Title: Westward: Eastbound
Category: Movies » Descendants, 2015
Author: WanderlustandFreedom
Language: English, Rating: Rated: K
Genre: Adventure/Drama
Published: 03-13-20, Updated: 05-12-20
Chapters: 9, Words: 48,553

Chapter 1: Chapter 1

Westward; Eastbound - Part 1

I do not own Disney Descendants.

To be updated in parts. Also included with my Oneshots Collections

"Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

Ben crept around the coffee table with a grin plastered onto his face. He spotted a pair of light purple and pink-spotted socks peeking out from behind a heavy grey curtain and jumped forward to brush them away. A doll fell forward onto the floor beside his feet. Bamboozled again.

"Oh, come on!" He complained, turning to look back around the room. "You need to play fair!"

A giggle sounded from behind the couch. Ben pivoted and leaned over, but there was no one there. He wasn't to be fooled again though, so he flipped open the lid of the blanket basket and laughed when his eight-year-old looked up with a shocked expression. "Found you!" He exclaimed.

"What?" She squawked. "You never look there!"

"Are you keeping track?" He laughed. "I didn't think you could fit in there."

"I'm stuck," Belle nodded. "Can you help me out?"

Ben began to laugh in earnest as he leaned down and pried his wayward daughter out of her hiding place. It was a miracle she'd been able to fit. The basket was barely as big as she was. Belle finally stood up amongst the blankets and dusted off her blue dress. "Ugh, it was so stuffy in there," she snorted, holding her head up high. Ben rolled his eyes as she glanced over towards the window and let out a dramatic gasp. "You knocked Molly over!" she exclaimed and jumped out of the basket to rescue the doll.

"I was busy looking for you!" Ben protested as she scooped up the doll, which was half as big as she was, and combed its hair in a comforting manner. The doll was made of plastic and had the dimensions of a real-life toddler. It had been designed for a medical class so technicians could learn CPR and other lifesaving procedures for children. A pediatrician had brought one to Belle's public school and she'd been so impressed that she'd come home and taken up dozens of extra chores to earn one. She was a far cry from the Belle who would have thrown a tantrum for the thing. Ben honestly hated it. It made alarm sounds if you turned it upside down for too long or if it was trapped under something heavy or if something knocked into it hard. There was also a computer feature on it where it would cry every so often and you had to feed it or cradle it or do something to make it stop. It was supposed to mimic an actual child, but it only made it all the more creepy. Belle adored it, but Ben made her switch off the automatic crying every night before she went to bed.

Ben sighed and crouched down beside Belle as she checked the doll's arm, listened for breathing, and then went back to combing her brown hair. "Is she okay?" He asked.

Belle nodded. "I think so," she agreed and then adjusted the doll's dress so it fit better against the doll's body."

"Your Majesty?" Someone called from the door. Ben looked up. The door had been left open and a footman was now waiting in the doorway.

"Yes?" Ben asked, standing up straight and fixing the cuffs on his shirt.

"You're needed in your office," the foreman informed him. "It'll only be a moment."

Ben nodded and patted Belle on the shoulder. "You can stay here," he told her, "Or you can go find Mom. I think she went for a walk after she got off work."

"I have to stay here and make sure Molly doesn't have any bruises," Belle huffed dramatically. She flipped over her wrist and examined her pink plastic watch. It had come in a children's meal from a fast-food restaurant they'd stopped at on their way home from a meeting and she liked it more than the glass-face watch Audrey had gotten for her years ago. This was a toy Ben approved of - he could give her the day's schedule and she'd meticulously write in her assignments alongside his and every once in a while come back to him to compare his watch to hers and make sure both were correct. "Oh, and it's almost nap time and I haven't picked out a book for her!"

"Naptime?" Ben asked. "What about lunch?"

"It can wait," Belle huffed. "Or, actually-" she glanced at her watch again and furrowed her brow. "No, it can't! I have to go to the library afterward to pick out a book to show Grandma and then Mom's going to be here to take me to the park!" She threw her head back in exasperation. "There's not enough time in the day!"

"Your majesty?" The footman called from the door.

"Coming!" Ben got to his feet and crossed the room quickly. The footman began to walk ahead of him to his office, glancing back at every corner to make sure he was still coming. Ben followed to the office and discovered that three people were inside, waiting for him. It was the Charming family, consisting of Chad, his wife Alexis, and their son Liam. "Chad!" Ben exclaimed, stepping forward and clapping his old friend on the back as they exchanged a hug. "It's marvelous to see you again!"

"Hello, Ben," Chad returned the hug, but not with as much enthusiasm. They broke apart and Ben took a seat behind his desk. Everyone else sat down in front of him without being prompted. Chad didn't even take the time to re-introduce his son and mention that he was sitting in on this meeting for future training or anything. Ben frowned.

"We have news," Chad explained without being prompted. "An emergency, I'm afraid. It came to my attention late last night and we came straight away to inform you in person." He withdrew a photo from a file case that had been set on a seat and slid a photo forward to Ben. Ben leaned forward and frowned. He recognized it immediately. It was the Isle of the Lost. And, near the old port where the magical bridge would be conjured up if anyone ever decided to go over, there was a visible hole underneath it.

"How long has that been there?" Ben asked, picking up the photo to examine it further. It was quite a wide rip… maybe thirty feet across.

"Since two days ago," Chad admitted. "My overseers saw it open and tried to remotely close it, but I'm afraid the equipment is rather old and… well, it doesn't work anymore. After doing everything they could, they brought the matter to me and now I'm bringing it to you. We've already sent out a ship to guard the opening, but it's possible something with magic… like Dr. Facilier, Ursula, or - God forbid - Maleficent might have already escaped."

"Maleficent?" A voice repeated from the doorway. Everyone turned. Audrey was standing in the doorway, looking startled. Ben's face softened to see her.

"Hey," he smiled and got to his feet. "How was your walk?"

"Fine," She stepped inside and took his hands. They shared a quick hello kiss. "What's going on?"

"The barrier to the Isle of the Lost is broken," Chad explained. "We found it two days ago."

"And Maleficent escaped?" Audrey asked, crossing her arms.

"No." Ben shook his head and retook his seat. "That's just speculation. So far, we have a ship out watching it and no one's escaped that we know of."

"The Isle has been quiet for the last few years," Chad speculated, rubbing the base of his chin. "If they've been planning something and they were quick… they could have got away."

"What do you mean by quiet?" Audrey demanded, then looked down at Ben. "Do we know where everyone is?"

"Oh, we keep track of most of the villains and note when they appear on cameras," Chad butted in before Ben could respond. "But two years ago, all the children stopped showing up on the cameras. Everyone twenty-two to four went underground. There are new kids now, of course, but we think the older ones went to the back of the Island, away from their parents."

Ben pinched his lips together to suppress a little smile and then continued examining the photo. The older children had escaped - underneath Chad's nose - and headed to the West, where they now had their own little place of safety away from their parents, ruled by a three-person team. It wasn't quite a secret that they were there - plenty of the contractors and constructors who had headed over knew the villain kids quite well and a few people traveled over without ever knowing whose territory they were going through, but Ben hadn't announced them at the request of Evie, who wanted to establish the community before it was added to Auradon as a Kingdom.

"What are we going to do?" Audrey asked, glancing down on the photo and then shifting her weight from side to side. "Is there anything we can do?"

"We ought to count the villains on the Isle right now," Ben decided, taking the photo and turning it upside down. He could tell that Audrey was panicking over the sight of it. "I'm worried about Ursula in particular… if the rip extends under the water then it's harder to tell if she's escaped already. However, I don't want to call attention to the breach. We don't need people taking advantage of it."

"Understood," Chad nodded and glanced at his wife. "Alexis proposed we erect some sort of secondary barrier or a monitoring spell at the least over the rip while we figure out how to fix the rip."

"Call the Fairy Godmother," Ben nodded. "She should be able to help with both the rip and a second barrier." He glanced up at Audrey. "Maybe your Fairy Godmothers could help with that as well?"

"Maybe," Audrey nodded. She was looking past Ben, out the window, and into the distance. He glanced out, but there was nothing there and he knew she was only spacing out again. She had been doing that ever since he ripped out the curtains in her room and closed the spa on all days except Monday.

"We will contact her," Chad decided, and the three of his family got to their feet. "Thank you, Ben. We'll be in touch."

They took their leave out of the office. Ben busied himself with scribbling a note down to reach out to them later and then glanced at Audrey. She was focused on the window still, gazing out at nothing. Ben sighed. "You're doing it again," he murmured softly, trying his best not to nag.

Audrey snapped back to the present and let out an irritated sigh. "Let it go, Ben," she grumbled, sitting down in a chair near the door. "I'm just… thinking. Nothing's wrong with me."

"You're having trouble focusing," Ben told her. "You keep going unresponsive. You used to never do that."

"Plenty of people think, Ben," Audrey replied. "And I did what you wanted. I went for a walk. I went outside." She waved her hand to the window and made a fluttering motion with her fingertips. Ben frowned. It was clear from her tone of voice she still thought he was being ridiculous. "Listen, I know you have this belief that nature restores everything, but I've been having this thought lately-" She spread her hands as if framing something on the wall behind him. "What if I'm just getting older? What if that's what this is?"

"Geriatrics at twenty-nine," Ben snorted. Audrey let out an annoyed breath as he started going through random papers atop his stack. There weren't many though, and soon he was left with the option to find something else to occupy his attention or look at Audrey and engage in awkward silence. He stood up and wandered to the window, opening it. Audrey shivered before the first breeze had ever swept into the room and stood up.

"Where's our daughter?" She asked.

"It's Molly's nap time," he rolled his eyes. "I believe she's reading and putting her to bed."

Audrey stared at him as if he had two heads. A blank and confused look was frozen on her face as she stared at a point just over his left ear, processing. "Oh," she nodded and pressed a hand to her head. "I didn't know she was reading yet. Did her last nanny teach her?"

"We don't have nannies anymore," Ben reminded her patiently, though he felt like grinding his teeth together. "I taught her. Remember, we read in the evenings now?"

"Yes, of course!" Audrey snapped. "I'm not stupid, Ben." She paused, then raked the fingers of one hand through her hair. "I just… I thought Molly was still struggling, and-"

"Molly is the doll, Audrey," Ben interrupted. "Our daughter's name is Belle. Remember? Belle?" His voice was rising now - Audrey's face bloomed over red and puce.

"I got mixed up!" She snapped. "I forgot about the doll. I was talking about the… the… the peasant girl who keeps coming over to play with her. The one you said was a good influence."

"Morgan," Ben supplied, and yes, he could see how she confused the two names. "Morgan isn't a peasant girl, Audrey. Her mother is a developmental psychologist. She's the one we used to take Belle to. But she doesn't have a nanny. Never has."

"I can't believe you thought I would forget my own daughter's name!" Audrey snapped, ignoring what he'd just said. "What kind of monster do you think I am?"

"Well, you seem content to-" Ben shut himself off. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "I… I apologize. I didn't mean to-"

"Oh, no." Audrey shook her head. "Do go on. What do I seem content to forget? I'm the one who participates at her school."

"The school that I put her in."

