“I was so worried. I didn’t forget your party. We had to go and I forgot to call,” said Carlos earnestly.
“I’m so glad you’re all right!” exclaimed Jane and Carlos in unison. They giggled. The reunion was nothing short of adorable.
Ben looked at Jane with great appreciation. He was soaking wet, but he was King Ben again.
“All right, you good?” asked Jay, helping Ben down from the mound. “Take a seat right there,” he said, pointing toward a sizable tree trunk.
“Yeah, uh-huh.” Ben still seemed a bit shaken up. “That was funky.”
“Was. Is,” said Jay, tilting his head and staring at Ben. Ben still looked part beast, with unruly hair, a full beard, and teeth pointy enough to be called fangs.
“You need another blast,” Jane said decidedly with a knowledgeable nod.
Carlos beamed at Jane proudly: that smart girl thought of everything.
Jane raised the sprayer to waist level, cocked it with confidence, and blasted Ben with more water, this time to no effect. He was still beast-ish. “Please stop,” said Ben, water dripping down his face.
Jane emptied the water gun with one final useless squirt. “Huh. It’s Enchanted Lake water. But I guess there’s only so much it can do.”
Harry watched the scene from afar and was impressed by the bubbly girl. “Well, well, well,” he said, sauntering up to Jane. He bowed low in an exaggerated gentlemanly fashion. “Harry Hook. And you, my little duckling, are ravishing.”
“Ravishing and taken,” said Carlos emphatically as he tried to stand tall. “Just in case anyone was confused.” He stepped right between Jane and Harry and shot the pirate the meanest look he could manage, then made a point of putting his other arm around Jane. Jane’s bright blue eyes danced with excitement. Carlos had just called her ravishing.
Ben listened to the exchange with great confusion. “Hold on. Whose side are they on?” asked Ben, baffled. The last time he’d seen Harry, the nasty pirate had him roped to a ship mast and was ordering him to walk the plank. The king was not a fan.
Jay did his best to catch Ben up on the day’s events, but it was difficult. An unfathomable number of things had gone down in just a few short hours. “They escaped and joined us. Mal has the ember, which is our only hope to stop Audrey. Details to follow,” said Jay.
“Hades’s ember? Has Mal gone back to the Isle?” Ben asked. He was utterly perplexed.
“I said ‘details to follow’! We’re meeting up with Mal, Evie, and Uma,” Jay told Ben.
“Uma?” Ben’s mouth hung agape and his eyes widened in shock. Ben couldn’t imagine how she had ended up in the mix.
The whole group leveled looks at Ben. “Details to follow,” everyone yelled in unison.
As they set off through the woods, Harry looked at Jay, tipped his hat, then ran his hook slowly over his chin and grinned. “Hey, Jay, um…” The pirate cleared his throat awkwardly. “Thanks for saving me gorgeous face.” He swatted Jay on the back in an almost-friendly way.
Here’s the thing: I’m not ready to have a slumber party where we braid each other’s hair or anything, but I guess Uma can be kinda cool.
Uma and Celia sat in Evie’s blue kitchen chairs with the pink cardboard bakery box between them. They each had a tall glass of milk and chowed down on slices of Jane’s birthday cake.
Mal glanced out the window anxiously. “That was a good idea to check out Audrey’s room. Now we know we’re on track,” she said. Perhaps she’d underestimated Ursula’s daughter. After all, the girl had been successfully captaining a pirate crew for years.
“Is there an insult in there that I missed?” asked Uma as she lifted her fork to her mouth. The cake really was delicious.
“Just…I wanted to thank you,” Mal said sincerely.
Uma was honestly touched.
Audrey stood in Fairy Cottage, watching Mal and Uma through the orb. She was disgusted by what she saw. Mal and Uma were getting along. They were…what? Becoming friends? Audrey was infuriated. “Think you’re on the right track? You’re not going anywhere,” she taunted them. Then she turned to Chad, who stood quaking by her side. “Ugh. Let’s mess them up.”
Chad had other, less-evil ideas. “I say we go to my place and maybe binge-watch some TV. Or maybe order some stuff online,” he suggested.
Audrey was unimpressed with the quivering fool. She swept her arm in a downward motion, and Chad groveled before her.
“What about pizza?” he asked.
Audrey thrust her scepter in his direction. Chad flinched in fear. “Oh, okay, you don’t like pizza. Then, salad?”
Audrey stared at Chad for a beat before magically blasting him back with a swift wave of her arms. “No saaaallllaaad,” yelped Chad, but it was too late. He flew the length of the kitchen, directly into the open pantry, where he landed with a thud. The pantry door slammed and its wood bar fell into place, locking Chad securely inside among the sad sacks of flour and hanging dry herbs. He called for help, but his effort was futile. Audrey lifted her scepter high into the air. With Chad out of the way, she turned her wicked attention back toward Uma and Mal.
