From here on out, everything is uphill. Games are over, my characters are developed, you all know how the stage is set. Now it's time for the real fun to begin.
"We need a day." Mal said over breakfast one morning, taking a leap of faith and leaning towards Ben. They were the only ones in the room. It was one of the few days they actually had the opportunity to eat breakfast together between rushing to start work and waking up at weird times. Mal was snacking on an orange and some blueberries as she thought.
Ben looked up from his phone, where he was checking his email. "What do you mean? We have all of today." He raised an eyebrow.
"Let me rephrase that." Mal sighed. She leaned over and put a hand on his shoulder. "I am exhausted. I need a day of doing absolutely nothing, and you're going to do absolutely nothing with me."
Ben chuckled. "Oh, I see." He clapped his hands together. "Well, unfortunately, I have a full day of work planned, but I'll tell you what. Wait until tomorrow, and we'll take the entire day off."
Mal frowned. "What makes tomorrow so special?" She asked. "You have a full day of work every day."
Ben twiddled his thumbs with a teasing smile. "Well, you see, I'd already planned to take tomorrow off." He smiled.
Mal raised an eyebrow. "Why?" She asked. "You don't ever do that."
"Tomorrow happens to be February fourteenth" Ben smiled. "It's valentine's day, the day of lovers."
"Lovers, huh?" Mal smiled and leaned toward Ben teasingly. The collar of her shirt dipped down below her collarbone as she smirked. Ben didn't think she noticed as she teased him, but he sure did. "I didn't know you had any of those. There something you're not telling me?"
Ben swallowed and smiled. He reached forward and adjusted the collar of her shirt, making sure to brush her neck lightly. To his surprise, she leaned into his touch. "I guess you'll find out tomorrow."
Mal let out a little breath that crossed his cheek in a cool wind. "I guess I will." She said in a low, breathy tone, almost like a purr. Then she released him and turned on her heel to walk in the general direction of her office. "You Auradonians have too many holidays!" She called over her shoulder as she disappeared. The sound of her even footfalls followed her out the door. Ben was glad no one was around to witness her attitude as a blush burned his cheeks. It made him feel just a little bit special to know she was willing to let some of her… wickedness out around him after all this time.
When his eyes opened the next morning, it was because he was suddenly extremely cold. Ben shivered slightly and turned over, reaching out to his left and trying to feel around for Mal's frame. His hand fell on cold sheets and her empty pillow. Ben frowned. She was gone and had apparently been gone for a while. He knew she wouldn't have gone to work after he'd promised her a day off, and the castle was still too frozen for her to be climbing, so he rolled over and reached for his phone. He sent her a message that read "Where did you go?" before he heard a buzz on the other side of the bed. Ben grumbled in annoyance when he glimpsed the purple case. She'd left her phone. So instead, he found a different contact to ask.
"Hey, Sophia," He asked Mal's best friend. "You wouldn't happen to know where the standing Queen of Auradon is, would you?"
"She headed outside in a parka about a half hour ago," Sophia answered. "And standing queen? More like racing queen. Good luck catching up with her."
Ben grumbled and swung his legs out of the bed. Everything was freezing. He looked up and realized the window had been cracked open. He stood up and went to shut it. As he did, he caught a glimpse of a white note peeking out under the frame. He seized it and skimmed the purple pen scribbles on the front. 'To the right', it read. He assumed it was a direction for outside. So, Ben pulled on his gloves, a dark blue parka, and a white cap before he tucked his gift underneath his arm and adventured out into the freezing expanse of white.
Ben hadn't noticed before, but it had snowed a lot the last few weeks, mainly when he was holed up in his office working. There was about a foot and a half of snow on the ground, and still-soft wisps floated down from tree branches like sifted flour.
Ben found a set of footprints leading off the cleared sidewalk to the right near Belle's rose garden. They were about half his size. He chuckled as he headed off the path and through the palace gardens, following Mal's footprints.
After about four minutes, they disappeared completely in the center of several trees. Ben looked all around, but couldn't see them or Mal. The snow around where the footprints ended had been thinned considerably as if some strong force of wind had blown it away from where Mal had been standing. Ben wondered if she'd learned to teleport or something. As he turned in a circle, he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. A pile of snow had just fallen from the trees. Before he had time to realize what was happening, a large pile of snow fell from the sky and onto his head. Ben yelled in surprise. Ten feet above his head, there was laughter.
"Not cool!" Ben yelled, wiping snow out of his eyes. He glared up above him, where Mal laid on her stomach on a large tree branch, which she had evidently shaken. She was wearing black pants and a purple parka, and her hair hung loosely around her head.
"On the contrary, it's quite cold." Mal teased. Ben pulled his beanie off of his head and shook it out.
"How did you even get up there?" Ben glared as he complained and shoved it back on his head. "There's no footprints!"
Mal's smile grew a little tight. "Oh, um, jumped." To prove her point, she swung and landed on her feet in the snow near him.
Ben studied her. As an Isle girl, she'd known how to lie. But as the months had gone on and on, she'd gotten worse and worse at lying – at least to him. He suspected that she'd used magic, but if she wasn't ready to explain it, he wouldn't press.
He straightened his beanie on top of his head and pulled his package put from under his arm. "Mon chére?" He announced as he presented it with a flourish, bowing slightly to incite her ire. Mal took it with a roll of her eyes, and then shyly pulled a paper folded in fourths out of her parka pocket.
"I didn't know this was a thing until yesterday, but I still didn't want you to think that I-" she stopped with red tones in her cheeks.
Ben got the message. He smiled and gave a playful bow. "I understand, and I care too," He told her.