"I put her in the first seven-"

"You didn't care when she got dropped out of every single-"

"You weren't ever there! You were always busy-"

"I was busy because you couldn't be bothered to-"

"It wasn't a problem for you then-"

"It was always a problem! I just-"

"You need to-"

"Mom?" The little voice came from the doorway and Audrey stopped mid-sentence to glance down and then turn to pick Belle up. Belle's head dropped onto Audrey's shoulder as mother and daughter shared a hug. Audrey closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She chuckled and ran a hand down Belle's back.

"You smell nice, little one."

"Thanks, mommy."

Audrey set Belle back down and Belle glanced over at her father, who got down on one knee to be on eye level with her as he held out a hand for a fist bump. "Did you put Molly to bed okay?" he asked.

Belle nodded. "I checked her pulses," she announced as if it were an ordinary thing. "She's a bit on the dead side but I'll give her medicine when she wakes up and she'll live."

Ben wasn't sure that was entirely how medicine worked.

"That sounds like a good idea, pumpkin," Audrey told Belle. "You take such good care of your dolly - maybe one day you can come up with something that fixes Mommy's aches too."

"Dad says if you eat lots of fruits and veggies and go outside to play then it helps," Belle suggested. Ben lifted his eyes to Audrey as if to say "I-told-you-so," and Audrey pinched her lips together.

"Mommy has different problems than that, honey."

Belle shrugged. "It worked for me. I don't get tummy aches anymore." She put a hand to her midsection and rubbed her belly. "Dad, I'm hungry. Can we get a snack?'

"Sure," Ben nodded and scooped her up into his arms. Her unicorn t-shirt slid up against his arm and Belle squirmed to pull it back down. Ben stopped to kiss Audrey's cheek before he stepped out of the office and murmured: "We'll be out on the porch." She didn't respond. A corner of the office had transfixed her, and she was gone. Ben huffed and turned out the lights. She never remembered to do it herself and he was tired of the expense it was causing. He left the door open and the window letting in a breeze. Audrey wouldn't notice either until she eventually came back to herself.

Belle curled into his shoulder. She hadn't noticed yet that Audrey wasn't always herself.

Nineteen months and he still couldn't get used to sleeping without the window open.

It was the closest he could get on a reasonable night to sleeping outside. Sometimes he actually would sleep outside, out on the porch or in a hammock or sometimes in a tent where Belle could play the next day. But most nights he was inside, fully clad in soft plaids and warm flannel and thick socks with the ceiling fans on high and the windows open - even in the winter. Even on fall nights like these.

Audrey thought he was insane.

It helped a bit - coping with the distance and with his job and the daily grind of things. Things had gotten better over the years. He hadn't seen Mal since he'd left (which might have been for the better) but he and Evie had exchanged letters off and on for about four months after he'd left before they'd both gotten too busy to keep up. He still heard about the VK's when they requested additional help from Auradon, but things were smooth-sailing now. They didn't need his help.

Ben rolled over in his bed. The other side was, of course, empty. Ben had told Audrey about two months after arriving that he was going to move back into the master bedroom and that redecoration would be coming with him. He'd arranged for her to keep all her things - her favorite rug and limited collection of bath bombs, among other treasures, but she'd been so furious she'd moved into a separate suite next to Belle's rather than room with him. Her room was decorated to her tastes, and Ben wasn't going to force her to change that. He knew this whole thing had been a shock for her. Still, her hate bit at him. When they had married, he had pictured falling asleep beside her. Waking up and kissing her hair until she awoke with a smile on her face. Children - plural. But Audrey wanted none of it. And he couldn't hold anything against her.

He rolled back onto his back - why was he so sleepless tonight? It had been a rather relaxing night. He and Belle had eaten together and read while Audrey dined separately in her room. Audrey had come down to help him put Belle to bed - which was an improvement, and one he was pleased to see. She even checked that Belle had brushed her teeth before they'd turned off the light. Still, she had gone back to her room without saying much to him.

Ben wished his brain would shut off.

He tossed back onto his front and shook his pillow twice before burying his face into it. For a moment, he imagined it was a rolled-up fur jacket instead and the cut of the wind felt sharper, but then the silk of the bedsheets brought him back to the palace.

Something fell in the next room over. Ben sat up, blinking. There was a shuffling sound - someone had tripped over whatever had been disturbed. Was it Belle, trying to sneak into his room? Ben swung his feet over the edge of the bed, found his slippers, and got to his feet. He walked to the door, opened it, and peered outside.

The culprit froze in the center of the room, over the blanket basket that had been kicked from where he and Belle had accidentally left it earlier. He stared at Ben. Ben stared back. In the distance, Ben thought he heard a familiar, firm voice telling him he should call the guards now.

Because the culprit had flaming blue hair.

Ben cleared his throat. "Can I help you?" he asked slowly, taking in the fact that this man - this god - was standing in his living room. This villain who should be on the Isle right now.

Hades blinked, looked over his shoulder, gestured to himself, and exhaled. "Your majesty," he coughed and cleared his throat. "I am… sorry to disturb you."

"Oh, no, I was awake," Ben nodded. He let his hands drop from where they had remained on the doorframes. "I thought you were…" Actually, it probably wasn't best to draw a villain's attention to his daughter. "Nevermind."

Hades leaned down and propped the blanket basket back up before hurriedly stuffing all that had fallen out of it back in. He cleared his throat but said nothing. Ben decided to ask again.

"Is there… a reason you're here? Something I can do to help you?" The hairs on his neck were starting to fall again. Hades didn't seem intent on hurting him, at least. And prior experience with the children of the villains had taught him that negotiations were easier if you offered to do something without charge. If Hades was anything like the kids, he'd be wary of debt and insist on repaying any favor.

Hades seemed surprised he was being regarded so kindly despite the situation. He straightened up and stared. Ben ran a hand through his hair so he wasn't standing awkwardly and then gestured to the couches around Hades. "Here," he invited. "Have a seat. Do you want me to send for something?"

"No," Hades declined, though he took a seat. Ben walked over and sat on an adjacent couch. He took a deep breath and then began to speak.

"So… you're here in my living room in the middle of the night… and there's nothing you need me to do for you?"

"I'm here for information," Hades replied stiffly. "I'm not here to… threaten you or…" he exhaled. "I, uh, was going to sneak in and sneak out without taking anything."

Ben clasped his hands together. "Well, what were you looking for?" he asked.

Hades shifted. "Well… a few years ago, I don't know if you know, there was a group of kids that left the Isle of the Lost. They came to Auradon… wanted to strike out by themselves."

"I know," Ben nodded. "They were led by three girls. They went to Charmington, and that's where they were found."

"Are you holding them, then?" Hades asked.

"No," Ben shook his head in response. "They live out west now. They have their own lands and everything. I set the land aside for their use."

"You did?" If Hades was surprised at first, it was nothing compared to now. "Well… that's wonderful. I, uh, didn't expect that." He ran a hand through his hair. "Well, see here, I had one of my kiddos leave with that group and I've always worried about her a bit… I wanted to drop by and see her and… maybe not get sent back to the Isle."

Ben paused and furrowed his brow. "Well," he began, "These kids were specifically fleeing from parents. If I send you over, how do I know-"

"I'm not an abuser," Hades replied flatly. "I don't have any proof, but I'm not. I didn't even get to raise my kiddo - her mother was a bit of a freak. But I watched over her until the day she was gone - and I don't want to be part of her life if she hates me - I just want to make sure she's taken care of and happy and everything."

Ben nodded slowly. His brain felt a bit foggy from the surprise, but he understood. "Okay," he agreed. "I can arrange for that."

Hades blinked in surprise. "You can?" he nodded.

"Sure." Ben shrugged. "I'm the King - I can do whatever I want. And if you want to see your daughter, then you can see your daughter." He stifled a yawn - of course, he'd feel tired now - and then squinted at Hades. "One question: how did you get out?"

"Well, I used the old machine the kids left behind and figured out the code to flip it on and from there, I just used my powers to open the barrier."

"How long ago?" Ben asked.

"Two days, now," Hades shrugged. "I went to the underworld to see if I could see where she'd gone from my realm, but I couldn't. And then-"

"Sorry," Ben interrupted. "Two more questions, please. One, how did you get out without being seen, and two, did you happen to open the barrier near the old Port de la Grande?"

Hades stared. "Yes…" he trailed off. "I used my helmet of invisibility."

Ben pressed his lips together. "Did you close the barrier after you left?" he asked. "Because we have a gaping hole underneath that port that we can't close remotely."

A color spread into Hades's cheeks. "I… meant to close it," he stammered. "I musta… not understood the machinery or something - you can't close it?"

"It must have been broken when you came through." Ben ran a hand through his hair. "There's a large hole… at least twenty feet across."

"Twenty feet?" Hades echoed. "I didn't do that. "I slipped through in about three feet." He chuckled nervously. However, this did nothing to console Ben.

"Well, then it must be getting wider," he reasoned and got to his feet to pace across the room. "I'll have to call Chad… let him know. I don't suppose there's a way you can fix it? Yes, I thought not. Well, I'll still help you get to the West if you want. I believe there's some sort of spell that keeps some people out… we can send you with a carriage with our ensign and you'll be able to get in with that."

"That would be wonderful," Hades agreed, relaxing a little though he still looked a little embarrassed. "Thank you for your hospitality. I'm sorry for the barrier."

Ben waved him off. "We'll get it worked out," he assured him, then paused to yawn. "So long as Maleficent doesn't figure out it's there, we'll be fine." He braced his hands on the back of the couch. "Now, if you'll excuse me, it's getting late. If you want, there is an empty suite across the hall that should be maintained. You're welcome to have it for the night and in the morning I'll have horses and a carriage prepped to take you to the West."

Hades stood up, still looking a little lost. "Wait," he requested, holding up his hands. "Is… is that it?"

Ben tilted his head. "Unless you need anything else?"

"Well…" Hades trailed off. "Do you offer to send everyone who breaks into your suite across the country?"

"To be fair, you're the first time this has happened, and I'm not sure it'll become a trend." Although he had offered the group of people who had kidnapped him on a diplomatic trip a kingdom of their own and ditched his family for two months to support them, so he didn't exactly have a great track record for dealing with wrongdoers. Oh well.

Hades stared at him as if he was unsure he was speaking with the right person. Ben ran his hands up and down his face and yawned. "Let's talk more in the morning," he decided and then turned to walk back into his room. He listened briefly to see if Hades would say anything, but no further comment was added.

He shut the door to his room again and, after a few moments, heard Hades leave.

Chapter 2: Chapter 2

Ben woke up with his eight-year-old kneeling on his legs and leaning down over his face. "Dad, who's that man in our living room?" Belle asked as soon as she could see that his eyes were open.

Ben lifted a hand and rubbed his eyes. "Does he have blue hair?" he wondered.

"Yes," Belle nodded. "It's on fire."

Ben sat up and yawned. "That is someone who's come for my help, Belle. I need you to be on your best behavior."

"Does his hair burn him?" Belle wondered.

"Probably not," Ben reasoned.

"Would it burn me?"

"Let's not find out." Ben decided. He picked her up underneath her arms and then set her back down once he had moved his legs. He got up and then nodded at the covers. "Want to help me make my bed?" he asked.

