Chapter 24 – Moving On, Moving Up

-:-:-

There was sort of a domestic feel to the apartment the next morning when Chad puttered about the kitchen preparing sausage and waffles, clad in some of Jay's lounging clothes at the Agraben's insistence, not that Chad really minded. They might be a little big and therefore look a little silly, but they were soft and smelled like Jay and that was all that mattered. Besides, at least he kept the pirates' company whenever they strolled out of their private hallway in various states of coherence, Gil smiling brightly and dressed in some of Jay's old clothes while Harry and Uma sported Sardinia blue that um- looked really nice on them, in Chad's completely biased opinion.

"That is an awesome bed," Gil informed him sagely as Chad started passing out glasses of orange juice. "It's way bigger than the one at Evie's place."

"It's sort of a status thing," Chad admitted, watching Jay pour Uma and Harry mugs of coffee with a look of fondness while Aziz blinked himself towards coherence on the far end of the breakfast bar, still looking shy. "Most royals have large beds for the opulence of it, I think, but in this instance it actually worked out because we have enough people so they don't feel empty."

"I'll say," Gil chirped. "We had to squeeze in tight the few times we stayed at Evie's, and Harry wouldn't even share the bed with us."

"Because he was being a little shit," Uma said, carding a hand through Harry's dark locks and leaning over to nibble at the bruised skin of his collar. "But he will not be anymore."

"No, captain," Harry gasped, leaning into her attention with a light flush. "I won't."

"That's what I like to fucking hear," Uma rumbled, and Chad was pretty sure he wasn't the only person who shuddered in the wake of that statement.

Chad cleared his throat, shifting to a new subject to establish some kind of easy normality as he began to pour the batter into his waffle maker. "Are you guys not living with Evie? I thought all of you were bunking together."

Uma made a face. "She offered, but there's just a few too many people there for my taste. Plus, Poser is literally there all the time, and I like the girl, but fuck if I'm not still adjusting to this whole friendship shit."

"That's fair," Chad said, nodding thoughtfully as he tended to the sausage. "So if you're not at Evie's, where are you staying? With your crew?"

"Nah." Uma shook her head. "The relief programs you guys have in place are good, but there isn't enough room for everyone. I focused on getting my crew settled, and as for us…" She shrugged. "I lived off grid for a year, it's really not that hard to do."

Chad paused, taking in the implication of her statement. "Are you homeless?"

"We're nomads," Uma countered with narrowed eyes. "With my magic, it's not like we're exactly wanting for things. We've survived in worse conditions, and it's pretty nice to sleep on the beach at night."

Chad froze, a certain string of unhappiness building in his stomach. "You can't- no, you shouldn't do that. You saved Auradon. You deserve air conditioning and a nice bed and running water and- and- whatever you want. You shouldn't be-"

"Chad," Jay interrupted, trying to offer some kind of warning because Uma was not a person who appreciated being told what to do in any reality, but Chad couldn't back down from this.

"You can stay here," he said, making all three of the pirates freeze. "You can keep the guest room and the pool, just- we have more space than we know what to do with anyway. You can stay here and decorate your room however you want and I'll add you to the security list and- and it will all be good."

By the end of it, Chad knew he was twisting his hands together again, but he couldn't help it, not when he was getting worked up. The waffle maker beeped, and he lost a moment staring at it, torn between checking on the food and giving his full attention to Uma, who was worth it and honestly more important than a little burnt food even if he'd have to spend the afternoon lighting scented candles to get the burnt smell out of the air-

"Moving a little fast there, buddy?" Uma countered eventually, but she didn't seem upset. "We've only had one date – and we didn't even talk to you for most of it."

"That's- no, that's different," Chad said. "I mean, you don't have to do romance stuff with us to stay here. You just- you should, though. And Mal never comes here anyway."

Because it would entirely freak Chad out.

"It's a legitimate offer, Uma," Jay cut in, his tone serious. "He's being sincere."

Uma considered this with narrowed eyes. "…we will pay rent."

"No you won't," Chad pressed. "I don't make Aziz or Jay pay rent, and I'm not going to make you do it either."

