Cotillion could best be described as a fairy tale by those who attended.

The party took place on a white yacht docked in the marina. Strings of light hung over the deck to brighten up the dance floor in the dark night. With those lights and the moon shining above them, everything and everyone looked incredible.

After fumbling his words for three days, Carlos finally asked Jane to be his date for the event. The two were together on the dance floor with Evie and Doug when Jay and Lonnie joined them, leaving…

"Where's Aziz?" Evie wondered, gazed behind the fiancé expectantly.

Jay sighed in dismay. "His parents called," he informed, sounding worried. "Aziz was happy when he told them I said 'yes' to his proposal. In a split second, his smile flipped into a frown. He walked off to talk in private, but that was half an hour ago. I'm scared it's about Ra—"

"Hey," interrupted a sullen person.

Flinching, the six turned to see a saddened Aziz. It was obvious whatever his parents told him wasn't good. His face was unusually pale, and eyes so puffy that the others believed he was trying to hold in his negative emotions.

"Hey," Jay cautiously greeted. "You alright?"

Intaking a shaky breath, Aziz glumly shook his head in denial. "I-I said my last words," he revealed, failing to choke back a sob. "Rajah's gone."

"Oh, Albi," Jay cooed solemnly, stepping forward to console him. "I'm so sorr—"

Aziz stepped back, purposefully moving out of reach. "Jay, you know I love you," he insisted with a shaky breath. "But I-I . . . I need to tell Ben, and then I'm going to my room. Has anyone seen him?"

"Not since we got back," Carlos answered, turning to his new girlfriend. "Jane?"

"Not since this afternoon," Jane denied, recalling the conversation. "It was cut short because he was in the middle of something important with his parents."

"I'll ask his mother—"

Trumpets blared fanfare, interrupting the Arabian prince. All eyes turned toward Lumiere, who stood at the top of the stairs. "The future Lady Mal!" Lumiere announced, gesturing grandly toward the staircase.

In the next moment, Mal appeared with a happy smile. Her long purple hair cascaded down her back with a gold crown—engraved with the dragon heart—resting atop her head. The fairy wore a beautiful purple dress with rich layers of fabric that swept pass her feet and an enormous purple cape that trailed behind her.

Mal smiled brightly as the crowd below cheered. Though, her smile faltered when she noticed a particular person nowhere in sight. However, she didn't want her hesitation to be noticed by the others. Careful not to trip over her dress, Mal slowly descended the stairs, where Queen Belle and King Beast awaited her at the bottom.

"Hi," Mal greeted somewhat nervously.

"Ben is on his way," King Beast promised rigidly, yet not unkindly. "You look . . . great."

"And so beautiful," Queen Belle complimented with a small smile. "Ben made the right choice choosing you. I hope you can forgive me and my husband for how we treated you before."

Despite such a kind apology, Mal raised a suspicious eyebrow. "He told you something, didn't he?" she assumed naturally. "What was it?"

The married couple shared a look, wondering who would be the one to tell the news. After a few moments, Queen Belle sighed reluctantly. "I'm so sorry, Dear," she apologized sincerely, yet quietly. "There's a reason why Queen Leah didn't show tonight and not for what the letter said. Ben told us about your mother being Stefan's victim. After my husband . . . talked, for a while, Stefan admitted to abusing your mother. He's been taken into custody while the detectives investigate his and his family's estates for evidence of his crimes. His family must stay at their castle until they are cleared."

Eyes wide with fear, Mal shook her head in horror. "I shouldn't have sai—"

"Excuse me," Aziz interrupted, trying to politely intervene in the conversation. "May I steal Lady Mal for a few moments?"

"Of course, but first I want to apologize," King Beast announced, standing straighter to show his seriousness. "I was ignorant, discourteous, and disrespectful. That was no way for a king like me to act toward you, a prince from another kingdom. I hope you can forgive me for my past interactions with you, and I promise, I will never behave like that again."