Mal dipped her chin down to her chest. Ben smiled softly and unfolded the paper as she slit the sides open on her present. Inside was a movie – fictional this time – called Titanic, and a heart-shaped purple necklace taped on, which Mal assumed she'd get the reference to later. Underneath was the movie Maleficent, which Mal still hadn't seen. She smiled, folded her presents against her chest, and watched as his eyes skimmed the paper's contents.
Ben felt his smiling face go slack as he read the first few lines. Almost immediately, a pang set in in his chest.
"Dear Ben F," the letter began, "There are so many things I want to tell you and so many things I know you want to know about me. My heart is really full as I write this, so I may be a bit incoherent. I don't exactly have your gift with words.
"You already know there are many differences that stem between us, just from growing up in different places, the least of which is the fact I never saw any of your childhood movies. There were days I couldn't go home because my mother had fits, and there were days I couldn't eat because there was nothing. Did you know that Mal isn't my real name? It's actually Maleficent, like my mom, but I wasn't allowed to have the full thing until I was evil enough. I earned it letter-by-letter. Imagine if I'd earned one more before I came here! Then I'd be Male. Little weird….
"I don't like talking about my kidhood much. It's time to talk about you. Ben, you're honestly one of my favorite people in the entire world. I admire how kind and compassionate you are. You never doubt who you are or what your mission is. Ever since I first came to Auradon, I knew we would have something special together, even just as partners. I stood beside my door and listened to you mutter as I walked away, and I can't deny I felt something. You made me feel welcome, and some of my fondest memories include you. Blowing up the glitter can and your dad's office, everyone in the Auradon chapel echoing our blessing, and our long car drives to nowhere. Thank you for taking such good care of me. You make me feel foolish and clever and excited and – sometimes – scared all at the same time. So much has happened in the last six months – us getting married, the moors healing, everything – and I couldn't thank you enough for your support and love. I have no idea where the future will take us, but I'm being completely honest when I say that I wouldn't mind if you forever shared with me time, memories, and strength.
"With adoration, Mal."
An honest confession. She'd written him an honest confession. Ben felt like his gift was now substantial and useless, but when he looked up and saw Mal hugging everything to her chest, he couldn't help but smile before he teared up just a little. He held out his arms. Mal awkwardly opened her arms and received him with a hesitant smile. As they hugged each other, Ben bent down to kiss her cheek and bury his face in the shoulder of her parka.
"Thank you, Mal." He murmured in her shoulder. Mal patted his back awkwardly but didn't say anything. When he could tell she was beginning to get a bit weirded out, he backed off, wiping tears from his eyes and sniffling as the tip of his nose turned a bright red.
Mal chuckled at him and pressed a quick peck to his cheek. "Happy Valentine's day." She smiled, standing beside him as he took a few breaths.
After Ben had composed himself, they trailed back to the castle to put their presents in the protection of the house before once again trekking out into the desert of the castle ground in winter. After about thirty minutes of walking side-by-side, Mal dropped behind Ben and started trailing behind as he admired the icicles hanging from the trees. She stopped as he broke off one that was as long as his forearm and bent down to gather a few fistfuls of snow. This she balled up into a weapon of mass destruction and hid it behind her back as he turned with a smile to display his find.
"That's a really long one," Mal commented, tilting her head to the side as she pretended to have been examining the ones hanging from the tree she was beside.
"The ones that form on the palace roof are much larger." Ben shrugged. "We used to keep them up, but then they became a hazard when they started falling in spring, so we knock them down now."
"Huh," Mal said.
Ben turned to toss the icicle into the bushes nearby. As soon as the back of his beanie came into view, Mal reared back her arm and threw. Her aim was true, and the snowball smacked his neck right at the hairline, where his beanie couldn't protect, and a sliver of his neck was exposed.
Ben yelped as something hard and cold hit his neck and immediately began to melt down inside his parka. He quickly brushed as much off as he could and began to shake as the water dripped down his spine. Unfair!" He complained. He turned to look accusingly at Mal just as she raised her arm, a new snowball in her hand and a second in her arm.
Ben dodged the first, but the second smacked him in the forehead. "Arg!" He growled and immediately dropped to his knees to scoop up a small ball. He made three as Mal hastily began to stock up ammo. His first two went wide, but the third caught her ankle and left her shaking the snow out of her shoe. This gave him just enough time to scoop up some snow and toss it. Due to her distraction, Mal didn't notice he'd sent it in a gentle arc until it landed in the collar of her parka and began to melt. Since it wasn't as tightly packed as the others, it melted quicker. Mal panicked as she tried to brush it out of her coat. She began to dance as the cold liquid melted straight down past her shirt.
Ben didn't take the time to laugh. Mal was both better at strategy and a harder-hitter than he was. His upper-hand was momentary before she would jump back to attention. He quickly dropped to his knees and began to gather up the largest amount of snow he could, quickly forming a large ball about three times the size of a basketball. It was slightly misshapen and a little moist, but it would serve its purpose well.
As Mal shook the last of the loose snow out of her jacket and shivered off the last of the uncomfortableness, a shadow loomed over her. She barely had time to look up and yelp before a mountain of snow was dropped unceremoniously on top of her head. It crumbled and fell around her feet in a heap, soaking her hair, face, and coat as it went.
Mal stood and shook in absolute shock. A small pile of snow sat on top of her head, looking like a little hill of powdered sugar. Pieces of sleet were sliding out of her hair and down her face. Snow was stuck to her eyelashes and melting around her ears. The cold stung her skin like wintry bees.
She finally had the sense to wipe off what was on her face and shoulders and flung her hair forward to shake off the powder on top. A great deal remained as she glared.
"This means war." She declared.
