Content warning for swearing and minimal violence in this chapter.
It felt like a tortured eternity in silence as we all waited for Queen Aurora and Lady Leah to join us, I guessed the reason why we weren't talking is the fact that we didn't know how this conversation was about to go - especially given the last conversation that I had shared with her. When the door opened we all took a deep breath in as we watched as Queen Aurora walked into the room and stepped to the side, we all then watched as Lady Leah entered the room. We all then saw as she all threw us a confused look at us all as Queen Aurora closed the door behind them.
"Lady Leah" Ben said, breaking the silence as Queen Aurora walked back to her seat. We then saw as Lady Leah pursed her lips together as she straightened her body up. "Please sit" Ben advised as he gestured to a seat at the end of the table. "We need to talk," he explained.
"You are really telling me what to do in my own home?" she asked darkly as she balled her fists up.
"Mother!" Queen Aurora snapped, and we all watched as Queen Aurora and Lady Leah shared a dark look before looking back at me and Ben.
"Very well" she sighed as she stepped forward and sat down into her seat. Me and Ben then looked at each other before we pursed our lips together and looked back over to Lady Leah.
"Do you have any idea why we have come to see you?" Ben asked politely.
"Beats me" she shrugged. "Maybe you have come to your senses and decided that you acted too harsh against me?" She sang sarcastically.
"Mother!" Queen Aurora quickly interjected.
"No Queen Aurora" Ben offered. "It's ok" he stated as he looked over to Queen Aurora. "I expected some animosity if I am being completely honest" he admitted. "Especially given what has happened recently" he stated as he looked back over to Lady Leah. "No," he told her bluntly. "I haven't changed my mind, you got what you deserved" he stated boldly as he squeezed my hand under the table once more.
"Matter of opinion" she muttered. "But carry on" she sighed, obviously wanting to get this conversation over and done with quickly.
"We are here about this" Ben stated as he slid the proposition over to Lady Leah, we all then watched as she started to read it and to my dismay I watched as her eyes lit up when she realised what it was.
"Oh!" she muttered. "Now I see" she nodded. "I wondered how far this got," she explained. "By the looks of it you both-" she stated smugly as she threw a dark glance at me before looking back at Ben. "Need to follow this," she added. "We wouldn't want you both having to separate now would we?" she questioned sarcastically. "Not after all you have been though" she stated as she crossed her arms over her chest. I had to really fight with myself to make sure that I didn't roll my eyes at her. I hated how she was so dismissive of mine and Ben's relationship, yes Ben had decided that he didn't want to be with Audrey - but this didn't mean that she could treat me and Ben this way.
"So this was part of your 'Order' as well?" Ben questioned.
"Yes" she confirmed.
"It wasn't documented" Adam interjected, causing Lady Leah to look away from Ben and look over to the King Elder.
"It was for insurance purposes" she explained. "If our plans didn't work, then I was hoping that this would" she stated as she threw me and Ben a dark glance. "Kill two beasts with one stone" she sang sarcastically.
"And what is that supposed to mean?" I snapped, unable to hold back my disapproval of her actions any further.
"Oh don't you start!" she snapped back. "I think I had quite enough of you in the Courthouse!" she growled as she bawled her fists up on top of the table.
"Lady Leah you will not-" Ben began to warn her.
"It's ok Your Majesty" I smiled up at him. I obviously needed to have this conversation with Lead Leah, yes she was currently pushing all of my buttons but I knew that I was going to react appropriately. Yes I knew there was a good change that we were going to argue, but given my last conversation with her it hardly came as a surprise. But I needed to step up and have this conversation, I couldn't hide behind Ben. I needed to fight my own battles, especially when it came to Lady Leah. "I can handle this," I told him, and I watched as he nodded at me before we both looked back over to Lady Leah. "I'm not starting-" I began to tell her. "Lady Leah" I added and I watched as a dark glint entered her eyes, obviously she hated her new title, but by the looks of it she hated it even more when I called her it. "I am simply asking you to elaborate on what you meant" I stated politely.
"Well" she stated sarcastically. "As you asked nicely" she glared at me. "There are two hopeful outcomes of this," she added. "First of all you two see each other in private and it is discovered then this breaks up your relationship" she continued smugly. "Or" she stated and paused as she took in my emotionless reaction to this. "You drift apart in time, which I can see happening anyway if you ask me" she shrugged. "You are very fickle," she mocked.
"Mother!" Queen Aurora snapped once more.
"Oh shut up you!" Lady Leah spat back at her daughter as she glared at her. "You were very quick to jump in my grave!" she accused. "Well you don't deserve the crown of South Riding!" she shouted. "Never have, never will!" she sang darkly. "Audrey should have been my successor! Not you two!" she growled.
