Author's Note: Holy crap, guys. I'm so sorry I haven't updated for so long! Real life got in the way – exams and all that stuff, you know how it goes. I've been trying to find the time to write the entire chapter, but I've had hardly any. But since we're now solidly in the second semester, and I don't have too many lessons at the moment…hopefully, I'll be able to get more chapters out!

Also, how has this gotten nearly 1,000 views? I know it's not a lot, but damn, y'all are good. Has someone linked this somewhere or something? o_o

Just a quick clarification, since someone may be confused (though I doubt anyone will really care, ha-ha) – when students in my version of Auradon Prep attend classes such as Magical Theory and Care of Magical Creatures and Objects, they aren't practicing magic. In Magical Theory, they mostly discuss the history behind the usage of magic, as well as practical applications and what the various usages of magic can do. In Care of Magical Creatures and Objects, they learn how to care for (and, if needed, how to defend against) creatures such as dragons, trolls, unicorns, fairies, and the like. Magical objects would be things such as flying carpets, wands, enchanted broomsticks, and so on. I'd be absolutely shocked if they didn't have such classes at Auradon Prep; they may not be able to perform most types of magic, but surely they would be taught such ideas, I think. Maybe one of these days I'll write a Google doc or something about how I imagine Auradon Prep to function (along with a list of classes that exist in this fic).

DarkDeath - it may not quite end in tragedy. Ingrid is used to things going wrong, whether minor or major. Things may or may not be ending badly. :P

Sakura - Lol, yes, if Ella has any doubts, she should be looking towards Mal and Ben. And Anthony better sleep with one eye open if Ben learns of his little crush.

Guest 1 - Thank you! I'm glad that even people who aren't one for Disney movie fics can read this! I'm blushing at your compliments haha. I too was really excited for Descendants; I just loved the idea from its very inception.

Guest 2 - Here you go. Happy? :P

She's still confused as to why Merin so heartily agreed to this ruse, but at the same time, Ella knows better than to ask questions. She's grateful enough that the redhead didn't vehemently deny following along with this, so there's no need to inquire further.

They managed to have come up with an entire back story, as well. Merin and Ella, according to the two of them, have been secretly dating for several months. Head over heels and irrevocably in love, they've been sneaking out late at night for quite some time, going on romantic rendezvous in the plentiful forests of Auradon. Too afraid of the repercussions, they've been sneaking around, refusing to tell anyone for fear of the consequences.

It's a chilly morning; Ella shivers slightly under her jacket. But Merin's hand feels warm as she clutches Ella's tightly. They're both alone outside the school; it seems that everyone is hanging out inside, but that's not strange, considering how cold it is.

"Are you sure that you want to do this? Is it really necessary?" Ella asks. She hadn't counted on any of this; she figured that this would be something to tide her mother over for the time being, not…not coming out to the entire school. Not like this. She presses her lips together tightly, praying that the fallout isn't too extreme.

Merin stares straight ahead at the entrance. "If we're going to do this, we might as well do it properly, Ella. Come on, now, lover." She smirks at the nickname, which makes Ella weakly smile back in response. "We're going to be the most flamboyant gays to ever have attended Auradon Prep."

"Don't you think being flamboyant is a bit of a stereotype?" Ella says.

Merin shrugs. "Don't know. Don't care. Come on, now, we're going to have to go in there eventually. Are you ready? Promise you won't faint on me?"

Ella's not sure if she's shivering or shaking now. "I'm not making any promises."

"Fine, then. Let's go take a hold on our own fates, consequences be darned." Bravery seems to be a trait that runs in Merin's family; Ella would have thought she'd at least be a tiny bit afraid. But no, she's the one opening the main doors, propping it open so that the Ice Queen's daughter goes in first.

When they walk into the school, no one notices them at first. Merin latches right back onto Ella, closing the door behind them. No one seems to glance at their intertwined hands, the way they cling to each other as they walk through the hallways.

But all of a sudden, it seems as if everyone suddenly realizes what's going on. Ella can see several people nudge one another and point at them; she sees several looks of bewilderment on various people; she knows the news is going to be spreading like wildfire. Rumors and gossip always do, even in a big place such as Auradon.

The first person to actually talk to them is Finn (of course).

"You two…you're…" Finn throws her hands up in exasperation. "I don't care, really, I don't, but you could've bothered to tell me. Or your sisters. They're talking to each other in the bathroom right now."

Merin smiles. "They shouldn't be so surprised. Neither should you."

"I knew Ella was gay! I didn't know you were! I mean, it's not wrong, don't think that's what I'm implying, but you two? Really? Out of all the girls you'd go for, Ella, here I was thinking it would've been someone…not Merin." Finn's eyes are wide in shock. Honestly, it's slightly amusing to watch her reaction, even if Ella feels somewhat bad for leaving Finn in the dark.