Ben laughed. "I can't believe you actually let me do that." He proclaimed. For truly, if she had been on her guard, he never would have gotten that close to her before she attacked back. He slung an arm around her shoulder. Mal grabbed his hand and spun, using his own body weight to gain enough momentum to launch him over her shoulder. Ben landed with a hard thud on her other side in the pile of snow he'd just dropped on Mal's head, gasping for breath.
"Catch me if you can!" She crowed as she braced herself and began to jump into a sprint.
Mal may have been an Isle girl, but she was better at eluding strength and coming up with strategies and planning than she was at fighting or running. That was why she had Jay, who was strong and brutal, and Carlos, who was lithe and fast, as her friends. Ben quickly snaked out and seized her ankle before she could leap away. Mal was yanked back as she started to sprint and was pulled back into the snow with a yell. Ben pulled her back and grabbed the shoulders of her parka to prevent her from pulling away. Mal, seeing that she was trapped, laughed and gripped Ben's parka. She rolled a few times, using momentum and Ben's larger body mass against him to try and wrench his fingers off, but Ben dug in his fingernails and refused to release her.
Mal considered her options. She evidently couldn't break free since she wasn't strong enough, Ben likely wouldn't listen if she started trying to talk her way out of this, and as it were, she was on top of him since he was the heavier weight and she'd been smart not to get trapped under him.
She smirked and chuckled evilly. "Good job." She told him, letting a small purr enter her tone. Ben rolled his eyes when he heard her voice. He clearly wasn't buying her gig. Mal released his parka (Though he kept a firm hold on hers) and brought her mitten-covered hands up to thread under his soaked, snow-covered beanie, and slipped her fingers around his ears carefully, so his lobe was in between her third and fourth fingers. She caught Ben's right knee between her two legs, so she straightened her back and pinned him using that. Then, she leaned in and pressed her mouth to Ben's despite both of their heavy-breathing.
Mal genuinely liked whenever she had the opportunity to kiss Ben, but this time she planned to use it to her advantage. As expected, Ben's arms relaxed a tad and his fingers loosened from her parka, though he kept her pressed to him so that she couldn't jump up suddenly. Smart boy.
Ben's breath tasted minty. She smiled against his mouth and let out a little laugh. Ben began to relax, but not by much.
Mal remembered when the snow had first fallen in Auradon and how she and Ben had stood out on the balcony and kissed in a way she'd never even heard of before. So now, she slipped a hand out of his beanie and onto his neck and began to carefully move her mouth against Ben's, letting her mouth open so he could use his tongue easier. She was on top, but she yielded a small amount of power to him so that he would feel like he was in control of the situation. He moved his hands – one to her hip and the other to the back of her head, and they began to kiss each other. She relaxed her legs where she had pinned him, and as she did, he relaxed his grip and force, figuring she'd actually given up on getting away.
For a few minutes, they laid in the snow. Mal carefully timed everything. Finally, Ben was rendered unsuspecting. Both his hands migrated to her hips, and he'd failed to notice her moving her knees outside his legs to pack snow up alongside them. She kissed him once, twice, and then three times before she willed her body into the same tightness as a springboard and used her knees to launch away from him. Not sparing a second, she took off. Ben was, as planned, caught off guard as he struggled out of the snow Mal had worked up around his knee and sides, and by the time he'd gotten up, she was out of sight.
Mal was smart. She ran back the way they'd come and mixed her footprints among Ben's and hers before she sprinted a new way to Belle's garden, which was made of tall hedges that would bloom in warmer weather. What she hadn't planned for was the king and queen themselves to be taking a late-afternoon stroll.
As she came around a corner, she caught a glimpse of Belle's famous red cloak before she yelped and skidded on the icy pathway, straight into both of her in-laws.
Her yelp echoed in the expanse of white, as did both Belle and Adam's yells of surprise. Mal winced as her ears rang.
"What on earth?" Adam bellowed before he saw Mal. "Mal?' he asked, completely thrown off. "What on-" he began to repeat before he stopped himself. "Why are you running?" He zeroed in of the condition of her apparel. "What happened to you?"
"Are you being attacked?" Belle asked with wide eyes, brushing snow off of Mal's shoulders and craning her head to look around Mal's frame.
"No, no!" Mal protested, backing off of the former king and queen as she calmed down. "I'm-I'm just…" She wilted before their eyes, entirely aware of how childish she seemed. "Running from Ben." She muttered.
"Why?" Belle asked, staring incredulously at her.
Mal sputtered as she hurried to explain the situation. "Well, he dropped a snowball over my head and then I judo-flipped him over my shoulder and-"
"Hey!" A new voice protested as Ben whirled around the same corner Mal had just torn about. His hat was crooked and he still had snow sticking to his sides. "You totally struck first!" He claimed, crossing his arms.
"How long have you been standing there?" Mal deadpanned.
Ben wilted. "Uh, only a little while…" He trailed off with his cheeks turning a little red.
"You were going to make me explain all of this to your parents while you hung out and giggled?" Mal exclaimed, throwing her hands above her head.
"Of course," Ben smirked and crossed his arms. "You were the person who ran into them."
Mal growled in frustration. "I take it back!" She exclaimed, balling her fists up and glancing for a second over her shoulder at Belle and Adam, who weren't quite sure how to take the situation. "I am being attacked. And victimized." She shot Ben a dirty look. It only served to make laugh even harder.
Ben suddenly solemnized and put his head down a few notches. Mal remembered the former Queen and King were behind her and turned to face them.
Belle examined them both and looked at her husband. They seemed to be communicating through their eyes. Then, Belle muttered: "He's your son."
Ben's mouth dropped in indignation as Mal guffawed.
