How the hell did Jay not realize sooner?

How could they keep it secret so easily?

The day Jay learned the truth, he questioned everything ever told or known from past interactions. After all, he only had two goals that day: test the video connection and introductions. Jay took every precaution to ensure everything would go smoothly for future video calls. He had the gift approved by Fairy Godmother—who sent a tablet on his behalf—and moved in with his fiancé so there would be better privacy.

Perhaps, that's when Jay should have suspected something.

A day before the introductions, Jay had been in fiancé's room when mentioned the idea of Aziz and Carlos swapping rooms, using the guise of wanting to spend more time with Aziz. Ben—on his bed, sketching on his tablet—offered a better idea. The king suggested himself staying at his family's castle while Jay moved into the current dorm room. Ben reasoned it would be less of a hassle, since he had hardly anything and Jay maybe having as much. The king reminded Carlos would finally have his own room and that the 'royal' room was soundproof—unlike the others—so they could have as much 'fun' as they wanted without being disturbed for being too loud.

Within hours, the move had been mostly complete when Fairy Godmother informed about the 'package' being delivered. As soon as the headmistress left, Jay set up a purple-cased tablet on the desk. Curious, Aziz joined his fiancé, though unable to mask his surprise when a blue-haired man and a young purple-haired girl appeared on the screen.

"Jayjay!" the toddler squealed happily. "Hi, Uncle Jayjay!"

"Aziz," Jay began, his heart pounding heavily, "this is Mal's father, Hades, and her daughter—my niece—Mallory."

Aziz's expression was hard to read. Although obviously shocked, there was something more hiding in his eyes. Is he turning pale? "Mal's daughter," he repeated slowly. "What . . . does that mean?"

"The abuse she mentioned during cotillion resulted in Mallory," Jay explained in the best way he could without his temper flaring at the memory. "Lory, this is my fiancé, Aziz."

Tilting her head curiously, Mallory tried pronouncing the name. "A. . . iz. . . Iz . . . Izzy!" she declared. "Hi, Uncle Izzy!"

The men couldn't help chuckling at her innocents. With being nearly three, it was probably the best that she could say it. Besides, Aziz found himself adoring the new name given to him.

"Hello, Mallory," he greeted, smiling warmly at the toddler. "It's nice to meet you."

"So now that we've been introduced," Hades began, while trying to keep his energetic granddaughter still on his lap, "would you mind explaining what all of this is about?"

"Right, so Auradon Prep has this tradition where seniors do a gift exchange in front of the class, without knowing who will be giving them a gift," Jay explained quickly. "When I found out it was happening on Mal and Lory's birthday, I convinced Fairy Godmother to let me have Mal and told her my plan of Mal being able to video chat you whenever she wanted. Before you ask, I mentioned nothing about Lory. I also wanted to give Mal a private place to contact you, so I moved in with my fiancé and convinced Mal to let me tell him about Lory. She has no idea about any of this, so please don't say anything in your letters."

Hades raised an amused brow. "Are you going to give her a tablet in front of everyone? That could lead to Mallory being exposed."

"I have another idea in mind," Jay insisted knowingly. "I'm making a locket in the shape of her two-dragon design, but I need photos for it. Would you mind sending me a couple you think she'd like? I'll make a copy and send back the originals when I'm finished."

"Seems like you planned everything well," Hades noted with slight praise. "I'll send the photos in a couple—"

CREAK!

"Hey, guys." Ben addressed inquisitively, slipping through the door. "Have you seen my—"

After the engaged couple whipped their heads to the bedroom door, everything and everyone froze. Glancing at the couple and the tablet sat before them, the king muttered a curse, trying to retreat—

But it was too late.

Gasping dramatically, Mallory shouted, "Hi, Daddy!"

Sighing softly, Ben closed the door, securing it before facing the group. "This is why you need to lock the door," the king joked as he made his way over. Crouching next to the engaged couple, Ben greeted lovingly, "Hello, Lory. How are you?"

"Happy!" Mallory answered sweetly. "I see you, Uncle Jayjay, and Uncle Izzy!"

"Hold up," Jay insisted, looking back and forth from the screen to the king. "You know about Lory? How? Did Mal tell you?"

"It's . . . complicated, and a long story," Ben claimed softly, though pausing to grab a nearby chair, so he wouldn't be uncomfortable. "Back during eighth grade year, on Halloween, I had a dream about a purple-haired teen being . . . abused at a party. I continuously had dreams about her, until a year later, when I dreamed about me and her watching a little girl identical to her run across a bridge, connecting the Isle and Auradon, to greet us. That's when I started my proclamation to allow the VKs to attend Auradon Prep. During that time, I discovered that purple-haired teen was Mal and, after eavesdropping on some of your conversations, that she had been . . . abused, and that she had Lory."

"Ben told me from the start about his dreams," Aziz added, almost sounding guilty, "so I've known about Mallory for a while."

"Why didn't you guys say anything?" Jay interrogated, feeling both anger and disappointment rush through him. "You should've said something when we came to Auradon! Lory could've been here by now!"

"You know why we couldn't," Ben insisted calmly, his own temper rising. However, he would keep it in check, since his little girl was watching the exchange. "You guys were plotting to steal the wand and worried Mallory could be used as punishment. I needed to earn Mal's trust, prove that I am not like Harry, and show how much I truly love her."

Jay's eyes widened in shock. "You knew it was Harry while we were on the Isle!" he declared. "That's why you nearly killed him!"

"He's a list of things I won't say in front of my princess," Ben stated, gripping the desk to calm the Beast. "I love Mal, and I love Mallory."

"Love you too, Daddy!" Mallory shouted excitedly, though she began to pout. "Cerbie ripped."

Ben snarled his nose in confusion. "How? You've only had him a few weeks."

"Lory tried to grab him through the cracks of her crib," Hades explained with an exasperated sigh. "There's a tear on the neck of the middle head. She won't let me fix it."

"Daddy fix Cerbie!" Mallory declared stubbornly. "Daddy, when you see me again?"

This time, Aziz stared at his best friend with a raised eyebrow. "You didn't tell me you've visited her before."

"It was the morning of your family receiving Hakim," Ben answered honestly. "My 'last-minute' meeting was actually me asking Hades, and Mallory, for their blessing to marry Mal."

"Which we agreed, but he must wait until the end of senior year to propose," Hades added to keep the atmosphere calm. "Jay, I know what you want to do, but you need to keep this revelation a secret from Mali. She tries to act strong, but she is still traumatized. Ben is exactly who she needs to help her get through it. Once he does, I know she will tell him about Lory."

Jay stayed silent, pondering everything that he now knew. "One week from the proposal," he announced to the mortal king. "If Mal doesn't tell you about Mallory by then, I will tell her that you know."