A little shorter this week - I moved some of the chapter into the next one.
"Queen Mal!" An attendant rushed down the hall with a stack of papers in their hands. "Before you leave for the Isle of the Lost, you need to complete these for the kingdom of Dun Broch."
Mal frowned at the person as they held the papers out. Her Isle jacket was in one hand and her cell phone in the other. She was clearly about to walk out the door but evidently hadn't managed to escape Auradon in time. "I'm on Isle time," She shook her head, continuing to step away towards the door. "It's on my calendar. I've had it blocked since Tuesday. My other country needs me today."
"Well, Auradon needs you right now," The attendant insisted, trying to hand her the papers. "These have to be submitted tonight. If you can do them right now, then I can send them out before it's too late."
"Where were these yesterday when I was in Ben's and my offices until half past midnight?" Mal demanded. She had so many new bruises and cramps were surfacing in muscles she hadn't used since she left the Isle. A new callous had formed three times over one top of the area her pen would rest when she wrote, and her fingertips had been stained by pen ink to the point she couldn't even scrub it off. "Listen, I'm leaving right now. I'll be back at nine and I'll complete them then."
"Here's a pen," The attendant replied flatly. "And these were in Ben's file holder on his desk. I had to go find them because Dun Broch paged to ask about them." He shoved a pen towards her hand and Mal dropped her phone, which fell to the floor with a clatter. They both winced and, as she started to bend down for it, he held up a hand. "Let me, your majesty."
He reached down, scooped up the phone and examined the screen with an expression that quickly began to fall. Mal stared at him and then sighed. "It's broken, huh?" She asked.
"I'll let Doug know it needs to be repaired and he'll take care of it." The attendant assured her. He reached out for her Isle jacket and Mal deflated as she handed it over.
"Fine," She exhaled, trading him for the papers. "But I have to go after that, otherwise I'll miss the boat for the Isle. I don't have time for Auradon to hold me up like this."
"Well, Auradon doesn't have time for you to leave us as much as you do," The attendant retorted. "Don't forget you're supposed to be in the Moorlands next week, but Arendelle might start a war with Weselton if you don't come up with another solution to their trading dispute."
"I'll deal with it tonight," Mal replied through gritted teeth. She uncapped the pen lid and began scanning the papers for keywords and statements, along with anywhere she needed to sign.
"With all due respect, your Highness," the attendant mumbled in a low voice, "You've said that about nine other things already."
She knew she had. And She knew, vaguely, what they were as well. Something for Arendelle… something for Oceania… A couple of things about the war… She shook her head and growled as she shoved the finished papers back towards the attendant and snatched her jacket and phone away from the attendant.
"I'm leaving now," She announced, shoving her phone into her pocket. "If anything else comes up, drop it on mine or Ben's desk and I'll deal with it before I go to bed tonight. You don't chase Ben around the castle, so I don't understand why you're trying to do it with me."
"Your Majesty, the King can aptly balance his workload without skipping four meals in a row," The attendants pointed out in a nagging tone.
Mal snarled and felt a bit of steam waft up from her hair and her horns appeared past her locks. The attendant backed off, looking afraid. "Ben isn't balancing three countries!" She snapped and then turned to storm out. Did she have everything? Her jacket was slung over her arm, her now-broken phone was in her back pocket, that should be every-
Her shoes. Her shoes were beside the door.
They'd been covered with mud last time she went to the Isle due to a rainstorm that had swept through the area, and Lumiere had been kind enough to clean them off for her, but they'd never been returned to her room. She almost walked outside with no shoes on before she stopped and snatched them up.
It was almost November… just a few more days and then she'd finally be able to leave Auradon and go to the Moorlands. Sure, she'd have to take all of the available work with her, only stay for three weeks instead of the full month, and return after two weeks to grab anything from Auradon that was falling behind in being completed, but she'd be able to complete all her usual duties in the moorlands and escape the constant rush of people. Also, she'd be able to recharge magically, which would be wonderful.
Ben's kingdom, she was being reminded, was so secretive! Mal had forgotten about how she wasn't allowed to talk to anyone or share information across the kingdoms. Ben, who had been raised in secrecy, made it barely noticeable. How was work? It was stressful. What did he do? He signed papers and helped people resolve arguments.
But, underneath the surface, it was so much more.
He had to write epistles to the other kingdoms forbidding them from warring with each other and ensure national protection services, national emergency services, and national monetary services were all functioning, and approve every law in every kingdom within a certain amount of time. Not to mention the political agenda – Mal had had no idea how many people were trying to usurp Ben. He'd never mentioned it to her outside of a brief summary, but she'd had nine different spontaneous meetings where people walked in to examine her work and check through Ben's office on claims of corruption, and Ben had only been gone a few weeks.
With the Isle, it was simple. She had to spell the walls so that the rain and storms wouldn't damage them over time, finish paving a path from the docks to the city, and then begin writing laws regarding business monopolies and corruption. She didn't have to jump through hoops to do the things she wanted – she just had to ensure nothing would eventually backfire on her or the community.