"No," Belle turned her nose into the air and slid off the bed. "One is too many. Why don't we have the maid come to make our beds like Mom does?"

"Because you need to have some chores to keep your body strong," Ben told her. "If Mom did her own chores, she wouldn't be so sick all the time."

Belle huffed. "Well, okay, I'll make my bed, but I won't make yours." She blew her brown hair out of her eyes. "I'm going to go wake up Mom," she decided and headed for the door. "She needs to do my hair."

"Goodbye!" Ben called. He pulled the comforter straight and sighed. it occurred to him that he'd have to get to Audrey and inform her of their… odd guest before she found him and had a panic attack. With that thought in mind, he quickly yanked the pillows into place and then headed for the living room.

Hades was sitting in the living room, looking stiff but alert. Ben offered him a smile and a little wave. "Good morning," he bid him. "Did you sleep well?"

"I did," Hades nodded. "I, uh, didn't know you had a daughter?"

"Yes, I do," Ben nodded. "That's who I thought you were when I walked in last night. Belle."

Hades wrinkled his nose. "You could have named her better," he remarked.

"Family gatherings are a little confusing," Ben admitted with a shrug. "I guess my family just isn't good at naming people. My mom picked Florian for my middle name."

The corner of Hades's mouth crooked up. "My wife - well, ex-wife - picked our daughter's name and I have never forgiven myself on her behalf."

Ben snorted. "Yes, I knew one of the villain kids who had an awful middle name too," he said. Hades gave him an odd ook and it occurred to Ben that he probably didn't know the full story - that Ben had been swiped and then accidentally become the villain's savior. Something to be explained later. He gestured to the door out into the hall. "Well, I am going to go inform the queen you're here before there's a mix-up or anything. Breakfast is usually served in a room down the hall. You can go help yourself. It'll be the one with the open door and all the windows though if you follow your nose you should be able to find it." He began retreating while still talking. "If you can't find it, I or Belle will be out in a moment to show you. Audrey usually takes a while to get ready."

Hades nodded but didn't move. Ben slipped out into the hall and then began to walk down to where Belle's room was. Belle's room still held a mix of bright oranges and pinks in the rug and the lamp and her clothes, among other possessions, but it was now painted a muted beige and held grey and white accents instead of the sensory overload it had been two years ago. Belle loved it, so that was what was important, but Ben could do without all the stickers and pictures she'd hung on her walls.

In Audrey's room, the decor resembled what most of the palace had been before Ben had changed it. Vivid pink and yellow and orange. Ben skirted around Audrey's prized rug and ducked under a bunch of jewels she had hanging from the ceiling - was that really necessary? Her room was overstuffed with furniture she had saved when Ben flipped the palace decorations around and Ben had to lean to avoid the giant pillows stacked precariously atop each other.

Inside the bathroom, Belle was babbling as Audrey carefully combed her hair up into a high ponytail. Both girls were smiling and there was even some color in Audrey's cheeks as she carefully arranged the braid she was tying up into the pony. Ben leaned against the doorframe and watched them chatter. Belle's eyes lit up when she saw him. "Hi dad!" she smiled.

"Hello Belle," he waved and then locked eyes with Audrey as his wife opened a drawer stuffed with hair accessories. "Your hair looks nice."

"Only one," Audrey whispered to Belle. Belle ignored the compliment as she began searching through scrunchies and clips. She folded her arms across herself and closed her eyes in discomfort or pain. Ben stepped further into the bathroom and slipped his arm around her. His hand landed in the small of her back to support her as she took a deep, steadying breath. "My body is betraying me," she laughed, leaning back into his touch. Ben made sure not to let his expression change at all.

"I think my favorite color is pink today," Belle mused as she shuffled past a diamond-encrusted claw clip. "Actually, no, it's purple. Do you have anything with polka dots?"

Audrey leaned forward to withdraw a vibrant purple scrunchie with pink polka dots. Belle nodded happily and Audrey began wrapping the velvet scrunchie into her daughter's hair. Ben watched the purple in her hands and felt himself falling into a little trance. Then, he remembered what he'd come to say.

"We have a visitor," he announced. "I just want you to know so you don't… get confused or anything."

"From the kingdoms?" Audrey asked.

"Mom, he's got blue hair!" Belle exclaimed happily.

"Oh, I see," Audrey smiled and put her hands on Belle's shoulders. "He and dad must be exchanging fashion advice!" She poked Belle's sides and the little girl squealed and shrieked. Audrey laughed with her.

"Belle?" Ben asked when Audrey had let up tickling their daughter. "Why don't you run and show him where the food is? I don't want him to get lost." Belle nodded, leaned up to kiss Audrey's cheek, and then scurried out of the room. Audrey's smile faded as Belle left. She picked up her hairbrush in the absence of any conversation and then began combing through her hair. Ben cleared his throat. "I know what this is going to look like to you, and so I just need you to know about him before you go out there," he told her. "He, uh, has come for help and I'm going to help him."

"Of course you are," Audrey nodded. "You always help everyone."

"This is a little different," Ben sighed. "He's… looking for his daughter. I'll be seeing him off later today. He, uh, has an interesting backstory."

Audrey paused in brushing her hair. "Interesting?" she asked.

Ben took her hand and pulled her a little closer so he didn't have to talk as loud. He doubted the sound could reach out of the room with all the overcrowding out there, but it just felt like something that should be whispered instead of said. "Audrey, it's Hades. He's just come from the Isle of the Lost and he's looking for the kids that left the Isle a few years ago."

Audrey's eyes grew wide. "But he - the barrier!" She squawked.

"He broke it to come looking for her. But it's okay! Everything's under control! We know where they are and we're going to send him off after breakfast."

"You know where those kids went?" Audrey demanded. "The ones Chad was talking about?"

"You were listening?" Ben blinked in surprise.

"Ben!"

"I'm sorry! I just-" he took a deep breath. "Yes, I know where those kids went. They also came for me to help. Or, well, they brought me to - it doesn't matter! Yes, I know where they are."

"You didn't tell me?" Audrey shrieked.

"It was back before you were working in office!" Ben snapped. He brought his hands up to his face to momentarily block her out and then took a deep breath. "Listen, we're going to get the barrier fixed… Hades is going to go this afternoon and then I promise everything will be okay. I just need to not call the guards on him or insult him for one morning."

"Hades," Audrey deadpanned. "The God of the Underworld who tried to destroy the world."

"Don't call the guards." Ben leveled a finger to her nose. "And don't insult him."

Audrey rolled her eyes.

Breakfast was almost boring. Ben had to rush Belle out halfway through so she could get her school clothes on. She came back and gave a twirl and Ben caught Hades staring at her wistfully. Audrey snuck into the dining room after she was dressed, ignored Hades and Ben, kissed Belle's head, and then disappeared towards the spa. It was Monday, the only day Ben will let the spa attendant come in anymore, and so he knew he wouldn't see her until tomorrow morning.

A message came that the carriage Ben had requested was now prepared and out in front.

"I'll have to walk Belle down to the bus stop soon," he told Hades. "But let's go down to my office and I'll write you a letter to show people in charge of the Villain Kid's territory so you can prove I sent you over. That way, if you get stopped on the road, you won't be arrested and brought back either."

Ben's office was left exactly the way he'd shut it down yesterday. His seat was cold from the breeze coming through the window. The papers on his were a bit moist. Ben sat down and began searching for a piece of cold stationery. Hades began to examine a map of Auradon hanging on the wall behind him.

"They're out past Arendelle," Ben supplied, testing a pen out on a sticky note.

"You have it marked," Hades agreed. "VK Hideaway."

"It had a nice ring."

Hades examined the map several more seconds and then turned to look over Ben's shoulder. It appeared both of them were at a loss of what to say as Ben addressed the letter "To Whom It May Concern."

"I, uh, have you figured out how to fix the barrier?" Hades asked.

"No," Ben shook his head. "But we'll have to soon. I don't want anyone bad getting out. You're fine, but there are a few people I wouldn't necessarily want to have show up on my doorstep."

"I get it," Hades agreed. "But there are some people like me over there. Lots of parents pushed their kids to go, even knowing they'd never see them again."

Ben paused. He tried to imagine never, ever being able to see Little Belle again. Then, with a swallow, he found his voice again. "That's rough," he said. "I'll have to do something about that. Thank you for bringing it to my attention."

Hades looked confused. "You know," he sighed. "It's a lot harder to hate you when you realize that you're not a bad guy. I know a great lot of people out on that island who'd kill you right now without a second thought." He turned back to the map and started tracing the VK spot with his fingertip.

"Glad to see I'm liked," Ben sighed, running a hand through his hair. He was about halfway through his letter. "There are some people out on that island I'm terrified to meet, though. I mean, imagine if Maleficent had escaped. If she's anything like her daughter in terms of power, Auradon would have been history."

Hades stopped and looked at Ben curiously. "The daughter of Maleficent?" he asked slowly.

"Her name is Mal." Ben looked up and tilted his head to the side as he talked. "Very powerful young lady. She once told me she could use some magic through the barrier. She's the protector of the encampment now."

"Ah," Hades nodded and a little smile spread across his mouth. "Good to hear."

Ben turned back to his letter. "She's not against Auradon, luckily for us. But goodness, if Maleficent came for us, that'd be-"

"What's that?" Hades cut Ben off, staring out the open window. Ben turned and followed his gaze. Out over the treeline, a thick green fog was approaching. Ben got to his feet.

"I have no idea," he admitted. Dread pooled in his stomach.

"Maleficent," Hades's hands dropped to his side. "You spoke of the devil, and she appeared."

"Oh my…" A sound like white noise filled Ben's ears. "Audrey!" He dropped his pen and ran for the door. Hades kept close behind him.

"Where would Belle have gone?" He demanded in a yell.

"Probably her room to wait for me!" Ben responded. Hades nodded and hurried away. Ben dashed towards the spa as the castle shook. Green smoke clouded at the windows and began to seep in through the open ones. It smelled tart and burnt at the same time. Ben held his breath, fearing it might be something that would knock him out, but nothing happened.

He burst into the spa room and discovered Audrey sitting up in a chair, looking confused as she squinted suspiciously at the smoke outside the exposed window. A bathrobe was drawn over her and she was dressed in slacks and a pink shirt. Her feet were bare. When she saw the smoke seeping into the room behind him, she gasped. "What is that?" she demanded.

"Maleficent!" Ben gasped, rushing forward and grabbing her hand. "We need to get out. You need to get out."

The spa attendant rushed out, covering her face with a wet towel. Ben pulled Audrey by the hand to the hall. Audrey didn't resist, but she wasn't moving very fast. "But - Belle!" she sputtered.

"She's going to be outside, don't worry!" Ben shouted. They began to run down the hall together, but before they'd even transversed ten feet Audrey had to grab the wall for support. Her face was deathly pale as she clutched at her ribs.

"I can't run!" she gasped.

"You and your-" Ben almost threw his hands into the air. Around the corner, in the entrance hall, there was a loud bang. Maniacal laughter filled the area. Audrey's face went even paler.

"I'm back!" Maleficent cackled from the entryway. "Where are you?"