Adam shook his finger. "And he's about as discrete as you are." He said sternly. He examined both young adults. Mal's hair was mussed and clumped messily from where Ben had been holding onto the back of her head a few minutes ago. Ben's beanie was completely soaked, and both of their faces were bright red. Adam remained silent for a few seconds. "Your lips are chapped." He told them.
Both Ben and Mal's left hands flew to their mouths. Their faces turned even redder as Belle began to bite her lip in amusement.
"You ought to go clean up before you get a cold," Belle advised. "It's almost lunch, and I expect you to be presentable, both of you."
Technically, Mal considered, Belle was not her mother. She didn't have to listen. However, as soon as the command left the former queen's lips, her feet took two steps backward, in the direction of the path. "Yes, Belle. Sorry for running into you."
Both adults waved her off. Ben smiled uneasily and back away with her. "See you later, mom and dad." He said quickly. As he turned around, he caught Mal's eyes. A competitive glint was in her eyes. She turned and began to sprint back to the palace. "No, you don't!" He yelled as he sprinted after her, easily bypassing her on the path and closing the front door after he rushed in, so she'd have to reopen it herself.
Belle and Adam brushed themselves off. "She's like you," Adam told Belle as they linked arms and continued their stroll.
"In what way?" Belle asked curiously. She didn't really see that many similarities but was interested in hearing his perspective.
"You used to throw snow at me too." Adam chuckled. "And you both forged your own ways as queen despite many who wondered if you'd be able to make it."
Belle hummed in thought. She remembered quite clearly the whispers that had prosecuted her the first few months of her queenship, wondering if a small-village girl with big ideas would be able to be a suitable queen. Luckily, though, she'd managed to pull a kingdom together. Now, it was her son's turn
Adam hummed their song as he squeezed her arm to his side. Belle clutched her husband's arm a little tighter and leaned her head on his shoulder. Twenty-four, almost twenty-five years together, and she still felt like a new bride in quiet moments like this.
Cinnamon rolls and a peculiar red fruit for lunch. Belle and Adam exchanged looks as they walked in. Ben pulled out Mal's chair for her and glared at her teasingly as they sat beside each other. The purplette, knowing Ben was much faster than her, had not used the route Ben had, but instead found the outside window underneath their room and used a little magic to help her scale the walls and unlock the window from the outside. By the time Ben had arrived, huffing and puffing, Mal had already finished pulling a new woolen sweater over her head. It turned out the young King of Auradon was a sore loser.
Mal ignored him with a small smile pulling at her lips and reached for a cinnamon roll. She examined the fruit with a judging eye. It was new, almost heart-shaped, and had many yellowish seeds in its skin.
"Can you pass the strawberries?" Ben asked.
Berries. Fruit. These weren't like the other berries she knew of, though. They seemed about the girth of cherries instead. Mal passed the bowl to Ben and watched as he took five or six. She hesitantly took two before passing the bowl to Adam, who sat beside Belle.
She attacked the cinnamon roll first, watching to see how the others ate the strawberries. Belle and Ben ate around the leafy stems, but Adam pulled off the leaves. Finally, she picked one up skeptically.
"Have you never had one of these?" Ben asked., examining her critical gaze
"Nope." Mal shook her head. She turned the strawberry back and forth in her hand like she couldn't tell if it was a gem or a piece of glass.
"You'll like them." He promised.
"I'm sure," Mal said flatly. She took a bite and put on a quick smile as she turned to Ben. "Mmm!" She exclaimed sarcastically before she tasted what she'd actually put in her mouth.
Her brain disconnected, and her eyes opened wide. "Mmm!" she exclaimed, slapping a hand over her mouth.
Ben folding his arms. "I told you so." He said in a nagging, sarcastic tone.
Mal swallowed and reached across the table for the bowl of strawberries. "How is it that I am only just having these after been here for seven months?" She demanded. Ben shrugged as Mal piled twelve or thirteen more red berries on her plate. Belle looked up from where she was reading Romeo and Juliet and met her husband's eyes. They stared silently at each other for several seconds before Adam took Belle's hand off the book and squeezed it lightly.
Lumiere peered around the open doorway with a semi-panicked look. "Ben, I'm afraid I have to interrupt your lunch." He said quickly. Mal turned at examined the elderly servant, who looked at her like he was expecting her to be upset.
Ben frowned as he gently pried the strawberry bowl out of Mal's hands. He didn't want her to eat herself sick with her new favorite food. "Yes, Lumiere? Is something wrong?" He asked, setting the ceramic bowl away from her while their attention was focused on Lumiere.
Lumiere wrung his hands and glanced nervously at Mal. Adam and Ben stood up. A deep sense of dread filled Mal's chest.
"Princess Audrey has just arrived. She's in the foyer, ahem, with a few… tokens of her appreciation?" Lumiere explained. He looked extremely uncomfortable.
"Audrey?" Ben asked. "What's she doing here on Valentines – oh." He turned a bit red. Mal's mind blanked out. Audrey... Valentine's... the day of lovers. Immediately, her mind jumped to the same conclusion that Belle, Adam, and Ben had already reached, and her mouth dropped open with a little exhale. She glanced up at Ben, who was turning a sickly shade of green as he stared at Lumiere, begging him with his eyes to tell Ben it wasn't like they all knew it was.
"Well," Belle said tactfully, looking down at her plate and giving off an entire aura of annoyance. "I'd say she's got some nerve." Adam nodded fiercely along with her words..
Ben put a hand on Mal's shoulder. "I'll take care of it. Don't worry." He reassured her and moved out of his chair. "It'll only take a moment."