Her phone buzzed in her jacket. Mal pulled it out and squinted through the cracks to see a message from Audrey. "Are you not coming down again?" It read.
Mal sliced her thumb on the screen as she tried to open it – it was easy to do since her skin was so dry – and grumbled as she typed out: "Keep getting held up. Be there soon."
"Queen Mal," a voice sounded in front of her. Mal looked up and found three men in front of her. One had pasty white skin, another had coppery tones, and the third had dark, thickly-pigmented skin. All wore top hats, white button-up shirts, and black suits. Mal deflated.
"I'm out of office now, gentlemen," She declared. "I'm leaving for the Isle. You'll have to come back later.
"We're an appraisal committee from Andalusia," The dark-skinned man announced. "We're investigating a report of misconduct."
Mal stared at them. "I have had nine of you guys already, from nine separate countries. How am I supposed to get any work done if I have to drop everything whenever one of you shows up? Surely you don't accuse Ben of all this… rubbish?"
The men glanced at each other and Mal looked skyward. "Fine," She hissed, blinking back a few sparse, stressed tears. "Let me… give me a moment." She bit on her blood-covered thumb for a few moments and then opened her phone again. To Audrey, she said: "My plans were just forcibly cleared up for me. I'll try and make it to the Isle tomorrow."
Even though this was the tenth time she had said that. She'd been ruling the Isle purely from her office and hoped none of the Isle Residents were taking advantage of her absence to see how far they could stretch her rules. Sure, everything had been smooth so far, but she was working with an island of former villains and their children.
"Again?" Audrey asked. Mal couldn't find it in her to respond as she shoved her phone into her pocket and turned to disappear.
"I'm going to kill someone," Mal announced through the low lights in the office as she stared at her right hand, the ring finger of which had completely bruised over from writing. The brightest light in the dim room was her cell phone, signaling a call to Evie. "If someone else stops me from leaving for the Isle or to my bedroom, I'm going to return to my villainous childhood and barbecue them."
"You're doing too much, Mal," Evie whispered. "Why don't you have Belle and Adam take over?"
"Can't," Mal shook her head. "This is all official stuff I'm struggling with. It all needs a signature, or it requires a member of the royal party, currently consisting of Ben and I. Belle and Adam have taken over literally everything they're allowed to without me changing their titles. Not that that doesn't mean Adam isn't still trying to put his fingerprints over everything and hunting through Ben's office."
"Hunting through Ben's office?" Evie repeated, sounding dumbfounded. Mal let out a flabbergasted groan.
"I think he's hoping to stumble upon Ben's laws-in-progress. Ben moved them to… well, actually, I'm not allowed to tell you that either." Mal grumbled as she slumped into her chair. "I hate this. I hate everything."
"Maybe you should stay in Auradon to catch up?" Evie suggested. "I mean, Mal, you're struggling. It's obvious."
Mal burst into tears. It was like she'd been holding up a wall blocking a reservoir and now all the water was spilling out over the top and crashing down over her head. "I don't want to stay in Auradon!" She sobbed. "I'm so sick of people barging in and messing everything up… Ben's job sucks and I hate it! I just want to be on the Isle or in the moors and just… not here."
Mal's heart thudded in disappointment. She wiped her tears away with her fingertips and then reached for a box of tissues. She wanted out. She was being trapped with all this work and, well, the Enchantress had called it. She was done.
Something had to give. Either her sanity or Auradon itself.
Evie had gone silent, obviously unsure of what to do, so Mal reached over and picked up her phone. "I'm, uh, going to go. I just… can't. I'll talk to you later." She heard Evie start to reply but hung up.
Her fingers were cramped up and bruises stretched across her fingertips, but Mal woke her computer back up and opened a new word file. It took all of three minutes to create a rough draft of what she wanted, and then an extra fifteen to make it look official and make sure everything read smoothly without errors. Then, she sent the file to Doug and began the next one.
Ben had left Auradon in her hands. He'd given her permission to make changes. She figured that he'd approve of her efforts, even if he didn't find out about them for a while.
After her fourth change, a knock sounded at the door. She looked up and spotted Lumiere, dressed in his nightclothes and with a woolen hat on his head, and dropped her hands as he stepped inside. He examined the work on the desk and her mistreated hands. "It's late, Mal," He whispered.
"I know," Mal nodded. "I'm just finishing things. Honest, Lumiere."
Lumiere shook his head. "Ben wouldn't like this, Mal," He reprimanded.
"He doesn't like it. And neither do I," Mal pointed out. "But we have to go through with it. It's our duty." She stood up, rubbing her knuckles and wincing in pain. "But… I'm sick of it. I've been forced to deal with Auradon and now… it's time they returned the favor."
Lumiere stared at her, looking extremely cautious. "How about we get you to sleep, miss? You can consider turning Auradon into a more acceptable community in the morning."