"Chad-" Jay warned.

"No," Chad snapped, feeling a frustrated heat build behind his eyes. "No, they did a great thing. They deserve great things in return. They should- they should have-"

"Chad?" Aziz spoke up, wandering towards him until he could wrap an easy arm around Chad's waist, dragging the blond into a hug Chad found himself shuddering into.

"You saved me," Chad murmured, squeezing his eyes shut in a desperate bid to stave off tears. "You shouldn't have to sleep on the beach if you don't want to."

"Ben saved you, blondie," Uma said.

"But you helped Mal stop Audrey," Chad said. "I felt that. Felt Audrey's magic winning. I felt Mal losing." He pressed a hand to his chest, melting closer to Aziz with a small gasp. "She put a backup, in here," he croaked, something he had never confessed to anyone. There had never seemed to be a point. "I was- she wanted me to guard it, and I felt it get ripped out near the end, felt her use everything to fight you."

"Keep this safe, Chad," Audrey murmured, petting his cheek as she forced swells of energy into his chest – a dark, painful thing that didn't seem to belong, something totally averse to blood blessed by Light Fae, which made it sting all the stronger. "It's right near your heart, isn't that romantic?"

"Y-Yes, Audrey," Chad had gasped, tears of pain rolling down his cheeks, and for once Audrey had deigned to wipe them away instead of yelling at him for being weak, had sucked her fingers clean with a satisfying hum, and still Chad couldn't feel anything but grateful that he'd been able to help her instead of horrified by her complete descent into evil.

The closet combined with the foreign energy had been enough to leave Chad's brain completely scattered, though somehow his feet had guided him back towards Audrey, despite her being the last person he wanted to see. He'd stood frozen, both hands pressed against his chest in a pitiful attempt to stem the growing ache before he'd felt the magic get ripped out of him almost violently.

He'd felt numb for days after the fact. When he'd moved in with Fairy Godmother, she said the natural magic pathways in his body were struggling to heal themselves after being 'violated' by dark energy that never should have been there in the first place.

That close to his heart, it was a miracle he hadn't died, and Chad hadn't even thought twice about it. He hadn't even mentioned it to the Inspectors, to his grandfather.

He knew he was crying now, knew the waffles were burning and he was breaking as he tried to breathe, humiliated by his total failure of an argument before being taken by complete surprise because there was Uma, pushing into their huddle, one of her hands glowing blue as she gently pressed it against his chest.

"Fucking shit," she said, as though seeing the damage for herself. "And Mal didn't catch this?"

"She had more important things to focus on," Chad said. "It's okay, Fairy Godmother looked me over-"

"Prince – get the waffles," Uma ordered Aziz before she snagged Chad's hand, dragging him out of the kitchen and towards the patio.

"What are you doing?" Jay asked as he scrambled after them, Harry on his heels.

"It's a salt water pool, dipshit," Uma said, patting Chad down and chucking his watch and phone onto one of the sun loungers before she did the same thing to her own stuff. "And I'm a sea witch. What do you think I'm gonna do?"

"Get in the water?" Chad hazarded with a sniff.

For whatever reason, that seemed to make Uma's expression soften. "Yeah, sweetheart, we're gonna get in the water."

The pet name was casually offered, maybe thrown out with sarcasm, but Chad still clung to it, holding onto the small sliver of happiness it granted him as Uma tugged him gently into the shallows.

They worked their way towards the deep end of the pool, Uma transforming halfway and curling a couple of tentacles around Chad to hold him in place. He didn't fight her, didn't argue in the slightest when she hovered a glowing hand over his chest again.

"I'm gonna try and help the healing process, okay blondie?" she said. "Between the salt water and my singing, I should be able to strengthen what your body's already doing on its own, but I won't do it if you don't want me to. I know it's a lot to ask someone you don't know-"

"I felt your magic," Chad sniffed, rubbing at his cheek. "I felt it work with Mal's to fight Audrey's. I know it's good, and I'd be honored for you to um- to help."