Merin's voice is dry as she says, "I'm right here, y'know."

"Sorry." Finn doesn't sound sorry at all. "I'm just…gonna go lie in a corner and think about how thick I am to not have realized you two are together." And, almost robotically, she turns around and walks away. She's not mad, not at all; if she was, she would have punched something. She's just in shock, Ella supposes. She shouldn't have expected anything else.

Surprisingly, no one seems to want to confront them as they walk to their lockers (Merin is two down from Ella). No, it's just the glances and outright stares, the murmurs of confusion that follow them. Ella takes her AP World History and Trigonometry books out of her backpack and into her own locker, keeping her Honors Magical Theory notebook and Painting I sketchbook inside. She can feel Merin taking brief looks at her now and again, almost as if she's deciding whether or not to speak what's on her mind.

"We have to go to class soon," Merin says, finally.

Ella suspects this isn't all she wanted to say, but she's not going to bring herself to pry further. "I know."

"I'll, uh, see you at lunch, I guess?" The redhead slams her locker shut, slinging her green backpack loosely over one freckled shoulder. There's a nervous smile on her face, and her eyes look almost…hopeful.

Surprisingly enough, she hadn't considered spending lunch with Merin. She was so entrenched in her "hiding in the library" routine that she hadn't thought about doing otherwise. "Oh, yeah, definitely."

The smile on Merin's face is more confident and prominent now. "Great. See you then," another smirk appears suddenly, "lover." Then – before Ella even has time to react – the ginger quickly kisses her on the cheek, walking away to whatever class she has (Care of Magical Creatures and Objects, she thinks).

And the strangest thing is, Ella doesn't even mind the quick kiss. In fact, it leaves her smiling all the way to Painting I.

Spending lunch outside the library is…well, it's somewhat familiar, but it's a welcome change nonetheless.

A day ago, Ella would have laughed if you had told her Merin DunBroch would have her arm wrapped protectively around her shoulders. She would've gone into hysterics if you tried to convince her that she'd be pretending to date Merin DunBroch altogether, all the while keeping the fact that her actual girlfriend was Ingrid Westergaard.

But here she is. She feels Merin's loose grip on her, and she oddly doesn't mind. Merin is warm, safe, and she finds herself liking it. It's such a weird feeling.

"You alright?" The redhead whispers in her ear. "I can let go if you want."

"No, we need to keep up appearances. It's…it's fine," Ella replies, muttering her response in the same volume.

Ella would be content enough sitting alone at the table, but as luck would have it, Audrey and Chad just have to saunter up to them.

"So, Ella," Audrey says, smirking, "We're all absolutely dying to know: when did Merin infect you? Everyone knows she got it from her moms, so she never had a chance. Too bad you had to get it; you're almost pretty enough to have gotten a date with a prince."

Ella looks down at the table, not wanting to make eye contact with anyone. She feels tears start to sting at the corner of her eyes. This is exactly what was going to happen; she knew it from the moment this all began. She wishes she had never gone on that date with Ingrid, that she had never roped Merin into this, into any of this.

The curly-haired girl, however, seems to not be fazed; she stands up, letting go of Ella, crossing her arms across her chest instead. "At least my Mam and Mother taught me to not bully people based on things they can't choose. Mal couldn't choose being Maleficent's daughter, and she couldn't choose where she was born, yet you still tried to make her life at Auradon Prep miserable. And now you're deciding that we're not worth basic decency and respect because of being gay? Honestly, Audrey, this is a new low, even for you."

"Hey, watch it," Chad says, taking a few steps forward. He's a ways taller than Merin, and he looks quite intimidating (to Ella, at the least), but he doesn't even make the ginger flinch.

"You watch it, Chad. You're just as bad as her. First Anxelin and all the other girls you've used, then Evie, and now us. What, are you jealous that everyone you dated wasn't as pretty as Ella?" Merin's staring straight into his eyes, a look of blind fury on her face. "I'm sick of you and Audrey and anyone else who hates anyone different from them."

There's a crowd now; just about everyone in the cafeteria has their eyes on Merin, Chad, Audrey, and Ella. The blonde can feel her face turn a dark pink, and she tries not to glance up, for fear of seeing everyone staring.

"Auradon is supposed to be where everyone is accepted. But it seems the majority of you see what you want to see, and hate anything that makes you question your surroundings." It seems these emotions have been bottled up inside her for years; Merin's looking at everyone now, addressing them all. "This shouldn't have to be an issue. We shouldn't have to be discussing this. This shouldn't be such a huge deal. Yet it is. And I, for one, am sick of it." Before anyone can say a word, Merin turns around, huffing and storming off into a hallway, where she can be alone.