Mal nodded in agreement and carefully got to her feet. Her feet and legs were stiff too. "Okay," She sighed, and then carefully bent her fingers to pop each of her joints with a loud, satisfying crack. "I'm, uh, going to close up then." She felt on the underside of her computer for the sleep function. She paused, staring at Lumiere. "I can't remember if I locked up Ben's office or not," She mumbled, touching her fingertips to her head.
"I can walk by and-" Lumiere began, but Mal waved a hand to cut him off.
"No," she shook her head. "No. I need to check something anyways." She picked up her phone and noticed several long strings of questions from Doug, who had already discovered her changes. Perfect. She flipped off the light, wincing as the switch dug into her bruised finger, and patted Lumiere's shoulder as she passed by him and turned into the hall, on her way to Ben's office.
She could hear mumbling as she approached. The light was on, and one long shadow stretched across the room. Mal grit her teeth. She slipped past the doorframe without a sound and leaned against the wall right beside the light. Adam was looking through the cabinets on the far side of the room. On Ben's desk was an open book of records from the last five months and several pieces of mail, all opened. The mail was fine, as Adam and Belle were allowed to look through it unless it was sealed with a certain stamp, but Mal frowned as she glanced at the open drawers in the desk, the files jostled inside the filing cabinet, and her and Ben's picture knocked over on the desk among a clutter of pens and pencils.
Adam didn't notice her as he mumbled to himself, tracing the spines of several books with his finger and muttering under his breath: "Laws… laws… laws."
"The law says you shouldn't be in there," Mal called.
Adam jumped and leaped around in the same motion, snarled in surprise and preparing to lash out before he caught sight of her and relaxed. "Mal," He breathed. "A few more papers came in for you – I read through them but they're just permit requests from-"
"Adam," Mal interrupted, letting her eyes light up and crossing her arms as her horns poked up underneath her hair. "You know you're going too far." She flicked her fingers and Ben's desk straightened itself up. Pens flew back into their holder, drawers closed, everything returned to its nice and neat state. The way Ben liked it. The way she liked it.
Adam's hair was rising on end. "You can't do that here, Mal," He warned. "Magic… it's still illegal."
"Here's the deal, Adam," Mal grit her teeth. "It's clear you're not going to stop invading, so I might as well tell you what's going on with all those things you're so concerned about. Ben's laws and his important stuff?" She paused, watching Adam flush a little without showing the slightest regret. It made her angry, how he thought he was entitled to his son's work. "They've been cursed. If you get too close to them, you'll be reliving the way you were when Belle first met you. I'm tired of warning you."
Harsh punishment? Yes. Effective? Equal yes.
Adam's eyes grew large and bold. "You… you can't! It's illegal. Even the Queen can be prosecuted!"
"For magic performed outside of Auradon?" Mal replied sweetly.
Adam balled his fists up and growled. Mal let the corner of her mouth crook up as she imagined all of Ben's things safely in her office across the sea, where Adam would likely never set foot. Drastic times called for drastic measures.
It was odd, standing up to her father-in-law. She'd had disagreements with him, of course, but she had always stood back as Ben fought with him. She'd never actually stood up to him.
"Starting tomorrow, it will be illegal for anyone to come through either Ben or my offices without a member of the royal party. I'll come in so you can grab stuff, but this – you sneaking around – is ridiculous. I've already submitted the paperwork to make it a law." She crossed her arms and Adam's growl turned into a ferocious snarl.
"Have you spoken to Ben about this?" He asked, stepping toward her so that his shadow fell over her. Mal felt like she was standing under her mother and let her horns out even more as he drew closer.
"I don't need to," She replied simply. "I'm queen, remember?"
"I knew you would manipulate us all," Adam grit out.
The words went through Mal like a bullet through her chest. She narrowed her eyes. "Yes, now that I'm stopping you from overstepping bounds Ben has already told you to keep behind, I'm the villain."
"Don't put this on me!" Adam yelled, spit flying from his lips and Mal's eardrums hammering at the sudden volume. "This is my kingdom!"
"It is not!" Mal yelled back in such an explosive manner that Adam was pushed back a few feet. "This is Ben's kingdom! You always forget – you are not the king! You will never be king again!"
"I am still in power!" Adam snarled. He took a swipe at the pen jar on Ben's desk and it went smashing to the ground, hurling pieces of porcelain into the carpet. His skin was going darker, and his hands seemed longer. "Have you forgotten that Ben gets his power from me? The people still respect me over him?"
"Who?" Mal demanded. She held up a patronizing finger. "Everyone I know – from Elsa to Jack Frost – holds Ben in higher respect. Think about it – the man who is reopening the barrier to the Moorlands, who took off the Isle from Auradon expenses and who is making the land more habitable, and the man who-"
"Who has the most powerful person in his grasp?" Adam cut her off and took a swipe at her hand, which was still aloft, to force her to put it down. "Any imagined power Ben has comes from the threat of a magical person who refuses to conform to our laws. What else have you been putting into motion?"
