AN: I forgot to mention some OC's from last chapter, so they are at the end of this chapter.
danifan3000: 1) Yep! Gotta start showing that sexism. 2) Yeah, Chad still has a lot coming.
AmethystDragon14 - Cedric is older! He was born within that first year on the Isle. At the time of this fic, he's 19.
OceanBlueSeaEyes - You're right. Especially once people find out she's Hades daughter. It might make some of the more public attacks lesson (I mean, I know I wouldn't want to upset the gods), but yeah even for those who don't know about the spell all they'll see is a VK, the daughter of the "evillest villain" (still think that title belongs to Frollo) and the Lord of the Underworld, becoming queen. At least she and Ben are True Love, and you can't manipulate that.
harrypotterlover - You're welcome! :D
flurry - That crossed my mind, but since the Fates try to stay on schedule other than during breaks, it seemed like a sword fight would take too long. I'd love to read your fic once it's out!
The VK's were all in the school kitchen
"How were you guys allowed in there without supervision?" Jamila asked. "I thought that was against the rules."
"And why is Dude in a bowl?" Andrew asked.
Mal looked down, actually looking embarrassed as she said "Ms. Potts took one look at us and said we were allowed access whenever we wanted."
"Remind me to send Camille a thank you basket." Tiana whispered to Naveen, who nodded his head in agreement.
Andrew raised his hand and shouted, "That still doesn't answer why Dude is in a bowl!"
Carlos chuckled, "I wasn't going to let him roam the kitchen. I put the blanket in the bowl, and then washed it before we left."
"All right, it says here that we still need one tear, and I never cry." Mal said.
"Never?" Sandra questioned. "How is that even possible?"
"Crying is weakness." Mal told her. "Weakness isn't allowed on the Isle."
"It's better to grin and bear it." Carlos added. He looked lost in the past as he said, "The punishment for crying was worse than whatever made you cry."
Anita covered her mouth to hold back a sob at the blank tone the kids talked in. How old were they when they learned that they could no longer cry? Two? Four? Six? When did they start to fear it instead?
Carlos said that they could just cut up some onions, and Mal whined that it had to be a tear of human sadness. She said that this love potion got the best reviews, so they needed to follow it exactly.
"Reviews? Like… one to five stars?" Tyrone asked.
Mal laughed, "More like my mom just adding in little notes. To be honest, I don't think this was her spell. It sounds like it was someone else's that she jotted down."
"That makes a lot more sense." Tyrone said. Maleficent stealing a love spell instead of creating one of her own was much more believable.
Jay said that a tear is a tear, and Evie told him that that wasn't true. She then explained the difference between an emotional tear and a reflex tear. Mal praised her while the boys began to bicker.
"Go Evie!" Jackson Sweet yelled, causing a small smile to show on the girl's face.
Before anyone could say anything else, Lonnie slipped into the room, causing Mal to quickly cover her spellbook.. "There you are Mal!" She exclaimed in joy, before explaining that she had been looking for her, and telling her that all the other girls wanted her to do their hair.
"You know, magic does take energy." Fairy Godmother said with a frown. "I might not agree with Mal using her magic by doing hair spells, but if she is going to do them, she shouldn't be doing so many so close together. At least not until she's used to her magic!"
Lonnie flushed, and Mal wanted to assure her that everything was okay, but she couldn't. She had been tired after doing so many spells, and she knew the only reason she didn't drop was the influence from her godly heritage.
Fairy Godmother also noticed Lonnie's face, and gently told her. "I'm not trying to make you feel bad. You and the other students haven't learned about magic. I'm just letting you know that for a fairy who hasn't used much magic, using too much too fast can lead to them getting sick." She shot Mal a stern look. "Very sick."
Mal purposefully ignored the looks of concern coming from not just her friends and Ben, but even from the Fitzherbert family. She was fine, she had rested, and she had her… father's influence. Out of everything she was worried about, magical sickness was the least on the list.
"Midnight snack, huh?" Lonnie asked, leaning over and taking some of the dough while Mal was saying that it wasn't anything special. The VK's all shouted when they realized what Lonnie was doing, and she looked at them in confusion while assuring them that she wasn't going to double dip.
