With one of her...special browniesin hand, Minty stood beneath the bleachers. All of the spying and her sudden confidence about publicly applauding Ben had made the previous day a little stressful. It was clear from Audrey's glaring glance that Minty would get it the next time she saw her, so she was not exactly planning on running into her so quickly.

Closing her eyes, she slid down the pole and landed on the grassy ground, taking another bite of her brownie. Her mind was too far gone to care that grass stains were already starting to appear on her bright floral jeans. She thought about the future king and smiled absently to herself. He was so dreamy. For years—since the first time she saw him, to be precise—she had been crushing on him. Ben had been the one to give her the grand tour of Auradon Prep, and Minty paid close attention to everything he said, even as he babbled on about the school's past. She gazed at his handsome face for what felt like hours until his girlfriend arrived, her attractive face adorned with a scornful expression.

She had been in a daze for the next few minutes as Audrey began to taunt her without ever raising her voice. She spoke in such a way that Minty started to hyperventilate until everything went dark and she awoke in her room. Her new roommate kept a close eye on her, bringing her food and sweets on a regular basis, making her tea, and placing stuffed animals on her bed. Even when Minty wouldn't talk for a week, she continued to introduce herself and talk about her family history and Auradon Prep to familiarize Minty with her new surroundings.

She briefly awoke from her daze as a result of the memories, her breath quickening and her eyes opening. She grabbed the small cat stuffy Tabby had given her when she awoke that dreadful day and started petting its still soft fur. "It's alright, Min. That time is over. You have friends now."

She watched as Ben followed Carlos as he fled from the campus mutt, Dude. Then she saw Chad and Evie a few feet away, talking about something. "Well," she muttered, "she obviously likes him. That won't go downhill a bit."

She closed her eyes again, allowing her head to fall against the iron post. She reflected on her time at Auradon, the ups and downs of adjusting to a new environment where most people were from royal families and looked down on those who weren't. It always irritated Minty how they treated her. Her mother was not in bad standing, and she still is not an adult. In theory, mint should fit right in. However, she didn't. Not even when she provided the social scene with party goods or gave people free gifts. She was just too... strange.

"Relaxing?"

Minty snapped out of her thoughts, her eyes wide open. She sat up abruptly, watching Ben smile down at her. Before she knew it, she was overcome with the same feeling she had the day before. She gasped. "Uh, yeah, a bit."

Ben leaned on the support beam and smiled dreamily at her. "I understand. Stressful times, with all the new people and that horrible murder."

She gave a nod. "Right. Yes. I just... it's all been a lot for me."

Ben simply nodded. "Yeah," he replied. "Hey, I saw you on the bleachers yesterday. The way you cheered for me—that was nice. I mean, I get a lot of cheers, but it's fairly obvious that they do it out of obligation. I could tell you meant it."

Minty smiled at him, her cheeks flushed. "Well, you're certainly great at Tourney. And school. And being royal."

Ben laughed softly. "You'd make a great queen, I'm sure of it."

Minty rose to her feet, almost trancelike, and extended her hand to Ben. He took it gingerly and kissed it. For a brief moment, the world appeared to stop spinning. For a brief moment, everything vanished: the spying, the murder, and the villains. It was just the two of them, their eyes locked in an unending symphony of joy and romance. They got closer to each other. Minty puckered her lips.

"Minty, what the hell?" The moment was shattered as Tabby drew her away from Ben. "What are you doing?" she asked sternly. "Let's go."

She yanked her best friend away from Ben, only to see him with a puzzled expression on his face. Minty raised her hand to her chin as they continued to walk away. "What did I just do? What's wrong with me?"

As Jane and Lonnie admired their new hairstyles, Rosalie cautiously poked her head into Mal and Evie's dorm room. "Hi everyone," she said with a sweet greeting.

"Rosie! Hi!" Evie hurried over to usher her new friend inside, beaming, "Come in, come in."

Rosalie gave her a smile. She called out, "Hey, Vie. I heard you girls were offering hair cuts and such. I would love to get a chance to have Mal look over my boring 'do."

"Don't you have magic of your own, Ro-Ro?" Mal snarked.

Rosalie's gentle smile never wavered as she chuckled to herself. We do, but as you may be aware, my mother's and my magic both emphasize the natural side of things. If you are up for the challenge, I was just hoping to get a little new look for coronation day.

Mal gave her a smile, her expression brimming with irony. "If you've got the right amount of change, sure."

Rosalie pushed a bag of coins into her hand and said, "Right here." She settled into the chair facing the mirror and shook her blond hair. It had a straight, almost lifeless appearance. She never paid attention to her own appearance because she was too busy tending to the plants. When she was not wearing basic sundresses, she was frequently covered in dirt and wearing overalls. She was prepared to switch things up.

Mal caught a few strands of her hair and let them drop through her fingers. She shook her head and clucked. "This is pretty dead, sweetheart. What would you like me to do with it?"

Rosalie gave a shrug. "Maybe some color? I unfortunately did not inherit her gorgeous red."

"Sure. That's easy enough."

"Oh, Rosie! I would love to dress you for the coronation. How about it?" With a joyful touch on Rosalie's shoulder, Evie inquired.

She got a smile from Rosalie. "Yes, I would love that! Thank you!"

Evie enthusiastically clapped her hands. "Yay!" She grabbed a bunch of white tulle and pink materials covered in flowers and said, "Let me get started right away."

