Chapter 4: Be There for You
Wonderland is known as the land of madness, where nothing is as it seems, and everything is as topsy-turvy as a rabbit running past you is wearing a waistcoat and a pocket watch, talking playing cards painting white roses red, and where tea time is all the time...
"No wonder Ally was desperate to come to Auradon, this is where things make sense," Mal mutters, reading the latest chapter in her restricted book.
As of recently, the daughter of Maleficent had spent every moment of her free time reading the book, consuming the information within its pages. Her eyes had been opened so very wide and she couldn't believe what she had learned about the worlds outside of Auradon and the Isle. Like anyone who realized that there are multiple worlds besides their own, she got a headache just thinking about it. She made a list of the worlds that were interesting, especially a place called Oz, which had a city completely made of emeralds. That would be quite the find and a valuable place to visit.
However, the world that interested her the most was The Land Without Magic, a place where everything was completely upside down and weird. In this world, magic does not exist at all, except in a handful of places and even then, no one there ever believed in it. The world was infamous for having a variety of versions of Auradon's and the Isle's stories; they were known as "fairy tales," meaning imaginary or made up. There were movies about their parents, said to have been created by a man named Walter Disney... what a strange name. Mal noticed a picture of a mouse with red shorts, yellow shoes, and white gloves and wonders; was he Walter Disney? If that was the case, then there really was magic in this land and people didn't know about it. But there was no mention of the students of Auradon as children. Jafar, Cruella, Belle and Adam, Alice, Tinkerbelle, and her mother... everyone's stories apparently ended at "happily ever after," no offspring of any kind.
"It's like we never existed," Mal mutters to herself.
She suddenly hears footsteps coming down the hall, she quickly shoves the book under her bed and pretends to be interested in her phone.
"Hey," Evie says, poking her head in.
"Hey."
"Do you mind if I let Doug and the other 7 sons come in and bring the fashion stuff out of here?"
"Out of here?" Mal asks in confusion.
Ever since Evie had become the campus fashion designer, their shared room had also become her fashion studio, not that Mal really minded, only if nobody touched her stuff and since the purple-haired teen didn't bring a lot of stuff from Isle over, it didn't really matter.
"Yeah, Dizzy and I had a little meeting and we agreed that we should move the studio to her room. Since Ben gave her a room to herself as a special treat so I figured we could use the extra room, plus you're probably sick of me hogging all the space."
"To be honest, I couldn't care less," Mal says.
She grabs the books from under her bed, shoves them into her bag and gets up to leave.
"Where are you going?" Evie asks.
The daughter of the Evil Queen had noticed her friend's more aloof behaviour recently and it worried her. Mal had become distant and even angry when she had forced herself to be the "perfect girlfriend" for the Royal Cotillion and then she had taken off for the Isle after her fight with Ben. No one wanted a repeat of that again.
"I'm going for a walk down by the seashore," Mal says casually.
"You seem to be doing that a lot lately."
"Helps me clear my head," she answers nonchalantly. "Plus, with this paper, I'm doing, I need to do a lot of reading and I like to go where it's quiet."
Evie frowns, not buying the excuse. She knows something is off with her best friend and she wants to figure out what.
"Are you okay?" Evie asks, tilting her head to the side.
"Couldn't be better," the daughter of Maleficent says as convincingly as she can. "I'll see you later."
Within a flash of purple hair, Mal vanishes through the door of their room. Evie stands there with her hands on her hips. She knows her friend is pulling away again and it must be because Ben is too busy for her.
She hears a knock at the door. Doug sticks his head in.
"Did you get everyone?" Evie asks.
"All except Dreamy, he's pulling a double shift at the library. Apparently, someone took a book from the restricted section, so he has to work double time in case someone else tries to take another book from there."
"Okay, well, we can get started. You guys know where Dizzy's room is?"
"Yep..."
The blue-haired beauty bites her lip. "Actually, can you guys start without me, I have to do something really quick and then I promise I'll be right back to help."
Doug frowns. "Is everything okay?"
"Fine, I just need to check something." She kisses Doug on the cheek and then leaves the room as the other dwarves come in.