"Lonnie, you shouldn't have done that." Mulan scolded quietly.
"Why not?" Lonnie asked, chin in the air. "I trust them!"
Shang sighed, "That's not the point." he told her, jumping into the conversation. "We don't know how growing up on the Isle, and apparently eating rotten food, has affected them. Who knows what would happen if they felt like their food wasn't safe, even here in Auradon?"
"They protested," Mulan added. "We know from earlier that with those they trust they seem fine with sharing," she said, recalling how Mal shared her food with Ben and her friends, including Anna and Rapunzel's kids. "And of course, now we know why they protested. But at the time you didn't. All you knew was that they protested."
"It's not like she knew that at the time!" Jr. cut in, glaring at both of his parents while squeezing Lonnie's shoulder. "As far as any of us knew, they were getting good food And she barely took anything!"
Despite her brother's words, Lonnie's eyes filled with tears. Had she done everything wrong when it came to the VK's? Did she hurt Mal by pressuring her into doing hair for the other girls? Did she hurt all of them by the way she acted in the kitchen, even though they weren't going to eat those cookies anyways?
"You didn't know." Her brother whispered. "None of us did."
Evie asked if Lonnie felt anything, and Mal asked if she thought it was missing something.
With the context of what was going on, Lonnie couldn't help but laugh at the scene in front of her.
Jay walked over and flirted with Lonnie, but Lonnie didn't seem interested and instead shrugged her shoulders while telling the VK's that the dough could use some chips. She walked further into the kitchen, leaving a confused Jay behind.
Jay began to sulk, and Mal couldn't help but reach over Evie and poke him. "You're losing your touch." She teased, echoing his words from earlier and causing him to roll his eyes.
Mal and Evie sagged in relief the moment Lonnie's eyes were off of them, and Mal asked what those were.
Lonnie sprinkled some chocolate chips into the mix while saying, "Chocolate chips," as if that was the most obvious thing in the world. "Just the most important food group.
"Chocolate isn't a food group." Asmund said, causing his little sister Kari to point at him and cry "LIES!"
"She gets that from you." Kristoff whispered to Anna, who just laughed and said, "Well, I agree with her and Lonnie. Chocolate is the most important food group!"
Lonnie saw the confused looks on the VK's faces, and asked if their mom's ever made them chocolate chip cookies.
"To be fair, we don't have those types of ingredients on the Isle." Evie said, "And even if we did, a lot of places don't have working ovens."
Carlos laughed bitterly. "Not to mention that none of us have mothers who would do that, even if we did have the means." Maleficent and Cruella definitely wouldn't, considering that they didn't even seem to like their children. Evil Queen wouldn't because she'd claim it would 'ruin Evie's figure', and Jay's mom was dead.
Lonnie continued on, "Like, when you're feeling sad, and they're fresh from the oven with a big 'ol glass of milk, and she just makes you laugh and puts everything into perspective and…" Lonnie trailed off as she noticed the VK's expressions, asking why they were looking at her like that.
Lonnie lost her battle against tears, turning her face into her mom's shoulder while she tried to compose herself, as she wished that she could go back in time and stop that whole conversation.
Meanwhile, Anna decided that she needed to make sure those kids got to have chocolate chip cookies that they could enjoy, a couple others in the crowd thinking the same thing. It wouldn't be the same as their parents making them, but perhaps it could still bring smiles to their faces.
Mal told Lonnie that it was different where they were from, and Lonnie said "Yeah, I know. I just, you know, I thought... Even villains love their kids."
Everyone was looking at the Vk's now, causing Mal to squirm in discomfort.
"So there's really no love on the Isle?" Jamila asked in a small voice, finding herself in her parents arms.
"There's some," Evie said slowly. "Some villains do love their kids, or close to it."
"Yeah," Mal said, trying to assure the younger girl. "Anastasia is a good mother, Smee loves his kids, and even Dr. Facilier is a pretty good parent." To Celia, at least.