Mal and Uma were sitting together at Evie’s kitchen table, genuinely enjoying each other’s company.
“I maybe kinda missed the boat a little bit when I called you Shrimpy and wouldn’t let you in the gang,” Mal admitted, helping herself to a fingerful of frosting.
“Yeah, we could have really torn up the Isle together—” said Uma.
She was cut short by a loud slam. The girls jumped in alarm as a wood plank smacked into place across the kitchen window. Slam! Slam! Slam! The girls gasped and watched in fright as solid wood planks slammed one after another across every window and blocked out all but a crack of light.
Celia ran down the stairs and tried to throw open the front door, but several wood planks pounded mightily into place and sealed the exit. “We’re trapped,” she said. Celia backed away from the door and joined Mal and Uma in the center of the room. She was frightened. When Celia had first applied to Auradon Prep, she’d imagined a carefree life filled with too much sunshine, dorky pep rallies, and the opportunity to read the fortunes of wealthy Auradon Prep students—not lethal knights and magically sealed exits. This was not what she had bargained for.
Evie and Doug ran into the living room. “Are you guys okay? What’s going on?” asked Evie, frightened. Her room, too, had been boarded up. Doug took Evie’s hand and held it tightly.
Mal’s eyes gleamed with frustration and anger. She’d had enough of Audrey’s nastiness. She raised both of her hands and incanted from deep within her heart: “You’ve caused my friends pain and fear. We’ve had enough. Now disappear.”
The planks merely rattled in response. That was not the result Mal was hoping for.
“You guys, I’m sorry,” Mal told her friends. “My spells aren’t working. Audrey’s magic is getting stronger.”
Uma stared down at her gold shell necklace, which now glowed with light. She had an idea. To Mal’s surprise, Uma stepped forward to stand alongside her and grabbed her hand. Mal’s eyes glowed green, Uma’s necklace shone blue, and together the girls incanted: “You’ve caused our friends pain and fear. We’ve had enough. Now disappear.”
In a flash, the planks dislodged.
The girls stared at each other, amazed by their accomplishment.
“You did it. Together. This is what I’ve been talking about,” cried Evie as she threw her arms around both girls.
“I guess my shell likes you,” Uma said to Mal. Then she looked down at her necklace, opened the shell, and took out Hades’s ember. She offered it to Mal as a token of trust. “Why don’t you hang on to this?”
Mal nodded gratefully and accepted the ember. Celia looked out the open door and cheered with delight as their friends paraded up the front path to Evie’s house, Ben in tow. “Hey, it’s your bae,” she told Mal.
Mal broke from the group, sprinted down the stone path to Ben, and flew into her fiancé’
s arms. “You okay?” asked Ben as he touched her cheek.
“A lot better now,” Mal said, and hugged Ben tightly.
Ben looked over Mal’s shoulder and spotted Uma. His eyes lit up, and he broke into a huge grin. “I always knew you’d be part of the solution,” he said. Mal affectionately rested her hands on Ben’s chest and nodded in agreement.
The kids greeted each other joyfully, glad to be reunited. Jane and Carlos hugged Celia, Jay put his arms around Evie and Doug, and Harry enveloped Uma. Meanwhile, Gil helped himself to a fresh orange off Evie’s tree.
Mal ran her hand across Ben’s scruffy beard and through his messy mane. “What is this?” she asked flirtatiously.
“You like this?” asked Ben with a glimmer in his eyes.
“Oh, yeah,” said Mal. “I could get used to this. I love this.” Her engagement ring caught the sun’s rays as she tugged at her fiancé’s whiskers.
“What about those?” asked Uma, pointing out Ben’s sharp fangs.
Mal’s wide-eyed reaction clearly read Not so much. “No,” she said emphatically.
“I like ’em,” admitted Ben with an impish grin.
Mal turned back to Ben and placed her hand on his arm. As much as she’d have loved to spend the afternoon just staring into his gorgeous eyes, they had an evil maniac to vanquish. “Okay, so we all think that Audrey could be at Fairy Cottage. We have no idea where it is. Did she ever take you there?”
Ben gritted his teeth at the memory of the grating afternoons he’d spent there. “Every Fairy Godmother’s Day. Where’s Fairy Godmother when you need her?”
Everyone looked toward Jane, who was seated quietly at a small white bistro table. She straightened her romper and clasped her hands together tensely. “I wish I knew.” She looked away with worry but smiled when she saw Carlos standing next to her holding a small red box with a black-and-white polka-dot bow.
