Months passed after the coronation, and only two knew of what truly transpired during the confrontation between mother and daughter.
To protect her mother's secret, the daughter lied. She claimed she stole the wand from her mother and used it to cast her back to the Isle of the Lost. Fairy Godmother, who came out of the frozen state first, repaired the damage on the barrier, so no other villain could attempt to escape.
In reality, the mother disappeared to who knows where, leaving her daughter to pick up the mess left behind—
Which reinforced the idea of Mal needing to act more like an Auradon princess.
During the first week of students returning from spring break in mid-March, Mal couldn't have been any more stressed, especially with her appearance change. Her beautiful, chin-length purple hair was now ice-blonde waist length with purple tips. Instead of leather outfits in various shades of her favorite colors, Mal constricted herself in pale frilly dresses that made her want to scream for air—
But she had to keep up appearances if she were to be accepted in the land of heroes.
The sooner Mal is accepted, the sooner the people of Auradon will trust her. The sooner the people of Auradon trusted her, the sooner the barrier would permanently be removed. The sooner the barrier is removed—
The sooner Mal would be reunited with her daughter.
Since Mal has been in a relationship with Ben for over a year, a royal event has been in the works to induct her as 'Lady Mal' of the royal court. Mal's father warned that a royal cotillion is the beginning stages of becoming engaged. Although that fact should've made her feel more pressured, Mal didn't necessarily oppose the idea of marrying Ben. She could imagine a future with him—
After Mallory is finally free from the Isle.
Initially, as head of the planning committee, Audrey was supposed to work out the details of the cotillion with Mal. However, the three fairies 'suddenly' gifted the princess a two-week spa vacation, conveniently ending the day after the royal event. Instead, Jane replaced the princess on helping Mal with the preparations. Although, the 'help' seemed more like unintentional harassment with the nonstop interrogations. Despite all the tiresome arrangements, Mal was still required to attend all her daily classes with no exceptions.
As of now, the Core Four were walking to class together while Mal kept her head down to avoid unnecessary attention and possibly Jane. Around her, Evie spoke with Jay about the day's dress deliveries, fabric pickup, and the payment he'd receive, which would go toward a certain . . . gift he was working to get for Aziz and his family. Meanwhile, Carlos walked Dude on his leash, keeping his eyes open for someone he wanted to take to the dance.
"Have you heard from Aziz?" Carlos wondered when the two spoke about him.
"Just a minute," Jay informed miserably. "Aziz thinks Rajah will pass any day now. He's afraid that if he leaves Agrabah, Rajah will be gone."
"So . . ." Evie began cautiously, "will he miss cotillion?"
"He's not sure," Jay admitted, his mood becoming gloomier as the conversation progressed. "Aziz considered grabbing his missed schoolwork, going to Cotillion, and then heading back to Agrabah the morning after. He said he'll return to Auradon Prep in a couple weeks.
Mal raised her head sadly, only because she heard something different. "Jay . . ." Mal sighed softly. "That's not what Aziz told Ben. He's—"
"Mal!"
Snapping to attention, Mal plastered a fake smile as Jane magically appeared, which meant more questions about—
"Hey, Jane," Carlos greeted nervously, his confidence slipping. "I was wondering . . . if you . . . uh . . . liked the carrot cake last night?"
"I had the pumpkin pie," Jane corrected sweetly, though confused.
"Oh. Cool." Carlos stared at her, unsure of how to impress her. "Um . . . I'm gonna go."
Before more could be said, Carlos scurried off while Evie chased after to cheer him up. Just as Jane started her usual interrogations, Ben appeared behind the remaining Core Four members.
"Hi, Mal," Ben greeted, giving his beloved a soft kiss on her forehead, the only kind of affection he could provide without her tensing up. Afterwards, the king turned his attention to his best friend's boyfriend. "Jay, I have the list for you in my office," he informed. "After Cotillion, you may have just enough money for one."
"One . . . what?" Mal wondered curiously.
"A gift for Aziz," Jay slightly fibbed with a careless shrug. "It's nothing big."
"I beg to differ," Ben argued good-naturedly. "Aziz will want to marry you sooner than he already does."
Obviously, Mal's and Jay's jaws dropped at the . . . interesting revelation. Eyes growing wide, Jay rhetorically wondered, "He wants to what—?"
"Quick moment!" Jane interrupted, pulling Ben aside before he could spoil more.
"Alright, Mal's gift is almost finished," Jane informed Ben once they were far enough away.
"Make sure her eyes are green," Ben requested, wanting to make sure his gift for Mal was perfect. "And did you talk to your mother about—"
"Ben?" Mal called to get the king's attention. "Are you coming with us?"
"I'll catch up," Ben promised, returning his attention to Jane once the best-friend couple left without him.
"I did," Jane answered, sighing slightly dramatically. "Mom insists travel should take place during school vacation only. The perfect time for a visit would've been during spring break. Mom only made an exception for Aziz because of his family dilemma. Speaking of, has Aziz told Jay—?"
"Not yet," Ben claimed. "He's waiting until cotillion, but he's planning something to make up for it."
"Well, which green should be used for Mal's gift?" Jane wondered as she showed a few rectangular pieces, all shades of green nearly identical.
"Um . . ." Ben looked through the shards, picking the darkest green. "This one." He stared through it dreamingly, imagining that he was gazing into his beloved's eyes.