He pushed his chair back under the table and left the room at a brisk pace. Mal waited until he was out of earshot before she stood as well. She filled her pockets with the strawberries on her plate, and then took a napkin and wrapped the rest up in a bundle. She looked up at Belle and Adam.
"I hope you didn't expect me to stay here." She remarked, studying their frames for any hint that they were going to make her stay until Ben came back. They didn't usually, but there was a first for everything.
Belle shook her head. "Oh, no. I was surprised you even waited for him to leave." She turned a page to her book with a smirk.
Adam hummed in agreement. "Go on, then. Better hurry." He retook his seat and set his hand atop Belle's.
Mal smiled and slipped towards the door Ben had vanished out of.
Why was she leaving? It wasn't like Ben was perfectly okay to handle Audrey's flamboyancy on his own. Also, she totally trusted him to not cheat on her or anything, especially since Audrey grated on him such. Could it really be considered cheating? Yes, of course. Probably?
Mal rounded the corner to the entrance hall and stood beside the edge of the wall so she could hear what was going on down below. She hadn't been that far behind Ben, so the two of them were still exchanging pleasantries.
"It's so great to see you again, Benny-Boo!" Audrey crowed. "I missed you!"
"It's nice to see you too, Audrey. I didn't realize you would be dropping by today." Ben said. His tone made Mal wrinkle her nose. He was talking all official, all stern and kingly. Mal listened to his shoes click across the floor. Even his footfalls were perfectly timed.
"Sorry for not calling ahead. I used to drop by all the time, so I hoped it wouldn't be an inconvenience." Audrey said, sounding sweeter than sugar. Mal rolled her eyes and began untwisting her napkin to pull a strawberry out as she listened to them talk.
"Well, we were just in the middle of lunch, so you weren't interrupting anything too dramatic. Just keep in mind that I am king now, and I can't afford to drop everything every time a friend comes to the palace. It's nice to catch up, but please let me know ahead of time if you decide to swing around again." Ben counseled. A warning was clear in his tone, and Mal could almost hear Audrey's jaw hitting the floor.
"But – you always welcomed me when I came before! Aside from those last two times…" Audrey growled. Mal could feel Ben roll his eyes from twenty feet away.
"Yes, but I was just the prince back then. Now I'm the King, and I need to make sure the country is operable. Also, we were together back then. We're not now." Ben argued.
"We could be," Audrey proposed.
A chill settled on her skin. Mal peered around the corner to make sure she hadn't really heard what she thought she'd heard. Down the stairs, three feet in front of the front door, Audrey stood with a card and a lapel in her hand. A box of chocolates was tucked under her arm. She was wearing a dress that was more red than pink, with silver embroidered tights that made her tan legs look metallic. Her dress was very womanly. It was elbow-length and made of a very stretchy, easily-removable fabric. A very low v-neck cut down to her ribcage. The skirt to the dress was knee length but had a risqué slit up to her upper thigh. Her hair was curled and half-up with a large diamond choker set in between her collar bones.
Mal observed how Ben kept his eyes firmly trained on Audrey's face and how he kept his shoulders rigid. No relaxing there. She couldn't deny though, that she was apprehensive. Her mouth was dry, and she almost felt a little sick.
"No, we can't be, Audrey." Ben retorted, sounding equally taken aback and clasping his hands behind his back like a king. "I'm married. Remember?" Mal squinted and could see him fiddling with his ring out of Audrey's sight. She lifted her own hand and began to twist her ring, mirroring his actions as she swallowed a little. Why was her throat so dry?
"To an Isle witch who's not here most of the time anyway." Audrey laughed, stalking toward Ben. "How could I forget? Is she even here right now, or have you been spending today all alone?" Before he could answer, Audrey giggled and said: "Besides, she can't be a very passionate woman, what with her growing up in villainy."
Ben exhaled, which Mal could hear echo all the way up the stairs. "Why would you say that?" He demanded. "Who gave you the right?" Anger brimmed in his tone, but Audrey ignored it.
"Is she, then?" She laughed, taking another step towards him and leaning forward so that stupid, stupid dress dropped a little. Ben stopped her with a finger and an angry look. "I thought not." Audrey laughed. Her comment stung like someone was pricking her with needles. Mal was plenty passionate... about the moorlands the Isle and kissing Ben and a couple of other things. Getting physical with her husband didn't happen to be one of them, but that was fine because this was all arranged, anyway. It was temporary.
"Don't tempt me, Audrey. It won't work. Mal, for your information, is the most fantastic woman, sorry – lady, I have ever met. You're wrong about her. She's plenty passionate, smart, kind, and she's a fantastic queen." He warned through gritted teeth.
"Well," Audrey flipped her hair. "She's not my queen, and I bet if you let me, I could sway you to my point of view." Audrey leaned up and put her arms around Ben. He seized her wrists and let them swing back down to her sides before he turned.
"I think we're done here," Ben said, staring at the floor as he began to walk up the stairs. "You disrespect my wife and the way I choose to live my life. I will be informing your mother and grandmother about your conduct."
"What?" Audrey protested, looking like she'd swallowed a lemon. "But Ben, won't you even consider – you loved me, I know it!"
"No," Ben said softly, pausing. He turned and sat down on the stairs. "I never loved you, and I told you so. You know I've never fallen in love before." He ran his hands through his hair. "You were my best friend, and I hoped it would turn into love, but it never could. And now… how could I love a child who thinks to dress up in her mother's color, to come down into a married man's home, and request that he lust her and lay with her on the day we celebrate the very thing that makes us different from our villains – love." He shook his head.