"Ben doesn't control me!" Mal snapped at him. The windows fractured and the lights flickered, but both were getting angrier and angrier. Mal could feel her magic seething with her – every pent-up emotion from the last few weeks and the stress of Auradon demanding everything about her and her worry for her countries, for Ben…
"He got you to stay behind and play housekeeper to his country," Adam claimed. "Poor, tiny Mal, staying behind to watch his people and raise her baby while he goes off to play the hero?"
Mal extended her hand, and magic exploded from her fingertips like a cannon blast. Adam went hurtling from across the room and hit the wall completely on his spine. He slumped to the carpet, gasping, but Mal doubted he was hurt. More likely stunned – especially as he watched hair growing on his hands and his fingernails turning into jagged claws.
Mal watched as Ben's father returned to the beast right in front of her eyes.
There was a gasp from behind her. Lumiere, who had followed her, was standing with a hand to his throat as he watched Adam slowly get up and examine his hands in horror. Mal had to hand it to Belle for falling for him as cruel and hideous as Adam had been. Horrible, crooked, sharp horns extended out of Adam's head, and mangy fur covered his face so much that Mal couldn't even discern where his cheeks and brow line would begin. He felt his face carefully and then turned to her with his eyes blazing.
"What have you done?" He growled.
"It'll be gone in the morning," Mal declared. "Maybe it'll remind you of what you're not supposed to be."
Adam leaped at her, snarling, and his growl was so loud that Mal saw lights explode behind her eyes before three red-hot lines appeared on her cheek. She let her magic react without her permission, and when the room returned to normal, there was a large black box in front of her, and Ben's desk had been pushed evenly up against the wall. Lumiere was sitting down in the hall, gasping for breath and feeling up and down his arms, making sure he wasn't returning to his candelabra prison. "Where… what?" He gasped.
Mal put her hand up to the box. It was tall, about Adam's height, and wide. She could hear, like echoes from miles away, Adam slamming his hands against it. Mal closed her eyes and tried to feel out where it had come from, what she had accidentally summoned. An image, unbidden, of the Beast slamming his fists against his own reflection appeared. She swallowed. "I… think it's a box of mirrors. I didn't mean to conjure it, but… I'm going to leave it here until morning. "
"Mademoiselle," Lumiere gasped. "I think… you ought to-"
Mal turned around, wiping stubborn tears out of her eyes. "Lumiere, I'm not going to bring him back just so he can yell at me!"
Lumiere stared at her, looking frightened, regretful and sympathetic all at once. Somewhere in the mess of all of that was the man who'd been locked inside of a metallic prison, who'd watched Belle and Adam grow old, and then watched Ben grow and marry her. He looked like he was seeing her for the first time as someone potentially dangerous, but considering she'd just brought the Beast back into existence, could she blame him?
Her head felt tight as she shook it fiercely. "I'll bring him back in the morning. In the morning… we'll sort this all out."
She tried to step past him, but Lumiere seized her arm. "Mal," He whispered urgently, "You can't leave him in there like that. It's cruel and – Ben wouldn't approve."
"Stop using him against me!" Mal declared, ripping her arm out of Lumiere's grasp. "Is it not enough that he's gone and I'm alone? Is it too little that everyone is reminding me that 'you're not Ben, Mal', 'Ben doesn't do it like this, Mal'?"
"He was snooping around," Lumiere protested. "He doesn't deserve to have a monstrous memory restored and then to be trapped-"
"Then I guess I'm no better than he was to leave us all locked away," Mal spat.
"You are dredging up the past!" Lumiere exploded. Mal had never seen the kind man so off-kilter. "You're being irrational and irresponsible with your power! The palace needs a queen, not a menace!"
Mal sealed his mouth closed with two fingers pinched together. Lumiere panicked, feeling his body to make sure he was still human, and Mal felt a pinch of guilt for making him panic so. Then he reached out to try and grab her shoulders and another flare of anger made her magic just to her defense. Green light beamed off her skin, searing hot, and Lumiere stopped moving towards her. Mal ducked under his arm and stormed away, leaving Ben's office unlocked and with all the lights on. It didn't matter much, she thought. He was away. He wouldn't know.
She slammed the door to their room with such force that the frame broke and the door swung out into the hall before the force of momentum brought it back around and it clicked from the wrong angle. She sealed it shut with magic and then sealed the bedroom door and all the windows for good measure. She shut her phone in a drawer somewhere and then shut herself in Ben's closet in their room.
His smell – fancy cologne and new things and books and all things home – made her start sobbing all over again. And it was only then that she felt any hint of guilt. Guilt over abusing her magic and hurting Adam, guilt over overreacting with both Lumiere and Adam, guilt for doing it all while Ben was away.
She buried her face in one of his blue button-up shirts to try and imagine it was him, and then immediately regretted the motion because now her mascara was all over the article and it would have to be washed. Still… it wouldn't matter if she held onto it for a while, right? It wasn't like he would be needing the formal clothes anytime soon.