Completely taken back by his words, for the king has always hated him, Aziz raised a suspicious, yet cautious brow. "Where is this coming from?" he wondered curiously. "Just the other day—"

"During my 'talk' with Stefan, he made crude comments . . . about what he would do if he was ever alone with you," King Beast quietly revealed, much to the horror of the teens. "I lost my temper and, after I let him breathe again, he confessed to having taken advantage of others, including Maleficent. I hope you both can forgive me for my rudeness and for misjudging you."

"We . . . will come back to this later," Aziz decided stiffly. "Excuse us."

Lightly pulling the fairy away and onto the main floor of the deck, the Auradon thief questioned, "Have you heard from Ben? I need to tell him something."

"No, but his parents said he was on his way," Mal informed, tilting her head curiously at the unfamiliar dullness in his eyes. "What's . . ."

Without needing to say more, the fairy understood the reason behind the young prince's gloominess. Wrapping her arms around his neck, Mal gave him her best comforting embrace to help with his sorrows. Aziz buried his face into her shoulder, trying to hide his grief from the world. The last thing he wanted was for his fiancé to see him so weak. That's why he needed to—

"King Benjamin!" Lumiere announced as the fanfare started once more, forcing the teens to end their moment.

Wearing a royal-blue suit with gold accents, Ben appeared at the entrance, staring vacantly at the applauding crowd. His gaze met Mal's, who smiled warmly at him. As the king descended the staircase, the fairy walked forward until they met at the bottom. Once she saw him closer, Mal snarled at the blank look on his face.

"Ben?" Mal greeted cautiously. "Are you—"

As though ignoring her, the king turned his attention to the staircase. A spotlight shined on the entrance way—

Where a young lady, dressed in a teal-and-gold mermaid dress, made her 'royal' appearance.

Smiling nervously at the astonished crowd, Uma slowly walked down the stairs careful not to trip. Standing face to face with the still stoic Ben, the sea-witch's smile grew as the king kissed her hand, which held his gold beast-head ring.

"Hi," Uma greeted softly, fidgeting with the ring. "I guess you're surprised to see me."

Mal remained silent, gazing back and forth between the two of them. After they worked so easily through the first hurdle in the relationship . . . something wasn't right. Ben would never throw away everything they had accomplished, especially without a major explanation.

"I dove through the barrier before it could close," Uma clarified for her sudden appearance. "I'm an excellent swimmer, so it wasn't hard for me to get through. After my conversation with Ben, I realized he was right, that I can be something more than a villain."

Mal raised an unconvinced brow at the explanation. "Your conversation," the fairy repeated slowly. "How could you have one when Ben was out cold nearly the entire time?"

"On the Isle," Uma corrected with a teasing smile. "We talked after I found him in his office. We have more in common than we realized; more than he has with you. He invited me to attend the cotillion, as his Lady of the Court. And now, I think it's time for our first dance of the night. Ben."

As the sea witch tugged on his arm, Ben held firm with his stiff stance. When she tried pulling a little harder, he turned his head slightly, a deep sound rumbled in his chest, reminiscent of a growl. His lips pressed firm together while most noticed a change with his eyes. Instead of normal, circular pupils in his blue-green eyes, they were now in the shapes of slits—

Like that of a beast.

An idea swirling in her mind, Mal gazed at a certain thief, plotting to confirm her suspicions. "Aziz," she spoke softly. "May I?"

With a moment's hesitation that transformed into an unsteady nod, the fairy carefully laid her hands on the king's cheeks, lightly turning his head so he would look at her. "Ben," Mal began, failing to hide her sob. "Rajah's gone."

Eyes growing wide, Ben's body quivered just enough to be noticeable. While the pupils returned to normal, a single tear escaped, trailing down his cheek and to the floor in silent sadness. And yet, Ben didn't utter a word or move an inch. It was like he was trapped under some sort . . .

Spell.

"Uma," Mal spat, diverting her attention away from her beloved. "What did you do to my king?"

"Whatever do you mean, Mali?" Uma asked innocently, batting her eyelashes like nothing was wrong. "All I did was have a pleasant conversation with Ben, who said you have never been open with him before."