"Some of the minor villains and sidekicks are good, too." Carlos added, thinking of Horace and Jasper. But what he didn't say was that most of the "good parents" were either VK's who had children themselves, or VK's who took kids under their wing, such as the VK's who took care of their siblings. Some of the best examples he could think of were Gloria LeGume and Harriet Hook, but judging from the looks on the adults' faces, knowing that wouldn't have helped.
The VK's attempt at assurance didn't do much for anyone in the room. Ella was beginning to feel guilty, as for years she had tried to get her stepsisters and their children off the Isle, to no avail. In a different area, Tiana was thinking about how Facilier raised his child, or children, but if Mal's words were true, then she took some comfort in knowing that the kid didn't have a horrible parent.
Belle was also in tears, imagining all the kids on the Isle who didn't knw love. She and Adam did that. They helped to build the Isle. She vowed to go through the registry once they were out of here and the coronation was over, to count all the children who had at least made it on to their records.
And as for Beast, despite all he had heard so far, it was the broken looks on the children's faces that finally got him to see them in a different light. In a way, perhaps he had known that the chances of the Isle children having love was slim, but it was one thing to know it and another to see it. He still wasn't sure if they could be trusted, but perhaps he had been a little too harsh in his initial judgement.
Although, that still didn't change the fact that they spelled his son.
Lonnie reached out and touched Mal's hand, saying that that was awful. Mal looked down at their hands, before looking back up at Lonnie.
"Just so you know, I think you helped them." Jr. whispered to Lonnie, who looked at him in surprise.
"Really?" She asked.
Her brother nodded, and gestured towards the screen. "You weren't pitying them, but you showed that you cared. That can go a long way, Lon.
Mal noticed a tear on the girl's face, and quickly wiped it off and into the dough, while switching to fake cheerfulness.
"You gave them a tear!" Audrey cried out.
"Well, I'm not an emotionless robot, Audrey!" Lonnie snapped.
Mal played it off, calling it a big bummer, before saying that they needed to get the cookies in the oven, all while steering Lonnie towards the door. She thanked her for dropping by and told her to have a really, really good night, before saying she'd see her tomorrow and wishing her evil dreams.
"Evil dreams?" Aziz questioned. He held up a finger before Mal could respond. "No, no, I won't hear it. You're sitting in with Jay while I give you both a list of Auradon sayings." He then gave her a serious look, and pleaded, "Please don't say evil dreams again."
"Unless it's someone you hate!" Amir added, while Aziz lightly smacked his head.
Mal smirked and said. "No promises."
Lonnie said goodnight, and once she was gone Mal began to give orders. Then, the scene changed to the next day, showing Mal slipping out of one of the school doors and heading to the lockers.
"Oh, like that didn't look suspicious." Carlos teased.
Mal looked at him in confusion before realizing what he meant. "Oh no, that wasn't because of what we were about to do." She told him. "I had been stopped multiple times all morning by people asking me to do their hair, or thanking me for doing their hair, or just saying hi." She shivered. "I was hoping to avoid unnecessary human contact."
Ben couldn't help but chuckle at her words, and attempted to cough over it at Mal's glare.
Several girls called out to Mal, thanking them for their new hair.
"See what I mean!"
Jay approached her and asked if she was feeling weird about what they were about to do, saying that it wasn't that bad in Auradon.
"Look at that," Jasmine whispered to Aladdin as they watched. "He's questioning things."
"He's finally out from under his father's thumb."
"Are you insane?" Mal asked Jay. She went on to say "Long live evil!" and told him that he was mean, awful, and bad news.
"Jay is none of those things!" Dasha called out with a laugh, thinking back to a few days before. She had been struggling with her books, instruments, and bag, along with Jamila's bag, as she had forgotten it in their dorm. Jay had been kind enough to carry Jamila's bag, and walk with her to the other girl's class, even though he was older than her and didn't know her well.
Mal then snapped her fingers in Jay's face and told him to snap out of it. He blinked once, then cheerfully thanked her, telling her he needed that.