She pulled her shirt off over her head and did his up over her head. It was at least five sizes too big, hung down past her knees, and made her feel a lot better than she had in weeks.
From a distance, she unsealed Lumiere's lips and then convinced herself to let Adam be – at least until morning. Then, she'd undo it and apologize with Belle nearby to calm them both down.
In the morning, everything would be okay.
Belle pursed her lips and focused on the box as Mal ran her hands up and down the sides of it, trying to fix it. Behind her was Lumiere, who hadn't said a word to her, and Doug, who was holding the four changes she'd made to Auradon's laws, waiting to be signed into effect. He hadn't quite grasped what the gigantic box was, but he had gathered that it wasn't good and that everyone was angry about it.
Mal tucked her thumb into the corner and split the vertice apart like it was a muffin or some sort of pastry. Then, she pushed the wall away like the entire structure was a box that opened on triangular hinges. She looked inside and nearly jumped to see her own mottled, red face peering back at her from the mirrors inside. Even though she'd slept for almost eleven hours, she felt restless and exhausted. Ben's shirt still hung loosely, almost indecently, on her frame, but no amount of cologne and starched suits could heal the amount of overwork she'd been put through overnight.
On the floor, resting against an upward-facing mirror, was Adam. He was curled into a ball, shaking a little, covering his face as he rested. His claws were bloody, and some had been snapped into shards, but none of the mirrors had broken or been scratched. As his prison moved apart, he woke, snarling a little as he shook himself out of sleep. Doug made a horrified sound behind Belle and Lumiere, while Belle began to sniffle a little in disappointment. Mal stared down at the Beast as he looked deliriously up and her and waved her fingers to make him fade back into his human form. Belle moved past her as skin replaced hair and horns and claws disappeared. Adam's fingertips were still bloodied up, but looking down at her own mistreated hands, Mal didn't feel much regret. She let her hand skim the mirrors and then urged them to disappear and return to where they had come from.
Belle helped Adam, who was shaking as he examined his hands, to his feet. She whispered in his ear and rubbed his arms a little while Adam's gaze focused on Mal, who went to Ben's desk and, with a few huffs, pushed it back into place. Once everything was how Ben would have it if he was here, she folded her arms across her chest, leaned back into the desk, and stared out the window. "I'm sorry," She began slowly, "for turning you into the Beast. It was… cruel, and you didn't deserve it." Her gaze fell to her fingertips as she curled them over her arm. "Things haven't been easy for me, and I let myself be hurt by your words."
He did deserve it. He did. But Mal was the queen, and she had to be the better person. She was the one with magic, and so she had to be the better person. She was the one who was supposed to be in charge, holding everyone together while the real leader was away. She wasn't allowed to lose her temper and dole out punishments.
Adam sniffed and turned a cold shoulder to her words. But it was fine because he was the one who had been wronged in the other's eyes. So, she supposed, she was supposed to give him respect he hadn't earned because he was her father-in-law and because he had been hurt by her actions. Never mind all that he had said about her.
Adam kept turned away from her and Belle still wouldn't meet her eyes – she hadn't since Mal had begrudgingly opened her room back up and fixed her own doorframe. She probably wouldn't for some time still.
Mal pushed herself up off the desk and skirted around the older couple as she went to Doug and held her hand out for his papers. With some hesitancy, he handed them over, and Mal glanced through them before she set them down on Ben's desk and took a seat in his chair. Finally, Belle and Adam looked over as she picked a pen and balanced it in her hand among the bruises. "What's that?" Adam asked in a voice that sounded like sandpaper felt.
Mal glanced up at him as she scribbled her signature across the line with the title 'Queen' attached. A magical seal appeared in the top right-hand corner. "I told you. I'm fixing things," she whispered. "From here on out, it is illegal for any person over the age of twelve to search through the royal parties' offices without one member of such present."
She set the paper aside as Belle cleared her throat. "Is that what happened?" She whispered. "You were snooping again?" She looked back at Mal. "Sweetheart," she called, letting go of Adam's arm to step forward and take her chin. "I know it's hard with Ben being gone, and your emotions must be insane right now, but this isn't an appropriate reaction."
Mal pushed Belle's hand away irritably. Yes, there was that too. She was irrational. Irrational and delicate and misinformed. Never mind all the awful things Adam had said. Never mind everyone chasing her around and trying to keep her in the palace. It was just her emotions. Just the fact she was pregnant and her husband was gone.
"For here on out, all investigations against the palace are to be published to the public, and without physical evidence of misconduct or a witness allegation, the royal party may only be randomly investigated once per term," Mal declared, signing her name across another paper. "I can't have people holding me up anymore. If multiple kingdoms are concerned about me turning Auradon evil while Ben is away, they'll have to work together on their concerns. It'll be good for them to talk to each other anyways."
"That's smart," Doug nodded. "And a term is six months, right? From Winter Solstice to Summer Solstice." He came to stand beside her and turned on the computer as she reviewed what she'd written last night.
