"Merry Christmas, pretty." Beth said. Evie grinned as she picked her wife up, Beth's legs wrapping around her waist. "There's my favorite smile. I've missed that."
"I've missed your smile, too." Evie said, kissing her wife's jaw. Beth giggled as Evie spun them around.
"How are you feeling?" she asked. It'd been a little over two months since Evie'd suffered her third miscarriage in their attempt to start their family. They'd both taken it hard, though Evie had definitely taken it harder than Beth. It'd taken her a month to leave their apartment, most days barely refusing to leave their bed at all. Beth allowed her wife to grieve in her own way, knowing just how much the woman had been looking forward to starting a family. She would bring Evie whatever the woman wanted or needed, coming to check on her throughout the day even though she knew a dedicated staff - as well as her parents, Ben, and Mal - were looking after her.
"For the first time in a long time, I feel like things are going to be okay." Evie replied truthfully. Beth nodded, resting her forehead against her wife's.
"We're going to try again when you're ready, but not until you are, okay? I can't... Eves, I can't watch you go through another depression like that and don't say that it wasn't because it was." she said softly. Evie nodded. "You know I would do this if I could."
"I know, baby." Evie whispered. When Beth found out she was unable to get pregnant, she'd been devastated; she'd always imagined herself being pregnant and giving birth to a child. The more discouraged Evie got, the more guilty Beth felt for not being able carry their child. "We'll have a family."
"Hell yeah, we will." Beth replied, leaning in and kissing her wife. After a few moments, Evie placed her wife on the ground. "We need to feed Maverick so we can go downstairs."
"I've already fed him. Come on, it's time to go open presents. Bennett is probably getting impatient." Evie said, smiling at her wife as she brought up their four year old nephew. Beth nodded, kissing Evie's cheek before pulling her out of their apartment and through the castle. They reached the living area to find exactly what they expected - Bennett sitting on the floor, staring at the presents under the tree.
"Merry Christmas, everyone!" Beth said, smiling as she, Evie, and Maverick walked into the room. Her parents, Mal, Ben, and their son looked up.
"Aunt B! Aunt E!" Bennett said, jumping up and running over to the women. Maverick happily, but gently, greeted the boy as Evie picked him up. Mal, who was holding her two year old daughter, smiled at the sight. "Present time?"
"Bennett, that's not polite." Ben scolded. Beth laughed.
"Yeah, Bennett, it's time to open presents." she said, sitting down on the couch. Evie quickly joined her, with Maverick taking his place next to Bennett. Adam handed out the presents and the family began opening them. Just as they finished, they heard a knock on the door. Maverick perked up and looked at his owners as if asking for permission. Beth grinned.
"Go on, Mav, go with Cogsworth to investigate." she said. Cogsworth looked over at the woman he was no longer allowed to chastise. "Oh, come on Cogsworth. Let the pup have his fun." Cogsworth held back his sigh and nodded, allowing the dog to follow him.
"Bethany, not only are you an adult, you are the Queen. You can't terrorize Cogsworth anymore." Adam said, amusement in his voice. Beth chuckled as Evie rested her forehead against her temple.
"Sure I can." she said. Evie grinned as she grabbed Beth's hand, lacing their fingers together. "It's all in good fun." They could hear Cogsworth open the door and speak for a few moments before the situation took a turn. Hearing Maverick's vicious growls, Beth and Evie stood up and made their way into the front of the castle. They saw the dog standing protectively in front of Cogsworth, with a man neither one of them recognized standing just inside the castle. "Can we help you?" Evie asked.
"Can you call off your dog?"
"Not until you tell us who you are and what you want." Beth replied.
"Cogsworth knows who I am." the man replied. Beth narrowed her eyes, glancing at Cogsworth. "I'm looking for the King."
"You've found the Queen. How can I help you?" Beth replied.
"The former King, sorry."
"My brother?" Beth asked. The man rolled his eyes, clearly getting frustrated. "Okay, that's not going to get you invited into my home." The man, who had clearly had enough, attempted to push past Beth by placing his hands on her shoulders. Evie saw the action and immediately got angry, stepping forward just as Ben, Mal, Belle, and Adam appeared.