Although he wished for two gifts, this one will have to do.
Hours later, at the end of the school day, Mal met Jay at the front gardens to discuss their day's ups and downs.
Ever since the first time, the best friends have used the place to vent about anything and everything. The garden was the Auradon version of their Isle hideout, where they could tell their secrets without fear. More times than not, the 'therapy sessions' typically revolved around Mallory.
But not today.
"So, here's my debacle," Jay began the semi-lengthy explanation as he paced back and forth. "Ben says my boyfriend of one year wants to marry me. During ROAR practice, Lonnie wiped the floor with everyone, even me, to an extent. After Chad insisted she can't be on the team because she's a woman—"
"Which is ridiculous and fucking sexist," Mal commented offhandedly, kicking her legs as she sat on the fountain's edge.
"Lonnie argued about not having enough players since Ben is busy with king duties and Aziz isn't returning this school year. She claims Aziz is staying in Agrabah as a precaution for Jasmine's reaction to Rajah's passing. Aziz will help rule the kingdom until Jasmine is up to doing it herself."
"One year of dating, and you're already talking informally about his parents. That's a good sign," Mal teased to lighten the mood. "Hell, I've known Ben's parents for just as long, yet they refuse to look or acknowledge me unless Ben comments about it."
Despite the attempts to change the subject, Jay gave her a pointed look. "What does Ben know about the Aziz situation?"
"It's exactly like what Lonnie said," Mal admitted with a soft sigh. "Sultana Jasmine has only left Rajah's side once while he's been resting, and that was to attend Hakim's—the royal guard—funeral. Even when Ben and I had dinner with them weeks ago, it took place in the courtyard so Sultana Jasmine could monitor Rajah's conditions. Aziz told Ben his mother started sleeping outside with Rajah last week because she knows he will leave soon."
"I feel awful that nothing can be done to help him, but he's so old now." Jay sighed, feeling himself become emotional about Rajah. "I'm afraid Aziz is thinking too hastily and emotionally because of it. Let's say Aziz does propose when he's back for Cotillion. He'll go back to Agrabah a few hours later—"
"Leaving you more alone and missing him worse than before," Mal assumed gently. "And you're afraid . . ."
"He will realize that he . . . made a mistake," Jay confessed glumly. "That he acted too brashly and should have waited before taking the next step. I'm afraid . . . he'll realize that we aren't meant for each other and decide to end our relationship."
"You're being ridiculous!" Mal scolded sternly. "Aziz loves you more than anything in the world. He knows you are his true love, and that is why he wants to marry you. He won't call it quits because you two are apart for so long. If anything, it will make him want to be with you more."
"But—"
"But nothing!" Mal declared, standing from her seat on the fountain to prove a point. "You love Aziz. Aziz loves you. There's nothing else to discuss besides the fact that you two are meant for each other. Stop feeling scared and be excited that he wants to take the next step so soon."
"Alright, alright. I guess you're right." Sitting on the fountain's edge, Jay smiled expectantly despite his inner turmoil. "Now it's your turn. How are you feeling about your relationship with Ben?"
"Honestly, I've never felt safer with someone before," Mal confessed, a confident smile growing. "Ben always checks that I am comfortable with everything we do together. He noticed I was becoming overwhelmed with planning Cotillion, so he asked if I wanted to postpone it to give myself a break. I think . . . I'm ready to trust him."
Jay straight up, mouth agape in anticipation. "Does that mean you're going to tell him everything?"
"Not all at once," Mal insisted before the wrong assumption could be made. "I don't want to spoil Cotillion by springing Mallory on him. A day or so after the cotillion, I will tell him about the . . . incident. He'll be more cautious about how he interacts with me for a while. Once he's backed off a bit, I will tell him about Lory."
"What's with the sudden change?" Jay wondered curiously. "When did you have your epiphany?"
"This morning, when I did my dress fitting with Evie," Mal answered, resting her hands on her hips to show her determination. "I realized the cotillion isn't a celebration for everyone in Auradon. It is a celebration about me for me. That means I needed to stop trying to fit the image of a perfect Auradon princess because I will always be an Isle princess since my father is still technically a king. When I told Evie, she was thrilled to tell me she's been working on a second dress but insists she won't show me until cotillion night."
"What about your hair?" Jay snarled openly. "I hate to say it to your face, but I never liked the blonde color on you. It was too unnatural."
"Thanks for telling me now," Mal chided teasingly. "Evie sent a letter to Lady Tremaine, asking how best to change my hair back. She's hoping to get a response back tonight, but I kind of want to go to the Isle to let Lady Tremaine do it herself. I could use it as an excuse to see Lory."
Jay hesitated but let out an exasperated breath. "I'm not supposed to say anything," he revealed slowly, yet reluctantly, "but Ben is planning a surprise for you. He needs to convince Fairy Godmother to go through with it."
"Which we both know is impossible because she's so stubborn," Mal teased, pausing to check the time on her phone. "I have to go. I have a picnic date with Ben in about thirty minutes, where I have to pretend to be an Auradon princess just a little longer."
"You know Ben doesn't give a shit about you acting like an Auradon princess," Jay insisted stubbornly. "But I'm proud of you for trusting him and wanting to tell."
Mal smiled gleefully. "I'm proud of me, too."