The next day, Mal was bitterly grabbing books from her locker when Jay walke— . . . limped over to her.

"You alright?" Jay wondered, leaning against a locker for support. "We didn't get the chance to talk after the game. You looked pissed."

"What do you expect?" Mal snapped harshly, keeping her tone quiet. "While the daughter of Aurora let herself be used for a man's pleasure, me—the daughter of Maleficent—was raped by a man that abused her. While Audrey doesn't give a shit about the consequences, I feared them, yet I had the baby. Don't get me wrong: I love Mallory more than anything. I wouldn't trade her for anything. She is my heart. I believe it's cruel of the Fates to give us such opposite stories."

"I know it's no conciliation, but I'm truly sorry," Jay apologized as he rested his head. "I promise your life will get better. Maybe now that Ben—"

"Don't get me started on him," Mal complained grumpily. "He asked me on a date."

"You said yes?"

"Had to," she insisted stubbornly. "Even with the love potion, I can't risk him getting suspicious by denying it."

Before more could be said, Aziz rounded the corner with an unusual perkiness. The Auradon thief greeted his Lost Boy with a loving kiss, which made the fairy curious.

"Alright," Mal began with a knowing smirk. "Jay, you are walking funny, and Aziz is happier than usual. Either you pulled a muscle yesterday, or Aziz made you bottom last night."

"And this morning," Aziz confirmed, wrapping an arm around his lover's waist. "I made a bet with Jay before the game. If he didn't score a goal, he would have to bottom. Ben, an amazing best friend, risked his parents scolding him at their castle last night so I could have the room."

"It was great," Jay admitted before adding, "but I still prefer being top."

"Then don't lose any more bets," Aziz teased, getting a kiss from his boyfriend and a chuckle from his boyfriend's best friend.

The moment had to be ruined when a jerk wanted to cause trouble. "Hey, freak show!" shouted Chad Charming as he stormed toward the trio. "I know you were responsible for yesterday!"

"Ignore him," Jay instructed, reassuringly gripping his beloved's hand. "He's just begging for a fight."

"You're going to listen to the Isle faggot over me?" Chad taunted.

Inhaling a deep, angered breath, Aziz turned to see the other prince too close in his personal space. "Leave my boyfriend out of this," the Agrabah prince warned. "Your spat is with me, even though I did nothing."

Chad scoffed at the denial. "Yeah, right. You need to man up to what you did. Oh, wait! You can't because you are a tapette!"

"Albi," Jay pleaded, tugging Aziz's hand. "My heart. I promise if you walk away, you will be rewarded. Just. Walk. Away."

Locking eyes with his beloved, Aziz exhaled a breath of air as he allowed his boyfriend to drag him off. Chad didn't like his favorite victim ignoring him, especially since he needed answers for the 'stunt' yesterday. So, Prince Charming Jr. did the first thing that came to mind.

Jerking Aziz by the arm, Chad punched him across the face. Everyone went still, especially the shocked teenagers from the Isle of the Lost. After getting over the shock of being hit, Aziz attacked the spoiled prince, leaving the 'VKs' frozen at the spontaneous fight.

Luckily, Prince Ben came to the rescue, usually the only one to break up their fight. However, this time, when Ben tried to pull them apart, he was shoved by Chad—

Right into the glass railing separating the upper locker walkway from the lower picnic area.

Shards went everywhere as the crown prince crashed into the clear paneling, somehow not falling over the edge. The crashing noise stopped the fighting princes, though one was concerned about something.

"Ben," Aziz called cautiously as he went to his friend. "You alright? Temper in check?"

"Fine," Ben spat through gritted teeth. Multiple cuts were on his exposed skin, and the shards tore his pristine outfit.

Once Aziz helped him stand, Ben steadied a glare at the scared Chad Charming. "What were you thinking?"

"Aziz caused that scene yesterday!" Chad accused, pointing a finger at the Auradon thief. "He sent those fake messages to everyone—"

"Chad, I did that!" Ben shouted over him. "They weren't fake because I saw them! Last year, when we were studying, you left one of your phones unlocked on the table while in the restroom. Audrey had sent you a picture while you were gone. I saw all of your sexts. I borrowed your phone and leaked the messages. You are the one that needs to man up! Speaking of, have fun talking yourself out of a punishment for assaulting a classmate."