As Jay walked over to flirt with the girls in the yard, the view shifted to Audrey and Ben at the end of the row of lockers. Audrey asked Ben if he thought those girls had actually paid for their haircuts. In the background, you could hear Jay asking if the girls were going to the Tourney game, and was telling them to look out for number eight, as he'd be scoring the winning goal.
Despite the plan to steal the wand, many of the girls still sighed at the sight of Jay, and had no regrets of flirting back that day.
Audrey mentioned that Mal spelled Jane's hair as well, and that Fairy Godmother wasn't happy about it.
Ben asked what the harm was, and Audrey exclaimed, "It's gateway magic! Sure, it starts with the hair! Next thing you know it's the lips, and the legs, and the clothes, and then everybody looks good and then… where will I be?
"Are you serious?" Pierre asked his sister before either of his parents could say a thing. "Are you that narcissistic?"
"Pierre, apologize to your sister!" Leah scolded, while Audrey just looked at him in stunned silence.
Pierre ignored his grandmother, and instead stood up from his seat. "I don't know when you became this selfish, but with everything I've seen today, I don't recognize you anymore." With those words, he left his family to go sit with Ruby.
Audrey watched him go, looked at her parents, who were both giving her looks of disappointment.
"You're beautiful, Audrey." Her mother said, "You always have been, and the way the other girls look will never change that. With that said, what you said wasn't right, and getting upset because other girls had hairstyles that made them stand out more was also wrong."
Audrey frowned and looked away. Even though her grandmother argued on her behalf, Pierre's words still rang in her head. I don't recognize you anymore.
Ben looked uncomfortable, and tried to say something, but Audrey cut him off and told him that she would see him at the game, after her dress-fitting for the coronation.
"I was going to break up with her." Ben told Mal in a low tone, causing her to look up at him in surprise.
"Really?"
He nodded. "Our relationship just… wasn't working." He admitted. "It hadn't been for a while, and I realized I didn't want her at my side when I was crowned."
"Bye, Bennyboo." Audrey said.
"The best thing about their breakup was the death of that nickname." Moira whispered to her sister.
"Tell me about it." Maisie whispered back. "She used that more than his name."
Ben said bye, and once Audrey was out of sight, Mal called out "Hey, Bennyboo!" in a teasing tone.
Audrey felt her heart sink as she watched Ben visibly perk up at Mal's voice. But no, he was only with her because of the love spell, right? Yes, even she could admit that Ben seemed attracted to Mal, and yes, there was a possibility that he wasn't even spelled anymore, but… It had to be a bad girl infatuation… right?
Mal held up a bagged cookie, saying that she had just made a batch of double chocolate chip, and asked if Ben wanted one. Ben tried to politely decline, saying that he didn't eat before a big game, but thanking her for the offer. Mal then began a guilt trip, telling him that she understood and how everyone must know not to accept treats offered by villain kids. Ben attempted to protest, but Mal continued. "I get it. You're cautious." She began to lift the cookie towards her mouth. "More for me, I guess."
"You were going to eat it!" Evie screeched, grabbing Mal's arm in alarm. She hadn't noticed that at the time, too focused on Ben.
"Relax, E." Mal said as she attempted to pry Evie's fingers off her arm, "I knew what I was doing. And, you could have made the antidote. You're a witch, remember?"
Evie blinked, letting go of Mal. "Oh yeah."
Ben snatched the cookie out of her hand and took a bite.
"How unprincely." Jordan teased. "I don't think I've ever seen you act like that."
Ben blushed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, well… I don't really think I have a defense for that."
"Totally trust you." Ben said. "Totally."
Mal asked how it was, and Ben began to repeat words as he said that it was amazing, explaining the texture and asking if there were walnuts, telling her how he loved walnuts. Slowly, the other VK's began making their way over, and surrounded Ben. The difference in Ben's demeanor was obvious, and he asked Mal if she had always had those golden flecks in her eyes. He went to take another bite of the cookie, but Mal quickly took it from him.
"Wow. How did no one see that?" Reiner asked in astonishment. "That definitely looks suspicious."
"And Doug is right there!" Karine added, gesturing towards the screen. She turned to look back at Doug. "What did you think they were doing?"
