Ch 19:

It was dark, and Chloe was sure she should be getting back to her dorm. In the very least she'd probably missed dinner. But she just didn't feel ready to go find her friends, or even go to her dorm and have someone ask where she'd been or what was wrong.

So, here Chloe sat, on the ground on the edge of the forest, near the tourney field. She'd felt a panic attack coming on, having never really had an actual fight with her friends before. She'd always avoided fighting with her friends, mostly because she just didn't like conflict. But that usually just meant the anger or sadness built up until it exploded. And so, thinking back on her interaction with Evie made Chloe nearly panic, worried she'd lost a friend. Evie had been one of her and Carlos' first friends ever. She'd given them their first pillows, and a blanket. She'd made a jacket for Chloe back on the Isle. She'd given her hair tips. She'd become a sort of older sister. But they'd been drifting apart since coming to Auradon. Evie was busy moving forward with her life, getting a boyfriend, starting a business, helping Mal; while Chloe had been stuck in the past.

On the bright side, when Chloe sat under a tree with early signs of a panic attack (gasping, sweating, shaking, etc…)Motley had instantly started pawing at her and licking her face. Chloe had laughed, taken deep breaths, and brought herself back from the attack. She thoroughly praised her dog, cuddling Motley on her lap and holding her close.

Motley's head popped up, making Chloe glance down at her. Following where Motley's gaze was fixed, Chloe saw a dark figure approaching from the school. Chloe tensed, but then she saw a small bundle break away from the figure and run excitedly toward them, and Motley's tail began wagging.

"Chloe?" Carlos called just as Dude reached them. Chloe petted Dude in greeting and pulled Motley's vest off so she could relax and be a normal dog for a bit.

"Hey Carlos." Chloe greeted quietly as her brother got closer. The moonlight lit up his white hair.

Carlos sat on the ground next to her, Dude and Motley playing nearby.

"Evie told me what happened." Carlos spoke quietly, making Chloe look down at where she was picking at the vest in her lap. "She feels awful. She didn't mean for what she said to be taken the way it was. Of course she didn't want me to leave you on the Isle."

Chloe nodded. "I know." she whispered. And she did. She knew Evie hadn't meant it that way. But it still hurt that she thought it was so easy to forget all the horrible things that had happened on the Isle. Scars like that didn't just heal overnight. Of course, Evie's life on the Isle had been much easier, at least in Chloe's mind, so maybe it was easier for Evie to move forward. No one really had the chance to bully and attack Evie because she'd been banished to her mother's castle with the Evil Queen for about ten years. And the Evil Queen was more emotionally abusive than physically; she would never want to mar Evie's perfect skin, but she enjoyed pointing out her daughter's every flaw.

"Evie would also like to apologize in person. But that probably won't be able to happen tonight." Carlos admitted.

Chloe looked up, narrowing her eyes suspiciously at the side of her brother's face where he was avoiding eye contact.

"Why can't it happen tonight?" she asked warily. "What's going on tonight?"

Carlos opened his mouth, but just sat there gaping for a moment, as if he couldn't think of an answer.

"Mal ran away and went back to the Isle." an unfamiliar voice blurted out, making Chloe's head snap around in surprise. But she couldn't see anyone around.

Carlos groaned, dropping his head into his hands. "I was trying to think of how to say that."

"Oh, I thought you forgot."

Chloe stared, her mouth falling open as she saw Dude's mouth moving with the words. Dude…was talking?

Chloe's head turned back and forth, looking from Carlos, to Dude, and back again. Carlos finally met her eyes and sighed, his shoulders slouching.

"Dude can talk now." he announced, somewhat unnecessarily.

"How?" Chloe demanded, looking at Dude again.

"Um, long story short? I asked Mal to make me a truth gummy so I could ask Jane to Cotillion, but Dude ate it before I could, and now he can talk." Carlos explained rapidly.

Chloe blinked. And blinked again. Finally, "You moron."

Carlos rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes, I know. I need to just man up and ask her. I've already been lectured by my dog." he emphasized, gesturing to said dog with one gloved hand.

Chloe snorted, holding out her hand for Dude to give her a high five with his paw. "Good dog." she praised him.

"Great. Now I'll have both you two and Jay ganging up on me." Carlos complained, slumping back against the tree behind them.

