others had been working on the groundwork for undoing the plan for years prior to its actual collapse. Looked like maybe this was what set it off.

"You could plan for the eventuality," he suggested. "Prep regulations in case it ever does get lifted since, you know, Ben's going to be king soon." Gil offered him a smile. "And maybe you won't be able to fix things immediately, but that doesn't mean you can't make an outline."

It was a suggestion that spoke to those three on a spiritual level – a challenge combined with research, organization, and a firm application of details. Yes, if anyone could do it, these three could.

"That," Ben began with a grin. "Sounds absolutely brilliant."

Gil laughed. "I have my moments."

"Every darn day," Doug muttered, but he was already lost to the scribble of his notebook, pointing out a particular passage that Jane cooed over, sending her back into Ben's secret library to pull out a stack of law books.

Yes, it seemed they had found their new project.

-:-:-:-:-:-

Eventually, Gil had to recruit Queen Belle into enforcing a healthy work/play balance, much to the displeasure of the others.

"Come on," she chided, gathering up their research material. "You can still look into this while you get back to school. Or for a few hours a day, not for days at a time."

"Ugh," Ben sighed, loud and very unprincely, but Jane only giggled, surrendering her books with grace.

"I know." The queen grinned. "I'm the worst."

She was actually the best, but Gil was too shy to say so. He was pretty sure that deep down, she knew.

-:-:-:-:-:-

It was a pleasant afternoon when Ben and Gil decided to stroll the gardens.

It was something they'd done before plenty of times, though it had never just been just the two of them. It was that day, because Doug's family had requested some time with him before he had to go back to school, which resulted in a jazz concert somewhere in the city that would be followed by lunch. Gil had already asked Doug to bring him back one of the programs so they could look the music up when he got back to the castle and listen to it together. Gil liked listening to music, but he especially liked to listen to Doug practice his trumpet. The dwarf-kin got all flushed whenever Gil did though, because he often had to practice the same parts of a song over and over again, but Gil didn't mind. He understood the difference between practice and a performance – he just liked listening to Doug excel at something he was obviously passionate about.

Anytime Gil brought that up though, Doug got all flushed, and then Ben would smile that soft grin of his that was usually reserved for Mal or Carlos and Gil would get a weird feeling in his stomach. He shouldn't though, because Doug totally deserved Ben's smiles. They were pretty great.

Fairy Godmother, taking a page from Doug's parents, decided to jump on the bonding bandwagon and had paused her research to whisk Jane off for an afternoon of back-to-school shopping. This was what had left Ben and Gil all on their lonesome, which would have been weirder a month ago, but now Ben and Gil were bros.

It was still kind of strange, to think that Gil was friends with a king. Or, a guy who would be king. It was odd, but nice.

Ben insisted they take their time as they meandered the sprawling garden path towards the outskirts of the castle property. Gil was pretty sure the prince just wanted to escape their keepers for a few hours so they could breathe, which Gil appreciated, though he would like it more if um- Ben wouldn't stand so close to him. The prince did that a lot, walking near enough that their arms would brush together. Sometimes, more embarrassingly, it was their hands, and Gil was afraid he might do something stupid like grab Ben's the way Evie did with Doug, or Jane with Carlos.

He couldn't though, because that wasn't his place, but the dumb, stupid urge remained.

Obviously, he'd had too many 'rewards' with the king in the future. Well, the past. Time travel was confusing, but the point was, Gil was getting mixed up. Especially when young Ben would look at him like he could hang the moon and Gil really couldn't. He wasn't sure how he'd lasted this long with the young versions of the others thinking he was cool. He was far from it, that was almost an undisputed fact.

"Nice afternoon, isn't it?" Ben hummed, his shoulder brushing against Gil's. "You want to stop and sketch anything?"

"Nah, I'm good." Gil was feeling a little lazy, and besides, the idea of Ben just sort of watching Gil mediocrely sketch something felt embarrassing. "I'd rather focus on enjoying our time together."

It wouldn't last much longer, Gil knew. Fairy Godmother's last report had the solution projected to arrive in a few days, which meant Gil would be leaving. It made him sad, because he'd miss the easiness of this, even if he was technically friends with Ben in the future.