A hand appeared on Ben's shoulder. He turned and discovered Hades quietly ushering him back towards the family rooms. Without a second thought, Ben scooped Audrey up into his arms, ignoring her little cry as he forced her body to curl up a bit, and they headed into the living room that was attached to the master. Just in time as Maleficent entered the hall and began to search through rooms.

Hades guided them into Ben's bedroom, where the window was open. Belle sat beside the open window with the screen on the ground, clutching Molly the Doll with her backpack set on both shoulders securely. Ben leaned out the window and discovered Audrey's hideous mountain of pillows had somehow appeared under the window. He assumed Hades's godly magic had had something to do with that.

"Let's get out," Hades decided, picking up Belle.

"What about Maleficent?" Ben asked. "Could you take her?"

Hades let out a laugh. "Until that woman dies, I've got nothing," he said. He climbed up on the railing and cuddled Belle close to him before leaning out. Audrey shrieked and leaned towards the window. Ben winced, but no one appeared. Down below, Hades and a now-crying Belle rolled safely off the mountain. Ben took Audrey's hand and made to help her up.

"I'm not going down there!" Audrey declared, leaning away from the window. Her hands were pressed to her back, trying to give herself additional support.

"It's either get down and get to the carriage in front or meet your mother's enemy, who'd probably love to see you anyways," Ben snapped. Audrey pinched her lips together and allowed herself to be helped up. tears started to roll down her cheeks as she was forced to use her back and ribs for balance. It only took a second, then she, too, fell.

Ben put one foot on the windowsill and started to lean up. He heard a door slam somewhere in the palace. "Oh, Princey!" Maleficent called, louder than she should be allowed to be from such a distance. "Where are you? I need your help! You have something I need!"

Something she needed? What? She was out of the barrier… the scepter she had been allowed to keep on the Isle, he knew that. Her spellbook was with Mal - oh. Mal.

The villain kids. What if she went after them?

He had their location in his office.

Ben put his feet back on the ground. Hades finished helping Audrey up and looked up for him. Ben gestured for them to go and then dashed back into the palace. He ducked behind the couch, barely hiding his feet behind the blanket basket when Maleficent appeared in the doorway.

She was both a lot larger and a lot smaller than Ben would have thought. He'd never seen the mistress of all evil but had imagined her to be taller than Mal. On the contrary, she was even shorter than her daughter. Her horns were adorned with rusty chains. Her cloaks billowed out around her as she walked. And she held a set of features eerily similar to the ones that had haunted his dreams. That same thin nose. That same slip of pink mouth. The sparkling, power-filled eyes.

Maleficent went into the bedroom and as soon as her back was turned, Ben made a run for it. She didn't seem to notice him leaving as he disappeared into the thick fog. He hit the hallways and dashed down to his office before grabbing the map Hades had been admiring off the wall and tearing it down. The mount it had been hanging on fell with a clatter. Ben ripped open desk drawers, knowing he didn't have much time, and grabbed a heavy booklet marked "VK's". Then, before he left, he grabbed the mostly-finished letter he'd written for Hades. And it was these things he made off with from his office.

He escaped through the front entry as Hades was finishing shoving Audrey into the carriage and putting Belle into her arms. A terrified coachman sat with shaking hands as Ben sprinted down the steps and practically threw everything into the carriage. Hades jumped in and Ben grabbed the handle beside the door as the carriage began to move. Hades yanked him the rest of the way in.

"Oh, gods," Audrey began to cry as he sat down beside her. She leaned her head into his arms and began to weep. Belle, too, was sobbing and squeezing her doll.

"Tell the carriage driver that we're still going to the same place," Ben told Hades, pulling Audrey and Belle up and into his lap together. Audrey didn't weigh much, so it wasn't an issue.

"Where are we going?" Audrey hiccuped, wiping her eyes while burying her face into Ben's chest.

"The VK Hideaway," Ben responded softly. "I know a person… she might be the only person who can stop Maleficent."

Audrey was too devastated and shocked and in pain to talk to Ben on the way there. It was only long after they passed Charmington that she was able to curl out of his side. The road wasn't as treacherous as before since Ben had ended up repaving the roads all the way out to VK Territory. Now, you could move faster.

Belle slowly came back to herself, occupying her time with caring for Molly and talking with Hades while her mom sat in numb silence and her dad tried to comfort her. She didn't understand why they had left so suddenly, what had happened at the castle, or why they couldn't go back at the moment.

Audrey broke her silence on the second day of traveling. "Ben, did you ever go for a meeting to the VK's?"

Hades glanced over. It was clear he, too, was interested in the response.

"Sort of," Ben replied with a shrug. "I met them when they first came to Auradon. I stayed with them for two months while they relocated to the west. They'd previously taken up refuge in Chad's kingdom."

"How many?" Audrey asked.

"About two hundred when I met them," Ben responded. "But… some of the kids were older. They might have some new children now." He turned around to glance at Belle, curled up on the floor with Molly. "Maybe Belle will be able to make some new friends."

Audrey ran her hands through her hair, which looked stringy and greasy. It was probably the first time in her life she hadn't changed her clothes in twelve hours. "What are we going to do about Maleficent?"

Ben drummed his fingers on his legs. He closed his eyes and Mal's image appeared behind his eyelids, unbidden. "I'll have to ask the VK's for help. There's one person in particular who I know could take out Maleficent. I just have to ask her."

"Her daughter?" Hades asked softly.

"She has a daughter?" Audrey yelped, spinning to face Ben.

Ben nodded. "She's nice, though. It'll be okay."

"She's going to hate me," Audrey whimpered. "She won't agree."

Ben chewed on his cheek. He technically considered himself and Mal to have parted on equal terms but knew she wouldn't consider it the same. Maybe, with a bit of imploring and the sake of her own life and people on end, he could convince her to help him win back Auradon? She might not be able to take out the faery on her own, but with the added forces of Auradon and-

"Dad, I want to go home," Belle moaned from the floor. "We've been in here forever!"

Ben leaned down and picked her up. She kicked his leg lightly to further express her disgust and then fell, sullen, against his chest. "We're almost there," he whispered. "We can't go home yet, but we'll get some help and then we will."

There was a barrier that had been erected at the borders of Arendelle. It was mostly transparent unless you were at the base of it, which Ben and everyone were. Then, it became bright green and looked like it had been made of glass. Audrey began to huff in fear when she saw the color. She had been sleeping restlessly since leaving the castle and Ben knew seeing something so similar to the fog wasn't going to help her nerves at all. Belle, too, looked scared.

Hades cleared his throat as the carriage wheeled closer to the barrier. "Listen, kid, I know what I told you about my daughter, and that was all true. However, with this new development with Maleficent… I don't know if she'll want to see me or let anyone know I'm her dad. So just… lie low for me, please? I'm going to try and find her… rebuild with her if she wants to try."

A normal person would have been suspicious, but Ben nodded. "Okay," he agreed.

The coachman stopped the carriage. Deep bags were under his eyes and his hands still shook from the fear of having Maleficent pass him by. He'd taken them straight to the Westlands, not even pausing except for to feed the horses and close his eyes, and seemed rather eager to get inside this new barrier and to safety.

Ben got out and helped Belle down. Hades followed and then a very sick-looking Audrey stepped down with his help. Then, everyone gathered around to see what to do. Belle clung to his leg. No one seemed content to touch the barrier and even Ben didn't know if it was spelled to shock them back or anything. He got on top of the coachman's seat and peered through the thick green to see what was behind it. In the not-so-far distance, he could see a building. This building was made of grey cement and white stone and rose high up above the trees with a metal pole added to the top for extra height. A lookout tower. And though it was still a fair distance away, he could see no one on it.

"There's no one on the tower," Ben informed the group. "We'll have to chance touching the barrier or just wait for someone to-"

There was a sound like an asteroid falling and something slammed into the ground just inside the barrier. Dust was thrown up and pebbles ricocheted through the magic sphere, raining down on their group. Audrey shrieked and Belle yelled and began to cry. Through the settling dust, Ben saw two glowing green eyes.

He got off the coachman's seat.

The coachman was trembling, crouched behind one of the wheels. Audrey took Ben's arm and hid behind it. Without really meaning to, he brushed her off and stepped closer to the barrier.

The dust faded and he saw purple.

Mal's eyes were squinted into a glare as she dusted herself off and stepped up to the barrier, so close he could smell her. Leather and magic and - oh, he was drooling again. Even after all this time.

She was unfairly beautiful. Time had blessed her - she had curves that she hadn't had before and her skin was softer and more supple than before. Her hair was longer, falling down her back now in tiny natural curls and a darker purple than he remembered. He could see her personality had changed too. She no longer barked at them to explain why they were here or glowered at them with her presence. Instead, she glanced at the carriage, then focused on him.

His prepared words about what he was doing were suddenly lost. "Hey Mal," he murmured instead. His knees felt weak.

"Ben," Mal said in reply. "I saw you coming."

"I saw your perch," Ben replied. "You've upgraded."

Mal shifted her weight and sighed. "What is this, Ben? Are you coming for a visit? We don't need your help anymore."

Ben had to swallow - his mouth felt very dry. "I was… that's not why we came."

"Excuse me?" Audrey peeped up from behind Ben. Ben almost jumped out of his skin - he'd forgotten she was there. She came back up and slipped an arm through his before laying her head on his shoulder. "I'm very sorry… we don't mean to intrude but there's been an emergency. We could really use the Villain Kid's help."

Mal stared at Audrey like she couldn't comprehend her existence. Ben felt Audrey put her hand in his for support. She squeezed and he squeezed back. This didn't seem like one of her jealous ploys - she was just lost and confused.

Mal leaned to see behind Ben. She choked. "Hades?" she demanded, going pale.

Ben didn't see Hades's response. He was too busy focusing on Audrey's hand in his.

Belle stayed beside the wagon with the coachman, who'd started peeping out from behind the wheel, and continued crying. Ben slowly let go of Audrey's hand to go and pick up his sobbing eight-year-old. Mal recoiled upon seeing the child but was still sputtering over Hades's presence. "What is he - she's your-" she sputtered, trying to make sense of the questions she wanted to ask.

"Hades accidentally broke the barrier to the Isle of the Lost while trying to escape to see his daughter again," Ben explained. "Your mother escaped behind him. We need your help, Mal."

"My mother?" Mal demanded. Her eyes grew even wider. Audrey went stiff upon having the girl's identity revealed. She leaned back in fear.

"She attacked the palace," Ben explained softly, letting Belle ball her fists up in his shirt as she cried. "We escaped and we spent two days coming here. Please, Mal, we need help."

Audrey reached out and her hand passed through the barrier. She took Mal's hand. Mal looked almost afraid of the other woman. "Please, miss," Audrey begged Mal. "Talk with us. Let us explain everything. But please, don't shut us out here. Maleficent took the palace… my mother and his were probably next. We just need a little help before we'll be on our way again, and we won't bother you anymore."

If Ben were Mal, the last thing he'd want to do would be to see Audrey. To hear her. To know what she looked like. The fact he was holding Belle probably wasn't helping things. Mal looked like she was about to have an aneurysm. He chewed on his lip as he glanced back and forth between the two girls. Mal caught his eyes in one glance and it was as if he was frozen in time, watching his whole world fall apart.