"Yes, you will. But back to the subject, what happened with Mal?" Chloe asked, tugging Dude into her lap for a cuddle.

"All I really know is that her and Ben got into a huge fight on their date, and I guess Mal decided she doesn't belong in Auradon, and she went back to the Isle." Carlos explained, shrugging helplessly.

Chloe sighed, her head falling back against the tree. "She's been feeling like that for a while. She was trying to fit in, but I think she might have been going about it wrong. I should have tried to help her more."

Carlos shook his head. "No, you have a lot on your own plate. We all failed Mal. I know I haven't done a lot to help her lately, and I should have. But anyway, we're taking Ben to the Isle to try and convince Mal to come back. You don't have to come with us if you don't want to. We'd understand."

Chloe winced, hurt that her weakness was once again getting her left behind. But at the same time she was kind of grateful.

"Hey, if you want to come, you can." Carlos insisted, seeing her expression. "I just…I'm worried about you. You know I always will worry about you. We don't know what's going to happen over there. We don't know for sure where Mal is on the Isle. What if we have to wander around the Isle for hours, possibly running into people you don't want to run into?"

Chloe looked away, nodding slightly. Carlos slipped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her into his side until she turned and cuddled into him like they were kids again.

"I want to help." she admitted. "But I feel like I'd just screw something up for all of you. Like if we ran into someone that sets me off, or if I panic or freeze up. I could endanger everyone. And you can't risk that when you have the King of Auradon with you."

Carlos nodded. "Yeah. And you could help from here. I mean, I'm not sure how long we'll be over there, hopefully not too long. You could cover for us here, come up with an excuse if anyone asks about us."

"What if you're not back by tomorrow?" she asked. She knew she wouldn't be able to call them, because there's no cell connection on the Isle.

Carlos sighed heavily. "I'd say…probably if we're not back by noon tomorrow you might have to tell Fairy Godmother the truth, because chances are something's wrong. Even if Mal decides not to come back, most of us will try to be back before then, at least to fill you in."

Chloe nodded in agreement. "When are you guys leaving?" she asked.

"In a couple hours. We want it to be dark enough that we're less likely to run into people."

"What time is it?" Chloe asked just as her stomach growled. Carlos laughed.

"Obviously after dinner time." he joked, poking her belly and making her squirm when he hit her ticklish spot. "I think it's sometime after 8."

They decided to get something to eat from the kitchen before heading to the boys' dorm room, where they found Jay getting ready for their trip to the Isle. Chloe ate her sandwich on her brother's bed while the boys got themselves ready.

"You better not get into any fights." she said suddenly, causing the boys to glance over at her. "And maybe take some food, so you don't have to eat anything over there. And make sure Ben doesn't do anything stupid."

Jay smirked while Carlos chuckled. "We'll do our best." Jay promised, pulling her into a hug. Jay's hugs were about as different from Carlos' as the boys themselves were. Jay was bigger and generally more bulky than Carlos, and that was made obvious by his hugs. But both hugs still made Chloe feel warm and safe. Carlos was certainly her twin, and Jay would probably never come close to that bond, but Jay was certainly her big brother.

"And don't stay there too long. Or I'll take over your room." Chloe threatened with a smirk as she hugged Carlos next.

"Oh, please don't." Carlos begged, partially joking.

"Well, I'm definitely stealing your bed, and me and the dogs are going to watch a movie." Chloe decided, flopping down onto Carlos' bed with a grin.

Jay laughed, while Carlos rolled his eyes. "Alright, fine. You guys have fun. We'll be back as soon as we can. Love you." Carlos called as they headed out.

"Love you, too!" Chloe called. "Dude-" she tried to call as Dude slipped out the door after Carlos just before it closed. Sighing, Chloe kicked off her shoes and curled up on her side on Carlos' bed, turning on the TV. Motley hopped up and curled up with her. Chloe channel searched until she found an interesting-looking movie called the Half-Dwarf Prince. The opening credits were just finishing when a familiar scratching at the door made Chloe roll her eyes.

She got up and opened the door, letting Dude scamper back inside.

"They wouldn't let me come." he complained, hopping up and curling up next to Motley.