"Don't ever touch my wife again." she snapped, grabbing the collar of his shirt and pushing him toward the door as the man narrowly avoided getting attacked by Maverick. "You're lucky I don't have you thrown in the dungeons of this of this castle."
"Well, I watched her grandfather get thrown in them so it really would be full circle." Beth raised an eyebrow.
"Wait, what?" she asked.
"Cogsworth, who is this?" Evie asked.
"This is Chip." Beth frowned, trying to remember where she'd heard that name before remembering.
"The teacup?" she asked. Cogsworth nodded. "Maverick, come here." Beth said, placing a hand on Maverick's head when he sat next to her. Beth looked back at the man in her doorway. "What do you want? Why are you here?"
"For the the throne." Chip explained. Beth let out a laugh.
"And why do you think you're entitled to my crown?" she asked.
"Adam is my father." Chip said. Beth and Ben froze while Mal and Evie looked at each other. Mal had Mackenzie in her arms and (though she'd never admit it) almost let her daughter slip from grip when she heard the confession. Meanwhile, Bennett was running around the room without a care in the world. As Evie processed the information, she let go of Chip's shirt and took a step back. Beth looked over at her father for a moment before turning to the man at the door.
"Get out." she growled. Chip raised an eyebrow. "You have five seconds to get off of this property before I find the castle guards that you managed to slip past. Get the hell out out of my palace. Now!"
"Excuse me?"
"Consider it an order from your Queen." Beth snapped. Just then, the palace guards appeared and grabbed Chip, pulling him out of the castle. Cogsworth quickly closed the door, locking it. "I want guards placed at every door and I want them all locked. The guards that he got past at the gates are to be fired immediately." Beth said, turning toward the stairs.
"Beth, you can't fire people on Christmas." Mal pointed. Beth raised an eyebrow.
"First of all, I can do whatever the hell I want. Second of all, they are entrusted with the safety of myself and my family in our home and someone just walked up to our door without their knowledge. That could have been anyone. Eves, that could have been your mom escaping from the Isle. They clearly weren't on their posts."
"To be fair, if my mom had escaped from the Isle, it wouldn't have mattered if they'd been on their posts or not. She would have just given them poison apples or used a disguise to get up here." Evie admitted. Beth rolled her eyes. "But M's right, you can't fire them on Christmas. If you're not going to look at it from the point of view of being a decent person, look at it from a PR standpoint. You're already going to deal with one royal scandal, do you really want them going to the press and talking about how you fired them on Christmas Day?"
"Fine. But they're fired first thing tomorrow." Beth gave in, storming upstairs. Evie sighed, looking at her best friend.
"Is she really going to fire them?" Mal asked.
"I'm going to try to talk her out of it, but... she does have a point. That could have been anyone." Evie replied, looking at the stairs for a moment. She bit her lip before sighing. "I'm going to go check on her." she said, making her way upstairs and to their suite. She entered and found Beth staring out the window. She walked over and wrapped her arms around her wife from behind, causing Beth to turn around in her arms.
"Baby... are you okay?" she asked. Beth started to answer, but one look at Evie - her Evie, the happy Evie that she'd just gotten back - she nodded. She could tell Evie knew she was lying, however, but kept her expression neutral. "Beth, talk to me."
"He has to be lying. Right? He has to be after the the crown." Beth mumbled. Evie kissed her forehead. "There's no way he can just take it, right?"
"It's yours, B. One hundred percent." Evie said. Beth looked up. "We'll get through this together."
"Evie, will you still love me if I'm not Queen anymore?" Beth whispered. Evie raised an eyebrow.
"Beth, I didn't marry you because of your title. You weren't even supposed to rule, remember?" she said. Beth bit her lip. "You being Queen doesn't matter to me. Don't get me wrong, I'm so proud of you for stepping up after Ben abdicated and I'm proud of everything you've accomplished since your coronation, but... at the end of the day, you're my Beth. The same girl that I fell in love with when I was sixteen." she said, kissing her wife. Beth pulled away, brushing her nose against Evie's cheek. "If, for some strange reason, the council decides that Chip will rule... we'll get through it."
"You're amazing." Beth whispered. Evie smiled softly. "We should probably go back downstairs."