Unfortunately, the future also included him being a lost prince somehow and the Hero of Corona so really, Gil wasn't in a super rush to get back there.

"Yeah?" Ben asked, bringing Gil back to the present. A light flush dusted his cheeks, likely from the soft afternoon heat. "I enjoy spending time with you too, Flynn."

Oh. Wow. That earnestness was going to do Gil in one day. No wonder Mal liked Ben so much.

"I'm gonna miss you," Ben admitted, and then his hand was- oh, he was sliding it into Gil's, twining their fingers together like it was nothing, even though Gil's pulse felt like it was about to beat out of his chest. "I know we're friends in the future, but I… it's dumb, I guess. I want you as soon as possible. I don't like the idea of missing a single second with you."

"Ben." Gil could feel himself blushing, a pointed heat blooming in his cheeks because Ben was waxing poetic but like, they were just friends. And sure, it wasn't a surprise from Ben because the guy was so nice, but Gil himself was kind of dumb so his heart started pounding faster.

Ben stared at him for a moment, pulling them to a complete stop as he stared at Gil. It was like he was taking the blond apart with his gaze, staring at everything that made up his being, before he eventually swallowed.

"I um… I need you to forgive my forwardness," he said, and Gil was about to ask what that meant exactly when the prince was urging him back against the garden wall, one hand on Gil's hip and the other cupping his cheek and-

Ben was kissing him.

Gil felt disconnected from his body, ears ringing with a relentless white noise as his mind tried to soak up and violently refuse to process what was happening at the same time. Somehow, he was able to detect the smooth feel of Ben's lips, just as firm as he'd imagined them, and shivered under the strong presence boxing him against the garden wall, Ben shifting forward in a relentless press as though he could melt into Gil until they were one person. It was everything he wanted but wrong, it was wrong, and a high-pitched whine echoed from Gil's throat when he finally managed to pull away.

Ben didn't look much better than he felt. His chest was heaving, lips parted as he took in deep gasps of air. There was an attractive flush on his cheeks that matched his lips, his hair seemingly disheveled even though Gil hadn't touched him, had forced his hands to curl into fists against his sides in an effort to keep from grabbing the prince.

"You…" Gil swallowed, shivering under Ben's intense gaze, as though Gil were the only person in the world. "You can't do that."

"Right," Ben managed between breaths, looking apologetic. "I have a girlfriend. I should have- I need to talk to her before we-"

"No." Gil shook his head, sidestepping so he could get his back away from the wall, could get some space. "We can't do this, Ben. We're not supposed to- You can't-" Gil swallowed down a noise of frustration as the words got muddled on his tongue. "We're not a thing. You get a thing and it's a good thing-" A great thing, because it was Mal, who felt everything with such passion that even Harry seemed in awe of her. "But I'm not-"

"Flynn…" Ben reached a hand out in front of him, conflicted in his need to touch Gil but still give him space. "I know how I feel."

"But you don't know me!" Gil had forgotten, with the way everyone had been acting – they were so nice to him, but that was only because they thought he was some kind of hero, and he wasn't. "I'm not some exchange student, Ben. I didn't even qualify to get into Auradon Prep. I'm-" He had to say it now; he couldn't hide behind the stupid timeline forever. "I'm from the Isle, Ben. That's why you haven't met me, yet. Right now, I'm out there."

He motioned towards the ugly bubble in the distance, heart filling with a bitter cold that made it difficult to breathe.

"How…" Ben seemed at a loss. "How did you get out?"

"It's a long story." Excuses, excuses, excuses. "But um… when you turn sixteen, you're gonna make a decree to bring some Isle kids over to make a fresh start. It…" Gil shouldn't have said that much, but under Ben's searching gaze, it was hard to keep silent. "It all turns out good, Ben. You need to know that. A lot of stuff is going to happen, but it'll be good in the end."

"That…" Ben looked away, eyes blinking rapidly and Gil hoped he wasn't fighting back tears. Not over this. "That was why you said they- they're my people too."