Mal rolled her eyes and said, "All right, Rosebud, let's get this over with." Taking out her spellbook, she read the spell she used on people's hair. "Beware, forswear; replace the old with cool hair."

Rosalie's hair turned from a lifeless blond to a glowing red that resembled her mother's with a simple flick of Mal's wrist. She gasped in admiration of it and combed through her hair. "Amazing, Mal. Thank you so much!"

With a slightly softer tone, Mal replied, "Yeah, you're welcome. You look exactly like your mother."

Admiring her new appearance, Rosalie laughed. With your magic, you can accomplish so much. It just needs to be challenged into the right things."

Mal looked at her thoughtfully, her gaze fading for a moment. She quickly regained her composure and gave Rosalie a gentle shoulder slap. "Well, thanks for your money."

Rosalie rose to her feet. Grinning at Evie's work, the fairy approached her desk. "You could go places. You should meet up with Greer. Her sense of style is excellent.

"Really? She hadn't told me about it. I'll text her later. And I'll whip you up something beautiful, on the house, of course."

"So," Mal began. "Who's going to be at this coronation thing? Anyone we know?"

Rosalie looked over at her. "Well, of course all the royals will be there. All of my aunts will too. The Liddells are invited. As well as the Darlings. The Grimms are as well."

"Aha," she uttered. "What about that girl? Petra? She's like, Ben's best bud, right?" Mal enquired. "Is her family coming? Will she be upfront with him?"

Rosalie let out a sigh. "Well, Petra's parents are no longer with us. She is, of course, invited. But I suppose she'll attend with Greer or Willa. She won't be upfront. Just the King and Queen, Fairy Godmother, Ben's girlfriend, Audrey, and Reese Hood."

"Reese? Does she have that green fedora and wear corsets all the time? She always carries that deadly bow, doesn't she?

Rosalie nodded. "That's her," she replied. "She's Ben's new bodyguard for the time being. Maybe she could use a date? I'm friends with her little sister, Renee. I could ask," she continued. "I'm going stag, most likely. Unless someone wants to ask me."

Through the tulle fabric, Evie cast a quick glance at her, a tiny smile spreading across her face. With a smile in return, Rosalie tucked a lock of her recently red hair behind her ear. Mal shook her head impatiently as she observed the scene.

With a sigh, Petra reviewed her math assignment. Willa had tried her best to familiarize her with the subject, and if she did not know enough, Falk would do it for her. Petra, however, was determined to find out for herself. She did not want to come across as weakling. She was simply behind on things; she was not stupid. And who could blame her? For her, everything was a little too much.

The girl was preoccupied with her work when her phone rang. She got up from her desk and went to check her phone on her bed. Willa had left a message.

Hey, Pet. I had a great time at Tiana's. I wanted to know if you might want to go to the coronation with me. Together, that is.

Petra grinned inwardly. As she read the message over and over again, her cheeks turned red. She was astounded. She believed she had embarrassed herself during their date. Perhaps, however, she was not so horrible after all. Perhaps they were just as anxious as one another.

I would be thrilled to go! With you, that is. Thank you!

She checked her Instagram account and grinned once more. She looked at a story of Greer. It showed her at the skate park with Tee. Tee encouraged Greer as she tried to maintain her balance on a skateboard but ultimately fell. Another notification appeared on Petra's screen, and she laughed. Jay was on the Tourney squad. She replied with congrats. Another text appeared on screen. Her heart briefly stopped when she heard this one.

She wasn't the last.

At night, Tee prowled the corridors of Auradon, eager to indulge his sweet tooth. At night, when most children were asleep and no one was bothering him with their voices, he enjoyed wandering the hallways. He studied the photographs that covered Auradon Prep's walls. Images of previous school graduates. Some of them were as much a peasant as his mother was in another life. He sneered and pushed one of the wall's frames straight.

He ran into fellow night owl Lonnie Li on his way to the kitchen. "Hey, Tee. Going to get some candy?"

"Lon, what else?" he asked suvaily. As she went by, he lightly patted her shoulder. "Night, girl."

As she went, she munched on a chocolate chip cookie and said, "Night."

Tee hummed to himself as he made his way down the silent hallway to the kitchen. His head ached, particularly today. As the coronation approached and his plan remained unrealized, his mother's voice was becoming more and more powerful.

He paused just in front of the kitchen door and listened to the voices of those within. He pressed himself up against the wall and listened to the VKs' chatter.

"And you're sure this will work?" Evie asked nervously.

Mal said, "Have some faith, E; this is foolproof."

Jay growled, "If you say so."

"I don't like this," Carlos interjected.

Mal let out a frustrated sigh. "Carlos, stop being such a whiny bitch. This will work. I will coerce Ben into eating these cookies tomorrow, and we will fall deeply in love long enough for me to be able to attend the coronation up front."

Tee gave a low snicker. There was no question in his mind that the newcomers were planning something. Game recognizes game. However, he never thought they would be so terrible at what they do. These were supposed to be the children of villains? Pushing off the wall, he entered the kitchen.

"Jesus, I did not realize you guys were that dumb," he grumbled, shaking his head. With a gasp, they all turned toward him. Mal raised an eyebrow, staring at him curiously. The cookie on the baking pan caught Tee's attention as she leaned against the doorframe. "That's not going to work."

Mal sneered at him. "What are you even talking about?"

"Too late for any poisoned baked goods. Ben's set for someone else."