"I'm going to force everyone to do their own inter-kingdom policies," Mal continued, squinting at the official font. Five minutes reading and her stress and lack-of-food-and-sleep migraine had returned. "It's ridiculous how Charmington comes to talk to me about their roads to Auroria instead of talking to them. If I have to step in, I will, but they need to communicate first. This back-and-forth… it's going to kill me if I don't stop it." She scribbled her name and set it atop the other three, which Doug picked up and began to scan into the computer for her. Mal smiled at him.
"What's that last one?" Doug asked as a document scan appeared on the computer screen.
Mal shrugged. "A couple of other things for the kingdoms. Any inter-kingdom war declared will now be considered a declaration of war against the High Palace, any private corporation must petition their local kings and queens for issues and are not allowed to randomly propose things to the High Government, and they can all manage their own building and roadway management while I'll continue to approve things for them." She signed it with a shake of her head and then reached for her phone. Doug scanned the last document into the computer for her and arranged them all into an email format. Mal took pictures of the new statements, making sure the Auradon seal was clear in the corner, and then paused to look over the email Doug had arranged to all the secondary royalty in Auradon. Without any hesitation, she hit send and sent him a grateful look. Then, she opened her phone. Her palace page had been mostly dead since Ben had left. Now, there was her first real 'Official' announcement.
Mal ran her hands through her hair and shook her head as she looked all around the office. "I'm not going to spend another day here. I want out and away," She declared. "I'm going to the Isle today. I'll take some stuff for Auradon with me, but I'm leaving."
Mal stood up, swept a pile of things into her arms, and then turned away. "Goodbye," She bid the room without another word. Somehow, she doubted anyone would try and sabotage Ben's office while she was gone. What a relief.
Hades was waiting for her on the beach. He had a heavy brown and grey leather coat and dozens of skulls hanging around his neck and was warming his hands with his ember. His face didn't change when she stepped off the ship, but he did tuck the blue gem into his pocket and straighten up. She focused on not tripping down the gangplank and then paused in front of him.
"You look like my Cerberus chewed you up and spat you back out," Hades observed, frowning a little at her eyes. He reached up like he was going to check for any sparse tears, but then forced his hands back to his sides and then into his pockets. "Your friend said that the palace has been working you hard."
"Yeah," Mal agreed, nodding a little. She did up the extra zippers on her Isle Jacket for warmth. Before coming, she'd convinced herself to change out of Ben's shirt, but not she had one of his too-small t-shirts tucked into her jeans instead. This was the kind of shirt that, if it had been him wearing it, would have flaunted every muscle he had and would have driven her wild. "It's been hard," she whispered, tucking her hands into her jeans.
"They, uh, chasing you down?" Hades asked, shifting his weight a little as they began to walk down the gangplank.
"Yeah," Mal nodded. "There's so much… crap that Ben has to sort through and I'm not really… trained to do it all. Especially with the Isle."
Hades remained silent, and somehow that prompted Mal to keep talking. "I just… I've never had to stay in one place, and now everyone is insistent on keeping an eye on me. I can't go anywhere or do anything! And my head and my hands are breaking from all the stupid crap I have to deal with. Look at these bruises!" Mal held her hands out to display them. "And no one notices. They think it's just because I'm not used to it! Like, sure, but I still have to do the paperwork for the Isle and my hands have never cracked and bled before." Mal shoved her hands back into her pockets and kicked at the beach a little in frustration. "And no one stops to think about me. Maybe that's selfish to complain about, but they keep writing me off. They think the reason I'm so upset is that-"
She cut herself off. Her stomach turned. Hades didn't know yet, about the thing inside her. He didn't know. Almost no one in Auradon or on the Isle knew. Mal didn't even know if Audrey knew yet. Probably, since Adam had spilled the news on her, but she didn't know. Hades definitely didn't. She didn't know if she wanted Hades to know.
"Because?" Her dad repeated, arching an eyebrow at her.
"Because Ben is gone," Mal answered, taking two fast steps forward and turning her gaze downward. "They think I'm overreacting because I miss him."
Hades took a dry chuckle. "They're right," He laughed.
Mal wrinkled her nose. "Okay, you know what, you don't have to be like that," She reprimanded as Hades laughed.
"It's gonna be okay, Mallie," He chuckled. "You'll figure out how to balance it."
She had to pause then, because who would have thought Hades would ever be able to comfort her? Or that he would try? She shoved her heads into her legs and raked her nails against the fabric covering her legs. "I miss mom," She admitted, softly, to him. "Or, I guess I kinda miss the idea of her. Everything has been so crazy and my life now… I wish I could ask her… I don't know."
"Little girl, you're better off without your mom," Hades snorted. "Believe me, I know. That woman is… I mean, try being married to her."
Mal felt the indescribable need to turn and run far, far away. She closed her eyes and slowed her steps. "Well, I have things I wanted to ask her. I mean… She went through, I mean, she…" Mal shut her mouth. She couldn't explain this without letting her dad in on the secret that everyone was blaming everything on. It was nicer like this. It was nice to forget she was supposed to be a queen and it was nice to get advice from him. It was nice that he didn't know yet.