"Only if you're ready, beautiful." Evie said. Beth took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay, then. Come on, my love." Evie took her wife's hand, leading her out of the apartment and down the stairs. When they made their way into the living room, they found Adam and Belle on one couch and Mal and Ben on another. Bennett and Mackenzie were nowhere to be found; Evie guessed that Cogsworth, Lumiere, and Mrs. Potts took them into the kitchen for some sweets. She led Beth to the third couch, wrapping one arm around her wife's waist and placing the other hand on Beth's knee. Beth leaned into Evie, allowing her wife's presence to comfort her.
"I'll answer all of your questions." Adam said. Beth grabbed Evie's hand from her knee and squeezed it before looking at her brother. When Ben nodded, she took a deep breath.
"How long have you know that Chip is your son, Dad?" she asked. Adam took a deep breath.
"Since you two were in high school. Mrs. Potts raised him as her own, but he left her once he turned eighteen and never looked back. All he wanted was some money, he never said anything about ruling. Your mother and I decided not to say anything to you all." he said. Evie felt Beth tense up and pressed a kiss to her wife's head.
"Dad, we've been out of Auradon Prep for almost ten years." the blonde said. Adam nodded. "Why are we just now finding out?"
"We didn't want to hurt you." Belle said. Ben raised an eyebrow.
"Well, I think I can speak for both of us when I say that as much as we're hurting right now... it would've hurt less if it came from you." he said, standing and walking out of the room. Beth followed her brother's lead, leaving the room. She could hear footsteps and glanced behind her to see Mal and Evie following.
"B..." Evie called out. Beth sighed and stopped walking, allowing her wife to catch up. "Everything is going to be okay."
"I hope you're right, Eves." Beth mumbled, turning around and hugging her wife tightly.
Three days later, Evie had had enough of Chip going to the press and leaking rumors and private conversations to reporters. She could see the effect it was having on Beth and it pained her to see her wife so upset. She'd only refrained from speaking out because Beth and Belle had requested she do so. However, she woke up to a headline that infuriated her beyond belief.
Princess Bethany stole the crown from half-brother.
The moment she read that, Evie knew that she couldn't stay silent any longer. She knew she had to do something. As soon as she got ready for the day - unfortunately, she'd woken up after Beth left for her office and wasn't going to get to see her until dinner - she made her way out of the apartment and down to the main area of the palace, where she caught sight of Lumiere. She immediately made her way toward the man.
"Lumiere." she called out. She could see her nephew in the distance but focused on Lumiere.
"Yes, Princess?" the man replied with a smile. Evie grinned as Bennett ran past before turning back to the man in front of her.
"Can you find out where Chip is staying while in Auradon City?" she asked. The man nodded.
"Of course, Princess. I will let you know as soon as I do." Evie smiled gratefully. "Anything else, Your Highness?"
"Tell me everything you know about him." Evie requested.
"I don't know much more than you. He was an energetic boy, but I don't know anything about his life after he left." Lumiere explained. Evie nodded slowly. "I will find the information for you."
"Thank you, Lumiere. I appreciate it." the Princess said.
"Princess-"
"I'm not going to hurt him." Evie promised. Lumiere raised an eyebrow.
"I was going to request that you did." he replied. Evie laughed.
"Have a good day, Lumiere." she said, starting to walk away.
"Evie." Evie turned around to find Lumiere watching her carefully. "Everything will work out for you and Bethany." Lumiere was one of only three members of the staff (the others being Cogsworth and Mrs. Potts) that felt comfortable enough to call her Evie as opposed to Princess Evelyn or Beth 'Your Majesty.' Frankly, that's what Evie loved most about the man. He knew when to do it, though Evie wished he'd do it more often. She walked over, hugging him. "You'll have a family one day."
"I know I will. At the moment, though, I need to protect the family I have right now. She's my family, and she needs me. Chip is trying to steal her crown and I'm not going to let him." Evie said. Lumiere nodded. "Thank you for listening, Lumiere. You're a great friend."
"You are an even better one, Princess." the man said, smiling at the blue-haired woman.
"Evie, are you sure about this? We're not in high school anymore, you and Mal are princesses. Your wife is the Queen, for God's sake." Carlos whispered that night as the crept through the hallway of the hotel that Chip was staying in.