Then Mal pulled her hand away from Audrey's and flicked her fingers. The barrier opened. Audrey lifted her hands to her cheeks as tears began to fall. "Thank you!" she cried, wiping pearlescent tears off of immediately-inflamed cheeks. Ben squeezed Belle closer as Mal stepped aside to clear a path for Audrey to walk in. She did, but stopped just inside the barrier and held her hand out for Ben. Without a lot of choices, Ben stepped close enough to take her hand as Hades entered the barrier. Mal let her eyes flit over the God of the Underworld. He examined her as well, looking a little deflated, before continuing up a path that Ben hadn't realized had appeared behind Mal. The coachman finally appeared from behind the wheel and with a "wait for me!", dashed up the path behind Hades to safety.

Ben stepped inside last. Belle squeezed his shirt even harder as they passed through the barrier and he kissed her head to reassure her. Mal watched every movement and then fell behind him and Audrey as they walked. He wanted to turn around - to say something. No words came to mind, but he listened to her every deep breath all the way up the path.

They walked in through Uma's sector. Ben could tell which one it was by the teal signs marking roads. The place seemed just as busy as when he'd first left, only nicer. They reached the city center, which was marked by a large pavilion, and Ben was able to examine the differences between the three parts. Uma's sector was paved with dirt and textured brown stones and was wider for carts to fit through. Her signs were teal and the buildings made of wood, metal, and even some glass. Evie's streets were paved with brick and were thinner - probably because the brick cost more. Flowers were planted on the wayside and her signs were blue. Brick houses and white stuccos buildings made up her houses. And in Mal's section, there were hard and durable black roads and purple directional signs. Her buildings were all decorated in shades of grey, light blue, and light green stucco with rock accents. The tallest, thinnest building that stood in the center was probably hers. It was the one he'd seen from the road.

"This is incredible," He murmured. "You turned things around."

Mal didn't meet his eyes. "About time you saw it," she mumbled. "It's all thanks to you."

"Mal!" Someone called from the left. Ben looked over and his face lit up to see Uma walking towards them. She'd chopped her hair short and it was curled with white and yellow highlights in it. She wore pants with fishlike scales up the sides and a light cotton shirt. She was marching over with purpose, but when she recognized Ben, she stopped in her tracks.

"Uma!" Ben exclaimed, letting go of Audrey's hand and going to hug her. Uma was stiff, staring past Ben towards Mal in shock. Still, she patted his back and returned the hug.

"Ben!" she squeaked, sounding more shocked than anything. "You're back! What happened?"

Ben saw Audrey fold her arms across her chest out of the corner of his eye. Oh, dear. Luckily, Mal stepped forward. "Trouble in Auradon," she informed Uma. "The King came to inform me that my mother paid him a visit."

"Maleficent?" Uma asked.

"The king?" Ben raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.

Mal ignored Ben and focused on Uma. Given what she could be feeling at the moment, he couldn't blame her. "They've come to stay safe and get help. We're going to figure out what to do."

"Does he know…" Uma stuck a finger at Ben's cheek.

"Do I know-" Ben began to repeat the question, but Mal cut him off.

"We'll have to set up defenses. If you're not busy, you should go tell Carlos." Her eyes turned a little green and she shook her head a little at Uma. A secret then. Hopefully not anything bad. Uma started to back away. Ben grabbed her arm.

"Hang on," he requested. "You're one of the leaders. Let's get Evie and we four - five, actually, with Audrey - can discuss everything."

Uma chuckled uneasily. "Sorry, your majesty, but uh… I chose not to be part of leadership proceedings anymore. It took up too much time and I, well…" she held up her left hand. A ring sparkled on her fourth finger. "I decided I had different goals."

"You and Harry?" Ben asked with a smile. Uma nodded. "Congratulations! You didn't invite me to the wedding?"

"They didn't invite anyone," Mal explained, focusing on a point over Ben's shoulder, in Evie's sector. "They just moved in together and told everyone that they were married."

"Ah, I see," Ben nodded and then turned to gesture Audrey forward. "Uma, I believe you know about Audrey?"

Uma blinked slowly at Audrey, looked at Mal, looked down at Ben's hand where a new wedding band sat, silver and devoid of decoration, and then let out a long slow breath. Then, she stuck out a hand to Audrey. "Nice to meet you, your majesty," she bid with a tight, uncomfortable smile. "I'm Uma, daughter of Ursula."

Audrey looked paler than normal as she shook Uma's hand. Ben used the distraction to look over his shoulder and see what Mal was staring at. She'd started doing things with her eyes - glaring and flicking them as if she were trying to signal someone. Behind him, at the start of the red brick roads, was Jay. Jay's mouth was open as his eyes flit between Audrey, Ben, and Belle. When he realized Ben had seen him, he leaped away and took off in a sprint down the roads of Evie's sector.

"I, uh, got some places to be now," Uma said, backing away. "Gonna go find Carlos… be right back." And she spun around and took off in a speed-walk.

Something was up.

"Ben, what are we gonna do?" Audrey asked, pressing a hand to her head. "I'm sorry, but I can't… I can't walk anymore."

"Go sit at the pavilion," Mal nodded to the covered benches. "Take Ben and Belle with you. I need to… I need to run and check on something quickly. I'll bring water back… just take a seat.

Ben helped Audrey to the benches and set Belle down beside her. He watched Mal vanish down the black-paved streets and into the crowds of people. Then he took a seat beside his wife and daughter.

Audrey was pressing her hands to her ribs and taking deep breaths. "I… don't think I can do this, Ben," she whispered. "I left all my pain stuff at the palace when we left."

"Maybe Evie will have something," Ben whispered back. "She used to brew potions with her mom. She's another one of the leaders unless she bowed out too. He looked across the courtyard - their coachman had vanished, but Ben wasn't worried for him. He'd probably found a nice place to fall asleep or found someone to ask for help. Hades had vanished too… he was probably looking for his daughter.

"Ben," Audrey whispered, grinding her teeth at his side. "What are we gonna do?"

"We're gonna get help," Ben whispered. "Mal and Evie are going to help us. And when this is all over, we'll go back to the palace and everything will be the same."

Audrey keeled forward even more. "I can't… I hurt, Ben. I'm not the same as I used to be."

"You just need to use your muscles a little more and then-"

"Look at me, Ben!" Audrey exploded. "I can't run - I can barely walk! I've been sitting for two days and now it hurts to stand! I haven't been the same since Belle was born and no amount of exercise or fresh air will change that!" At her name, Belle looked up, unsure and afraid.

Ben pulled her away from Audrey and kissed her head. "Mom and dad need to talk for a moment," he whispered, then pointed to a group of small kids playing in the grass near Evie's area. "Go say hi to them. Ask them to play. Be dad's big, brave girl."

Belle nodded, wiped the last of her tears away, then turned and trudged away. Audrey looked tense - she didn't want her daughter to play with the villain kids but also knew things were about to get ugly. Ben put his hands together as she walked away. "I can't go back to the palace now," he told her. "But I'll try and keep you away as much as I can. But maybe this will be good. You've been wasting away for almost ten years… this will help you start building up strength."

"I don't need strength, Ben!" Audrey snapped. "My body is broken… you just want to believe you can fix everything with sunshine and fresh air and kindness, Ben. Well, you know what, you can't fix this by pushing on it more."

"I don't think there's anything wrong with you," Ben replied. "The doctors all say you need more exercise. You haven't done anything since she was born and you've been letting yourself waste away in that stupid spa…"

"The spa helped!" Audrey hissed. "At least I wasn't in pain all the time! You came home and began ripping everything out, stressing me out even more, and you wanted me to do all those new things-"

"Oh, you have to see Belle for at least five minutes every day, boo-hoo," Ben snapped back. He couldn't even find it in himself to be gentle or understanding. "She was a disaster and you know it. Our family was a disaster. We were dysfunctional."

Audrey balled her fists up. "It wasn't just…" she sputtered. "You made me move out of our room and you shut down my spa and then you kept butting into my time… don't put this all on me - it's your fault too!"

"Audrey, you had me set up appointments to see you!" Ben snapped. His voice was rising to a roar and people had glanced over. "I didn't get married in hopes my wife would want to see me every other year. You hadn't seen me in three months when I came back! Three months! I don't even know if you'd looked at Belle while I was gone - you kept shoving her off to the nanny! And sure, I was gone doing king stuff, but part of that is still your fault because you spent all your time in that stupid room pampering yourself instead of helping me rule. Shame on me for letting you."

"Of course I looked at Belle!" Audrey scowled. Tears were starting to pool in her eyes. "Of course I did! I'm her mother - don't you think I love her?"

"Hopefully not the way you love me," Ben scowled.

"Ben?" someone asked. Ben's head snapped to the right. His eyes were burning and the person who'd addressed him flinched back. It was Carlos. He stared at Ben, looked at Audrey, and then let out a long breath. "Oh… wow." It wasn't admiration. It was fear.

"Carlos," Ben took a deep breath and forced a smile. "We need your help. Mal said to ask you to set up defenses."

"You've seen Mal?" Carlos asked. His eyes flit back to Audrey.

"She let us in," Ben explained.

Carlos let out another breath.

"Is something wrong?" Ben asked.

Carlos began to back away again. "I-I'm sorry Ben. I'm just going to go and, uh, put some plans together for - for - yeah." He turned and sprinted away faster than Ben had seen him move before.

"Furthermore," Audrey huffed beside him, crossing her arms. "You haven't been absolutely amazing yourself. You load chores on Belle and work on me, force her to help you in your office, and-"

"Something's wrong," Ben cut her off. He was glancing around at the villain kids. Many of them he recognized. Many were staring at him, staring at Audrey, and looking sick. Many were whispering. Many were worried.

Could it be about how they were worried that he'd come back? Or who Audrey was?

"Ben-" Audrey started to call for him.

"I have to go find Mal - I'll be right back," Ben decided, turning and leaning down to kiss her cheek. "I swear I shouldn't be longer than five minutes… I need to ask her what's going on with everyone. Just stay here - Carlos will be back soon and Belle needs a supervisor."

"Mal?" Audrey blinked. "Will you be alone with her? Just stay here - she'll be back soon."

"And for the record," Ben held up his fingers as if plotting points on a line. "I never kicked you out of our room. I would have rather you stayed. I only said I was going to be back in the master room. You were the one who decided I wouldn't be able to keep my hands to myself and left, even though we're married. And Belle needed a parent in her life because she was turning into a tyrant - goodness knows you weren't going to step up. I put chores on Belle because they're good for her and the 'work' you have is filling out paperwork for the law. As queen, you're responsible for helping with it. I balanced it all for eight years, so you have no excuse." He ran a hand through his hair. "We'll talk more about this later - I need to find Mal."

"Ben!" Audrey struggled to her feet. Ben put a hand on the pavilion support pole and waited as she fumbled for the right words. "What about… what are we going to do? Where are we going to stay?"

"I'll ask Mal," Ben promised her. "If Evie happens to show up while I'm gone, ask her. She can help too." And he turned and left.

People stared and turned away wherever he went. Even little kids stopped to point at him with downcast and worried expressions. Whereas before, he would have been bombarded, now he was only uneasily regarded. He watched one mother press a panicked hand to her forehead as he passed.