Choosing to ignore the prince, Ben diverted all his attention to the speechless fairy, who witnessed the debacle. "Are you okay?" Ben questioned as he examined her. "No shards get on you?"

"I'm fine," Mal reassured softly. "Not a scratch on me."

"After I talk to Fairy Godmother about this, I'm going to ask her to let us out of classes early," Ben informed with a small smile. "Meet you at your dorm room in two hours for our date?"

Nodding, the fairy searched for a blue-haired fashionista for help while the prince left for the headmistress.

After nearly an hour with her fashion-forward friend, Mal couldn't believe how beautiful she looked in the purple dress and black leather jacket. Mal lost all care for her appearance because all her attention was given to Mallory. She was always put first before Mal's needs.

Now, Mal had high hopes that her daughter would grow up to be more beautiful than she could ever imagine.

That thought made Mal cheerful about her date with Ben, though she reminded herself that the prince was spelled. Either way, Ben was still the perfect gentleman. He always checked that she was comfortable with everything they did. Her favorite part had to be the drive through the countryside. Despite riding a vehicle she'd never been on, Mal felt safe and at ease.

After crossing a suspension bridge hanging above a rushing stream—where they confessed their ridiculous middle names given to them by their parents—Ben's happy demeanor faltered slightly.

"I want to keep our final destination a surprise," Ben commented slowly yet calmly. "I need you to close your eyes so it can stay secret. If you are uncomfortable with me guiding you blindly, it won't be a problem. I thought it would make our first date a little more special."

Smiling softly at the kind gesture, Mal outstretched her hand, showing her trust. "Lead the way."

Once the prince gently took her hand, the fairy closed her eyes, silently praying she made the right decision.

Though her eyes were closed, Mal could still sense how close Ben was. He maintained a respectful distance and never tightened the grip on her hand. Ben's hold was light, soft, and comforting. When helping her cross any obstacles, he never touched any other part of her body, only her delicate hands.

After a few minutes, the prince finally stopped them. "You ready?" Ben wondered, rubbing soothing circles on the fairy's hand, the same trick her friend does to comfort her. When Mal timidly nodded, he whispered, "Open."

Slowly opening her eyes, Mal gasped at the beautiful Enchanted Lake. She gazed upon the jade-colored waters of the magical lake and the stone platform with ancient pillars wrapped in purple ivy flowers.

Carefully walking on the platform, the couple sat on a blue picnic blanket, where a lavish array of food awaited them. Mal took a jelly doughnut and cautiously bit into the foreign food. Liking the filling inside, she scarfed down the rest, getting powdered sugar on the edge of her lips.

"So?" Ben smiled at her pure reaction. "What do you think?"

"Mmm . . . This is really good." She licked the sugar off her fingers as she spoke. "I never had anything like this. The closest thing to it that I can think of is hushpuppies. Those were my favorites growing up, especially since my old friend's mother owned a restaurant. I used to eat them every day during the summer. When I was sick a couple of years ago, Jay would get me hushpuppies because it was the only thing I would eat."

Ben chuckled at the innocent storytelling of her childhood. "Well, you've got . . ." He trailed off as he slowly moved forward to brush the powdered sugar from her lips, still being a respectful gentleman.

Mal laughed as she grabbed a napkin to get rid of the rest. "Can't take me anywhere, I guess."

Smiling softly at the fairy finally acting carefree, the prince thought it was time to take a risk. "You know, I don't know much about you, and you don't know much about me," Ben commented, leaning forward expectantly. "How about I tell you two things about me, and you tell me one thing about you?"

"Hmmm," Mal pretended to ponder on the question, though she wondered where the prince was going with this. "Alright . . . but no guarantees that mine will be anything too personal."

Chuckling at the comment, Ben began, "As I'm sure you know, my father was turned into a beast and turned human again when he learned to love. What you—and everyone in the world—don't know is that I turn into a beast when my temper goes unchecked. Depending on how angry I am, my hands turn into claws, fangs form in my mouth, and my eyes become slit like an animal."

