Freddy and Audrey made their way back to Evie's castle, on the hunt to grab a certain boy with blue hair and a loyalty to Mal. While Freddy might not have known about Mal's connection to Lord Hades considering how much of a secret she kept it while on the Isle, Audrey had been quick to fill him in after their dalliance.
While they weren't one hundred percent sure the brat would be there, it was the best hunch they had. After all, Mal had been quite vocal about her loathing of Olympus—there was no way she'd send her brother there.
"Oh look, she's locked us out," Audrey said as they saw the castle's blinds shut and all the doors almost bolted to prevent someone from entering. "How cute."
"She always was the dumbest girl on the Isle," Freddy rolled his eyes. "Then again, what do you expect from someone who's main goal was to find a Prince to marry rather than try to cleanse the world of sinners?"
He may not have known Evie personally but everyone on the Isle knew about the Evil Queen's directive to her daughter. It was hard to ignore it when the blue haired girl would flirt with every guy who moved and seemed receptive.
Oddly enough she never flirted with Freddy but that was fine. He didn't want the attention of a witch's daughter anyway.
"Well if there's one thing I know, it's that you can't bar entry to a Queen. It's considered rude," Audrey said with a smirk. "As well, you can bolt a door and you can close the blinds but if I got into Bennyboo's castle with all its protections, I can get into this one."
With that, Audrey and Freddy were enveloped in a cloud of pink smoke. When it faded from their view, Freddy looked around in distain as he saw the decor Evie had carefully selected for her castle.
"She calls herself a VK," he scoffed. "All this bright and cheery nonsense."
"Focus," Audrey told him, rolling her eyes at his disgust. "We're here for one thing, and it's not to critique Evie's decorating ability. Once we grab him, it won't be long before Mal's on our tail."
"Exactly," Freddy smirked. That was what they wanted after all. "Then let's go my Queen."
They began making their way through the castle, searching high and low though staying mainly on the ground floor as they wanted to do a thorough search but came up empty. Audrey scowled as she looked back at Freddy.
"Where is he?"
"You think I know where the heretic's son is?" Freddy scoffed. "This was where we saw Mal last time and if Mal truly is the false God's daughter as you claim, the little brat would be glued to her side."
Audrey opened her mouth but a cloud of blue smoke cut off what it was she was going to say.
"Don't you dare take another step!" Evie exclaimed, glaring at the two of them from the landing of the stairs. She actually looked somewhat menacing, armed with Carlos' slingshot and a small bag of smoke bombs on her hip.
Thank Gods Doug's got the kids. Hopefully he and Harriet can get them to the studio from the other stairs and to the car, Evie thought as Audrey caused the smoke to disappear with a wave of her scepter.
"Ah Evie," Freddy smirked as he saw who it was who had launched the smoke bomb. "I'm surprised you'd be using smoke bombs. Didn't Mal and Uma use them enough on you back on the Isle?"
"Meaning they're good for defending my home and my friends with! Mal and Uma would only use the best after all, and you'd know it too considering you stole their move with that stunt at Cotillion!" Evie said, a small growl to her voice. "Now, I'm not going to repeat myself Freddy. Don't you move! The guards will be here any minute."
"And by that time, we'll be gone having gotten what we came here for," Freddy smirked, having pulled out a black handled dagger and was flipping it up and down nonchalantly in his hand. "Tell me, Blueberry, do you think you can let loose another smoke bomb before I can let loose this dagger? After all, I've spent my whole life training with my daggers."
"You talk a big game Freddy but don't forget, it wasn't me who became Mal's chew toy at Cotillion!" Evie snapped, pulling out another smoke bomb and nestling it into the slingshot; drawing the string back. Before she could let the smoke bomb fly however, Freddy let loose his dagger.
His aim proved true and Evie fell backwards, the black handled dagger sticking out of her right shoulder—the same spot he had hit Mal and Mal had hit him.
"If Evie's here then her little hanger on is too," Audrey said with a smirk. "Hold on, I read something in Mal's spell book that might help us locate the dwarf. My, my, my scepter sure does come in handy."
Staring at the scepter, Audrey focused on the gem nestled into the staff. Freddy resisted the urge to tap his foot, figuring she'd need all the concentration she could get. After all, she wasn't born a witch.
"Got him," Audrey smirked. "And he hasn't left. He's up the stairs—with the brats."
"Then let's go," Freddy grinned as they made their way up the stairs; each of them taking care to tread on Evie's outfit, happily leaving muddy shoe prints in their wake. Evie, who wasn't as used to the pain of a dagger nestled in her shoulder, could only watch and grit her teeth.
Get out of there Doug, she thought, reaching up with her left hand to grab the railing. If Doug , Harriet, and the kids got out of there, she could call Mal. Or better yet, she could call the guards and they could get Audrey and...
