Here is the next chapter!

There were many reviews last chapter and an anonymous concerned reader voiced their opinion to me through private messaging about a certain reviewer in particular. However, I had problems with a couple other reviews, so I thought it would be best that I address all of them with this author's note.

First: don't make assumptions about certain character's intentions in this story. Yes, Hades told Uma. He has not told anyone else and is not spreading 'false hope' to the other villains. NO, Zeus's is not being influenced by his son, who is the reason his brother is considered a villain. This is also referring to Evie! You don't know her motives yet so there is no need to call her rude names.

Second: please don't use all caps in a review. It's very hard for me to read when you do that. A couple words or phrase is fine, but not the ENTIRE review.

Lastly: if you have a story idea, PM me. DON'T spam the review section with your idea. It is very annoying getting a review on a story that you're working hard on, but turns out it has nothing to do with the story.

From this point forward, I will report or delete it (if guest review) if it happens again. I do value your opinions, but not at the expense of other readers, who say feel attacked by such 'toxic' reviews.

I didn't think I would have to make such an announcement forty-six chapters into a story. Now, without further interruptions:

Enjoy.

Despite being warned by her uncle, Uma still managed to be tricked by her cousin, Mal. As stated in the chapter before, Mal handed over a replica of Fairy Godmother's magic wand—which was created with a 3D printer in Auradon. Uma fully believed the wand was real since Mal somehow made a dog talk.

Oh, that's right! I didn't tell you about that!

Before Mal had her date with Ben, she made Carlos a truth gummi so he would be able to express his true feelings of Jane to Jane. Although his confidence and courage were ten times better than it was on the Isle, Carlos still chickened out whenever he tried to ask Jane to Cotillion, so he thought magic would be the best way to go. Well, right when Mal tried to give it Carlos, Dude stole it from her hand.

Yep. Dude ate magic candy and now he can talk.

That's normal for Auradon, right?

Anyways, when Uma tried out the wand for herself, you can imagine her anger when it turned out to be a sham. She couldn't believe she allowed herself to be tricked, even with the warning.

And she couldn't believe that her Uncle Hades actually told the truth. If he told the truth about that, then maybe . . .

Well, Uma couldn't really think about 'maybes' at the time. All she could think about was making Mal pay for scheming against her. Uma really should have known better.

Of course, Mal and her friends—Carlos, Jay, Evie, Ben, and Lonnie, who went to the Isle when Carlos and Jay returned because she caught them in their act of leaving—managed to escape by using smoke bombs that were created at Lady Tremaine's hair salon. On their way from fleeing, Mal broke the bridge that connected to the pipe tunnels that lead to their ride to freedom, preventing anyone from following their trail.

As soon as Mal closed her door, Jay floored it, causing her to fall back in her seat. Instinctively, Mal reached a hand into her jacket pocket. Groaning softly, Mal slumped in her seat. Her mother's spell book was missing. She must have dropped it while jumping in the vehicle. There goes her chance of freeing her mother from her spell . . .

By the time they were at the outskirts of the Isle, Mal and Ben finally caught their breath from the exhilarating fight just minutes before. They sat side by side, although there was an empty space between them. Things were still tense with them due to their second fight the day before. Mal had made the resolve to stay on the Isle of the Lost, but here she was: on her way back to Auradon.

"Were you able to speak to him while you were on the Isle?" Ben wondered, breaking the silence in the limousine.

Mal tilted her head at the odd question. "Who?"

"Your 'you-know-who'," he clarified unsuccessfully, before he gestured to the front seat of the vehicle.

Mal perked up in understanding. Lonnie, who was sitting in the passenger seat, had no idea about her father. Sure, Mal had accidentally let it slip to Lonnie and Jane that her mother was married, but neither one still had no idea who her father was or if he was even alive.

"No," Mal denied with a soft sigh. "By the time all of you came to the Isle, I had only gone to Lady Tremaine's hair salon. Dizzy thought it would be a good idea to give me bangs. I'm not sure how much I like it though."

Ben raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "She didn't dye your hair that color?"

"No," Mal answered honestly, yet almost reluctantly. "The spell on my hair was broken when I crossed into the barrier. My hair hasn't changed from this color."

"That's the pinkest I've ever seen your hair," Ben noted, though it almost sounded like he was on the verge of teasing her. "You must be really mad at me."

"I'm not mad," she insisted a little defensively. "I'm . . . frustrated . . . irritated . . . over-whelmed . . ."

"Well, I'm sorry you couldn't see him in person," Ben apologized sincerely. "I know how much you care about him. If I was in the same position as you with my grandpa, I would be mad at not seeing him after coming home. I probably would have gone 'beast'."

"It's alright," Mal reassured, though she was unsure if Ben really would have done such a thing. "I'm sorry you were put in a dangerous situation because of me. At least you're safe. That's what matters."

"And I got to see the Isle," Ben added with a small smile. "They are supposed to be my people too, but I haven't done anything to help them. The four of you were brought to Auradon not because I wanted to help the people of the Isle, but because I wanted to meet you in person; not in the dream where you save me when I'm lost on the Isle."

Ben adverted his gaze to hide his sadness. "You are Queen of the Isle," he began slowly. "They are your people, not mine. I should have worked with you to help better their lives. Maybe it could have prevented this from happening. I'm sorry."

Mal looked away, unsure of what she should say to that. However, a single question circled through her mind:

If he really dreamed about her too, does that mean he's . . .?