He went into Mal's section, up to the long and thin building where he suspected she'd be. Her sector was kinda nice… it had grass and benches and kids sitting and playing on the grass. Ben smiled to see young mothers with new babies and continued walking towards the building. He was still far away, though in earshot, when the door opened and he stopped in his tracks.

Mal appeared, glancing around cautiously, and then locked the door behind her. In one hand was a water bottle with a handle. In one arm was a baby. A tiny little boy with blondish-brown hair who was dressed in purple. He was still small, looking around at the bright colors of the world as it moved, but old enough to hold his head up while Mal balanced him against her side.

How old was he? Not too old… Belle had been able to hold her head up at five months though she'd been a little late. This baby was also much bigger and probably older… he looked like he might be able to crawl and was clutching a rattle in his hand. Maybe about ten months old, then. Belle had been able to grab things by nine months, but not hold onto them until she was a little older. Ten months old and, counting backward, there were nine months in a gestation period and he had been gone for a little over nineteen months.

Uma appeared. She reached out for the baby. Mal handed him over. They exchanged whispers, anxious looks, and then Mal glanced in the direction of the pavilion. Her eyes landed on Ben before she'd even finished passing Uma the baby, presumably so Uma could care for him while Mal went back to the pavilion. He watched her mouth form the words "oh no". Uma looked up. Both girls stared at him from something like thirty feet away while Ben took in the sight.

A child dressed in purple with brown hair. His hair. A boy child. His son.

Ben ran a hand through his hair and turned away. Everyone's panicked and shocked expressions suddenly made sense, he thought as he wandered back to the pavilion. Belle rushed past with a group of kids, laughing and clutching Molly the Doll to her chest. She had a brother. He had a son.

Audrey stopped him when he got close enough. "Ben?" She asked. "Ben, what did she say?"

"Listen, Audrey," Ben took her hands, squeezed them, and closed his eyes. She would have to be told. He had to come clean. "Listen, honey, I don't want to talk right now, but I swear we'll work everything out soon. Everything will be okay." He released one hand to run it down her cheek.

"Wait, Ben!" Audrey frowned. "What's going on? What did she say? We still have things to figure out."

"Audrey, please, I need some time."

"Ben, I need at least a few answers! What are we going to do? Where are we going to stay? How are we going to feed Belle?"

Ben put a finger to her lips. His world felt very loud. All he could think about was the crushing guilt on his shoulders and the baby that he'd seen with Mal. His son.

"I need time," Ben whispered to Audrey, and then wandered past her, back out to the woods to think.

To clarify, yes, Ben is in shock.

Chapter 3: Chapter 3

Audrey's marriage had been hanging by a thread since the year she'd married, and she knew it.

She wasn't sure why, but they'd never quite gotten it right, he and her. She'd figured that their lives were similar and they had similar goals and they were compatible, but then he liked books and learning and quiet and plain a lot more than she did. And people - he also liked people. She had never gotten used to seeing him surrounded by others.

She'd be the first to admit that she knew he was unhappy.

In hindsight, she hadn't meant to isolate him. It had only been after he'd started changing things that she'd realized what she'd accidentally done. Ben didn't talk to his mother or his daughter or even her because she was in too much pain to entertain him for long. They'd gone to a party after one of his long business trips, right after he'd fired Belle's last nanny, and that was when she'd realized. He hadn't talked to people in years. And it was because of her, and she didn't even talk to him on most days. Ben had lost year's worths of time that she hadn't even bothered trying to fill.

This last year and a half had been awful. He'd ripped everything apart and he'd been stubborn and yes, it was all small things at a time(aside from him throwing out everything from their rooms), but Audrey had been shocked by the change and had wondered what had caused it. Why was he suddenly so obsessed with browns and greens and indoor potted plants? What was so special about being outside? Why couldn't he close all the windows?

Now, it was looking like she hadn't known much about him at all.

Belle ran by and set Molly the doll down beside Audrey. "Mommy?" She asked, tugging on Audrey's hand a little. "There's a mommy with her baby over there. A real baby. Can I go see it?"

"Be gentle," Audrey nodded. She watched Belle turn and dash away. A woman with blue hair was walking up the path with her baby in arm. Belle and a group of other kids reached her and she bent down to show them the little one. Audrey tilted her head to the side as Belle cooed and waved.

"Belle would be such a good big sister," she thought. Once upon a time, Ben had wanted a large family. He'd talked about it with her once, long ago. But that had been before Belle and before they'd stopped living together. Now, Audrey didn't know what he wanted. She didn't even know what she wanted.

"Excuse me?" a voice came from above. Audrey looked up. The blue-haired woman had come closer. Her baby was gone - Audrey glanced behind her and spotted Belle sitting in the road, holding the child. The other kids gathered around to smile and take the baby's hand. "Are you lost?" she asked.

Audrey shifted uncomfortably. The woman was very beautiful and looked immaculate. She couldn't believe someone like this had come from the Isle of the Lost. She and Mal and Uma were all gorgeous. "Sort of," she agreed and wasn't surprised when her voice broke. "I'm waiting for my husband to come back. He's… a little stressed, so he went for a walk."

"Ah," the woman nodded, examining Audrey. Audrey shifted. She was in sweatpants and a patterned tee. Her bathrobe had been shed in the carriage, but she'd been wearing these clothes for two days. She took a seat on the table bench beside her and stuck out a hand. "I'm Evie."

"Oh?" Audrey asked. "You're one of the people in charge, then."

"Not anymore," Evie shook her head and smiled. "I decided to… take a family route. There's a boy who came from Auradon… he traveled out here and we've settled down. His name is Doug, and that's our daughter." She pointed over to the small child who Belle was still possessively cradling. "Mal is in charge now, mostly because she's the most powerful and she protects us. Sometimes she'll ask Uma and me for help, but I've been a bit busy with my baby."

"She's cute," Audrey nodded at the girl and sighed. "Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Audrey. Queen of Auradon."

Evie blinked and her eyes grew wide, though she didn't lose much composure. "Ben's wife?" she asked.

"Yes," Audrey pinched her lips together. She didn't like all these beautiful women knowing her husband and talking to him and… she took a deep breath. "You know about me?"

"Not much," Evie said in a gentle tone. "Just… things Ben mentioned about you."

"Evie!" Someone snapped from off to the side. Both girls turned around. Mal had reappeared with a water bottle that she held out to Audrey. She kicked a plant as she walked. "Where'd Ben go?" she demanded.

Evie blinked at Mal for several seconds as if she was seeing straight through her. Audrey took a drink and then answered. "I think he's just stressed," she said. "We had a small fight before he went off to find you… did he?"

Mal looked to the side. "I saw him, but then he walked off," she said slowly. "We need to figure out how we're going to help Auradon."

"What's happened?" Evie asked, rising to stand.

"My mother," Mal informed her. "The barrier was broken again."

"It was Hades," Audrey nodded, staring off into the distance. She could feel her mind beginning to blank out, but couldn't quite stop the gradual progression. "He broke it to come and find his daughter. Ben was going to send him over here, but then Maleficent showed up."

Evie fixed Mal with another look, but Audrey couldn't read it out of the corner of her eye. She was focusing on Belle and slipping farther away.

"What does he expect us to do?" Mal asked. Her voice sounded very far away. Audrey tilted her head. She had been spoken to. She should respond, shouldn't she? How should she respond? What was the question?

Belle looked so happy with that baby girl…

Oh, right. "Ben thinks you can stop her," she blurted out and turned back to the two girls. With a start, she realized they hadn't been where she thought they'd been. They'd moved, and were staring at her in confusion. Several minutes had passed by, and she had no idea what they were talking about now.

"Sorry," she apologized. "I… just tuned out. I meant… Ben thinks that Mal is powerful enough to go against Maleficent. He's hoping you'll help us." She leaned forward imploringly. Mal opened and closed her hands at her sides as she watched Audrey's pleading look.

Finally, she swallowed. "There are a few greater things at play here, Audrey," she said. "I don't know if Ben and I can work together very well."

Audrey's heart sank. "Well, give it a while, please?" she asked. "Let him ask you. He's better with words. Please, we need your help." It was the first time in a long time she'd encouraged the idea of someone speaking to Ben.

Mal shrugged and sat down on the table with her leg falling beside Audrey. "Let's wait here for him," she decided. "Evie, can you go find Uma? Tell her I might be a while?"

"Yeah," Evie nodded and headed off.

Audrey put her head in her hands. "Gods," she moaned, ignoring the pinch in between her ribs. "Where is he?"

Mal glanced over. She picked up a knife and a long stick that had appeared on the table while Audrey had been tuned out. Audrey jumped away. Mal shook her head. "I'm not going to hurt you," she mumbled. "It just helps me think."

Audrey slowly sat back down. "Are you making anything?" she asked.

Mal examined the tip of the stick. "No," she sighed. "I just… when I'm waiting, I feel like I'm in danger. So I try and find things like this to protect myself with. It's just… we call them Isle defects. We've all got them from when we left." She turned the stick over in her hands and began carving off the top. "So," she began in a soft tone. "What's it like being a queen?"

Audrey shrugged. She still felt like shying away from Mal's point. "It's… well, I'm not very good at it, I'm afraid. Ben's been doing most of the work for years."

Mal nodded. "He mentioned that when he was here," she informed Audrey. "How did you guys meet?"

"We grew up together," Audrey shrugged. "It was kinda common knowledge among our parents that we would grow up and get married. How about you?"

Mal made an amused snort in the back of her throat and looked up from her work. Audrey skimmed the horizon, checking for Belle running amongst the other kids, and then returned her gaze to Mal as the purple-haired girl started to speak. "I, uh, kidnapped him. On his way to Charmington, I thought he was coming to invade us. We got all the way to camp before we realized he was the king. Then when we were trying to figure out how to send him back without more people coming to kill us, he decided he wanted to stay."

Audrey paused, taking in the bizarre story. A great deal of resentment was felt for Mal having kidnapped Ben, but an even greater sadness filled her to consider he hadn't even felt to confide to her. Three days ago, she didn't even know that villain kids were in Auradon. "That sounds like him," she murmured. "You know… we used to joke in high school that if he were kidnapped and held for ransom, he'd end up making friends with the perpetrators and walking free. I didn't ever think it'd happen though."

"Well, as far as things go, I never thought I'd accidentally kidnap the King of Auradon and then have him rescue everyone."

"That's so bizarre to me!" Audrey complained. "I mean… he never told me he was gone. He never told me you guys were here. He first mentioned it to me when Hades showed up at the castle looking for his daughter. I just… he gets mad at me for not always talking to him but he's not entirely communicable either!"

Mal blinked on some of the larger words and Audrey felt her cheeks heat up. "Sorry," she mumbled. "I didn't mean to go off on you like that."

Mal shrugged one arm. "It's whatever," she said, then hesitated. "Are you and he… okay?"

"We are," Audrey nodded, smoothing her palms out over her knees. "I made some mistakes early in our marriage, but we're fine."

Mal slid off the tabletop and sat down beside Audrey on the bench. "He… used to say things in passing," she murmured. "We met friends of his who were in the area once… Li Lonnie? She said you didn't like people talking to him and he said you hadn't talked to him much either."