"Lady Leah" Ben interjected, obviously trying to keep this current situation calm.
"What?" Lady Leah snapped as she looked back over to Ben.
"Do not take that tone with me!" Ben warned her and we all watched as they shared a glance before the room fell into silence.
"Very well" Lady Leah nodded, breaking the silence after a few moments. "I can see that you have changed," she stated. "But there is no wonder of that is there?" she questioned cynically. "With that whore by your side!" she spat.
"LADY LEAH!" Ben roared as the rest of us gasped at what she had just called me. I really couldn't believe that she would call me that in front of everyone! I knew she had some pretty dark and probably sinister thoughts about me but to voice it out in front of people was well out of order. My mind then spitefully then showed me about the altercation that I had shared with Aphrodite when we were all in Olympus - apparently the order had been having very long and heated discussions about me. There was a time when I wouldn't care what they thought, I would be more concerned with getting them back. But I had changed, and what I couldn't understand is why they couldn't see this - even after all this time. "How dare you?" Ben growled.
"How dare I?" Lady Leah snapped as she placed her right hand onto her chest. "How dare you come into my home. Order me about!" she chanted. "Parade her in front of me!" she screeched. "You both have some nerve!" she spat. "Especially her!" she shouted as she took her right hand from her chest and she harshly pointed at me.
"Me?" I questioned in confusion. "What have I done?" I dared to ask her.
"Looking so smug," she grimaced. "Think that you have finally beaten me, have you?" she asked darkly. "No!" she exclaimed. "Never!" she spat again. "You will never will against me my dear, your mother and father learnt that lesson and so will you" she warned me. "Just give me time" she threatened.
"Is that a threat?" I asked darkly.
"No" she said, shaking her head. "It is a promise you stupid girl!" she shouted as she slowly stood up.
"Really?" I questioned slowly as I found myself letting go of Ben's hand and also standing up. Part of me couldn't believe that she was acting like this, but I quickly dismissed this thought. Lady Leah was never going to change when it came to me and my relationship with Ben. She wanted me as far as possible from Ben, just so this would pave the way for her beloved granddaughter to take the throne of Auradon. She thought that it was me that was stopping Audrey being with Ben. But she was wrong! So wrong! It was Audrey's compulsion to try and control Ben that prevented them being together. If Audrey let Ben be his own person, let him make his own decisions then it wouldn't have mattered when I came along. I wouldn't have been able to break them up as they both would have been in love. I hated thinking of Ben being with anyone never mind Audrey, but I always knew that what we had together was strong. Ben was my one true love, and no matter what Lady Leah thought or done was going to change this.
She actually thought that she was going to win against me. But I knew better, I knew that I was strong enough to go against her and her stupid schemes. I had to resist the urge to laugh back at her - she really didn't know who she was dealing with. Yes she hated my parents, and even thought they were too weak to go against her but this wasn't the case. My parents were worthy of the fight, and I knew that they would always win against her - she just made sure they were caught before they caused her and her 'perfect' reputation any damage.
"And what you think you are going to do you stupid girl!" she fired at me. "You bark is worse than you bite" she mocked.
"You don't know a thing about me" I quickly dismissed.
"I know enough about you to know that both of our parents hate you" she stated with a smug grin.
"Don't!" I snapped as I pointed at her with my right hand. "Don't you dare!" I warned her as I felt something feel like it was going to snap within me. I should have expected that my parents were going to come into this conversation, I just hoped that she didn't believe that I was going to take this conversation lightly.
"Oh I dare" she sang back. "Because let's face it" she added. "Mal" she sneered. "You are never going to amount to nothing" she snapped. "You are only by his side because of how you are in the bedroom, I'm guessing that is something that you have learnt from that hell hole you call a home" she pressed further.
"Lady Leah!" Adam tried to interject.
"Mother!" Queen Aurora added.
"No let her speak her mind" I stated as I quickly walked around the table. "Come on then" I added as I stood in front of her as I held my arms out dramatically. "Let's hear it then" I sneered and we both glared at each other.
"You really think you are something don't you?" she asked darkly. "Well you are not!" she quickly added bitterly. "You never will be. No matter what His Majesty may tell you" she said harshly as I crossed my arms over my chest.
"Oh really?" I asked slowly and cynically.
"Yes really!" she shouted. "Come on, look at you" she added as she quickly looked me up and down. "You are the reason that I have lost my crown" she accused harshly.
"Ha!" I laughed back at her. "Really?" I asked incredulously. "You are the reason you lost your crown" I told her. "Not me" I shrugged. "You may not believe me but I actually protected you" I urged.
