[4] Phoenix | Descendants 3

TWELVE: Got Your Back

"What was that for?" Helena asked.

Carlos shrugged, "You're cute when you're groggy."

But when Helena tore her eyes from Carlos, that was when she found Harry's. The pirate boy was leaning back in the bed, frozen in place with an unreadable expression on his face. Helena swallowed the small lump forming in her throat, turning her head away and silently slipping her hand out of Carlos'. The de Vil boy felt the loss of her hand and turned to her, seeing her looking at Harry that led to a strange feeling bubbling within him.

"We need to find Audrey and Ben. That's the only thing that matters right now," stated Mal.

"And Fairy Godmother's wand," added Evie. "The magic from that thing could help us against the Dragon's Eye."

The group, albeit a little reluctantly, left the room and went on to explore the castle.  But as the group ventured through the large building, they soon reached an unsurprising conclusion. The VKs were at a loss, they had no way of knowing where Audrey or Ben were. And if they weren't in the castle, they could be anywhere in Auradon or even beyond its borders.

"Well, this is a bust," said an annoyed Uma, causing the group to stop.

"We need to keep looking for Ben and Audrey," argued Mal.

"This castle and this kingdom are pretty big, Dragon Breath. They could be anywhere. What we need is-"

"Dude!" exclaims Carlos, running over to his furry friend to pick the animal up in his arms. The small dog was eating food dropped by one of the now sleeping courtiers. "Where have you been, buddy? Do you know what happened here?"

The dog barked in reply, Carlos nodding his head understandingly. "Audrey showed up, put everyone to sleep, and then disappeared again."

Harry watched the de Vil boy with his pet skeptically, leaning over Helena's shoulder to ask, "The dog still doesn't talk, does he?"

"No, the spell wore off ages ago, but he now has the comprehension skills of an average human," replied the daughter of Hades.

"So, how is the Pup understanding him?"

"His mom's a dog whisperer ... among other things."

"Dude says that Audrey was with Ben when she was here," stated Carlos, Mal walking over to the two. The daughter of Maleficent looked from Dude to Carlos, hoping that they would be provided with some more information. "Well, Dude says that he doesn't know if Ben is still here in the castle but if he is, Dude can find him."

"I'll take it," stated Mal firmly, Carlos gently placing Dude on the ground.

But before the dog began his search, he ran over to Helena. The daughter of Helena smiled as he picked the dog up in her arms, laughing as he tried to lick as much of her face as possible. Carlos' heart melted at the sight, Jay, Evie, and Mal all sharing a look with each other upon noticing the de Vil boy's expression.

"Such a good boy," Helena said through her laughs before finally placing the dog on the ground. "Come on, we need some help."

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"Ben!" Mal calls out to her fiancée. The group continued exploring the castle, Dude leading the way as they searched for any sign of Ben. The fact was that the king could be asleep, taken hostage, or worse, but they didn't want to think about that right now for Mal's sake.

Dude stopped once he reached the end of the hallway, barking at the group of people in front of him. The VKs turned to the son of Cruella de Vil, who told them all, "Dude says that he's got Ben's scent, which is apparently very pungent cologne that's easy to track."