"Hey! What are you doing? Let go of her!"
"As much as I hate to coin a phrase from Uma of all people, nighty night dwarf boy," she heard Freddy chuckle and a muffled thunk could be heard from her spot on the landing. Just as Evie finished pulling herself up to go check, a young girl's scream could be heard.
Oh Gods...Evie thought, her blood running cold at the sound. Which girl...?
"Let me go Harriet! I'm going to kick Freddy's arse from here back to the Isle!" Evie heard CJ exclaim and couldn't help but sigh in relief. Harriet was holding back CJ which meant CJ was safe.
But that still left Celia...or Dizzy!
Gritting her teeth as the movement jostled the dagger, Evie raced over to the room where the younger VKs, Doug, and Harriet were bunkered down. She didn't know what good she'd do, especially injured, but now she had a dagger she could gladly give back to Freddy.
Who was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Audrey. Great.
"Is everyone okay?" Evie asked as Dizzy rushed over to her.
"We're fine," Harriet nodded. "Well, all of us but your boyfriend over there. He tried to punch Freddy which got him knocked out."
"I thought you were the fighter?" Evie asked as she knelt down to check on Doug. Thankfully, he was still breathing so that was one worry alleviated.
"If I have to pick between fighting Freddy and keeping my sister safe, my sister wins one hundred percent of the time," Harriet told her before pausing. "Evie...you're hurt..."
"It's not important."
"Blueberry, if there's a dagger sticking out of your shoulder, then you bet your arse it's important!"
Evie sighed. "And we're back to the Blueberry nicknames..."
"It got your attention didn't it?" Harriet said, gently sitting her down. "Where's your first aid kit?"
Before Evie could answer, a crash downstairs caused both girls to stiffen in alarm; Harriet moving to grab her sword.
"You don't think...?"
"They wouldn't be back so quickly..."
"Way to go Jay, you probably just scared the living crap out of Evie," Mal's voice echoed from the downstairs.
"Well I didn't see you finding a way to open the door!"
Evie melted in relief upon hearing Jay's voice. They were all okay! Mal would have mentioned something about needing medical supplies or lying someone down if anyone was hurt.
"Mal! Captain!" CJ shouted. "We're up here!"
A stampede of footsteps was the only response CJ got and Evie blinked upon seeing the mass of people now in her guest room.
Where in the world did Lonnie and Macaria come from? She couldn't help but think. Carlos and Gil were almost expected, having been members of Mal's crew by proxy with being under protection. Plus Emir and Akiho went everywhere Ben did. There were times they would just pop up out of nowhere if someone mentioned their name around Ben.
They called it their Ben sense. Ben said he couldn't help but think they had a tracker on him.
"You okay Evie?" Mal asked as Harry rushed to check on Harriet and CJ.
"I held him off as best I could but I'm not used to fighting against daggers," Evie told her, wincing slightly as the adrenaline wore off and the pain from the dagger began to sink in even more.
"Hey, hey, it's okay," Mal said. "I know how quickly Freddy can let loose one of those daggers. I'll tell you a secret and if you ever tell anyone, I'll destroy your sewing machine, but he got me once too."
Evie smiled slightly before handing Carlos back his slingshot. "Thanks for loaning it to me."
"Keep it Evie," Carlos said as he shook his head, gently pushing Evie's hand back to her. "I can get another one and from the smoke residue in the front room, it's clear you've got good aim with it."
Evie smiled but before she could say anything more, Uma's voice cut in.
"Uh, as much as I'd hate to ruin this happy moment...where's Celia?"
Mal froze and seemed to almost do a headcount of the kids they left at Evie's before going to the Isle and heading to Ben's.
CJ...Dizzy...oh Gods, she's right.
"Freddy grabbed her," CJ said as Harry held her close to him. "He...he said if they couldn't grab Hadie, then Celia would do...that's when Blueberry's boyfriend tried to punch him only to get knocked out."
"Hmm, that seems to be an MO of Freddy's. Knocking out boys who try to fight him," Mal growled.
"What are we going to do Mal? I'm not letting my sister stay in Freddy's grasp longer than she needs to be," Uma stated.
"Do we know where they'd go?" Lonnie asked. "After all, I thought we agreed they wouldn't go back to Fairy Cottage. Not since we know that's where their base of operations is."
Mal nodded and began to pace. "This screams Audrey's plan, not Freddy's. Freddy doesn't take hostages, doesn't take play things, and from what I know about Audrey, she's a drama queen."
"That's an understatement," Emir muttered.
"Hush," Ben told him.
Mal paid them no mind as she continued to pace. "Actually, she's more than just a drama queen, she's a full tilt diva. Why else would she steal the crown and the scepter? For kicks? She wants flowers, she wants parades, she wants a castle that's her own domain and that no one can take from her..."