"Hold on," Jay said, and then he was sliding into the water behind him, shirtless as he swam over to Chad and Uma before he curled around the blond's back. "I wanna feel it too," he said, his own hands glowing red. "I'll know if you do any funny business."

"Jay," Chad sighed, giving the Agraben an exasperated look. "Uma wouldn't do that."

"You don't know her."

"I know her enough," Chad countered. "I know that she helped save Auradon and still went back to the Isle of the Lost to help her crew. She helped even though it would have benefitted her more not to. I know the stuff that matters, and even if she would hurt me, I trust you to stop it."

Jay shuddered, the same way he always did anytime Chad brought up trust.

"Flatterer," Uma muttered, and while a light flush spilled across the bridge of her nose, it was likely from the early morning heat. "Now get that glowing hand in here so we can get to work."

"Fine," Jay said, not even twitching when Uma curled a tentacle around him, and then a moment later Uma started singing, her shell glowing bright as a warm energy seemed to permeate Chad's chest, caressing the areas he couldn't seem to access on his own.

He lost himself to the comfort of it, to Uma's voice and the tentacles holding him close, to Jay's familiar magic and Harry standing guard on the deck and the warm hug of water. He shut his eyes and let them take control, knowing that they would protect him despite their lack of friendship. They were just that good.

-:-:-

Chad wasn't sure how long they stayed in the pool, but he suspected at least half an hour had gone by before he was blinking awake again, one of Uma's hands cupping his cheek while Jay nuzzled just under his jaw, the glow of their magic completely faded away.

"I'd like to do this a couple more times over the following weeks," Uma said when she saw that Chad was alert again. "Really stabilize you."

"Okay," Chad murmured, leaning into her hand. "Thank you."

"Evil, blondie," Uma huffed. "Jay could have done this shit. Why didn't you mention it to anyone?"

"It wasn't that bad," Chad said, and honestly, that was true. He'd noticed a growing ache in his chest since his return, but he'd attributed that to his grandfather's attack or depression. He had almost forgotten the dark magic entirely, since it hadn't seemed to have left any long-lasting effects.

"Yeah," Uma scoffed. "Gonna have to fucking disagree with you on that."

Chad swallowed, savoring the feel of her support while he could get it. "Does this mean you guys will stay now?"

"Fine," Uma huffed, her cheeks tinged pink. "You have worn me down. We'll stay here if it will make you feel better."

"It really will," he said, feeling his shoulders slump in relief. With that taken care of, he turned, looking back towards Jay and the rest of the patio. "Where's Aziz?"

"Inside with Gil," Harry answered. "They figured out how to use the waffle maker together. Breakfast is probably cold, though."

"Then it can get a little colder," Chad decided. "I mean, you guys can go ahead, use the oven to reheat stuff, but our baby boy's probably feeling self-conscious for being left out, so we should cuddle him."

Behind him, Jay shuddered. "You were literally just in a healing coma."

"Was that what that was?" Chad asked, then decided to shrug it off. "Never mind. I can stick to watching if you're that worried about it. I like it when you put on a show."

"Fucking hell," Uma cackled as she started guiding them towards the edge of the pool. "Can I watch?"

"Maybe next time," Chad said. "We've got to ease Aziz into this stuff. First, he needs treasured reassurance, and then when he's feeling more stable we can move on, assuming he wants to."

"'Treasured reassurance'," Harry muttered under his breath, his cheeks tinged with a dark flush. "Do ye even listen to yourself?"

"Sometimes," Chad allowed with a grunt as he pushed himself out of the pool, giving Uma's tentacle an appreciative stroke when it helped him. "You guys can have your own treasured reassurance if you want. I put lube and condoms in the storage ottomans this morning."

He motioned to the deck furniture in question and grinned when Jay almost face planted on his way out of the pool.

"There's also some in the end table inside," he continued, offering this to Uma. "If you wanted to take it back to your room."

Slowly, a wide grin broke out over Uma's face, her eyes lighting with mischief as she considered this. "That shit waterproof?"

"Of course," Chad said, laughing. "It seemed appropriate."

"Okay," Uma said, one of her tentacles reaching out to caress Harry's ankle. "I think we're gonna like it here."