Ella can't bring herself to follow Merin out of the cafeteria. She's too stunned to even react, too stunned to even wipe the tears off of her face. To her surprise, Chad and Audrey walk away rather than egging Ella on further (which absolutely shocks her, to be frank; they've never simply walked away from something like this).

Her throat feels dry, as if she hasn't drank anything in days. She can feel herself shaking slightly. She's overreacting again, she knows she is, but she doesn't know what else to do. She wants to close herself off from the rest of the world, build up walls and never talk to anyone again. She hates this, hates coming out, hates everyone's reactions, hates herself for being stupid enough to think that this had a chance of working –

"Don't listen to them. They're idiots." Evie perches herself beside Ella, flipping her hair back behind her shoulders as she does so. "They don't like anyone that's not like them."

"They never have," Ella mutters bitterly.

"Like I said, don't listen to them. You'll be much better off if you do that. Let's get out of this place and go find your girlfriend." The word 'girlfriend' rolls off of Evie's lips naturally, as if it's not a big deal over on the Isle of the Lost. It probably isn't, now that Ella thinks about it; they're much more liberal over there than Auradon will ever be (at this rate, at least).

Reluctantly, the blonde stands up; her legs feel like jelly, but she manages to drag herself out of the cafeteria (with everyone watching her, she's sure). She can hear the tap-tap-tap of Evie's heels as she follows along, but she doesn't listen to what Evie has to say, if she's even saying anything.

Merin's arms are folded across her chest, leaning against a random locker, surrounded by Finn, Anders, Kristine, Meredith, and the other DunBroch triplet, Mara. Kristine is saying something, but her voice is low enough that Ella can't hear until she gets closer.

"Doesn't matter what Audrey thinks," Kristine says vehemently, "But you don't just go around insulting everyone at Auradon Prep!"

"Not everyone," Merin replies.

"Yeah, well, besides the Villain Kids and Ben."

"Doug and Lonnie, too."

"You aren't really helping your case here, DunBroch."

Anders leans his bulky body against another locker. "What does it matter? No one's gonna beat her up over it."

"Social isolation, Anders. Not that you would know, being on the Tourney team. But it's a pretty big deal for a girl."

"I don't give a damn what everyone else thinks of me! I never have." Merin's voice is just a bit louder now, her words more venomous than Ella expected them to be.

The blonde sighs as she takes her (probably) expected place beside Merin. Ella can feel the Highlands-born girl clutch onto her hand, as if Ella is all she has left.

There's a pregnant pause amongst them all. Evie, bless her heart, finally breaks the silence by saying lightheartedly, "So, when's the wedding? Can I make your dresses?"

Meredith snorts. "Better make me a bridesmaid." Mara nods in agreement.

"No one's getting married." The thought of marriage to anyone – Ingrid, Merin, anyone – freaks Ella out. She's sure that there's more than a hint of panic in her voice, but if there is, no one seems to notice (or care).

"I'm still going to make you two matching dresses. If not for a wedding, then for the upcoming autumn ball." Evie's eyes light up at the prospect (Ella inwardly groans – Evie is great at making dresses, but this can only mean hours of being poked and prodded with needles eventually).

Finn raises an eyebrow. "Don't you have to make yourself a dress first?"

"Already did!"

"Of course you did," Finn sighs, shaking her head and smiling slightly.

The two swiftly get into a somewhat heated conversation on the logistics of creating a dress for a ball that won't be happening for nearly a month. Ella is secretly relieved; at least all eyes aren't on her, for what seems like the first time ever since they walked into school.

Regardless, she hasn't been alone all day, either. So, swiftly, she breaks off the physical contact with Merin, takes a few steps away. "I'm gonna go hang out in the courtyard," Ella says, "I need a breath of fresh air."

"Want me to come with you?" Merin asks.

Ella shakes her head, probably a little too quickly to seem quite so natural. "No, I'm fine. I'll see you in class." Before anyone can respond, she turns around and leaves, getting as far away from everything – the cafeteria, the watchful eyes, Merin and Finn and everyone – that she possibly can.

The courtyard itself, thank the Gods, seems to be nearly empty, save for a few people sitting at some tables. She sits at the farthest one away from the entrance, tucked away in a under a tree whose leaves are just beginning to turn orange, yellow, and red.

She finds herself fiddling with the drawstrings on her pale blue jacket, trying to forget about the events of the day thus far. If anyone is staring at her, she doesn't know (and at this point, she's beginning not to care, either). She doesn't even notice the telltale crunching of leaves underneath someone's feet as they walk up to the table she's sitting at.

"Mal and I don't care if you're gay, you know."

Ben's voice is warm, and he tries to keep it lighthearted, as if they're talking about last week's tourney game. His hands are in his pants pockets, and there's a lopsided smile on his face, but really, they both know that what they're discussing isn't at all lighthearted. Ella would have been startled by anyone else, but honestly, Ben is too non-frightening to be startled by, even if he snuck up behind her. He's like a little puppy, almost.