Mal's jaw dropped at the revelation. "No one knows this?"

"Aziz does," Ben corrected cautiously. "That's why he asked me if my temper was in check earlier today. He discovered it the same day that I did. It was a three-day weekend during the eighth-grade year, just a few weeks after everyone found out Aziz was gay. I had Aziz spend the night at my castle since he didn't have many friends after that 'fiasco'.

"My father doesn't like Aziz because—although he is fine with homosexuals—he doesn't believe a prince should be gay. We got into a heated argument that ended when my father called Aziz tapette. Not wanting to hear anymore, I stormed into my room with Aziz following. Soon after, as Aziz refers to, the Beast came out and destroyed the bedroom. Since then, I learned to keep my temper in check. Nothing like the first incident has happened again. Occasionally, my hands will turn to claws, but I clench my fist until they return to normal."

The fairy tilted her head curiously at hearing a word. "What does tapette mean?" Mal wondered. "I've heard Chad say it, and now you say your father uses it too."

"It's a French insult toward gays," Ben answered reluctantly. "It's to say they are 'unmanly'. I despise that word and vowed to never call anyone that."

Mal smiled softly. "Don't you just love having a gay best friend?" she teased good-naturedly. "They make your life a thousand times better and do everything they can to help you."

A smile appearing on his handsome lips, Ben questioned, "So? What's your—"

"Nu-uh!" Mal interrupted, her smile growing. "You still owe me one more piece of personal information."

Trying to suppress his smirk at thinking about the fairy's reaction, Ben informed, "Well, the love spell that you tried to put on me yesterday didn't work."

Of course, Mal's jaw dropped at the announcement. "What?"

"You can't put a love spell on someone who's already in love," Ben explained like it was simple knowledge. "I'm surprised your mother's spell book didn't tell you that."

"Hold on a sec," Mal insisted roughly. "How did you know about the spell?"

"Jay told Aziz after I told them how I wanted to ask you out at the Tourney game," Ben admitted. "Aziz told me about an hour before you gave me the magic cookie. I didn't know what you were planning, so I went along."

Mal's heart faltered at the information. "So you've been faking it," she assumed sadly.

"No!" Ben denied quickly. "I haven't been faking anything. The love spell didn't work because I already loved you. I want a real relationship with you, not one created because of a spell."

The fairy hesitated at the confession. "Ben . . ." Mal began slowly. "Something . . . happened while I was on the island. That something is the reason why I don't like people in my personal space, why I can't have anyone touch me, and why I fear being in a relationship. I'm afraid that I'm going to be hurt . . . that I will be abused again."

"I'm not like that," Ben argued stubbornly. "I will never hurt you. Can you at least give me—give us a chance?"

Once again, Mal hesitated at the idea, after everything she'd been through . . . "Alright," she relented, "but I'd like some rules."

"Of course," Ben agreed with a polite nod. "Whatever you need to make you feel comfortable."

"First, my neck is off limits," Mal listed off automatically. "Front, side, back, it doesn't matter. If or when I let you kiss me, don't grab my neck. If I let you touch me in any way, don't touch my neck. I cut my hair for a couple of reasons. The abuse was one of them."

The prince gritted his teeth, but so he could control his temper. "Okay," he agreed. "Next rule?"

"Wait until I initiate contact before you touch me," Mal continued. "If I hold your hand or hug you, then you have permission to hug me or whatever first. Just make sure I know that you're going to do it. Until I trust you more, don't surprise me with physical affection."

"I will be fine with that," Ben reassured calmly. "Anything else?"

"Please be patient with me," Mal pleaded timidly. "It's going to take time before I open up to this . . . and to you. I've told you more about what happened than I did Evie and Carlos. Hell, they don't know something happened."

"Take all the time you need," Ben insisted. "But may I make one request? Or, have permission to do something?"

Curious by the question, Mal granted the prince permission. Leaning forward, Ben softly kissed the fairy's forehead, making her feel warm and fuzzy. "I would like to do that whenever I feel you need it," Ben voiced with a small smile. "So, you will remember that I love you, and I will always protect you."

Unable to find her voice, Mal nodded in confirmation—

As the request reminded her of her last moments with her daughter.