"They are, Ben." Gil wished Evie or Mal or Uma were here to explain it themselves, but with their loss he tried to do their words justice. "There's so many people over there who don't deserve to be trapped under that barrier, and they don't- they don't have anything, Ben. All they have is you."

Even if Ben didn't know it yet.

"What…" Ben was frowning at the ground now, that way he seemed to do when he was struggling for composure. Not that Gil had ever seen it, had only heard tales of it from Jane. "What's your actual name, Flynn?"

The lie came so easily Uma would have been proud.

"Carlos," Gil managed, didn't even hesitate. Somehow, he knew this had always been the plan. Ben was always going to ask, and Gil couldn't change the future but he could bank on the Isle's lack of photographic records to prod history in the right direction. "Carlos De Ville."

Ben's eyebrows rose in a look of surprise. "You're Cruella's son?"

"Yep." Gil managed a rueful smile. "You know how she got all crazy about Dalmatian fur? Imagine how um… 'inspired' she'd feel about gold hair."

The look of horror that crossed Ben's face made Gil feel like he'd been gutted by a rusty knife, but it needed to be done. The others had always expressed confusion over why Carlos had been selected as one of the first Isle students. The other three made sense, their parents ran the Isle – the Evil Queen acting as regent to the 'upper-class', Maleficent a terror of magic with her goblin army, and Jafar holding a vice grip over the Isle's economy.

But Cruella was just a fashionista. Crazy, mean, and ill-tempered like so many villains were, but otherwise harmless (unless your name was Carlos, and then she was your worst nightmare, a demon disguised in human flesh).

It would have made more sense for Uma to be selected, or Harry, if they really wanted two boys.

But Gil had bonded with Ben, and Ben thought he was Carlos.

It was a win-win.

Granted, he still felt sick to his stomach when he realized he was pretty much condemning himself to the Isle, but he'd gotten off of it eventually, hadn't he? And with Uma and Harry too, which was the only way he wanted to be free anyway.

"I'm… I'm sorry," Ben said, though he couldn't have the first idea for what he was actually apologizing for. "I didn't know…"

"Don't um- pity me. Us. Just-" Gil swallowed, shrugging his shoulders. "Try to understand. Some villains are misguided and can be redeemed, and others…" Others surrendered to their hatred and cruelty and wanted nothing more than to watch the world burn. "Others can't. And their kids shouldn't suffer for it."

Not when they'd already suffered enough.

"Of course not," Ben agreed, didn't even hesitate. "You must hate me."

"You?" Gil didn't understand the shift. "No." Never. "Your dad's not super popular but you… you tried. You didn't have to, but you tried."

To someone who had nothing, that counted for a lot.

"We…" Ben studied him carefully, eyes watery and rimmed with red. "We're going to meet?"

"Eventually." Maybe not as soon as he expected, but it would happen. "Honestly, I'm not going to be very nice to you, but I'll come around."

It was inevitable, Gil thought. He had tried so hard to avoid Ben, to distract himself from the king entirely, but it couldn't be done. Even for someone as dumb as him.

Maybe he had doomed himself from the start.

A tentative grin pulled at Ben's lips. "I can believe that," he said quietly. "I look forward to it."

"You really won't, is the thing." Gil was pretty sure there wasn't anyone who enjoyed being kidnaped. "But we'll get there. It's going to take longer than you expect, though."

"You're worth it." He didn't even hesitate, and Gil wanted to hate him for it, hated himself for the flood of warmth that filled his chest, melting the ice like it was nothing.

"Ben…" Gil didn't sigh. He was past sighing. "You're going to get a good thing, okay? And I want you to promise me-"

"Carlos-" Wow, that hurt to hear.

"Promise me," Gil pressed. "That you will appreciate that good thing. That you'll take care of it. Because it- it's going to change your life."

For better. Gil didn't know much, but he knew that.

"How?" Ben's brows were furrowed, jaw clenched as he tried to keep himself composed. "How can it be so good if you're not a part of it?"

Ben didn't know. He didn't know how brilliant the others were because he hadn't seen them, and when he did, Gil would be old news. Right now he was different, unique because he was unknown, but Ben would see. He'd know.