"I could have told you that would happen." Chloe told him, grabbing a bag of chips before returning to the bed with the dogs to enjoy the movie and snack. Dude pouted and begged for some food, but Motley knew better by now, thanks to her training.

"So, when are you going to follow your own advice?" Dude asked, tilting his head slightly up at Chloe.

Chloe looked away from the movie, swallowing the chip she'd been chewing on. "What are you talking about?"

"You keep telling Carlos to ask Jane out. But you won't go out with Anthony." Dude answered bluntly. Motley lifted her head and looked over her shoulder at Chloe, as if she was also waiting for an answer.

Chloe swallowed the lump in her throat. She couldn't believe she actually had to explain herself to a dog!

"And you can't say you don't like him." Dude added. "You hang out all the time. When he shows up, your face goes all red and your heartbeat picks up. And Motley told me he asked you out on a date, and you said you'd go, but never did. Then you said no when he asked you to Cotillion. So, what's your problem?"

Chloe's jaw dropped, staring at the furry brown mutt in shock and disbelief before looking at her dog, whose head was tilted curiously, causing one ear to stick straight up.

"I…It's complicated. You wouldn't understand." she answered defensively, sitting up and pulling Carlos' pillow to her chest.

Both dogs sat up, tilting their heads as they watched her before glancing at each other. It was getting almost creepy how they seemed to be communicating. Then, they both looked at Chloe again.

"You go into those…fit things. You know, when you get scared and shaky, and can't breathe. That stuff Motley helps you with." Dude started. "Is that the problem? Because I thought Anthony helped you with all that."

"He does!" Chloe answered, still defensive before her shoulders slouched in defeat. "He does. He's great. But that's part of the problem. He's a great person who deserves someone just as great. And that's not me. I have too many problems, too many issues. I'm afraid of going to Cotillion because I'm worried it will set off a panic attack."

"But that happens just going to school sometimes." Dude pointed out.

"Well, yeah, but I can't very well avoid school." Chloe responded even though Dude had a point. "Parties and dances are just…they're a trigger for my panic attacks. The rowdy crowds, loud music, pushy people. Not to mention I'd be on a boat in the ocean, which means there's no escape, which would certainly not help. But on top of that…I had a really bad experience at a party me and Carlos had to host on the Isle. And I'm sure, rationally, those same things wouldn't happen to me here, but part of my brain doesn't seem to realize that."

"Okay. But that still doesn't explain why you won't go out with Anthony." Dude pointed out. "He'd understand if you don't want to go to Cotillion with him. But you could still go on a different date. Motley said he asked you to coffee. You went with Mal to coffee a few times this summer, why don't you do that with Anthony?"

"It's not just where we go on the date. It's the dating in general. I'm too…broken for someone like him." Chloe explained weakly.

Dude tilted his head, both dogs looking Chloe over as if searching for something.

"You don't look broken." Dude responded obliviously.

Chloe rolled her eyes. "Not on the outside, no, but-"

"Everyone has problems." Dude cut her off. Chloe was starting to hope that truth gummy would eventually wear off. "I was a stray here on campus because someone left me on the side of the road a few years ago. Motley was born on the Plantation with her brothers and sisters, but she was the last one picked. She heard one person say they didn't want her because her spots weren't the right shape or something." Dude actually seemed to roll his eyes.

Chloe gaped wordlessly between the two dogs, speechless. "I-I didn't know." she finally stuttered.

"It doesn't matter. That was before. We don't let that control our lives now. We're both happy with our lives now." Dude explained. "We're happy with you and Carlos."

Chloe swallowed the lump in her throat, nodding her head. Motley laid down and curled up with her chin in Chloe's lap, and Dude did the same.

Chloe sighed. "So, basically what you're saying is that I shouldn't let my life on the Isle control me now. If Anthony makes me happy, and he wants to date me, I should try."

"Something like that, yeah." Dude answered, rolling onto his back with his head still in her lap. "But right now you should scratch my belly."

Chloe laughed, complying with the little mutt's wishes.

AN: I really like this chapter, mostly because of Chloe and Dude's conversation. What do you guys think? Also, I made up Dude's little back-story about being left on the side of the road, it's not canon.

Also, the movie Chloe watched with the dogs is my fun, Disney-fied version of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.