After some time, the limo pulled into the Auradon Prep campus with a mere four hours left until the start of Cotillion. After Jay parked the limo in its original spot, the six teenagers walked through the sunny and cheerful campus, the complete opposite of the dark and gloomy atmosphere on the Isle of the Lost.

Lonnie had just left to return the quiver of swords to the amphitheater when Jane appeared out of nowhere, still holding her tablet like the last time Mal saw her.

"There you are, Ben!" Jane greeted cheerily as she approached the group. "I've been looking everywhere for you. Cotillion is tonight!"

Pulling Ben aside so Mal couldn't see the surprise, Jane showed Ben the finished present. "This is the stained-glass window. Mal's going to love it!" Jane squealed in delight. "I had a picture sent to Cruella earlier today so she could see the finished product before tonight. What do you think?"

"Hold on a moment," Ben requested before he adverted his attention to Mal, whispering, "Do you want to cancel? Or at least post-pone it?"

Mal gazed at Ben with her mouth hanging open slightly. She knew she didn't want to cancel, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to post-pone it. So many people have worked so hard to put the event together. Mal didn't want to be the reason that it would be for nothing.

"Oh!" Jane exclaimed as she realized something was wrong between the couple. "I can come back in a few minutes if you two need to talk."

"No, now is fine," Ben promised, mainly so Jane wouldn't bother him later today. However, he turned his attention once again on Mal, reassuring softly, "Do whatever you need to. I will support your decision one-hundred percent."

Ben gave Mal a reassuring glance before he walked of with Jane. Mal tilted her head slightly as she watched him leave. She could have sworn she heard her god-mother's name when they were talking to one another. But what would they have to do with Cruella de Vil?

While Mal was contemplating that question, Evie tugged on her arm, knocking her out of her temporary daze. "We need to talk," Evie insisted as she slowly dragged Mal along.

The two girls could barely go anywhere before they heard Carlos shouting defiantly, "No."

Of course, they stopped in their tracks to face their friend. Evie raised an eyebrow in surprise while Mal was trying not to beam with pride for Carlos taking a stand. "No?" Evie repeated incredulously.

"No," Carlos repeated firmly as he straightened his stance to appear stronger than he truly was. "I am tired of you taking Mal off in a huddle so you can whisper your girl-talk. Jay and I are her friends, too. Hell, I am her family! We've been through a lot together and that is not stopping now. So, everybody sit. Now."

Carlos dropped to the ground with Dude in his lap before anyone could protest. With a raised eyebrow and a smile that showed her amusement about Carlos's leadership behavior, Mal gladly took a seat across from him while Evie and Jay slowly followed her example.

After a few silent moments, Carlos admitted bashfully. "I don't know how to start girl talk."

Jay shrugged carelessly. "Whaddup?" he asked in a vain attempt to break the ice.

"Well . . ." Mal started as she took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "I'm . . . a mess? Six months ago, I was living with my wonderful parents who care and love me. Now, I feel trapped in a place where I have to pretend to be something I'm not. I am the Princess of the Underworld, yet I have to pretend that I have no royal blood in me. I know I promised my father I would keep him a secret here in Auradon, but I am tired of lying. I am tired of keeping up this act!"

"Then don't," Carlos advised before carefully elaborating, "Yes, you shouldn't throw the bombshell that he's your father tonight. Wait until another appropriate time, or at least ask him when he thinks it's best. As for the other part, just start being your normal self again. You were still behaving like an Isle princess when we first came to Auradon, but you changed to fit the Auradonian's idea of a princess. Just be you again and ignore the haters. You were born on the Isle of the Lost. That doesn't automatically make you a villain."

"He's right," Evie agreed with a soft sigh. "We are always going to be the kids from the Isle. That island made us who we are. We will never be like anybody else here, and that's okay. I tried to forget and become an Auradon girl so I could fit in; so everyone would stop seeing me as Grimhilde's daughter."

Mal adverted her gaze to her best friend. "Is that why you wanted to make my dress so badly?" she wondered. "You wanted to prove that you're more than her daughter?"

With a sigh of defeat, Evie nodded slowly. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about your god-mother's offer," she apologized sincerely. "But I would really like a second chance to work on your dress. I'm going to make some changes to make it better fit the real you. If you're up to going to Cotillion, it will be waiting for you, okay?"

Offering a small smile on encouragement, Evie stood to her feet and walked off with the boys. However, Jay hung back for a few moments. Waiting until the two were out of hearing range, Jay plopped a seat back down in front of Mal.

"I'm sorry," Jay apologized with a soft sigh. "I have known you longer than any of our friends, yet I couldn't tell that something was wrong with you. I've been so focused on R.O.A.R. that I've basically ignored you. I should have realized that you were hurting because you weren't—or couldn't—be with your parents."

Mal rolled her eyes playfully. "Why do I have a feeling you're saying this to help you get over your crush on my momma, who is now a lost lizard on the Isle?"

Jay huffed at the accusation, but didn't necessarily deny the claim. "Come to Cotillion tonight," he requested. "Your dad is probably looking forward to seeing his little girl on TV. Afterwards, if you can't handle another day of being away from him, I'll drive you back home tomorrow myself."

When his friend nodded in understanding, Jay once again stood, this time heading to the amphitheater so he could give up his position as captain to someone more deserving.

Meanwhile, Mal stayed behind for a little bit longer as she contemplated on what she should do.

If only . . .