Ben looked up from the paperclip, his smile slipping a little.
"What?"
Alex wanted to hit himself.
Seriously, just shot him now and be done with it.
Then the limo stopped.
Alex looked fine on the outside.
As calm and composed as ever as he stared innocently at the limo door that was opening.
Mal was impressed since unlike the blonde princeling she could tell exactly how fake all of it was.
The moment the car pulled over she heard the kid stop breathing altogether.
Evie and Jay got out of the limo.
Alex still wasn't breathing.
He paled, but Benny-Boo couldn't tell the difference between the normal never-been-in-the-sun-before paleness and the this-is-how-I-die paleness.
Carlos got out of the car.
Alex still wasn't moving.
Because of her fairy blood, Mal could hear his heartbeat fasten. A panic attack was on its way. She couldn't talk him out of it with witnesses, so they'll have to stop it before it forms.
"Let's see how this goes." Was all she said as she moved to get out of the car, shifting so that she 'accidentally' bumped her elbow into his arm.
Alex sucked in a breath, like he just realized how bad his lungs were burning.
There was a slight decrease in his heartbeat as he caught the meaning of what she just said. The unspoken 'together' at the end. The hidden promise – that he's not alone.
Ben got out after her then Alex.
His hands grasped the door hard enough for his knuckles to turn white.
Only the Isle kids noticed.
The Queen of Auradon was a little more composed than last time, but she still ran towards her youngest child.
Alex let go of the door most likely in shock when the woman – his mother – picked him up and hugged him, saying something Mal couldn't make out.
The daughter of Maleficent narrowed her eyes – partly scanning the Queen for hidden weapons and threats, and partly because of the weird behavior.
Was hugging the Auradonian way of claiming somebody? People here seemed to be doing it between friends and families every day.
Was it a hidden message?
He's ours now. Not yours. He's Auradonian.
Anger started flaring inside her.
If any Auradonian tried to take what was hers, Mal was going to burn them to ashes.
The Queen kissed Alex on the forehead again as the King approached and ruffled his hair, smiling.
The rage inside Mal almost manifested physically as she realized they couldn't see it.
All they saw was their 'baby boy' looking at them a little curious with a small smile on his face.
They didn't see him stiffen when he was picked up.
They didn't realize he was even paler than in the car.
They didn't notice his breathing becoming elevated for almost 13 seconds when the King approached.
They didn't know that were the Queen to put him back down, Alex would probably collapse.
But the Vks knew.
Evie's face was cold and royal, but her lips were pursed, thinking of different poisons and spells – just in case things went south.
Jay's hands were tapping the hidden pockets where his knives were, his gaze moving back and forth between the royals and the guards surrounding them, planning an escape route, waiting for Mal's order to make a path away from the castle.
Carlos' hands were twitching, his figure a little more tense than the rest of them. Mal doubted the Auradonians even thought he was anything but chill, but she knew Carlos was nervous about this not working out. About the possibility of temporarily having to take Alex's place as the muscle since the kid was obviously compromised.
Ben was looking at his family with the biggest smile Mal's ever seen and she wanted to punch him in his perfect teeth because noAlex wasn't his brother.
Ben lost his brother nine years ago.
This Alex – her Alex – wasn't his.
Mal saved Alex more times that she cared to count, just like he saved her – in more ways than one.
If anyone was Alex's sibling, it was her, not him.
The Queen still smelled of books and roses.
That was the first thought that crossed Alex's mind when he finally got a grip of himself.
She hadn't put him down yet and she didn't look like she was going to which Alex figure might be a good thing since he wasn't sure how steady he would be on his feet.
She was leading all of them inside, her husband at her side, Ben and his friends right behind them.
Alex concentrated, trying to keep his breathing steady.
Being picked up was one hell of a shock, but it didn't compare to the panic that followed when Ben greeted his parents, making Alex realize yet another problem.
What the hell was he supposed to call them?!
Ben used 'Mom' and 'Pops', but how do they do it here?
Will they tell him how to call them?
On the Isle however you called someone showed where you stood with them.
Especially when it came to your own parents. There was a big difference when one used Sir or Ma'am than using Mother or Father.
It got even more interesting if you were on first name basis with a villain not related to you.
Does Alex need to earn the right first? To call them Mom and Dad or something similar?
Some sort of trial run? Was that why there were so little people here besides the guards? To figure out if he'll stay Alex of the Isle instead of Prince Alexander?
Then why all the hugging and the smiles?
The war of thoughts in his head abruptly froze when a new voice came from a hallway they just passed.
"You worry too much my friend. What child doesn't love presents?"
"It is not in the plan until five o'clock! We're supposed to let them have some family time!" a second voice broke out, sounding a little frantic.
The royal family stopped, and Alex could see the King roll his eyes a little exasperated.
The Queen, on the other hand, looked amused. She'd been smiling nonstop since picking him up and the voices didn't appear to have ruined that.
"We're family too!"
"Close family."
The voices were closer now.
"He's my godson! I've got rights! And you- Your majesties!" The first voice suddenly exclaimed as he spotted the group.
The Isle kids started analyzing the new threat almost on reflex.
Male in his fifties judging by the few grey hairs he had.
Tall. Wrinkles around his eyes and mouth.
Watch on the right hand – left-handed.
Sleight cut near the chin – new razor.
A small stain on his tie – probably wine judging by the color, a little old – from last night.
Rest of the clothes are clean – expensive looking – high status especially if he was walking around the castle.
"Oh, no! You do not get to trick me twice in one day! I swear Lumiere I'll –" the second voice started saying then stopped as a second figure appeared, almost tripping over his own feet in shock.
This one was a shorter man, with a weird mustache that looked bigger on one side than the other.
Alex didn't have time to look too closely at the second intruder when 'Lumiere' suddenly teleported in front of the group.
"Welcome! Welcome! It's been so long since we've got guest around!" the man exclaimed with a grin.
"It's been two days…" the second figure mumbled.
Lumiere pretended not to hear him.
"And look at you!" he suddenly exclaimed as he focused on Alex, still in his mother's arms. "You look exactly like your brother!" he said making Alex blink, which showed about as much confusion as he'd allow.
"Alas home at least!" the man continued not looking bothered at the fact that five Isle kids were staring at him intently - which used to make people run away screaming. "I apologize for not being able to greet you at the car, but fear not! I will be ensuring the best tour of the castle there ever was!" Lumiere started saying and Alex noticed the King and the other stranger looking exasperated by everything that was being said.
"And consider this" he continued pulling out a medium sized box, covered in weird multicolored paper. "the first Welcome back present!" he finished handing it to Alex.
The Isle child blinked, not making any move to open the 'present'.
Okay, so I've really got no excuses.
I have like a million ideas for this story but absolutley none of them are for the next 2 - 3 chapters, so if any of you would like to help great!
I could try and speed it up a bit, but I don't want to accidentaly ruin the story. I know this chapter was a bit short, but I thought you'd apreciate it more now rather than later.
Anyway, review and tell me what you think! I love all your comments and they're a great motivation when it comes to writing.
Hope you liked the chapter
Frostbite out