The sudden grinding of sword against sword drew Mal's attention. She snapped her head up and realized they'd reached the city. In the center of the street was a figure in dark blue and a figure in pastel pink, who both held swords aloft and were attacking each other with everything they had. "Hey!" Mal began, but then stopped when she realized it was only Evan and Audrey. She barely recognized Audrey. She'd added more pastel streaks into her hair, but her long locks were up on top of her head in a messy bun instead of down in princess waves. Her pink clothes were ripped and dyed with random splotches of color and she had a cut across her cheek. Only a thin one, but still.
Evan kicked Audrey back and the sword slipped out of her hand. As it went clattering across the rocks, Audrey let loose a torrent of swear words and insults. "You two-faced baboon!" She snapped. "Go back to the Isle where you belong!"
"Tell me you've got better than that, princess!" Evan returned, laughing. "You're so bad at this that you'd be considered a prime captive for Auradon's Isle."
"Audrey?" Mal called. The two turned and stared at her. Then Evan laughed.
"You lost in front of the queen!" He taunted. "She's gonna have to demote you now."
Audrey growled and rolled her eyes good-naturedly before waving at Mal. "Finally made it out?" She asked. "Check out what we've done with the place!" She gestured around them, and Mal realized that decorations, signs, and greenery had sprung up all over the area. She glanced over bushes, street signs, business indicators, and then examined a rock decoration that crept up the front of the orphanage building. It appeared to be made of chips of concrete, and… was that spray paint?
"Did you guys bring this stone in from the old Isle of the Lost?" Mal asked, pointing to where green tints of spray paint crept around the edges of the chips.
"From the buildings that fell," Audrey nodded, getting to her feet. "There was paint on them – I was told it was yours?"
It was hers. From a lifetime ago. Now, all her talents were being repurposed. Mal nodded thoughtfully. "You guys did good," she whispered.
Evan had come down off of his emotional high and was now creeping closer to her and Hades, cautiously putting his sword down as he went. He watched her examine the fragments of her old work, and Hades outstretched an arm for him to slip underneath. He clapped him on the shoulder twice, and then let him go. It was such an odd motion – like something a father would do to a son. Mal could imagine Adam doing the same thing to her or Ben.
Audrey dropped her sword beside Evan's. "You feeling okay?" She asked Mal, wrinkling up her nose. "You look like you've been-"
"Stressed," Mal cut Audrey off. Audrey's pointed glance at her midsection confirmed everything Mal needed to know. "I'm not sick. Only stressed." She shook her head. "And I don't know when I'll be able to come back out, so you all need to take me around and show me what's happened."
Audrey nodded and began to walk them toward the government building. Hades put an arm around Mal and then, under her observation, an arm around Evan. The other boy relaxed a little and Mal compared Hades' stance with both her, his daughter, and Evan, who he was treating like family.
Maybe she had some sort of adopted brother now, too?
"You sure you're not sick?" Evan asked. "You look like you're wiped out. Is there something else going on at the palace?"
"I'm not sick," Mal grit her teeth. "Nothing else is happening and I'm fine. "
Hades looked down at her with a raised eyebrow and Mal sighed before she ducked out from under his arm and sped up to walk beside Audrey. Audrey glanced sideways at her, and Mal felt a surge of anger. It wasn't the baby. She was being perfectly reasonable. It made perfect sense for her to be angry. Not everything had to be heaped on her like this.
God, she hated it all.
It was the last day of October. It was freezing.
Ben stood in garrison with the other troops as they waited. They'd been docked for only five minutes at Syracuse, where Eris was supposedly hiding out. At the same time, North, Hiccup, Jack, and Bunny were leading battalions around the Overland, trying to draw fire and manpower away from the pirate Sinbad's city. Ever since the raid on the prison, they'd been waiting for people to recover, hoping they'd have stronger forces. While many of the Vikings sided with Hiccup to join battle efforts, a great many more were too scared by their ordeals to consider willingly marching into battle. Some did, like Susan, but they were hardly a majority.
Now they stood on the lower plateau of the city docks, where they'd just landed. The docks were made of stone and concrete and extended out into the ocean almost a mile long. Above their heads, a beautiful castle reached towards the sky. It would have been glorious if not for the black chaos sand and the smell of ashes everywhere. They began the march up to the Syracuse castle, where Prince Proteus, heir of Syracuse, had promised a small group would meet them. About twenty other troops – a small group – waited with him on the dock. They held the book of peace wrapped in leather and waiting to be placed in the temple, where it belonged. The hope was that the artifact would restore the land and shock Eris enough to fight her out of Syracuse, but to be honest Ben was a bit skeptical about that plan, though it had worked before.
As they came to the end of the docks, a man appeared at the base of the path. He had light brown hair pulled back into a ponytail and wore royal blues similar to what Ben would wear at the castle. He was unarmed.