"What's up E?" Double D, asks.
"Not much, I'll be back to help in a minute," she says before leaving.
"Typical," Gordon snorts, once she's gone. Gordon was the son of Grumpy, he was cynical and irritable like his father, only with the volume turned up a couple notches.
"What do you mean typical?" Doug asks.
"What do you think I mean? You're whipped Dude seriously. She so much as bats her baby brown eyes at you and you drop like an anchor at sea. She gets us to help out so she doesn't have to lift a finger, man she's just like her..."
Doug practically collars Gordon, despite being scrawnier and weaker that this dwarf's son. He is now angry and wasn't about to let his cousin get away with this.
"Don't say it..." he hisses angrily. "Evie is a nice and gentle person, she cares about everyone around her. She's nothing like her mother and so help me that if I hear you say that again... I'm going to teach you a lesson."
Gordon wants to snort derisively at the threat, but he'd never seen Doug so angry before. He had to admit, he was a little afraid of the son of Dopey. He finally manages to free himself from the geek's hands.
"Yeah right, like you could hit anyone," Gordon says, taking out a toothpick and chewing on it.
"Don't test a whipped dwarf," Evie's boyfriend warns. He would do anything to protect her honour. She was nothing like her mother; she had changed so much since coming to Auradon and Doug likes to think Evie's become the best person she can be.
"Most of the time love makes people soft, but in Doug's case, it makes him tougher," Double D observes.
"Let's just get to work," Doug says.
...
"No, you know that won't work..." Ben says, over the telephone. "Because serving anything apple-flavoured to Whitney and Simon is not acceptable. It's like giving Melody sushi, it just doesn't work like that."
There's a knock at his door and knowing that it might be something important, King Ben decides to end his call. "We'll figure something else out Jane I promise, just let Ruby, Anexlin, and Artie take care of the desserts okay? I've got to go." He then hangs up the phone.
"It's open," he calls.
Evie peeks her head into the room, watching for a moment as Ben looks down at the stacks and stacks of papers on his desk. She now knew that Mal wasn't exaggerating when she said that Ben always had paperwork to do. As royalty herself, Evie knew that running a kingdom was not easy in the slightest, but she could see that it is taking a toll not only on Ben but Mal and their relationship.
"Evie, hey," Ben says smiling. "What can I do for you?"
"Do you have a minute to talk?"
"Uh, yeah, I guess, but I do have to meet with Lonnie about the Swords and Shields team's upcoming meet, but I have a few minutes to spare."
Evie bites her lip. "I'm worried about Mal..."
Ben immediately drops everything that he's doing and gives her his full attention.
"What's wrong with Mal? Is she okay? Is she hurt? She didn't run off, again did she?"
"No, she's still here, she's just becoming distant again... I think it might be because she doesn't see you anymore."
"What are you talking about? I see her all the time," he says dismissively.
"When was the last time you guys had a real date?" Evie inquires.
Ben bites his lip hard and pauses, trying to put all his royal duties aside to actually think about it, but Evie already has her answer.
"I just don't want Mal to think you're breaking up or drifting apart again. I know you two really care for each other; you're true love after all, but it feels like you're always too busy for her."
"Well, she understands, I've got so much to do as King and..."
"And I think that's the reason why she's becoming distant again. She won't talk to me, Carlos, or Jay anymore. As if she expects to be shoved to the side...Can I tell you a secret?"
"Uh sure," Ben says nervously.
"Despite what you might think, Mal didn't get a lot of attention growing up. Like most of us, our parents aren't exactly great at being...well... parents, I mean my mom spoiled me and told me to be vain and rude to people. As for Mal, all her mother seemed to care about was ruling the Isle or getting the magic wand or ruling Auradon. Other than that, Maleficent paid no attention to her. So... I just don't want her to feel like she's being ignored again, and we all know what happens when she gets upset..."
"She goes back to the start," Ben nods, understanding what Evie is saying.
"Right."
"Where is Mal now?"
"She's down by the ocean shore, reading books, which she's been doing a lot lately."