"I hope so," Chad said honestly. "You guys certainly deserve it."

"Evil," Harry hissed, looking off to the side angrily. "Will ye stop with the mushy talk and get out of here?"

"Sure, Harry," Chad said, reaching over to give him a few pats on the shoulder. "Want me to send Gil out?"

"Yes, please," Uma hummed, another tentacle reaching up to curl around Harry's waist, raising him off the ground with a squawk that transitioned into a startled flail when she started dragging his pants off.

Chad curled a hand around Jay's shoulder and dragged him back towards the living room before things could devolve. Gil and Aziz perked up from their spot awkwardly hanging around the kitchen as soon as they entered.

"Are you okay?" Aziz asked. "We made food-"

Chad interrupted him with a kiss, dragging Aziz forward until the other prince could grind against his thigh with a surprised whimper. "You are very thoughtful," Chad murmured when they broke apart. "Jay is going to reward you for this."

"Oh wow," Gil said, twisting his hands together nervously. "Should I leave?"

"Uma and Harry are waiting for you out on the patio," Jay offered with a light flush.

"Oh, okay," Gil said, and it was almost comical how quickly he exited the living room, the blond's anxiety hopefully shifting into something more relieved and eager when he realized what kind of present Uma had waiting for him outside.

"Could you carry Aziz, Jay?" Chad asked, sliding a hand down to give the other prince's rear a firm squeeze. "And then I think I want to watch you two suck each other off."

"Guys," Aziz moaned, flushing dark when Jay hooked an arm under his thighs and dragged him up so Aziz was facing him, his legs straddling Jay's bare waist before the Agraben carried him back to his room.

Jay used some kind of refreshing spell to dry them off, though by the time they got to bed, Aziz was the one who was wet, whimpering when Jay eased his pants and underwear down his legs.

"Are um- are the pirates- are they having sex too?" Aziz asked as Jay began to dote on him with teasing licks.

"Yep," Chad said. "Uma actually wanted to watch this happen, but I thought you deserved a private reward before we did anything like that."

"Light," Aziz gasped, and there was a good chance he fell apart faster than he ever had before.

"Someone likes that idea," Jay chirped later when he was eagerly licking Aziz's release off his chest.

"You laugh now," Aziz panted. "But now it's my turn to rock your world."

Jay paused. "We um- don't have to-"

"Yeah, I get it, you don't want to be all mushy and vulnerable while Harry is in the same building as you," Aziz muttered before he rolled Jay on the bed, dragging him up and pinning him down against the mattress. "But he's going to be living with us, so you're just going to have to get used to the fact that you are our sweetheart, and we want to hear you whimper while I take you apart."

"Aziz," Jay groaned, but then the prince was getting to work, putting on a proper show for Chad who watched from the comfort of his armchair, feeling warm and comforted by the sight of his friends taking care of each other.

Maybe he hadn't lost everything when he'd changed the world back. Maybe he'd found a way to get to a new normal.

And that, in Chad's opinion, was the more satisfying change.

-:-:-

It didn't take long for the pirates to unpack, mostly because they didn't have much. It turned out that Uma carried an enchanted pouch with her that held all their extra gear – charmed to fit a lot of items into a small space, even if it wasn't close to full.

"You are going to give him a heart attack," Aziz informed them when Uma pronounced them done after filling like, one tiny dresser.

"Shopping," Chad said, easing a tablet into Uma's hands. "Just- pick out clothes you want or I'll be forced to guess and do it for you."

"He will, is the thing," Jay said, his cheeks dusted in a light flush because Chad may have already done that to him once upon a time.

"I guess I could enchant some of this stuff into something more suitable," Uma muttered as she looked at the online options. "You're going to be a shit about this if we don't do it, aren't you?"

"Yes," Chad pledged solemnly, earning an annoyed flush from Harry.

Chad also managed to bully them into picking out some more specialized decorations for their room, Chad talking to Uma about different wall colors and renovations and thankfully the bathroom was already aqua, so there was one plus.

"You can add your groceries to the order here," Chad said, motioning towards the notepad they had up by the fridge. "And you can put dinner suggestions on the whiteboard. Otherwise I'll just sort of throw things together."