Doug coughed, "I uh, wasn't paying attention to them." He told her. "I was thinking about the band performance, and when I do that, I tend to ignore everything else."
Karine sighed, but accepted the explanation. She was the same way with her writing, after all.
Jay asked Ben how he was feeling, and Ben said. "I feel... I feel... I feel like... Like singing your name!"
Ben's voice got louder, and Mal had to slap a hand over his mouth as he literally began to sing her name, loudly.
"What was in that cookie?" Elle asked, looking at her older sisters with wide eyes. While none of them had even been close with the prince, not once had they ever seen him act like that. Not even when he'd surprised Audrey with a grand gesture! Which, to be fair, he rarely did. But the point remained.
The scene changed to the tourney field, with the announcer explaining how much time was left. He mentioned that they were tied, and how Auradon Prep's team, The Fighting Knights, was up against the Sherwood Falcons. He then mentioned that the team was Auradon Prep's fiercest rival.
In the crowd, all the adults, parents and older siblings alike, were leaning forward. None of them were able to be at the game, only allowed to go to a select few a year.
As Chad was called onto the field, Jay wished him luck, and Chad thanked him in surprise.
"So he does know how to be civil," Karine muttered to Reiner, who chuckled in response.
The announcer continued narrating, while Coach kept getting his players ready, eventually calling on Jay.
Jay pulled Carlos up with him, asking about the younger boy. Carlos tried to protest, and Coach agreed, but Jay insisted. He said that Carlos had been practicing, and then used Coach's team words against him, telling the man that Carlos was like his brain.
"Nice one," Mal said with a smirk
Coach sighed, but called in Amir so he could send Carlos out as well. Carlos was not that thrilled, even though Jay assured him that he got his back.
"What about my front?"
Muffled laughter was heard throughout the room from the kids, while nervousness ran through the adults. Mirabel and Anita were especially anxious, as Carlos was so much smaller than most of the other players. Even though the boy was here with them, completely fine, it didn't stop them from worrying about his past or future self getting a serious injury.
The announcer sounded astonished as Jay and Carlos came out, calling them the hot head and the little guy who could barely hold a shield.
"I can hold a shield." Carlos grumbled, crossing his arms with a scowl.
"Long pass to Jay." The announcer said. He then went on to describe what was happening, adding that Carlos blocked an opponent and was doing a little jig in their face.
A couple of the younger princesses giggled at the screen, while the parents were all on the edge of their seats.
"And now Jay gets the ball back. Here comes Jay! Jay, hurdling maneuver at mid-field!"
Ben called to Jay that he was open, and Jay passed to Ben through the kill zone. The announcer then said that there was a big block by Chad, and continued on to say that Prince Ben was passing to Jay.
Mal frowned at the screen, "Not to make Chad's ego go up, but isn't he a prince too?" she asked, gaining Chad's attention. "Like, I get it, Ben's becoming High King tomorrow. But Chad is also becoming a king in the future as well, right?"
"That's correct." Belle confirmed. "Usually, announcers don't use titles for the games, since they'd be too long to say, especially for the Auradon Prep team as many of the members have some sort of title.
"He just won't stop saying mine." Ben said with a sigh of annoyance. "No matter how many times I ask him to stop."
"Oh, you poor baby." Mal teased, but in a way she understood. She remembered Hadie complaining about titles whenever he was on the Isle. Despite Hades being classified as a villain, he was still the Lord of the Underworld, or King of the Underworld by Auradon standards. Which meant that Hadie and Mal were both royalty. It was another reason she was immensely grateful that no one knew who her father was. Being called 'Princess Mal' all the time would get on her nerves as well.
"He's in the clear! Shot!"
The adults groaned as the scene continued, showing the Falcon's goalkeeper making a save.
Aziz watched in the room amusement. "You all are aware that we won, right?" He asked. His father held up a hand and shushed him. Aziz, Amir, and Jamila all shared an eye roll, but Aziz did quiet down so his father could enjoy the playback,
The team huddled as the announcer mentioned how thick the tension was. When the huddle ended, he started up again, mentioning how Jay had the ball. He continued on, saying everything that was happening, including Carlos going down, and "Jay, through the kill zone, picks up Carlos."