"Which is how we got in here and got his room number without any issues." Evie replied, not even glancing over her shoulder as she walked.
"But Evie-" Evie turned on her heel.
"You didn't have to come and you don't have to stay. But this man is threatening my wife. He is spreading lies about her in the press. I have to do something." she snapped. Carlos sighed. "Carlos, you know how protective of Beth I am. I need to protect her. You can either stay or go, but you need to make up your mind now." After a few moments, Carlos nodded.
"Let's go." Evie nodded and continued her journey down the hall. She stopped in front of a door and moved to allow Carlos to hack into the hotel's security system to unlock the door. Once it was open, the group quietly went in and shut the door.
"What are we looking for?" Jay asked. Evie sighed.
"Honestly? I don't know. Anything incriminating." Everyone nodded and began searching. After several minutes, Carlos froze.
"Guys, I head Chip's voice down the hall." he whispered. Evie immediately began looking around for a hiding spot. She quickly landed on the closet and began pushing Mal toward it.
"Get in the closet now." she hissed. Everyone rushed into the closet and held their breath as the door to the hotel room opened. They watched through the panels of the door as Chip walked around the room. As he took off his jacket and made his way toward the closet they were hiding in, Evie's eyes went wide and she cursed silently when the door opened.
"What the hell is going on in here?" Chip exclaimed. Jay instinctively moved his body so that he was in front of his friends. "I'm calling security."
"That's not necessary, we'll just leave." Mal said. Chip scoffed, picking up the hotel phone.
"Security, please. I have four intruders in my room." Evie could feel Carlos' eyes glaring into her from behind as they listened to Chip's side of the conversation. Within minutes, there were three security guards in the room, escorting them out of the closet. Two of them immediately grabbed Jay and Carlos, despite the Princesses outcries.
"Princess Mal, Princess Evie, please come with us." the third security guard said.
"Not until you unhand our friends." Evie countered. The security guard nodded and let go of Jay and Carlos. "Thank you. Please lead the way." The VKs followed the guards out of the room and through the hotel, making their way to a car that was parked in the back. "We are not entering this vehicle until we know where it's taking us."
"To the council chambers. The council will be alerted shortly." the guard explained. Evie nodded, getting into the vehicle. She leaned her head against the window as her friends joined her before sighing.
"I'm texting Beth. I need to get ahold of her before anyone else does." she whispered. Mal nodded as Evie pulled out her phone.
"She's going to be mad." the purple-haired girl replied softly.
"Only until she realizes who's room we broke into." Evie mumbled as she typed.
The VKs were stuck in the hallway of the council chambers for hours as Beth and the council were called in. As the council argued and debated, they stared at their feet nervously. "This might be the closest we've ever come to getting sent back to the Isle." Mal commented.
"I don't know why you two are acting like you have something to be worried about. Beth isn't going to send her wife and sister-in-law to the Isle." Jay replied, his tone laced with anger. Evie rolled her eyes; logically, she knew he was right, but she also knew that Beth would never send the boys back to the Isle. Before she could respond, her best friend was grabbing her arm.
"You need to tell them." Mal hissed in her ear.
"B said not to." Evie whispered. Just then, the door to the council chambers opened up.
"The Queen would like to see the four of you." The VKs nodded and entered the room, making their way to the front. Evie glanced up at her wife, who had a furious expression on her face as she watched the four come to a stop in front of her. After a few minutes of silence, Beth finally spoke.
"You four stalked a man, went to his hotel, bribed hotel staff to give you his room number-" Evie took a step forward.
"Actually-"
"Are you seriously interrupting me right now?" Beth asked. Evie raised an eyebrow. "Feel free to lower the eyebrow at any moment, Princess Evelyn."
"We didn't bribe anyone, Your Majesty. We simply asked." Evie snapped. Beth narrowed her eyes.
"A thousand apologies, Your Highness." she replied sarcastically. Mal just barely refrained from laughing. "Don't interrupt me again." Evie rolled her eyes; Beth chose to ignore the action. "If you four are ever caught break and entering again, there will be severe consequences. Are we clear?"