"Bull shit," Mal argued defensively. "I went back to the Isle because I opened up too much and needed to get away to breathe. He's the only one from Auradon who knows about my father and how I was sexual assaulted."

All heads whipped toward the fairy, who tried not to let the looks get the best of her. Meanwhile, two of her three closest friends shared concerning looks at the revelation. The remaining friend gazed at her with surprise, but also pride for starting to come clean about her past trauma.

"You were what?" Evie twirled on her heels to glare at Jay expectantly. "You knew about it, didn't you? Were you just going to keep it secret from me and Carlos forever?"

"It happened before we met you or became friends with Carlos," Jay reasoned, giving the same bite as the Isle princess. "She only had me and it wasn't my secret to tell."

"Guys!" Mal shouted, disrupting the growing argument. "We have bigger problems than my past trauma."

Adverting her attention once more, the fairy gazed deeply into the eyes of her king. "You knew something happened during our first date by the Enchanted Lake," Mal reminded softly. "You knew that's why I couldn't say those 'three little words' to you, and yet you were still patient with me. You did everything to make me comfortable and never pushed me too far. When I told you what really happened just days ago, nearly all my secrets came with it. You stopped me before my darkest secret could be revealed. I would have told you too, because I trust you wouldn't react negatively. Most importantly, I love you."

The fairy paused, watching the way the king's eyes lit up at the confession. Smiling softly, Mal teased, "I told you I'd be able to say it tonight. I love you, Ben. I have always loved you."

Closing the distance between them, Mal gently kissed her beloved, vaguely hearing the audience's coos. Less than a moment passed before kind hands laid on her waist, preventing her from moving away. Breaking the kiss, the fairy gazed once more into her king's eyes, revealing the love and admiration for the one standing before him.

"My Mal," Ben greeted softly, carefully wrapping his arms around her petite waist. "My beautiful queen."

Smile faltering softly, Mal whispered, so no others could hear, "How did you know it was him?"

"Bruise on his wrist and limping when he walked," Ben muttered just as quietly, leaning their foreheads together to create a sense of privacy. "Grabbed my neck, which was the first thing you asked me not to do to you. I confronted him, we argued, I lost my temper, and the Beast attacked." Kissing her forehead, the king proclaimed in a normal tone, "I love you, my queen."

SPLASH!

Turns out, during the couple's lovey-dovey moment, Uma realized there was nothing she could do. A new sense of determination washed over her. Deciding on her next move, she jumped off the yacht and into the water—

Taking the gold beast-head ring with her.

"So much for a reminder," Ben grumbled bitterly.

"I don't need a reminder anymore," Mal insisted, "because I truly love and trust you."

Eyes gleaming with pride, Ben gazed up at the loyal servant, who still stood by the entrance. "Lumiere," he acknowledged calmly, "would you do the honors, please?"

"And now, for the unveiling of King Ben's masterpiece," Lumiere announced grandly, "designed especially for his future queen."

Signaling a guard across the deck, fanfare began to play when a leather cord was pulled. A royal-blue curtain fell, revealing a beautiful stained-glass panel that must have taken weeks to complete. With a sunset backdrop, Ben was knelt on one knee in his royal-blue suit with Mal's hand in his. In the stained-glass depiction, Mal wore the same purple dress, gold crown, and cape that the real Mal currently wore. It was such a gorgeous scene that no one could believe their eyes. Everyone applauded the masterpiece—

While someone patted the king's shoulder.

Turning slightly, Ben's happy expression slipped away, as his best friend couldn't hide his sorrow. "Aziz—"

"I hope you have fun tonight," Aziz interrupted purposely, flashing a brave smile that didn't match the dullness in his eyes. "I'm going to our room, pack a few extra things before I turn in for the night. I'll leave for Agrabah in the morning. Will you make sure my fiancé enjoys himself for a bit before he comes running after me?"

Chuckling softly, Ben promised, "I'll see what I can do." Without another word, the king embraced his precious friend in a comforting hug, mumbling, "I'm so sorry."