"'Throw things together' he says," Aziz scoffed. "As though he were not a master chef."

"I'm not," Chad insisted with a flush. "I just get the job done." He moved on before the other prince could argue. "Aziz and Jay are usually out for most of the day, but I work from here, so I'll just about always be on hand if you guys need anything. You're free to come and go as you please. My dad and Aziz's family both have a car service set up for us, and you guys are more than welcome to use them if you want to go anywhere."

"Wow," Gil said, staring with wide eyes as Chad input the number for the car service into his phone. "Now we really are like rich people."

"And this isn't charity?" Uma prompted, always one to double check something that seemed too good to be true.

"Of course not," Chad said with a flush. "What's the good of having nice things if you don't have anyone to share them with? Just- you deserve this at the very least. And it kind of feels dumb to have it all to myself anyway, so…"

"Yeah, yeah," Uma waved him off, though her smile was fond. "Sharing is caring and all that."

"Exactly," Chad said, feeling relieved. "Just like that."

-:-:-

They established new routines for themselves. It was different having three additional people in the apartment, but it was a good kind of different. A kind that had dinners full of laughter and joy as they gathered around the breakfast table, Chad flushing under compliments from the others that he insisted weren't necessary. Sometimes he'd let Gil help him with dinner preparations, the other blond eager to learn how to do such things for himself, and Chad was always careful to explain everything he was doing as he walked through each step. When they did that, sometimes Uma or Jay or Harry would sit at the breakfast bar and just watch them, and if it was Uma, she'd take pictures or video to hold onto for later.

With the pirates in the apartment, the patio got used way more often. Sometimes Chad would pace around the living room as he made his calls and watch Uma happily bob in the pool in her merform – Gil either perched on the edge of the pool or passed out on one of the sun loungers while Harry hung out in the hammock safely set up under a shadowy overhang. Now that he wasn't under the perpetual smog of the barrier, he was highly prone to sunburns, something he grumbled about before making a less than graceful retreat with a stack of books in his arms.

At first the pirates were out a lot – Uma checking on her crew and helping Evie with the refugee programs while Gil and Harry helped out wherever Duchess Belle aimed them – the two heroes of Auradon getting shown positively contributing to public services to help ease the anxieties people had about the Isle refugees. This continued for about three days until Gil got sick with what seemed to be the summer flu, and Chad and Uma ushered him onto the living room so he could properly cocoon himself on the couch.

"Are you sure you don't want me to call for a doctor?" Chad asked as they took Gil's temperature, the prince relieved to find that though it was elevated, Gil didn't seem to be running a fever. "We can have them come here. Gil wouldn't have to leave the couch."

"No," Uma said, grazing a glowing hand over Gil's forehead. "It isn't anything that severe, he's just been overworking himself. We've been going full steam for so long that once we were able to finally put down roots, his body surrendered to the exhaustion he's been pushing off. Rest and fluids should have him good as new in a couple of days."

"Sorry," Gil rasped, cheeks flushed as he tried to curl into a smaller ball. "I'm sorry, Uma."

"This isn't your fault, Gilly," Uma hummed, moving to cup his cheek. "I'm the one that's been pushing us. If anything, this a sign for us to take things a bit easier."

The pirates did have a tendency to work long hours – getting up early with Chad and not returning until dinner generally was well on its way. And sure, Jay usually returned at dinner time, but his work ended before that. The other hours he spent with his friends relaxing, whereas the pirates were working literally all the time. It was like they hadn't learned to take a break, yet.

Chad supposed on the Isle that wasn't really a luxury they could take, but they were in Auradon now, and they needed more reasonable working hours.

"Eight hours," Chad said, folding his arms across his chest resolutely. "From now on you guys only work eight hours a day max, and you take the weekends off. Maybe Fridays too." At Uma's look, he added – "It's the summer. And you're teenagers. You're allowed to take breaks."

"Fine," Uma huffed, a small grin quirking at her lips. "You good with looking after Gil today?"