"Is that even allowed?" Melody asked, looking at her sisters and gaining a couple of shrugs. It had been years since she was at school, and she'd never been that big into Tourney in the first place. The only reason she even saw a Tourney game now was if she happened to be in town when Auradon Prep allowed family members to watch, and that was only so she could see Abi perform during halftime.
"There's nothing about it in the rulebook!" Chad called out, his own eyes focused on the screen as he tried to figure out what the team could improve on.
"Oh, he's being hammered by dragon fire! Still going on. Jay, hurdling maneuver at mid-field. He's in the clear. The ball goes back to Jay."
Carlos called out to Jay, using his shield to make the ball go up, and then crouching down while telling Jay to jump. Jay did, then called out to Ben.
"He passes to Prince Ben. HE SCORES!"
Cheers rang out in the room and on the screen, just like her past self, Mal covered her ears.
The announcer continued to praise the team, and to praise Jay and Carlos for setting Ben up for the win, calling it a wonderful end to one of the best games ever. He continued to talk, until Ben snatched the microphone out of his hands.
"Benjamin! What were you thinking?" Belle scolded, turning to look at her son. She let it slide when she watched him snatch the cookie from Mal's hand, and at least then there weren't a lot of people around, but this was the second time he'd done it. In front of a large crowd and rival school, no less!
Ben flushed under his mom's gaze. "It was the love spell?" He said, using it as an excuse. Belle wasn't amused, and told him that he'd be writing an apology letter to the announcer, to which he responded "Yes, mom." Beside him, Mal was chuckling at the fact that her boyfriend, who was becoming High King of Auradon in less than twenty-four hours, was still getting scolded by his mother.
Ben yelled for everyone's attention, adding in a please, and said that there was something he'd like to say.
"You don't mention," Aksel said slyly. "We never could have guessed. Elsie, Sweetheart, how about you? Did he mention anything to you?"
Elsie began to grin, while Ben groaned. "Of course not, Darling. Don't be ridiculous."
The exchange caused Mal to burst into full blown giggles and lean into Ben, while many of the adults looked at them in confusion. Their confusion only grew as several kids began to hum a tune they'd never heard. The only one who didn't seem amused was Audrey, who moved a bit closer to her parents.
Everyone looked at Ben expectantly, and after a moment he called out, "Give me an 'M'!"
"M!" Everyone else called out, following the Prince's moves.
Aurora quickly realized what was happening, and just how Audrey had been broken up with. If you could call it that.
Ben continued, asking for an 'A'.
"You look caught off guard, Mal." Emery said, looking at the faeling in amusement.
"I was not expecting the cookie to be that strong." Mal admitted. "Nor was I expecting a song and dance."
"Well, he did say that he wanted to sing your name." Ruby said, giggling at the screen. Elsie had sent her a video of it when it first happened, but this was much better quality.
Audrey caught onto what Ben was going once he asked for an 'L', and ran off field after Ben said "I love you, Mal! Did I mention that?"
"Oh, Audrey." Aurora whispered, putting her arm around her daughter.
"I'm fine, Mom." She said quietly, even though she sounded as though she could cry.
"You don't have to be." Aurora responded, tightening her hold.
Belle was also startled by her son's actions, but as it was the cause of the love spell, which seemed pretty strong, she could only hope that he had, or would, apologize to Audrey. She wasn't that fond of the girl, but no one deserved that. She might even mention it to him, but not in front of everyone. That would only humiliate them both.
Ben asked for a beat, and as the music, Evie and Mal looked at each other, asking what was in the cookie, while Lonnie was right next to them.
Lonnie rolled her eyes as glances came her way, and she gestured to the screen. "It was loud, and I was focusing on Ben!"
Ben began to sing, "Did I mention that I'm in love with you?"
"Multiple times." Mal said, thinking over the past few weeks.
"Did I mention, there's nothing I can do? And did I happen to say, I dream of you everyday? But let me shout it out loud, if that's okay-ay-ay."