Audrey went to sit on the stair below him, where she set her arms and her chin on his knee. Ben moved away with a sigh, but Audrey began to talk. "Ben, you know me. We're best friends. It's not lusting if we love each other and it's not wrong because I know you and you'd never do anything wrong. And Ben, if this is about Mal, don't worry. She grew up with her mother. How could she understand love? She's probably used to affairs and carnal desires. How do you know she hasn't gone off with someone already? Who knows what's in the moors? How do you know, every time she says: "I love you," that she actually knows what that means? Or worse, that she's not thinking of someone else when she says it."
Ben was silent. Mal watched as his shoulders began to tremble. A sense of horror welled up in her. Was he about to break? Were Audrey's evil words affecting him? God, he had to know it wasn't true, didn't he? Ben stood up. "Please leave." He growled in a tone so low and rocky that Mal almost couldn't understand him. "Now." He demanded. He swung his legs away and stood up. Audrey sat, looking shocked on the stairs.
Ben turned and continued his walk up the stairs. He glanced down the hall, then did a double take. Mal moved out of sight, knowing it was too late and he'd already seen her there. Her heart thumped against her ribcage.
"You've trapped yourself, Ben!" Audrey exclaimed, her voice levels rising. "Why did you even bring her over? Why did your parents bring her? They honestly couldn't think you'd ever fall for – a villain!"
"I fell for an angel." Ben corrected, still walking away. "But I'm speaking to a villain."
"She's warped your judgment! You're in danger!" Audrey claimed. Her face was turning red as she clenched her fists.
"Enough, Audrey," Ben growled, waving a hand in her general direction.
"No, it's not enough. She'll never be enough for you, Benjamin Florian. Even now, she probably has you under a million spells! She's magical and villainous – she can't be trusted!" Audrey began to yell. "Has she ever even told you she loves you? You deserve more!"
Ben stopped dead and took more than a deep breath. "Audrey, leave now, please. You will not be accepted back if you continue this. I'll call the guards if I have to."
"Ben, you're making a huge mistake," Audrey growled through gritted teeth.
Ben's nostrils flared. He turned, looked at Audrey, and for the first time, looked her up and down, examining her and her preppy outfit and taking everything about her in. Just the insinuation made Mal's skin crawl. Then, a tight smile stretched across his lips. "Am I? He asked. "I don't see anything here that I'm missing out on with Mal."
He turned as Audrey's jaw unhinged from her skull and hung open. Mal kept her mouth shut and did not move into the light as Ben turned into the corridor, brushing past her. She knew that if Audrey knew she was there, she would accuse her of bewitching Ben, and claim that Ben only turned down her risqué offer because she was standing nearby. So, as soon as she was sure Audrey had walked out the front door and away from the building, she turned and quietly stalked behind her husband.
He wove through the corridors with such speed that Mal could scarcely keep up until he finally paused at the doorway to their bedroom. There, he knocked softly, and called: "Mal?"
Everything clicked. When he'd seen her vanish, he assumed she'd run to their room. He hadn't even noticed her standing in the shadows or following him up.
"Yes?" She asked.
He turned around and smiled at her. "Oh." He rubbed the back of his head. "I hope you didn't follow me all the way up here and I walked here for no reason."
"I did, but it doesn't matter," Mal replied, pulling a strawberry out of her pocket. She slipped past him and opened the door. "After you?"
Ben's shoulders fell a little. "Thanks." He mumbled, slipping inside. "Why didn't you say anything?"
"I honestly thought you knew I was there." Mal shrugged. She shut the door behind them and went to sit on their little chaise. "Come sit by me?" She asked, patting the seat.
He did so with none too wary eye. As he glanced over at her, Mal untwisted her napkin. "Strawberry?" She offered, tucking her feet up underneath her.
Ben took one wordlessly.
Mal drummed her fingers on the arm of the chaise. "That was dramatic." She started.
"Yeah…" Ben agreed. "How much did you hear?"
"Almost all of it." Mal took a bite of strawberry. Ben twisted one in his hands quietly. Mal watched him, then slipped a hand under his chin. "Hey." She said. With that one word, the reality of it all started to crush her. Audrey had tried to steal him back. She'd used cruel flattery, and wicked premonitions, and it hurt. A lot, actually. She choked. "You – you know that I – I would never, ever-" Tears filled her eyes. Mal was so horrified at herself for the tears that she bit her lip and tasted blood. "I'd never spell you." She said in a strangled tone. "Never, ever, never. Not without your permission and nothing dangerous because I-"
"Shh," He cut her off with a hand on her cheek, which was good because Mal felt like she was beginning to blubber. "I know. You haven't used magic on anyone except the moors and yourself. And you've only ever used it for good when you could have done otherwise." He smiled, and then withdrew his hand. "Audrey was just being cruel. She has an incredible capability for evil, and she just doesn't realize it." He clasped his hands around his knees and took to staring straight ahead at the wall in front of him.
Mal scrubbed the water out of her eyes before the tears could fall and slipped onto the floor. She knelt at Ben's feet and reached up. He, too, was crying, so she wiped his tears away, and then kissed the tip of his nose. He began to shake. "I'm sorry." He hid his face. "I shouldn't be like this, I'm sorry."
"No, no. That was so hard on you." Mal said. She could tell he was trying to hold up for her sake. "It's okay. You don't have to be king right now. Just be Ben."
Those seemed to be the magic words. He'd been trying to be king again. Always careful of his words, always trying to be upstanding around people he wanted to impress. Ben broke down, sliding onto the floor and burying his head in her shoulder. Mal clutched him as tightly as she could as he shook and sobbed. Her throat felt tight as his hands landed awkwardly on her leg.
"She was my friend." He sobbed. "We grew up together. And the things she said, how awful."