"She sounds more like my mom than herself," Ben says. He stands up and pages to his secretary. "Deborah, cancel the rest of my appointments today,"
"Yes, your highness."
Evie smiles, feeling hopeful that Mal and Ben can patch things up again and she'll get her best friend back.
Ben flattens his hair. "How do I look?"
Evie smiles and readjusts the collar of his jacket. "Like her prince charming," she says.
"Thank you, Evie, you're a great friend," the king says hugging her and exiting the office.
"Just looking out for everyone," she says, walking towards the door as well.
...
The Enchanted Forest was once thought to have been destroyed by a dark curse that took away many people to a strange and desolate land. Only a small section seemed to have survived, but time was frozen for approximately 28 years...
"That's one intense curse," Mal mutters to herself. She sits on the rock that has now become her usual reading spot for the past little while. She reads in the fading sunlight but also has one of her old purple bracelets laying in the shallow parts of the water, glistening in the light. She's hoping to meet Ariel again... or rather a version of Ariel. She can't believe that there might be other versions of herself out there. It's mind-boggling. The wind blows softly, causing waves to lap at the shore.
It's then that she hears what sounds like footsteps coming up the beach. Immediately, Mal shoves her book into her bag. She thinks it might be Melody, coming for swim practice, so the daughter of Maleficent pretends to be reading a book about mermaids. She turns towards the sound and her heart nearly drops when she sees who is approaching her.
It's Ben, his hair combed to the side and he wears his Auradon blazer, but no crown. He's just like the prince she remembered before he was crowned... the guy she fell in love with.
As he gets closer, Mal can feel her cheeks flushing a bright red. She puts the book in her bag and gets off the rock.
Ben does his best to smile at her, and she reluctantly offers a smile back.
"Mal," he says quietly.
"Hi."
The two go into an awkward silence.
"How's work?" she asks, making a forced conversation.
"Good, good," Ben says, gazing into Mal's eyes, becoming lost in them again. It feels like the first time they had really connected and started falling in love with each other. He steps a bit closer, but she steps back.
"Have you come to watch Melody's swim team?" she asks.
"No," he says. "I'm here to see you."
She blinks in disbelief. It had been awhile since he'd wanted to see her without asking to make an appointment.
"R-Really?"
Ben reaches out to grab Mal's hand. She lets him take it awkwardly. She gazes into his hazel eyes, her heart begins to race and her face flushes a bright pink, matching the sky. She can't help but smile at his face, smooth and happy, as per usual.
"Mal... I'm sorry I've been ignoring you. Evie helped me realize that I can't always put the kingdom before my heart. You need my attention just as much as I need yours. I miss you Mal and I'm sorry it's taken me so long to realize that."
The daughter of Maleficent is taken aback for a moment, she surprised that he's apologizing to her. She will admit that she did miss being with him, but he was king, and he had his responsibilities... she understood that. Their worlds seemed to rush in opposite directions, hardly having time to meet. They were different but somehow they fit together, like strange puzzle pieces. She knew that she loved him a lot, wanting to be with him, but she still wished they could just have time to themselves. No responsibilities, no kingdom, no nothing, just the two of them and they could be like real teenagers, hang out and do more dating things. Maybe even explore the world together. She wants this, but she knows it won't happen.
She becomes lost in his eyes and pulls him in for a kiss. She loves the taste of his lips on hers, how soft they were and how he always smelled like honey and a little bit of tea thrown in there too. They kiss as the sun fades below the horizon.
Both of their minds flash back to that romantic date on the very same beach, where Mal saw the sunset for the first time and they kissed for the third time. Nothing else mattered at that moment, just the two of them in their tiny little world... it felt perfect.
As the sun disappears, the two break apart and just hold each other for awhile.
"I miss this," Mal whispers quietly.
"Me too," Ben answers. "I promise I'll try to be there with you more often."
Mal smiles.
Suddenly, there's the sound of splashing coming from the water. The couple turns towards the sound. Bubbles are forming on the graying water. Then a head breaks the surface of the water and seems to look at the couple.
"Oh, young love reminds me of me and Eric..." it says.
A/N: Ariel's back. Please follow and review.