"Yes, Your Majesty." the VKs mumbled, filing out of the chambers. Before they could say anything to each other, they noticed the Queen approaching them and clammed up.
"You four, my office. Now." Beth said, not waiting as she walked past them. Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos followed behind the blonde. The moment the door shut behind Carlos, Beth pulled Evie into a kiss. The embrace quickly deepened, with Evie pushing Beth against the wall. Mal rolled her eyes as Jay and Carlos watched in confusion.
"I'm sorry I snapped at you." Beth whispered as they broke apart. Evie chuckled as Beth turned to their friends. "How was it? Was I convincing? I'm still getting used to the whole disciplinarian thing." Beth admitted. Jay raised an eyebrow, still confused.
"I've never heard you talk to Evie that way." he replied.
"And you never will again. I didn't like it, but it was her idea; she texted me while you guys were waiting for us to arrive. She knew you guys were going to have to come before the council, she knew I needed to come down on you guys. She thought she should get the brunt of my anger, she said it would go a long way with the council, especially if this guy is trying to take my crown." Beth explained. Evie nodded in agreement, pressing a kiss to her wife's head. "You won't be punished, but if anyone asks, I yelled at you all and threatened to send you back to the Isle, including Evie."
"Deal." Mal, Jay, Carlos, and Evie chorused. Beth nodded, turning to walk toward her desk.
"You guys can go. I'll see you later, Eves." she said. Evie nodded, leaning over and kissing her wife softly. "I love you." Beth whispered.
"I love you, too." Evie said, smiling softly before making her way out of the office.
That night, Evie arrived home to find the lights dimmed and rose petals on the floor. She smiled softly and followed the path of the flowers, which lead to the bedroom she shared with Beth. The door was open, revealing her wife sitting on the bed.
"What is this?" Evie asked , a sly smirk on her face as she leaned against the door frame. Beth grinned from the bed, where she was dressed in a new pair of lingerie
"I wanted to personally thank you for what you did last night." she said. Evie raised an eyebrow.
"Are you thanking everyone this way?" she teased. Beth chuckled.
"No, Eves, just you." Evie grinned and straddled her wife, connecting their lips. Before they could get too far into their kiss, the sound of a phone ringing interrupted their moment and caused them to break apart. Beth realized it was her phone and grabbed it.
"Hello?" Evie leaned back on her wife's legs as Beth sat up.
"Your Majesty, the council has reached a decision." Beth looked up at Evie, fear flooding her face.
"I'll be there as soon as possible." she said, hanging up the phone. Evie ran her thumb over Beth's jaw. "They've made a decision. We need to get dressed."
"Okay." Evie said, reaching for her shirt as Beth moved to their closet.
"Can you call everyone?"
"Of course, B. I'll take care of everything, you just focus on getting dressed." Evie promised. Beth nodded, taking a shaky breath as she searched for an outfit.
"Everything is going to be okay, baby. You're the Queen, they're not going to take that away from you." Evie whispered as they sat in the limo with Ben, Belle, Mal, and Adam. Beth bit her lip, staring at her hands in her lap as Evie wrapped one arm around her waist and placed the other on her forearm.
"What if they do?" she asked softly. Evie kissed her hair.
"Then we'll deal with it together, like we always do. You're not alone, B. We're a team and we'll deal with whatever decision the council makes together." she promised. Beth nodded. "But they won't."
"Yeah. Yeah, you're right. I mean... he'd be a horrible King." Beth said. Adam sent his daughter a disapproving look.
"He's your brother, Bethany." he said. Evie looked at the man, about to speak up when Ben beat her to it.
"Dad, what outcome are you hoping for?" he snapped. Beth looked at her brother. "Beth is the Queen, she stepped up when she didn't have to and she's done an amazing job of it. This guy shows up, claims to be our brother, claims to be the rightful heir to the throne, challenges Beth for her crown, and you're all but taking his side. It's Beth's crown, he can't take it from her."
"Of course I think Beth should remain Queen. If I thought Chip should rule, you never would have, son. But that doesn't change the fact that Chip is my son and your brother." Adam said. Beth rolled her eyes.
"Enough, Dad. I really don't need to hear this right now. I'm stressed enough as it is." she said, leaning into her wife. Two minutes later, the limo came to a stop and Beth looked out the window to see that they'd arrived at the Council Chamber Hall.