Audrey slumped a little in guilt. She closed her eyes. "I… haven't been feeling well since Belle was born," she admitted. "I never really recovered from the birth. It wasn't a hard birth or anything, but I didn't recover from it. I went through a small addiction to the pain meds for about six months and when I started coming back to myself, Ben wanted me to take up a bunch of responsibilities and stuff. I got overwhelmed and started pawning things off. Belle went to a nanny, I pawned off my court responsibilities, and Ben took back some of - I mean - all of the work I was supposed to do as queen. I never really took it back up because I never started feeling better."

"And then you stopped talking to Ben?" Mal asked.

"I felt like he was trying to pressure me into stuff," Audrey explained. "He wanted me to do all these things - go hiking and dancing with him, play with Belle. He kept asking why I wouldn't share a room with him and I… kinda snapped at him after a while. It was a relief when he stopped asking things, and then I didn't notice we had stopped talking until a little over a year ago."

"You're the queen of Auradon," Mal said. "Isn't there a doctor or something you can see?"

"I saw doctors," Audrey agreed. "Back when I first started feeling the pain. They said it was just after-affects. They prescribed me minor painkillers and exercise. But it's so strange - I was always active when I was younger and I don't understand why everything changed so quickly." She huffed and pressed her fingertips to her forehead. "Ben… wants me to get over it. He's not even being subtle anymore."

"That's interesting," Mal hummed. "He seemed like a very understanding fellow."

"He is," Audrey agreed. "But he can be a bit bull-headed. He thinks he knows what's best for me and the world and everyone in it. He reads people pretty well and thinks that means he's entitled to give advice."

"I see that," Mal laughed. "I see that - one-hundred-percent."

Audrey laughed with Mal. Her ribs ached, but it felt good. She leaned back against the table and her arm brushed against Mal's. Mal looked over at her. "So," she began, "What is Ben's fix-all solution?"

"He wants me to walk two miles every day without painkillers and drink a gallon of water each day." Audrey rolled her eyes. "Belle had some stomach issues, so he made her stop eating lots of her favorite snacks and forced her to walk down to the bus stop a mile away each day. It worked for her, but it just makes me more tired and hurt. He thinks I'm overreacting because I don't want to do it. He thinks everything can be cured with sunshine and hard work."

"It always struck me as odd - how much work he wanted to do down here," Mal agreed. "Once, he wouldn't let me take down a tent with magic so he could do it without. He was pretty strong."

"He was." Audrey smiled. "He used to lift weights in high school and was on a few different teams. Tourney… Swords and Sheilds…"

"I have no idea what those are," Mal snorted.

"Me neither," Audrey shrugged. "I did cheer, so all I had to do was smile and jump around when a goal was scored. I know nothing else."

Mal laughed again and the sound sunk deep into Audrey's bones. It was so comforting to be still like this. To laugh with someone her age.

"I didn't expect you to be like this," Mal pondered aloud. "I admit, I've been wondering what happened to Ben when he went back and I figured he was just… shut in a room somewhere."

Audrey's smile faded and she flinched. "Yeah, I screwed up," she mumbled. "I need to make it up to him somehow, but…" She curled her fingers across her stomach. "How long ago did Ben leave?"

Mal's smile faded somewhat as the question left Audrey's lips. It appeared that the subject of Ben leaving the camp was an area of sadness for her. She swallowed. "Nineteen months ago, almost twenty," she shrugged.

"Ah," Audrey nodded. "Sorry, my mind has been foggy for a long time. That must have been… gosh, he had this trip that he was gone on and I remember when he got back he ripped out everything in my - his bedroom and repainted. Threw all the old furniture out and had Belle help him pick new stuff. And they did the same to her room and the living room and everywhere in the palace except for my room."

"He said he was going to go back and change things," Mal recalled. "He said he didn't like all the pink."

Audrey shook her head. "Everything is blue and brown now," she explained. "And he sleeps with the windows open. I think I get it now - he must miss being out here."

"Maybe," Mal agreed. Audrey eyed her with a narrow look.

"You're a lot easier to talk to than I thought you'd be," she said.

"Because I'm Maleficent's daughter?"

"That and you're a girl my age," Audrey twiddled her thumbs. "I haven't talked to other girls since I started dating Ben."

Mal shook her head. "More good women have been lost to marriage than to war," she mourned. "I don't understand it."

Audrey looked at the ground. That was interesting, she thought. Lost to marriage… lost in marriage. She was lost in her marriage, wasn't she? It was like she was fumbling around in the darkness, looking for what to do next… It didn't help that there wasn't any love between her and Ben still. More than ten years of marriage and nothing. He was as lost in this as she was. How were they going to get out of this trap?

It occurred to Audrey that the world felt very sluggish and dim. She'd fallen into another slump. Another dizzying, time-defying slump where she didn't know how long she'd be in it. She couldn't even close her eyes to wait for it to be done.

Audrey watched years fall off her life.

When she came to, Belle was crying at her legs and it was dark. She was still sitting on the bench, but she was alone and Mal was gone. Frost was creeping up her legs. A chilly fall breeze blew her hair over her head.

"Belle?" Audrey mumbled, then reached down to feel her daughter's icy skin. Belle jumped with a start and then began to cry even harder as she wrapped her arms around Audrey's legs.

"Mommy! Mommy!" She hiccuped and hid her face away. "I want to go home! I want to go home!"

Audrey tried to pry Belle's arms off of her legs but to no avail. She wasn't strong enough. Belle was in hysterics. How long had she been trying to get Audrey's attention? Where was Ben?

"We can't go home yet," Audrey murmured, running a hand down her daughter's icy cheek. "But we need to find a place to stay. Do you know where Mal went?"

"I'm here," Someone called through the darkness. Audrey turned and saw the purple-haired leader approaching from the direction of the giant building. "It's good to see you're back."

"Sorry," Audrey breathed, finally managing to gather Belle into her arms with a huff. Belle squeezed her ribs and tears swelled in Audrey's eyes. "Mal? Has Ben been seen anywhere yet? He went looking for you earlier, did you see him?"

Mal twisted her hands. "I saw him," she nodded. "But he walked away and I didn't see where he went."

Audrey sighed and squeezed Belle tightly. "I… hate to intrude, but I need a place I can put her for the night. Do you know one? I… don't want my baby to sleep on the ground."

Mal looked at Belle. Her hands crept to her pockets. When she swallowed, she looked like she was in some sort of pain. Did she want children? Or maybe, on the Isle, something had happened to give her some compassion. Either way, Mal cleared her throat. "It's, uh, late," she said. "Everyone turned in around when the sun went down. We don't like wasting candles and haven't gotten lights here yet. And most of these places are small… I don't know where we could put you."

Audrey's throat swelled up. "She squeezed Belle tighter. "Is there any place I could-"

"There's mine," Mal offered. She turned and nodded in the direction she'd come from. "I was kinda made to be the place where we could have a traveler or two stay, but… you might not want to stay with me."

"Actually, I would love that," Audrey sighed and closed her eyes in relief. "It doesn't matter if you have a bed or not. Just so long as I can lay her down for the night-"

"There are beds," Mal assured her. "And rooms. You can stay as long as you need. Her and you and-" Mal's voice cracked. "-Ben."

A few tears ran unbidden down Audrey's cheeks. She wiped them away. "Thank you," she hiccuped.

"Hang on," Mal held up her hands, biting her lower lip. "I… you're not the only ones there. I have a son - he's still a bit young and wakes up in the night. That may bother you."

"No, not at all," Audrey shook her head. "I remember what that was like. And we recently discovered that Belle loves babies anyways. If you need help, she'd probably love to help you with him." Audrey kissed Belle's hair. "But maybe when she's more awake."

Mal chuckled and watched again as Audrey cradled her little girl. She swallowed as if to get a lump out of her throat. "Well, you're welcome to stay. I mean… I can't imagine trying to lay my son out here. I was coming back to see if I could pull her away from you when I heard you were up. I had to leave to go and nurse and everything."

"I get it," Audrey smiled. "I was there once, too." She reached out to take Mal's hand and squeeze it. "Thank you for thinking of her."

"Of course." Mal gave her a tight little smile. Audrey assumed she was still worried about her son disrupting them. "Why don't we go lay her down, and then come back and see if Ben will show. If he doesn't, then it won't be the first time he's slept out on the ground outside."

Audrey laughed and began to follow Mal's lead back through the little village. It amazed her how different the three parts were. And the house plots seemed to be circular with curving paths and diamond-shaped intersections. Beautiful.

Mal lived in the towering building that Audrey had seen before coming into the barrier. Ben had called it 'the lookout'. The name suited the building.

"This house is so tall," Audrey marveled.

Mal shrugged. "I like to be high up," she replied.

She guided Audrey up a floor to the first room and opened a door to reveal a bed for travelers with a simple desk and a chest at the foot of the bed. Think hides covered a mattress of some sort. Audrey pulled back a few covers and Belle began to unlatch her frozen fingers from around her mom's neck. Her poor little digits were discolored with cold. Audrey kissed each one of them with Mal standing in the doorway watching and then helped Belle remove her shoes and lay down onto the pillow.

"Is dad gonna come read with me?" Belle asked. Her voice cracked a little - she'd been crying out in the cold and it was catching up with her.

"Not tonight, darling. We're going to go try and find him," Audrey whispered. "You can yell at him for not being here in the morning."

"I'll take you up on that," Mal whispered as a joke from the doorway. Audrey chuckled, but Belle was already asleep, too tired to understand the joke.

They walked back down to the pavilion. Audrey glanced up at the tall house as they left. "How could you possibly climb all those steps to the top?" she wondered. Her legs were screaming after only the one flight.

"I fly," Mal shrugged. "That's how I got to the edge of the barrier today, remember?"

Mal somehow procured two water bottles for both of them and they sat back down at the tables to see if Ben would reappear. "Thank you for helping me," Audrey murmured. "I don't know what I would do without you."

"I get it," Mal shrugged. "I used to sleep on the ground when my mom kicked me out of the house when I was younger. I wouldn't wish that on anyone."

"She kicked you out?" Audrey frowned. "How awful."

"It was only for a few nights at a time," Mal shrugged. "And I was very young. She stopped doing it when I got older."

Audrey shook her head. She couldn't imagine it. "Well, I'm so sorry. Thank you for understanding, though. And again, for helping us."

Mal took a drink of her water and focused her gaze on the wood grains in the table. She traced one with her fingertip. "I wouldn't leave you with nowhere to go," she mumbled.

"You're like Ben," Audrey laughed. "Except you don't run off, apparently."

"Oh, no," Mal shook her head. "I do." She went stiff as if she were trying to figure out something to say. After several seconds of silence, Audrey tried again to make conversation.

"You know, it's nice to talk to someone after all these years," she marveled. "Maybe we could be friends."

At this, Mal flinched away and shut her eyes. "I would like that," she said. "But maybe you should talk to Ben first. I'm not sure if you'll think the same way when he comes back. Furthermore, I'll understand if you both don't feel comfortable being in my house at all. Just know that the three of you… well, my door is always open."

"I don't understand," Audrey said with a frown. "Did you two have a falling-out? You seemed like friends earlier."