"But you were just given the love spell." Aaron Ramirez said, speaking up for the first time. "How could you have been dreaming of her?"
"It's a metaphor, Silly." Josie said with a laugh, not noticing the blush on Ben's face.
Mal, however, did notice it, but knew that now was not the time to bring it up. Although, she would be once they were alone. She had dreamed of Ben before meeting him… perhaps he had dreamed of her, too.
The crowd shouted in response, and when Ben repeated his last line, even Jay joined in the next shout.
"Seriously?" Jordan asked in surprise. She, annoyingly, hadn't been there that day due to a bad cold, which meant that she had to miss out on the whole song and dance, and was only able to witness it through a few bad videos on AuraTube.
Jay shrugged. "It was catchy!"
Ben continued to sing about the girl who rocked his world like it had never been before, and the entire Tourney team began to join in on the dance, with Carlos, and eventually Jay, joining Ben up front.
"Enjoying yourselves?" Evie asked. Jay and Carlos exchanged glances, then Carlos nodded and said, "Honestly? We were."
"I never thought that it could happen to a guy like me."
"A prince?" Mal asked, "Because I'm pretty sure you could date any girl you wanted."
"Then it's a good thing I only want you," Ben told her, causing several of the girls to aww, even though they still believed him to be under the love spell.
"But now look at what you've done, you got me down on my knees."
"Okay, you two were enjoying that too much!" Mal said with a laugh as she pointed at Jay and Carlos. "At least Ben has an excuse!"
The song went into the chorus, with the Tourney members all dancing.
"What moves are those?" Elsie asked in amusement, as the boys on the screen rolled around on the grass.
"We are not defending our past selves." Aksel said, crossing his arms.
"My love is R-I-D-I-C-U-L-O-U-S!"
"R-I-D-I-C-U-L-O-U-S!" The teens in the room shouted, giggling at Ben's exasperated sigh.
"I am never going to escape this song, am I?" He asked. His friends all laughed and said "Nope!"
"I filmed it!" Elsie exclaimed with a gin.
Aziz called out, "Dude, there are probably videos on AuraTube by now!" With Jordan yelling out a confirmation, while Elsie said that they weren't hers.
Ben just shook his head, while Jay looked back. "Aziz, Amir! Why don't you guys come down here?"
The brothers looked at each other, then their parents, who gently shooed them off, before heading down and jumping into the seat next to Karine.
"So, we miss anything?" Aziz asked.
"Just giving Ben a hard time." Elsie said with a playful smirk.
"Ah, so nothing new."
Ben continued on singing, "And I would give my kingdom for just one kiss!"
Beast stiffened. Ben couldn't have said that. Not to a fairy.
But, Mal hadn't said anything about it. Perhaps she just didn't realize what their son just promised?
A quick glance over showed that the girl had no reaction, but Beast was still worried about it, and judging from Belle's face, he wasn't the only one.
"Did I mention that I'm in love with you?" Ben sang again, repeating lines from earlier as his team members danced along beside him.
"As cringey as this is, I'll admit it, I'm impressed." Edeline said, the slightest smile on her lips. "For dance improv, you all did a pretty good job."
Reiner let out a low whistle, "You guys impressed the ballerina." He said, "I didn't think that was possible."
Edeline groaned and rolled her eyes, but still sent her brother a small smile.
Ben asked Mal for a sign to show that she would only be his, before saying that he didn't want to live another minute without her. "'Cause if your heart just isn't in it, I don't know what I'd do." He sang, his voice getting lower as he fell back into his teammates arms, before being thrown back up.
In the stands, Mal covered her mouth and screamed.
Ben raised a brow, "And what was that about?" He asked, noticing the blush on Mal's cheeks.
"Absolutely nothing," She said quickly, not meeting his eyes. "Nothing at all!
Ben chuckled, and pressed a kiss to the side of her head.
"My love is R-I-D-I-C-U-L-O-U-S!"
"This song has single-handedly made sure I will never forget how to spell that word." Marette commented.