"Prince Proteus." Someone said in surprise from Ben's group. "We didn't think you were coming down to meet us."
"I wasn't going to," Proteus frowned. The prince had worry lines in his face. "Something horrible has happened at the palace." He turned to Ben. "Please, walk with me a moment so we can discuss."
Something in the back of Ben's head immediately asked: "Aren't you going to introduce yourself to me?" He shook it off and nodded. They left the group on the edge of the docks and began to walk away down the harbor.
"I am glad to see you brought armed men." Proteus sighed as they walked. "The situation grows direr every day. Eris is here, as we speak."
"Why are we down here then, and not up there?" Ben asked with a frown.
Proteus examined the sword at Ben's hilt. "Pardon, but may I see your sword? I've never seen one like it before."
Ben raised an eyebrow as he unsheathed his sword. It was the golden-hilted double blade, so he wasn't surprised that the man wanted to see it. He handed it to Proteus. "How did Eris get into the palace?" He asked Proteus. "And how many men do you have stationed up at the palace?"
"None," Proteus answered, holding the sword up to his eyes in amazement as he examined the intricate double guard.
"None?" Ben repeated. "I only have a small group; how will we fight Eris?"
Proteus smirked. "You cannot fight Eris," He insisted.
Ben stared. He looked down at the sword in Proteus's hands. An intense feeling of dread filled him. "Please, may I have that back?" He whispered.
Proteus clenched his fist around the sword, and it disappeared in a puff of smoke. "No." He smiled. His eyes changed color from blue to gold.
Someone tapped Ben's shoulder. "Nice to see you again, Princey." A sugar-sweet voice said from behind him. Ben didn't need to turn to know it was Chef, back from the prison. He looked down at the far end of the harbor. His men were still waiting for him. They had the book of peace with them. Proteus followed his gaze.
"Oh, that old thing?" Proteus - Eris - smiled and waved his – her - hand in the general direction of the book. "They were fools to think it would work against me." Her eyes hardened. "You're all fools."
Ben swallowed. "Where's the real Proteus?" He whispered.
Eris hummed. "Away," She whispered. Ben clenched his clammy hands to keep them from shaking. He was unarmed and separated from his men. Jack Frost was on the South Side of the country, fighting a mind-numbing battle of Ice to try and keep the sea of monsters intact. He was alone.
There was a horrifying shriek, like a baboon and a bird together, and something black with a multitude of fur and feathers raced down the hill. Ben's squad yelled in alarm. The one with the book of peace tucked under his arm withdrew his sword and began to race to the end of the pier where the ship was still docked. As he hit the gangplank, the ship rocked. Long tentacles rose out of the water and wrapped around the mast. The poor soldier barely had time to jump back off the gangplank before the ship was pulled onto its starboard side and began to capsize.
Proteus's image began to dissolve as Ben looked on in horror. The band holding Proteus's hair disappeared as Eris's hair turned black and silky. It seemed to defy all physics as it flew around her head. She had greyish skin and the cornea of her eyes was a bloodthirsty red centered in a mass of gold. As she morphed, she grew taller until she was staring down her nose at Ben with a smile.
She reached forward, seized Ben's chin, and twisted his head from left to right as she examined him. "Oh." She said with a sigh. Her voice sounded much more feminine now that she wasn't mimicking Proteus. "It's a shame you aren't as cute as the last one they sent."
Ben moved his head away from her grasp. "Well, it's a shame you aren't as petty as the last villain I killed." He sighed.
Eris laughed. "Don't play me, pretty boy." She crooned. "You don't look like you've ever killed a soul in your life."
Ben squared his shoulders and tried to look impressive. "Want to bet?" He challenged.
Eris rolled her eyes. "I'll take my chances." She smiled. Her face hardened, and she snapped her fingers. "Seize them." She commanded as the sea monster rose out of the sea and onto the deck, and the feathered baboon let out a wicked, feral yell.
Ben dug his nails into his palm and swung. His right fist connected with Eris's jaw and he quickly followed it up by knocking his left into her chin, knocking her head up in a way that would have knocked out, or at least seriously dazed, any human he knew. Eris vanished into a whirl of sand that expanded and blacked out the sun and the light around him. Sand filled his eyes, mouth, ears, and nose. Magic sand. Deadly sand. He could vaguely hear the sounds of the squadron as Eris's monster attacked them. He brought his hands up, squinting as he struggled to blink the sand out of his eyes, and swung blindly. His hands were caught and pulled behind his back and pinned. He tried to kick backward, but nothing was there to connect with.
He caught a glimpse of wood as Chef swung a ladle towards his head and felt consciousness fade as a deep throbbing began in his skull. Meanwhile, the sands swirled increasingly thick and dark, until finally, he couldn't even tell if he had closed his eyes or not.
I know it's shorter and not as much pizzazz. Next chapter will be exciting - We'll meet a new villain, Adam makes a horrible mistake, and we may or may not have a dragon depending on how things work.