Mal swallowed. "It's complicated," she mumbled.

"I get that," Audrey shrugged. "I mean, I bet my problems are different than yours, but I understand when things don't just work."

Mal nodded along to Audrey's words. As she did, there was the sound of someone stumbling. Both girls looked up and Audrey was relieved to see a familiar shape walking towards the pavilion. It was Ben, looking half-drunk and overwhelmed. "Ben!" Audrey called, slowly getting to her feet. Ben looked up and his spirits seemed to drop when he saw both Mal and Audrey sitting beside each other. Still, he wandered over.

Audrey hugged him. He hugged her back, but softly. Audrey could feel that he was staring at Mal. She withdrew and took in his gaze. He looked defeated.

"Where's Belle?" He asked in a dry, sandpapery tone. Mal held out her water to him without comment. He took it, and Audrey sensed a correlation she didn't understand.

"She's asleep," Audrey explained. "Mal offered to let us stay in her home. There are beds there - we can rest and work everything out with Maleficent in the morning. We've been waiting for you to get back so we can tell you - you're welcome to stay there, she says."

Ben took a step back and shook his head. "No," he declined. "Thank you, but… considering the circumstance… I shouldn't be staying under the same roof as you, Mal." Mal nodded glumly.

"Circumstance?" Audrey echoed.

Ben fixed his gaze on the purple-haired fairy. "We need to talk," he muttered."

Mal nodded again. She seemed resigned.

Ben sat down across from Mal and Audrey sat beside him, slightly at an angle from Mal. Mal closed her eyes to brace for the coming conversation. Audrey found Ben's cold hand beneath the table and clenched it against her knee. Ben took three deep breaths. Then, he asked: "Why didn't you come to tell me?'

"Because it would have defeated the idea of you not ever knowing," Mal responded blandly. "I didn't want to… ruin everything."

Audrey looked between the two in confusion. She wanted to ask questions and didn't know where to start. Ben's eyes were filling with stubborn tears. He jabbed his index finger into the wood of the table as he spoke. "He is mine too, Mal. How could you have kept this from me? I could have helped you. I should have helped you. It's a responsibility to…" He tried off, struggling to get the words out of his mouth. Mal opened her eyes and looked through her bangs at Audrey. There was pain in her eyes. She slowly rose to her feet.

"Sit down," Ben commanded.

"Ben, look at Audrey. She's-"

"Sit down."

"No." Mal's eyes alit with glowing green power that looked like the smoke that had filled the palace. Audrey leaned away in shock. "Look at her. She's confused and doesn't know what's going on. You sinned, I sinned, whoop-do-doo. And yeah, I kept it from you. But can you at least not yell at me in a setting where she's going to have all the little pieces click together and hurt her even more? We screwed up. Just… spare her feelings." She shoved her hands into her pockets. "I'm going to walk around and I'll come back when you're ready for me. You need to talk to your wife, Ben."

She turned and walked away. Ben watched her go and didn't call for her back. Then he stood up and sat on the other side of the table, where he dropped his gaze to the wood grains and continued squeezing her hand in a vice-grip above the table. Audrey's skin felt chill. "Sinned?" she prodded.

Ben nodded. "Sinned," he affirmed. "Listen, Audrey, there's something… I need to tell you about this." He took a deep breath. "When I came to the Vk's and I met Mal, she wasn't like anyone I had met before. And she was confused by how kind I was to her despite the… circumstances we met in."

"She kidnapped you," Audrey supplied.

"Yes," Ben agreed. He closed his eyes. "And despite that, we shared something very intense right from the start."

Audrey's blood ran chill. "What?" she demanded, latching onto Ben's hand as if it were suddenly going to be pulled away from her forever. "What do you mean?"

"I didn't talk about you at first," Ben muttered. "But when I realized she was interested in me, I came clean. She backed off, but we were still… close. The night we arrived here-" he gestured around at the place they were sitting in the middle of, "-there was a celebration. I took a drink that was too strong for me without realizing and she did the same. And we slept with each other on the side of the river that night."

A bullet of betrayal whizzed through her. She started to cry. "Ben, I can't believe you!" She shouted. "Are you serious right now?" Her eyes were on fire as her hand shook. Ben squeezed it tighter. She squeezed back. How could this have happened? She couldn't believe it. Ben was supposed to be faithful and perfect… yet now all her worst nightmares were coming to life. She'd spent so long being terrified of being overlooked and tossed aside but now Ben had cheated and all those old fears were true. She wasn't good enough for him. She wasn't good enough for anyone, really. If Ben wouldn't stay faithful for her, would anyone?

Ben didn't say anything as she cried. She supposed he must be upset that his secret had come out. Or that he'd had to come clean.

"What did I do wrong?" Audrey blubbered and then mentally kicked herself for the question. She knew exactly what she'd done wrong. "No, wait, I mean… I just… why wasn't I enough?"

But really, she didn't want that question answered either. Ben bowed his head in shame. "We broke it off almost immediately after," he mumbled. "I chose to go back to Auradon. I wanted to make things work with you. She wanted to stay here and build things up. We agreed it wouldn't happen again and we separated."

That didn't help. It didn't help at all. Audrey wrestled her hand away from Ben and covered her face to continue crying as her eyes grew puffy and her skin sallow. He clasped his hands on the tabletop and waited until she tried holding in her sobs to hear what else he had to say.

"Today, when I was going to find her, I saw her pass a baby off to Uma," he murmured. "That's why I walked off. Because I realized…" He looked skyward. More tears were brimming in his eyes. "She had a son… and that son was mine. And I needed to process that."

"A son," Audrey gasped and wiped her eyes. "You have a son."

"Belle's brother," Ben nodded and agreed. He unclasped his hands to cover his face with them, rubbing on his tired eyes as he tried to keep from looking straight at Audrey. "I don't know his name… Mal and I haven't talked about it, but everyone else here knows she has a son and I'm sure word has gotten around since everyone could tell we had… connected."

"How could you have done this to me?" Audrey sobbed. "I just… why did you leave me? Why didn't you leave her sooner? Ben, I trusted you."

"No, you didn't," he said softly. "But you should have, and I should have acted differently regardless of how much you trusted me. I thought I would be strong enough to resist and I felt responsible for these people. That's why I didn't leave."

"And?" Audrey sniffled.

Ben swallowed. "And I didn't want to go back," he muttered. "I… life was awful, Audrey. I liked being out here because I was useful. I had a purpose. I didn't want to go home and be… shut up all the time." He drummed his fingers on the table. "I'm sorry. I tried to fix things though. I knew I messed up and I was hoping I could come back and make things better with you and move on. I didn't expect that she would-" he waved a hand off in the distance.

"What are we going to do?" Audrey hiccuped. Ben didn't say anything. That could mean one of two things. Either he didn't know or he had already thought it out and knew she wouldn't like the answer. Audrey looked up. "Ben?" she asked.

Ben turned his head. "Auradon's bill of inheritance, clause three," he mumbled.

Audrey's head spun. "What?" she asked.

Ben shook his head. "Clause three of the bill of inheritance states that male children have priority over female children. Eons old. We never changed it. Most people only have one child. And back after Belle was born, we ratified a bill that Corona and Arendelle proposed that said heir children can ascend the throne regardless of matrimonial bonds. That means both statements are being upheld by Auradon law."

Audrey felt her mouth fall open a little bit more. In her sleep-deprived and overwhelmed brain, none of those words were making any sense. Ben swallowed and rephrased them. "That means Belle isn't the primary heir to the throne anymore," he explained. "If Mal and I's son chooses to relinquish his right after age fourteen, she'll be the primary heir again. She'll be twenty-one at the minimum. But if he decides to keep his right to the throne, she'll never have the option of becoming queen. Even if I changed the law, because it was the law when he was born, his place in line wouldn't be moved."

"You've ruined her life."

Audrey annunciated every word as she spoke them. And she was sure of her conviction, too. If Ben had cheated, then fine. If there was another child, she'd somehow find a way to live with them, she was sure. But now Belle had been unfairly tossed aside as if her life didn't even matter and her spot was being filled with an accident child and the grandson of Maleficent and…

How could Ben have been so careless? How could life have been so cruel?

Ben looked down at his hands and rolled his ring - which was normal now, not the blue she'd picked out years ago - around his finger. "He'll need to be trained," he muttered. "Probably when he's a bit older. It's the same stuff I've been doing with Belle for the last few months. And he'll probably live in the palace while that happens but I don't know if he'd spend the rest of his time out here. Last I checked, Mal wanted to stay here and protect everyone. He'll need to be with his mother just like Belle needs to be with you."

"And you?" Audrey asked. "What about you? What about us?"

Ben made a motion with his hand as if he were going to reach for her but then thought better of it. "I made my decision to stay, Audrey. Yes, I made a mistake, but I wanted to correct that and stay faithful to you. And I'm sorry to have dragged Mal into a mess with me and you, but I can't abandon her now. I'm going to have to find a way to balance raising my son with her and our daughter with you. The baby… he didn't do anything wrong. I know how painful this must be for you and I don't expect you to like him much, but he still deserves to know me and Mal deserves my help. But I won't leave you, either. We made commitments, remember?"

"And a fat lot of good those did," Audrey hiccuped. She felt like throwing up. "I knew this would happen. I always knew. I knew I wouldn't be enough and that-"

"Audrey, please stop," Ben murmured. "You would have been enough if you had ever loved me. And even then, I stayed with you all these years. Even when you chased away everyone I know and took away almost all the things I loved. Even when I had to fight you for the right to see my mom. I made the mistake and I'll take that responsibility, but you shouldn't act like you were doing everything perfectly in our relationship." He drew a finger down the center of the table. "If you don't want to see me, I'll understand. And I hope you'll understand why I think I shouldn't stay in Mal's home. At least not now, while we're figuring all this out. But I think you should - you should get some rest and be somewhere warm."

"What does it matter?" Audrey wiped more tears away. "It's done. You cheated on me. Who's to say it won't happen again?"

"That's why I'm not staying in Mal's house," Ben agreed.

"You'd go back to her?" Audrey demanded. "Is that what you're saying?"

"No," Ben denied, though Audrey could hear the strain and the pondering in his tone. "I told you. I'm staying with you. I promised I would."

Audrey squeezed her eyes shut and then used the table as leverage to get to her feet. Ben got to his feet, but she waved him off. "Don't!" She snapped. "I don't want your help Ben - I don't want anything to do with you right now!" She was going to leave him out in the cold and go back to Mal's house to curl up with Belle and cry until her soul hurt less than her body. And as much as it would suck to struggle back to the building alone and climb those bloody stairs without help, it would suck a lot more to have him help her.

"Audrey, I really am sorry-"

"I don't want your apology!" She screamed. "Gods, Ben, I'm hurt! I don't understand and I'm hurt! Leave me alone - I don't want to see you!" She raised her hand to smack him but all the strength left her arm with the sudden movement. Instead, she turned and focused on breathing with her broken ribs as she walked away as fast as she could. He could have followed her, but he didn't. Part of Audrey was glad - she didn't want to see him and probably wouldn't want to see him for a long time. The other part wondered… if she had purple hair, would he follow her?