It was awful. Mal couldn't imagine if someone like Jay or Carlos had twisted their past like that. Or worse, if Ben had twisted it. She rubbed his back and whispered sweet nothings into his hair as he kept his long arms wrapped around her waist. After a long while, he began to calm down. Mal messed with his hair fondly as he slowly gathered himself and revealed his red-eyed, red-nosed face. She laid his head on her lap as the rest of his body stretched down past the chaise. She rubbed his hair and wiped stray tears away from his eyes as they appeared.
"I'm proud of you." She whispered.
He chuckled dryly. "Me? Can't imagine why. Aren't you worried or freaking out about any of the things she said?"
About how she wasn't a passionate woman? About how she'd never be enough for him? Mal thought about it, then shook her head. "No. I know she said everything spitefully. A couple of things hurt, but I've definitely heard worse. I'm proud of you for standing so tall. You handled that so well."
"By breaking down and crying like a girl." Ben scowled, wiping at his face.
Mal frowned. "What do you mean, like a girl?" She asked. "I'm a girl, and I've never cried in my life. Granted, I just came close, but I never have."
Ben looked a little surprised. He put his hand to his head and thought for a few seconds. "Huh." He said. "I guess that was a really sexist thing to say. I'm sorry, I won't say it anymore."
"Sexist?" Mal asked.
"Being particularly mean to one of the genders," Ben replied lazily.
"Okay." Mal shrugged.
Ben lifted his head and slid up close to Mal. "Can I get a few things off my chest?" He asked.
A sense of dread washed over her. Still, she squared her shoulders and put an arm around his neck. "Of course. That's what I'm here for, right?"
Ben clasped his hands and began to twiddle his fingers. "Audrey said… during her rant, you've probably gone off with someone else at the moors. I know she was being spiteful and trying to hurt me and you, and I trust you. I just… I want you to be honest with me." He slumped in defeat. "I-I want you to be happy. Above all else. And, if there's someone else…" His breath caught, and Ben had to turn to cough momentarily. Mal saw the tears return to his eyes.
She reached out to touch his shoulder. "There's no one else." She promised. "And I'm going to stay with you. I wouldn't make you stand by and keep pretending to be my husband as I frolic with other people."
Ben nodded and took several deep breaths. He laid his head on her shoulder. His fingers splayed out on his legs. "I love you." He told her softly for the first time.
The air in the room became moist and hard to breathe. Mal felt like someone had laid a pile of rocks on her chest. She froze. He loved her? For real? This soon? How could he possibly know that? After several seconds, Ben moved. Mal knew immediately that her stillness had hurt him.
"It's okay though," Ben said sadly and cleared his throat. "You don't have to love me. You know I'll understand."
Audrey's words echoed in her brain like someone had shot a bullet inside her head and it was ricocheting, again and again. "You deserve better." "Has she ever even told you that she loves you?" The ceiling suddenly seemed dramatically low, and the walls were inching closer to her, waiting to crush her beneath an incomprehensible weight.
Mal let out a guttural sound. Ben was looking at her strangely. "Mal." He called her back to earth. Then, more urgently: "Mal, breathe."
She looked down at her hands. They felt numb. Her head was pounding and colors were blending. She couldn't remember her own name as she focused on her heartbeat, loud in her ears. She put her hands around her own throat and took a deep breath. Her head started to clear.
Ben took her face carefully and looked into her eyes, drawing her focus. "Are you okay?" He asked. His hands were soft on her jaw, but the last thing she wanted him to do was kiss her now.
Mal didn't know if she was okay or not. She remembered when she'd come to Auradon, and she'd been sitting in her old room, and the world had started to fall in on her, and the lights had been too bright, and her head had wanted to split. She felt like that now.
"Ben." She gasped. "I- I don't know. I like you, a lot, but-" More blasted tears welled up in her eyes. "Audrey's right. How could I ever know what love is? I don't know, and I don't want to accidentally lie to you because… what if I don't ever know?" She sniffled, stared at the ceiling, and tried to blink the liquid away. How could Maleficent's daughter ever fall in love? And with a prince? The idea was just... preposterous. "I- I would never want to lie to you or hurt you." She confessed. The silence intensified as she gasped for breath and fought to keep from crying. It was a hard battle. She'd never had to stave off tears with her sheer will before.
Ben listened carefully to her words and smiled. He leaned in and kissed her cheek. His lips lingered on her face. Mal squeezed her eyes shut until she felt him lean back a little. She peeked her eyes open and met his gaze. Then, he got to his knees and whispered: "I love you too, Mal."
He stood up and went into the bathroom to wash his face, sensing Mal wanted to be alone. She sat in shock for several seconds and then stared at her hands, still warm from Ben holding them.
'I love you too', he'd said. Too. As if returning a sentiment. Mal had said: 'I would never lie or hurt you', and he'd said: "I love you too."
Is that what love was? Protecting the other from harm? Being open and honest even if you broke down in front of the other person? Could it be that she already knew what it was like?
She thought of Belle, quietly trusting Adam, and Adam looking to Belle to correct him. She thought of Ben, encouraging her to do magic, which she loved. She remembered all the times she needed to talk to Ben to get his advice.
And Sophia, sending soft smiles at Stewart, and Stewart supporting Mal. The moor people, supporting each other. Aurora, encouraging and reprimanding Audrey. Belle and Adam standing in support of her and Ben on their wedding day, even signing their gifts to Mal as 'Mom and Dad'.
The only thing Mal was sure of at this point was that love could not be was dissing your childhood friend into lust using his current marriage. Funny all the things she could learn not to be from Audrey.