"Yeah, I don't have to leave the apartment," Chad said, feeling pleased by the small show of trust, especially considering how protective Uma and Harry were of Gil. "We'll be okay."

"I want pictures," Uma said. "And a couple of phone calls. I don't care if they're all of Gil sleeping, I want them."

"And you'll get them," Chad said, Aziz watching the exchange with a small grin.

It wasn't difficult taking care of Gil. Chad made sure he had fluids, fixed him simple meals and was sure to pat his brow dry whenever it seemed to be needed, running a comforting hand through Gil's sweaty locks that the other blond gladly leaned into. He called Uma whenever he needed to take a break from organizing and set a giant pot of chicken and vegetable soup to simmer on the stove for dinner that night, pairing it with homemade bread that was light and fluffy.

By the time Aziz came back – earlier than usual, making Chad fear he'd passed up a chance to hang out with his friends to check on the apartment – Gil was slightly more coherent, the blond slumped against the arm of the couch and cradling a tumbler of warm, honey-sweetened tea to his chest. He'd been steadily working his way through the classic animated Auradon movies that he'd only ever seen beaten up advertisements for on the Isle from the newspapers and magazines they were sent, so he was eager to view them, even if he kept nodding off every once and a while. Chad had made a habit of pausing the shows every time he saw that Gil had drifted, so he didn't miss too much.

"You guys okay?" Aziz asked as he slid off his shoes, setting them near the hall that led to his room before abandoning his bookbag beside them.

"We're okay," Chad confirmed with a smile, taking another picture of Gil for Uma and Harry. "Gil's watching one of your favorite movies now though – you should pull up a chair."

Aziz blinked, likely surprised that Chad knew what his favorite movies were, then grinned with delight, moving to settle down in the large, Agraben-style armchair they had.

Chad gave them their space, knowing that Aziz would eventually break the ice by sharing exciting tidbits and behind the scenes goodies with Gil sure enough, and when he did, Gil was eager to drink up everything he had, the two of them rewatching scenes and singing along to the songs while Chad captured a discreet video from the kitchen.

Finally, they were coming together. Aziz was shyer than Chad would have expected when it came to approaching the pirates, but he supposed there was a difference between talking to transfer students rather than talking to the heroes of Auradon. One was slightly more intimidating than the other.

Still, it made Chad happy to see Aziz on his way back to getting the good thing he'd once had.

It seemed like Aziz started a trend, because the other came home early too – Jay only hanging out with the others for about an hour before he walked through the door. Uma and Harry didn't even stay out the full eight hours, choosing instead to return just as Aziz and Gil had put on another movie, Jay not-so-discretely watching them from the breakfast bar while Chad worked on the latest seating arrangements on his tablet.

"Uma!" Gil cheered as soon as the captain walked through the door. "Harry! Prince Aziz was just showing me these awesome movies. They're really fun!"

"It's just Aziz, Gil," the Agraben said, a dull blush growing across the bridge of his nose. "And I'm happy to share these with you."

"Saps," Uma muttered as she strolled over towards the couch, leaning over the back of it so she could press a kiss to the top of Gil's head. "What do you say to a bath before dinner, Gilly?"

"I um- think that would be good," Gil said, looking down at himself with a flush. "I'm sweaty."

"You're sick," Harry corrected, wasting no time to urge Gil off the couch, wrapping the blond's arm around his shoulders. "Come on, off ye go."

"Thanks, Harry," Gil murmured, leaning affectionately into Harry's side. The first mate tried to huff in annoyance, but he couldn't mask the way he held Gil a bit closer before he walked him down the hall, Uma trailing after them with a fond grin.

She paused just before exiting the room, looking over her shoulder towards Chad. "Good job with the pictures, stud," she said. "They really made Harry feel better."

"My pleasure, Uma," Chad said, flushing dark, but that was just a natural response, as was Uma's responding cackle probably.

-:-:-

Endnotes:

Yep, nothing but natural responses here. It's all very normal and expected ;)

Story notes:

I intended to add more references to the chest pain when Chad returned to his reality when I was editing, but I uh- didn't really do that, so um- everyone just pretend I did. Thanks ;)

Until next time