"Just…" Gil managed a weak smile. "Trust me."

It startled a watery laugh from Ben, and soon they had both fallen prey to helpless chuckles, pretending that the one or two tears that leaked from the corners of their eyes existed because they were happy.

"I'm gonna see you again," Ben declared when the laughter died down. "I'm gonna see you again and when I do, I'm gonna show you I'm right."

Gil shrugged, because the next time he saw Ben after they both remembered this conversation would be in Corona, and he'd be safely claimed by Mal. "As long as you keep your promise."

"I will." Ben nodded, thoughtlessly agreeing to the unknown because he was too trusting. Thank goodness he'd get Mal. Someone with some sense. "I promise."

"Then we're good," Gil said, in what was probably the most ironic sentence of his life.

-:-:-:-:-:-

It wasn't long before Fairy Godmother announced that she had successfully managed to recreate Varian's runes. She'd had a breakthrough during her shopping trip with Jane, meaning that Gil would definitely be gone in a few days.

He was confused by the delay, but when he'd tried to ask Queen Belle about it, she had only squeezed his shoulder and said something about offering proper goodbyes.

So the next few days were spent with even more bonding than before, with cuddles and an actual blanket fort and the epic conclusion of the latest Flynn Rider story. Jane fretted over him, and Doug took it upon himself to re-check Fairy Godmother's work, and Ben did his best to be comforting without being too close because Gil hadn't been lying about his very good thing.

And then the day came for him to actually leave.

"Hey." Ben grabbed his wrist before Gil could follow after Fairy Godmother, Jane and Doug flanking the prince like some kind of pastel bodyguards. "We've got something for you, before you leave."

"I don't think I can take anything with me," Gil said, fidgeting nervously.

King Adam had been very insistent about that, making sure Gil was dressed in every article of clothing he had originally teleported in with and nothing more, everything carefully inventoried. Gil wondered if they'd keep records of him somewhere, then realized all of this stuff would be burnt the moment he left them.

"As future king, I'm making an exception," Ben pressed, as though he were one to casually abuse his authority (he wasn't, and Gil didn't know how to feel about that, or the firm smiles that seemed to be plastered on the other two's faces). "You're going to lose a bracelet doing this, a bracelet that I gave you, so we thought we could make you a replacement."

Before Gil could protest, a slim box was being nudged into his hand, a white rectangle tied with a ribbon in Auradon blue.

"Ben designed it," Jane's tone was brimming with excitement as she watched Gil undo the ribbon. "And Doug forged it."

"Jane enchanted it," Doug added, grin spread wide. "To make it more durable."

"It will only come off by your hand." Jane's cheeks flushed as her contributions were revealed. "Nothing else should break it."

Gil's fingers stilled on the lid. "Guys," he said, overwhelmed, unsure of how to proceed.

"Open it," Ben urged. "So you can remember us."

"I'm not going to forget you," Gil said. "We're friends."

"As much as you tried to insist otherwise," Doug noted, eyes shining with amusement when he was met with Gil's exasperation.

"Open it," Ben repeated, interrupting before Gil could stall, because he wanted to. He did.

The tremble of his fingers was so slight that you'd likely only notice it if you were really looking, but still, they were there, Gil feeling adrift in the sea as he carefully pulled off the top of the box.

What was held inside took his breath away.

It was a thin chain, but gold – a gold unashamedly brilliant as his hair, shining in the low light of the candles. Each chain seemed to be shaped like a leaf – Flynn Rider's symbol rounded on the outsides with straight lines down the middle, the dividers laced with small shimmery stones he hoped weren't diamonds.

It was beautiful, and even though they had already said he couldn't break it, Gil was afraid of doing just that, the work seemed so delicate in his hands.

"Here." Ben took it from the box when Gil made no move to do so, clipping it around his right wrist, just above the material of his glove. "A bracelet for a bracelet."

"It's too much," Gil said, panic building in his throat. "I can't-"

"You can." It was Jane that said it, her eyes earnest and wide. "You can and you will, because we made it for you."

"And when we see you have it," Ben continued, picking up the conversation effortlessly. "We'll know we're on the same page."