Despite all her thoughts, she couldn't look at him for a while. She couldn't even look at the spot he'd been sitting at. Her heart was beating too fast for her to focus, and her hands were shaking too much to be useful. Mal stayed crouched beside the couch, thinking on everything, picking off the strawberries in her pockets one by one.
She liked Ben. A lot. And he liked her. And they were married. And he was one of her closest friends. But she couldn't lie and say she loved him.
And so, like a fool, she took to her new page to console herself. At the top of the Big News section was the latest trending article: Signs that Queen Mal is about to go 'Empress of all Evil' on us. She swallowed and quickly thumbed away to her own tab. "On this day of snow and love and whatever else 'the day of lovers' is supposed to encompass, I have a very serious question for Auradon: What is love supposed to look/feel like?"
Ben reappeared from the bathroom, saw her still sitting alone beside the couch, and wandered over to take her hand. She let him, though she stared warily as he looked into her eyes, and then raised her knuckles to his mouth to kiss them. Her stomach turned. Without a word, he stood up and straightened his outfit. "I want to go finish lunch." He whispered. "Do you want to come with?"
Mal shook her head without a word and dropped her gaze to the carpet. Ben waited a few seconds and then walked away. She listened to his feet scuff the carpet as he approached the hall and then heard the door click into place behind him. Her phone buzzed, and she looked down at the screen. A text from Sophia read: "So... what happened?"
"What do you mean?" Mal asked with a frown.
"You're posting on social media." Sophia prodded. "Something bad happen?"
Mal swallowed. She couldn't believe Sophia already knew. More people must look at her page than she'd thought. "Audrey." She admitted to Sophia. "She came back up to talk at Ben. I guess I'm just a little stunned." She returned to the page she'd uploaded, and her breath caught. It hadn't been ten minutes, and people were responding and sharing her simple post. And the comments were unbelievable. Some were silly, like: 'First comment', and others were in-depth chains of thought. A message from the daughter of the Snow Queen, Ericka, stood out to her: "Finding ways to be there for each other, even when the distance is tough."
That comment was a bit strange. All of Ericka's family lived in Arendelle. But it struck an odd chord in Mal, and several pangs of guilt ran through her. Once again, she was failing her Isle Friends.
"I remember during my lifetime I would meet women, and it was almost like God would say to me, 'Now this is not the one you are going to end up with, but she is a lot like this woman; look at this woman, study this woman.' And when my wife showed up, He was like, 'You recognize her now?"
"Vows and rings don't change anything: the challenges are the same. Every day is just a conscious commitment to making the next day better."
"Ultimately, I believe the only secret to a happy marriage is choosing the right person. Life is a series of choices, right?"
"When there's someone who doesn't catch your eye immediately, but you talk to them and they become the most beautiful thing in the world."
"Finding the one is not just a feeling, it's an educated guess. I feel like I chose someone to share my life with who is my friend."
There were others. Countless others with funny stories and cute slogans and complex philosophies. There were so many she had no idea if she'd ever be able to skim them all. It was kind of cool, really. Maybe the people of Auradon weren't sure about her as a leader, but they were sure of her as a person.
Mal clutched her phone in her hands as a little smile spread across her face. This was who she was working for. This was who Ben worked for. This was their sprawling nation of families and friends who looked up to the palace every day. And Mal held a deep, deep respect for them - the people who put their faith in the government and demanded the best of their leaders.
"You're posting weird stuff." Ben texted. Mal wrinkled her nose.
"'One thing I do find really sexy is a girl who's good at crossword puzzles.'" She quoted back at him from her page. He sent a moving picture of someone rolling their eyes and then fell silent, and Mal leaned back against the headboard. Step one, which had been to get out of being queen and get back to the Isle, had failed. Step two, fix the Isle, was underway. She was healing the moors, and finally working together with Ben. Now, she assumed, step five would be to figure out this mess of complicated emotions. What was love, anyway?
Despite the setbacks of the day, they still made it a beautiful day in the end. She found him in the quiet hours of the evening with his family. Everyone crowded into the family room; Ben, Belle, Adam, Sophia, Stewart, Lumiere and a tall, pale, woman with a sickly pallor who was introduced as Lumiere's sweetheart Plumette. When she first entered, they all glanced up simultaneously, giving Mal the impression that they'd all been talking about her even though the room was silent. She assumed it was all good things from the lack of animosity as she went to Ben and sat beside him.
Together on the floor, Mal didn't touch Ben until he opened his hand, palm up, for her to slip her fingers into. When their hands were twined closely together, She turned her head and kissed him quickly. With the light of the fire casting orange shadows on them, she leaned her head on his shoulder and yawned. Behind them, Adam was pulling up a blanket around him and Belle, Lumiere was rubbing Plumette's chilly fingers, and Sophia and Stewart were whispering quietly with their knees touching. Mal reached into her pocket and pulled out the last one of the strawberries she had snitched that day. She showed Ben her treasure with a cheeky smile and used her nail to clumsily break the berry in half for him.
With the taste of warm strawberry on her tongue and the comforting smell of smoke in the room, her eyes began to drift closed. As Ben's warm, strong fingers curled over her knuckles and twisted her marriage band around her finger, she dreamed of bright colors and soft smiles.
You know, I'm not going to say people who review may get spoilers or small tips about upcoming chapters, but hey, people who ask questions may receive answers…
I do not own Descendants, Beauty and the Beast, Maleficent, Sleeping Beauty, Aladdin, 101 Dalmatians, or Frozen, OR MOST OF THE QUOTES that I used in this chapter. You all should be very skeptical of that. An Extra text spoiler from upcoming Chapter 19 is included in the footnotes to the Archive of Our Own version of this story.