"Come on, B." Evie whispered, sending her wife a comforting smile. Beth nodded and watched as Evie slid out of the limo. When she saw her wife's outstretched hand waiting to help her out of the car, the Queen took a deep breath and took it. As they walked through the crowd of photographers and reporters, Evie squeezed Beth's hand. She helped her wife up the stairs before leading her inside the Council Chamber Hall and toward the council chambers. When they got to the room, they saw that Chip was already there. "Ignore him." Evie whispered. Beth nodded and led their group to the benches.
On one side of the room, she sat with Evie, Mal, Ben, Belle, Adam, Jay, and Carlos (who Evie'd called on their way over), as well as Cogsworth, Lumiere, and Mrs. Potts (who insisted on coming). On the other side of the room, Chip sat alone. As Evie rubbed Beth's back, the council filed in and took their seats. Everyone sat on the edge of their seats as Doc cleared his throat.
"As the illegitimate child of King Adam, you have no birthright or claim to the throne. Therefore, Queen Bethany will remain the rightful ruler of Auradon." he said. Evie let out what could only be described as a mix between a laugh and a cheer, wrapping her arms around her wife and pulling the woman close. She kissed the top of her head, holding her tightly.
"I told you, baby, I told you. I knew they wouldn't take it away from you, I knew it." she whispered as tears threatened to fall. Beth stared at the council in shock, placing a hand over Evie's arm as their friends cheered. She turned her head, resting her forehead on Evie's.
"This meeting is adjourned." Beth nodded, standing up with everyone else. Chip walked over to the group.
"I will be exhausting every resource that I can. I was Adam's firstborn, I am the rightful heir."
"You son of a-" Evie stepped forward, only stopping when she felt Beth's hand on her chest.
"Apparently you weren't listening. You have no claim to throne. But even if you did, you should have come forward before Ben's coronation or mine, for that matter. It's over, Chip. If you want a relationship with my family, we might consider having one with you, but you'll never rule. The only person that will ever take my place on the throne will be mine and Evie's firstborn." Chip chuckled lowly.
"It seems like you and Evie will never have a firstborn." Beth raised an eyebrow, dropping her hand and moving out of Evie's way.
"Why would you say that?" she whispered. Evie saw the the heartbroken look on her wife's face and took a threatening step forward. Before she could touch the man, however, Adam stepped in front of her. Beth bit her lip, moving to wrap her arms around her wife.
"If he doesn't hit him, I will. Nobody is going to talk to you like that, I promise." Evie whispered. Beth nodded.
"How dare you speak to my daughter that way." he whispered dangerously. Chip swallowed, taking a step back. "Leave. Now. Don't come back." Chip nodded, rushing out of the room. As he disappeared, Adam turned to Beth and Evie allowed the man to pull his daughter into a hug. "I'm sorry, sweetheart."
"Can I please go punch him before he disappears?" Evie mumbled. Everyone turned to Beth; the decision was ultimately hers.
"I know what answer you all want me to give, but... yeah, Eves. Go hit him. Just... do it before he goes outside where the photographers are." the blonde said. Evie nodded, walking away.
"Bethany-"
"Mom, he went after my family. You and Dad did not have this much trouble starting a family, you didn't have three miscarriages. You don't know what we're going through." Beth said. Belle nodded as Beth turned to her sister-in-law. "Make sure she doesn't kill him."
"On it." Mal said, following her best friend. Belle sent her daughter a disapproving look.
"He's going to tell the press." she said.
"Nobody is going to believe that their beloved Princess Evelyn could ever hit someone. She's Auradon's Sweetheart, everyone loves her." Beth replied. Jay, Carlos, and Ben chuckled. After a few minutes, Evie and Mal returned. The blue-haired woman immediately rushed over to her wife, her arms opening as she got closer.
"Thank you." Evie whispered as she hugged the blonde. Beth pressed a kiss to her jaw.
"Thank you for defending me, pretty." she replied. Evie chuckled, kissing her head. "I love you."
"I love you, B." Evie said. Beth grinned. "Let's go home."
"That sounds like the best idea in the world." Beth replied.