She paused and locked eyes with Evie, both girls seemingly knowing what the other girl was thinking.
"Son of a Leah, I know where she is," Mal whispered.
"What do you mean?" Uma asked, both her and Harry looking at Mal in concern.
"The place where it all started," Evie nodded. "Where you two met, where her grasp on Ben began to fade."
"Audrey wants a castle and a kingdom. As Ben's girlfriend, head cheerleader and the betrothal contract, Auradon Prep was her kingdom," Mal nodded. "And in her eyes, I took it from her."
"Seriously? I mean, isn't that a bit of a stretch Mal?" Harry asked.
Mal shook her head. "Think about it guys. By convincing Ben to remove his consent from the betrothal contract, I basically dethroned Audrey in her eyes. Now granted, she got herself removed from the cheerleading squad but I'm sure she'd figure out a way to blame me."
"Or me," Evie said, her voice soft. "After all, I took the spot that opened up after the squad kicked her off after her display with Chad. You know, the one where she announced that Chad was her boyfriend not three minutes after Ben did his song and dance number?"
"Right," Mal nodded.
Ben sighed, making sure to keep it as soft as possible. Even though he knew Chad had had feelings for Audrey, he wasn't going to lie and say it hadn't hurt seeing that display. For a split second, he had even wondered if Audrey had ever loved him or if it was just a ploy for his title.
No, she had just been disappointed, he thought and shook his head slightly to clear it of those thoughts. This was not the time to get lost down memory lane.
"Okay, so we're checking Auradon Prep?" Harry asked.
"We're checking Auradon Prep," Mal stated, gesturing to herself, Uma, and Macaria. "Emir, Akiho, stay here and patch up Evie. Carlos, Gil, call Jane and see if Fairy Godmother's okay. We haven't heard anything from them and to be frank, it's a little nerve wracking. Lonnie, you're on Ben duty. I don't care if you have to sit on him, he stays here."
"What? Mal!" Ben exclaimed.
"No Ben!" Mal stated. "Freddy and Audrey just proved that they don't care about bystanders now. Celia is in their grasp and the longer she stays there...just trust me on this okay?"
Ben shook his head and walked over to her, gently cupping her cheek with his hand. "We're a team remember? You and me forever?"
"Exactly Ben," Mal said, her voice soft as she leaned into his touch. "I've seen too many well placed daggers make their mark and turn a team into a solo act. Freddy will not care that you're the King. He will only care about hurting me. I don't want you hurt because of me."
"We're not letting you go up against Freddy without backup Mal," Jay stated, crossing his arms.
"Yeah," Harry nodded.
Mal looked at Uma, who shrugged. Knowing they didn't have time to argue, Mal nodded.
"Fine, but you three stay back and don't come up until we know it's safe," she said. "Macaria, you in?"
Macaria nodded, cracking her knuckles. "Freddy messed with my family at Cotillion. It's my turn to show him why that's a bad idea."
"Right," Mal nodded. "Let's move."
Everyone moved out, aware of their marching orders though Macaria took a moment and gave Gil a gentle kiss on the cheek.
"Be careful," he said softly.
"I'm a Godling. What can Freddy do to me?" Macaria told him but smiled at his concern. "I'm a big girl Gil, I tie my own sandals and everything."
Gil chuckled. "I know but I've gone up against Freddy. He doesn't play fair, and I don't want you, Mal, or Uma getting hurt."
Macaria gave him a soft smile, brushing a bit of hair out of his eyes. "I promise, I'll be fine. Now go. Let's not give Freddy and Audrey any more of a head start than they already have."
Gil nodded though he had to pause as Lonnie rushed up and kissed Jay on the lips.
"What the hell?!" Harry exclaimed.
"I saw how Freddy works at Cotillion," Lonnie said as they separated. "I'm so sorry but...I didn't want you to...sorry."
Jay chuckled though it was weak, and thankfully he kept control of his body so he didn't topple over like Harry almost did at Cotillion. "We can talk about that after we beat Freddy Boy...though I'm not going to lie, I did enjoy it," he whispered to her.
"Well that's an image I'm never going to get out of my mind," Mal shook her head. "Gods, it's like watching my brother make out!"
"And I thought you were 'just friends' Jay," Uma chuckled as Jay walked up; the group of six making sure to stay close together so that Mal could easily teleport them.
Jay shrugged as a cloud of purple smoke surrounded them, Mal clutching Ben's hand with her free one as the other hand was wrapped around the ember so tightly one might have thought it would break.
Audrey had had the option for peace. Now it was war. And it wasn't going to be pretty.
Mal knew that if Freddy and Audrey survived this, it would be only because they would need to stand trial...and because of Audrey's former friendship with Ben. Though if Mal was honest, she didn't know how much of that was left.
And looking at Ben, it was clear he was thinking the same thing.