"Mal, you'd better go to your room."

Ben says to his wife, fearing that she's going to feel sick seeing all this.

"What? Absolutely not, we have to sort this out."

She's convinced of it. It's her duty as queen.

"Let me sort it out, please, I don't want you to get sick."

Mal doesn't go back on a decision, she knows she's just as much a ruler as Ben, and he knows it too.

"Okay."

She agrees, even though she doesn't want to.

"Let me know as soon as Rashid takes the test. Cogsworth, get a microphone ready for me."

He kissed her on the forehead and went outside to solve another problem.

(…)

Mal wanted to be outside next to Ben, especially after she turned on the television and saw what they were saying.

"The people are still calling for King Ben's resignation. How can we live safely with magic attacks? It's not possible to live in peace knowing that the heir to the throne has the magic of his grandmother Maleficent."

"What are the chances, Rashid?"

Mal asks, distressed after hearing what the reporter said.

"Of what?"

Rashid is concentrating on connecting the wires of the ultrasound machine and isn't even paying attention to the television.

"About the baby being born with the same magic as my mother."

"I don't know." He says sadly, unable to answer the girl's questions. "There's a good chance, but there's also the same chance that he'll have the Apprentice's magic."

"Look at him." Mal pointed at the television, where her husband is trying uselessly to talk to the people. "This is all my fault, Ben had to have a normal life, with a normal wife, who would give him normal children, not this, not this life."

"Hey! You've stopped now!" He couldn't allow her to continue telling an untruth. "If you didn't have to be together, you wouldn't be in the book."

"Book?"

"Oh, forget it." For a moment, he forgets the secret he has with the sisters. "You'd better go there, queen, he needs you." He quickly changes the subject. Rashid relents and makes room for her to go there to solve the problems with her husband, and also so that she doesn't have to explain about the Book.

(...)

Ben doesn't know what to say, the crowd seems to have gotten bigger and all the words coming out of his mouth have had no effect on their anger. It's his future son they're talking about, and as a father he wants to curse everyone, but as a king he has to remain calm.

Suddenly the noise of the crowd increases threefold and they start shouting Mal's name.

"Hi."

He feels a hand on his shoulder and as he turns he can see exactly who it is.

"Mal, what are you doing here? I asked you to stay inside."

He speaks softly so she can hear.

"As if I could hear you." She kisses his cheek. "I need to tell them. I know exactly what they're feeling, and this is my mess, not yours." She takes a deep breath, takes the microphone from the king's hand, and walks up to everyone. "People of Auradon, I know you're afraid of…our child being born with magic." It's the first time she's felt a certain maternal responsibility. "And I want to say that even though I have magic and that magic comes from my mother, I guarantee that nothing will happen to the future heir or to you. As your queen, you have my word that you will not be affected in any way by magic again."

Ben knows she can't promise this, but he keeps quiet, letting her take control of the situation.

(…)

Later, the king finally had a free moment and went up to his room to see his wife, who had possibly just arrived from one of her engagements as well.

Of all the scenarios he imagined he would find her in, seeing her sitting on the bed caressing her beautiful belly looking so pensive never crossed his mind.

Mal has been like this since the whole mess in the morning. She couldn't hear her heart and when that happens she doesn't recognize herself, what kind of person is she becoming? This baby could put everyone in danger, she could put everyone in danger. However, on the other hand, it's just a baby, just an innocent baby. A twelve-week-old baby who didn't choose all this, didn't choose to be the grandson of a villain like Maleficent or the son of a woman like her.

"What does that little head think?"

Ben asks, approaching her and sitting down next to her on the bed.

Mal is startled by his presence, but she's so caught up in her thoughts that it's no surprise not to notice him.

"Hey."

She smiles and places a kiss on his cheek.

"What are you thinking?"

He strokes her arms, trying to talk to her.

"Me? Nothing, nothing really, nothing important."

"And I'm supposed to believe that because of the five times you've said nothing?" He asks, laughing at her. "But I'm not going to wear out your patience today. I liked seeing your courage today."

"Really?"

She doesn't need his approval, but it's nice to hear it from him, who has a lot more experience with the nobility than she does.

"Yes, you went out there and calmed them down, better than anyone else could have done." He compliments her, seeing her shy at the compliment. "I don't want to give them false hope."

"False hope?"

"Yeah, I'm not going to do anything against our child, and he has magic. Sometimes I just want to be a normal guy." He takes a deep breath, but stops when he hears the woman's laughter. "What's so funny?"

"Your wife is the daughter of a villain who turns into a dragon. Are you sure it's the crown that won't let you be normal?"

Mal laughs nervously.

"Are you kidding? Being married to a woman who turns into a dragon and having a child with her is the best thing in my life."

He confesses, stroking his rosy cheeks.

"How do you do it?"

She asks with her eyes locked on his.

"What?"

"You always look on the bright side. Ever since I've known you, you've been like that."

"Every time I wake up and see this incredible woman, I see how lucky I am, so everything else gets easier."

His eyes lowered to her small belly, and Mal did the same.

"I see you talking to him."

She confesses.

"What?"

"Come on, Ben. You know, I wake up at any noise. I just didn't say anything, because we fight too much during the day and at night I need a break."

"Oh, you're the only one who needs it? It's very bad to listen to conversations, especially one between me and my child." Mal saw the embarrassed look on his face and tried not to laugh. "And what did you hear?"

"Nothing much, just "You're the most amazing thing that's ever happened to me", "Your mother's very hard-headed, but she'll give in soon" and the best, "Please don't pull your mother's stubbornness."

"What? Did I say all that? Aren't you listening to other people's conversations?"

"Am I crazy, then? You're lucky, I always tell him that you're the one in the wrong."

"So, you talk too?"

He says it to tease her, but he's happy to know that she'll start to care about the baby as much as he does.

"You're getting to me."

"Fine, I'm to blame."

Ben is afraid he'll touch her belly and she'll get angry, so he just stares in fascination.

"You can touch it, I won't cut your hand off."

Mal knows that he likes to caress her belly, but she doesn't like it very much.

"Really?" She nods and he gives her a huge smile. Ben, who keeps his hands restless all the time, touches her still-small stomach. "Hi baby, this is dad, much earlier than usual, we've convinced her." There's no way that Mal doesn't find this scene cute. "So, I honestly don't want you to pull her stubbornness, seriously, don't be stubborn like she is, but the eyes, the rosy cheeks and the dimples you can match."

"However, I think you can also come with that kindness from your father and about the stubbornness, know that he is too and can be worse than me sometimes." She interrupts by joining in the conversation with her belly. "Okay, that's very strange. You could be talking to him or to the roast beef I had for lunch."

"Let's believe it's our baby and not a piece of meat, shall we?" He asks, laughing at her placement. "I love you."

"I love you too, ridiculous."

She jokes before joining her lips to his.