"I know you don't, Ben. You're too sweet to care. And Mal…well, the Isle of the Lost is more tolerant of such things, I've heard. But you saw how they all reacted. You could see the disgust in their eyes. I'm no longer human to some of them." Ella looks away, allowing herself to stare out across the rest of the courtyard. She can see Anthony, Ingrid, Harley, and Ginny from far away; Anthony's doodling in a notebook, Ginny is fixing her makeup, Harley seems to be angrily discussing something, and Ingrid…well, Ingrid is staring straight at her, an expression on her face that Ella can't quite discern. Rage? Despair? Yearning? Heck if Ella knows.

Ben sits down beside her at the picnic table. "Who cares what they think? If someone makes you happy, it doesn't matter who they are. Besides, Merin is great. You two are cute."

She wraps her arms around herself, frowning a bit. She trusts Ben – why wouldn't she? Ben is nice, he's non-judgmental, he's sweet…if there's anyone in Auradon Prep to wholly confide in, it's him. "Here's the thing, Ben. Promise not to tell anyone this, but, well…it's…it's not really Merin I'm really dating."

Ella isn't looking at him, but there's a glimmer of interest in Ben's eyes now, curiosity overtaking him. "Oh? Then who is it, then?" He doesn't like to pry as much as he is right now, but…Ella's on the outer fringes of his friend group. They aren't the closest of buddies, but they've known each other since they were small children, attending one another's birthday parties and having play-dates whilst their parents discussed the matters of their kingdoms. She's nice, and he'd like to be a closer friend to her, if she'd ever open up more, and he doesn't like the idea of her being uncomfortable in her own skin, or having to hide something as big as all this from him (from anyone, actually, not just him).

The King sits himself down beside her, being careful not to sit down too close for comfort. "If you don't want to tell me, you don't have to. I don't want to make you feel uneasy."

"It's not that. If there's anyone I'll tell, it'll be you, it's just…it's kinda complicated." Ella runs a hand through her hair, looking down at the leaf-covered ground.

"Ella," he chuckles, "I'm dating the daughter of Maleficent, dealing with several issues concerning Auradon, and still trying to find time for homework and Tourney practices and games. Complicated is my middle name."

"No, it's not. It's Florian."

"Let's not get technical here," Ben grins. Even with her head tilted down, he can see the smallest beginnings of a smile start to form across Ella's lips.

Despte the tiniest of smiles, the blonde sighs heavily, trying not to make eye contact with Ingrid or Ben. "Well, okay, fine, Florian, here's the situation…I snuck out last night to go on a date with someone else. My mom was there waiting for me when I got home, and she pressed a bit, and eventually I came out to her. And I don't want her to know who I'm really dating, so I blurted out the first name that came to mind."

Ella glances down at the slate gray walkway nearby. "I didn't intend for Merin and I to walk into school holding hands today. I just wanted her to just…keep up a façade in front of my mom and her mom and whoever else found out. But now the whole school thinks we're together, and it's too late to back out now, I guess. No way am I gonna let my mother know that I went out with Ingrid Westergaard –" Ella gasps when she realizes what she said, and presses her mouth over her hand swiftly before she can blurt out anything else.

"Ingrid Westergaard?" Is all Ben says at first. Ella's stomach churns, churns with fury at herself for spilling all her thoughts, with worry at what he'll say, with concern if anyone else has heard their conversation –

"That's great, Ella. I'm happy you're getting along with her, especially if it's that well." Ben laughs a bit, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "See? The kids on the Isle of the Lost aren't so bad. I'm glad you and Ingrid were able to set aside your differences. You two look great together, too." His words are a hundred percent supportive, and he sounds earnest enough that even if Ella wanted to believe he's lying, it's impossible to do so. "Don't worry, either," he continues, his voice a bit lower now, "I won't tell anyone. Except Mal. And I promise that she won't tell anyone. She knows when to keep things a secret."

He feels Ella's shoulders slump a bit – whether in relief or depression, he can't say for sure, but he's leaning towards the former. "You sure?"

"I'm positive."

They sit there in silence for several moments, until the telltale sign of a bell rings and echoes throughout the school. Ben stands up, letting go of Ella, a smile still on his face. "I gotta go to Chorus. See you later, alright? Hey, why don't you text me sometime? We ought to catch up anyways."

"Yeah…yeah, sure, I'll do that." Ella stands up as she speaks, stuffing her hands in the pockets of her jacket. "Talk to you later, Ben."

"Keep your chin up, Ella." He grins one last time at her before he turns around and leaves. Reluctantly – though she wants to do anything but attend Chemistry – Ella finds herself walking to class, too.

Thank the Gods Ingrid and her troupe left before she had to talk to any of them. She doesn't think she could handle a confrontation right now.