Gil swallowed hard, his throat feeling dry. "You are going to be disappointed."

Because it was going to take forever.

Doug seemed to sense this. "Good things are worth waiting for."

"I…" Gil's fingers traced the delicate links of the bracelet. "You'll have to wait but promise me you won't like, wait-wait, for me, okay? Because all of you-" He stepped back so he could properly look at each of them, all of them too trusting and genuinely kind. "All of you are going to get good things, okay? And if you don't appreciate them I- I'll never forgive you."

"Then we'll appreciate them," Ben said, like it was that easy. "Just try to do the same."

"I'm from the future, Ben," Gil laughed. "I've already done that."

"Then keep doing that." Jane poked a finger against his chest, as though it somehow made her point stronger.

Strangely enough, Gil thought that it did.

"Flynn?" It was Queen Belle, hovering at the entrance of the preparation chamber. "It's time."

"Okay." Gil nodded.

He could do this. He didn't know what was wrong with him, he already knew these people. They were already his friends. But now they seemed so vulnerable, so young. And he'd left a mark on that, as much as they had on him.

Before he could go, he found himself with an armful of Jane, Doug and Ben following half a second behind her. "Bye, Carlos," she whispered, careful to keep her voice low. "And thanks."

"We'll see you soon," Ben promised.

"Very soon," Doug added, because he didn't know he'd been lied to.

Somehow, Gil managed a grin. "I'll see you when I see you," he said, because that at least was true. "Bye, guys."

They stood like that for a second, memorizing the moment, and then Gil made himself pull away, towards Queen Belle's small grin. Her hand felt warm on his shoulder when she guided him into the room, past King Adam's small nod of approval and Fairy Godmother reviewing her work for what was probably the hundredth time.

"Alright," the fairy decided when Gil was standing in the center of the diagram. "When the light fades you should be back in Corona, a few hours after your initial departure."

"Thanks, Fairy Godmother," Gil said, trying to show as much of his gratitude as possible. "Thanks, all of you. I'm very grateful for your help, and your hospitality."

Across the room, Queen Belle settled her hand on the crook of King Adam's elbow, a small gesture that somehow solidified them as a united pair. "It was our pleasure, Flynn."

"Truly," King Adam agreed, and that was overwhelming, but only because he didn't know who Gil's father was. Or, his fake father.

The next time he'd see them…

Actually, Gil had never spoken to the king and queen in person.

He supposed now that worked out for the best.

Just like before, the blinding light hid their smiling faces, and he disappeared with a chant of "Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo!"

-:-:-:-:-:-

Endnotes:

Hey guys, thanks for the feedback! Is it strange to say that it tickles me how much you are displeased by Adam's actions? Because it really does, despite the fact that deep down I do like the dude. Looks like he's tagging out with Audrey for this story to be the super convenient antagonist, lol ;)

Story notes:

I honestly don't know if Belle's Harbor is close enough to Auradon Castle for Gil to see it, but if not, assume he is sketching it from memory, lol.

I just about always have Kennet and Agot (Anna and Kristof's kids) as younger than the other royal heirs, preteens instead of teenagers. They are also OCs made up for the purpose of this story, as are all the other Auradon heirs mentioned save for Aziz and Ruby, who are actually part of the Descendants canon.

I will forever and always declare that soup is a perfectly reasonable breakfast food, and no one can convince me otherwise. And I'm not talking about those chilled fruits soups, bring on the cream of potato, baby!

So I did a lot of reading before I ever started writing for the Descendants, to the point where I had assumed the Magic Ban was an established thing. Upon re-watching the movies, I picked up on something I'd missed the first time, where magic wasn't explicitly banned, just more or less out of fashion. So that's why I feature the Magic Ban in my early works but not the later ones, and apparently why I had to have Gil give this whole big spiel about why it was dumb, because in a mystical fairytale world, it would be.

I very much made-up Flynn Rider's symbol to match the a href=" . " rel="nofollow"bracelet/a I had found to use as a reference.

Excuse me while I blatantly borrow a line from Ocean's Eleven.

Until next time :)