A dance sequence came, in which Ben tossed Mal his jersey, before Ben began to sing again and was eventually thrown into the crowd.
"Ben!" Belle gasped.
"I'm fine, Mom." Ben said gently. "The guys lined me up with some people they knew could catch me easily."
Ben crowd surfed to Mal, and once he arrived he finished the song with, "And I would give my kingdom for just one kiss! Come on, now!"
"She blocked the kiss!" Beast exclaimed quietly in surprise.
"She did." Belle said.
"She could have…"
"I know."
Beast looked over at Mal again. She had a chance right there, but instead she didn't take advantage of it. At least, not then.
"I love you, Mal." Ben said. "Did I mention that?"
"Considering you just sang an entire song about it, I'd say yes." Aksel teased, catching the blueberry that Ben threw at his face in response.
"What, no strawberry?" He asked as he popped the berry in his mouth, eyeing the plate that Mal and Ben were sharing.
Ben looked at him with wide eyes, and glanced at Mal. "And take them from her? Not worth it."
Mal proved his point by narrowing her eyes and pulling the plate closer. The precious few strawberries that were left were hers, and hers alone.
Audrey raced up the stands, pulling Chad along. She took the microphone from Ben and announced that Chad was her boyfriend now, so she wouldn't need Ben's pity date. Then, she kissed Chad in front of everyone.
Aurora didn't mention anything about the childish display to Audrey, in case anyone noticed, but she did decide that she would be needing to have a long discussion about relationships with her daughter in the near future.
On the flip side, Ella was scolding Chad. "And right in front of Evie, no less!" She hissed.
Up front, Evie was looking down at her hands.
Ben pulled the microphone back. "Mal! Will you go to the coronation with me?"
Mal yelled yes, and Ben and the stands cheered.
Pierre sighed, looking down at his sister. Audrey was curled into their mother's side, despite their grandmother's look of disapproval. She didn't deserve that. Any of it. Her display with Chad was childish, but she had just been dumped, not even, in front of everyone.
"Do you want to move back over there?" Ruby asked him quietly.
Pierre shook his head, "Not right now." He told her, then warned, "I might end up shouting at Ben later."
Ruby squeezed his hand, "I won't stop you."
Jay pulled Ben away, and Mal noticed Evie's expression. She told Evie that she felt really bad for Audrey, surprising her friend. "Yeah, I feel like if she were talented like you, and she knew how to sew and knew beauty tips, then she wouldn't need a prince to feel better about herself."
Audrey frowned, but if she were honest, she'd likely comfort her friend in the same way if something like that had happened to one of them.
Evie smiled bashfully, "I guess I am kind of talented." She said, causing Mal to laugh and agree that Evie was gifted.
"Thanks, M."
"Thanks, M." Evie repeated quietly, needing to hear that again. Mal smiled and tilted her head, which Evie took as a sign to rest her head on her best friend's shoulder.
Over by Chad, Ella had finished her rant, and Kit leaned down to whisper in his eldest son's ear. "We will be talking about your treatment of Evie later. And I can tell you right now, you will be apologizing to her, in person, later."
"Yes Dad." Chad said. Honestly, the more he looked at the screen, and looked down at Evie, the more he began to feel a little guilty.
The team lifted Jay up, and the announcer said. "And there he is. Jay, the most valuable player. How do you like that?"
"We really like it." Herkie said with a grin. "Jay's a great teammate."
And as the cheers from the screen mixed with shouts from his teammates now, Jay grinned back.
AN: OC's:
Josie & Jackson Sweet - Dr. Joshua Sweet
Cedric Frollo - Claude Frollo
Camille Potts - Mrs. Potts. (Kind of an oc. According to a comic, Mrs. Potts has 12 kids. I gave 10 of them names, as thankfully one of the School of Secrets books introduced one of the kids)
Andres, Aaron, & Adriana Ramirez - Audrey Ramirez
Pierre - Aurora & Phillip (because I've somehow forgotten to add him to one of these lists XD)
Also, full disclosure, I am NOT an expert when it comes to psychology. I do not know how living on the Isle, and the food conditions there, would affect the villain kids.