"You didn't do anything of the sort!" she fought back, "Protect me?" she asked sarcastically. "Ha!" she laughed bitterly. "Why should I need your protection?" she questioned darkly as she bawled her fists up again.
"Because without it your punishment was going to be the Isle" I told her simply.
"Lies!" she snapped.
"It's true," Ben interjected. "Dame Mal suggested your abdication after I suggested the Isle" he explained. "You want to know her reason for this?" he asked. I knew why he was asking her this, he was hoping that the explanation would cause her to calm down and think about what very nearly happened to her. Part of me hoped this as well; but given how Lady Leah was currently acting I did have my reservations.
"What?" she asked politely, obviously heeding Ben's warning from before about snapping at him.
"Because Dame Mal seems to think that you wouldn't have seen the week" Ben answered.
"I am a lot stronger than you give me credit for!" she glared at me.
"Ha!" I laughed back. She really didn't understand the magnitude of the situation! Yes she might think she is strong, but she isn't strong enough to go against the people of the Isle, even more so my mother! My mother would revel in the fact that Lady Leah was sent to the Isle, and unfortunately for me I would know exactly how it would end for Lady Leah. No matter how much strength she could muster it wasn't going to stop her being captured, my mother torturing her or doing her infamous dragon roar ritual. I had seen it first hand. Heck! My mother made me participate! I did have mixed feelings about it at the time, part of me wanted to be evil. I wanted to make my mother proud, I wanted to stand by her side as she did these evil things. But there was also a part of me that was scared. Scared of if I didn't follow her orders that she would torture me, which she had done in the past! But even when I had done what my mother asked there was also a part of me telling me that it was wrong, but there was no way in Hades that I was ever going to go against my mother. She would have killed me! "Really?" I asked sarcastically. "My mother-" I started.
"Is a weak minded fool" Lady Leah snapped, cutting me off. "Pathetic!" she added bitterly as she gritted her teeth at me. "She wouldn't lay a finger on me, she wouldn't dare!" she chanted, and I couldn't help it but I felt something snap within me.
"YES!" I shouted. "SHE" I added. "WOULD!" I roared and I watched as her face dropped in surprise. I had never shouted at her, so she obviously could see that she had pushed me too far this time. And unfortunately for her she was about to get it, with both barrels. "I know you hate my mother Leah" I said, and I watched as her face dropped at the mention of my mother. "My father even!" I quickly added as my mind started to show me the revelations connecting me to Hades into the recent trial. I hated the fact that the primary reason she hated me was because of who my parents are. It's not something that I could ever choose! But given the fact that both my mother and father had both wronged her she took all of her frustrations out on me but it was going to stop and it was going to stop now! "Heck!" I exclaimed. "You sure hate me as well" I grimaced. "What is it about me?" I asked her in disdain as she angrily pursed his lips together. "Do I remind you of all the poor treatment that you received from my parents?" I fired at her and I watched as she pulled her mouth into an ugly snarl as I started to feel spiteful towards her. "Well given the treatment you have given me I say you have deserved everything you got" I said before I could stop myself, I heard gasps echo around the room and I started to question whether that I had gone too far but I quickly dismissed this thought. Lady Leah set out to not only kill me and my family but the whole entire Isle of the Lost, I had been silent and respectful since coming to Auradon. And by the looks of it I was now going to have to be more firm with her, because I wasn't going to tolerate her interfering in mine and Ben's lives and relationship any longer. She had to come to learn that Ben didn't want her granddaughter so her dream of an Adams and Beauty rule over Auradon was just that, a dream! If anything happened between me and Ben where our relationship was over he wouldn't get back with Audrey. Yes of course this isn't my decision but I know Ben. I know that he doesn't want to be suffocated or told what to do, he wants to be a free man and happy. And of course I love the fact that I am able to give him what he needs, which quite frankly is probably another reason why Lady Leah hates me. I can give the King of Auradon what her beloved granddaughter can't. I love the man underneath the crown, and that is how it is. And that is how it is always going to be, until my dying breath. However, before I could concentrate on my love for Ben to try and keep my resolve from breaking even further I heard Lady Leah's voice finally break the silence.
"You bitch!" she shouted at me, and before I could do or say anything she quickly slapped me across the right hand side of my face. A sting engulfed my face as my right hand rose to it, and again gasps filled the room. I slowly looked over to Lady Leah and I couldn't help but note at how happy she looked with herself. Well now she was for it, if she thinks that this over, then she is wrong. This time I am not just going to sit back and let her say and do whatever she wants, this time I will fight back and this time she will not win!