“Hey, um, this might be a bad time,” he said, pulling up a seat next to her, “but happy birthday.” He handed her the package. He’d been waiting for that moment all day. “I made it with my 3-D printer,” he added hesitantly.
Jane carefully opened the box. She pulled out a gold necklace with a little pink accent bow and stared at it with wonder. The word Jarlos, written in beautiful gold script letters, hung in the middle of the chain.
“It’s, uh, our names put together,” Carlos babbled nervously.
“No, right, I get it,” said Jane. She smiled awkwardly.
“Because we’re together. You and me, we’re like a couple,” explained Carlos.
Jane’s face radiated joy when she heard the word couple. “Right! ’Cuz Jane and Carlos makes Jarlos,” said Jane.
“Yes, yeah! I could have gone with Cane. But I went with Jarlos, unless you prefer Cane. Do you prefer Cane?”
“Oh, no, I love it!” exclaimed Jane. Her face glowed.
“You know what? I could remake it. It’s cool, it’s fine,” he said, fumbling for words.
“No, Carlos,” said Jane, rising from her seat. “It’s perfect.” Jane pulled back her long, dark glossy hair so Carlos could fasten the necklace around her neck. It was, by far, the most thoughtful and romantic gift Jane had ever received.
Ben hated to interrupt the intimate moment, but trouble was still brewing in Auradon. He set forth a plan. “Doug, go with Jane. We need to find Fairy Godmother.”
Uma sized up Doug skeptically and shook her head in doubt. “They might need some muscle.”
“Hey,” yelped Doug defensively as he pushed up his glasses.
“Well, I’ll go,” Gil volunteered eagerly. He flexed his fit arms for good measure.
Carlos took Jane’s hand in his. “Yeah, actually, I’d feel better.”
“Yeah, actually, I’d feel better, too,” Evie said.
“Same,” chimed in Mal.
Doug puffed up his chest, tried to match Gil’s brawn, and shrugged. “Yeah, actually, I would, too,” he said, laughing.
Gil threw his thick arm around Doug and gave him a brotherly squeeze. “All right, man. Let’s do it. Let’s go, Jane.”
“Be careful,” said Carlos.
Mal put her head on Ben’s shoulder as she watched the group take off down the path. Then she and the others turned to go back into Evie’s house to plot their next steps. They had to stop Audrey…somehow.
Audrey’s dark power keeps getting stronger. I can’t sit around waiting for happily ever after to just happen. I screwed up. Now I have to make this right.
Deep in the harrowing woods, the group silently approached Fairy Cottage and fanned out like a precision security team. Ben, Evie, and Mal hid behind a tree, while Jay, Carlos, and Harry positioned themselves near a large boulder. Uma and Celia brought up the rear. Mal removed the glowing ember from her pocket. She looked at it with determined eyes. This was the moment they’d been preparing for. It was time to stop Audrey once and for all.
Ben and Mal reached the flower-covered front gate, then signaled the others. With a collective whoosh of energy, the pirates and VKs rushed the house at once. The teens swooped through the front door, all ready to pounce.
Jay ran up the stairs in hopes of finding the dark princess but returned alone. “She’s not upstairs,” he said. The house was empty. Audrey was nowhere in sight.
A panicked pounding came from the kitchen cupboard. Ben ran to the kitchen, heaved open the weighty pantry door, and found a cowering Chad blubbering inside. “Chad?”
The once-charming prince was a total mess. “I want my mommy,” Chad whimpered tearfully.
“What happened, buddy?” Ben asked, helping his friend up.
“Ben!” Chad startled. “Your face,” he said, taking in the king’s scruff. Then he looked at everyone else and noticed one important person missing. “She’s gone! And the door’s open. I’m free.” He bolted out the front door and ran for freedom. Harry couldn’t stop laughing at the cowardly prince.
Mal and Evie shared a knowing glance as Chad bolted past them. Not much there there. Mal looked around the cottage, irked that Audrey had managed to evade them again. She hoped the others were having more luck with their quest.
On the other side of town, Jane, Doug, and Gil strode through the Auradon Museum of Cultural History’s grounds in search of Fairy Godmother. They finally discovered her on the back steps. “Oh my gosh, my mom has turned to stone, too,” Jane said.
Tears welled up in Jane’s wide eyes as she took in the sight. Doug put his arm around her supportively. Gil was sweet and gave her a reassuring nod. She scrunched her face, gathered her courage, and bravely approached her mother.
Jane was unsure of the proper thing to do, so she just started talking to her mom and hoped her heartfelt words would somehow cut through. “Hi, Mom. I don’t know if you can hear me, Mom, but it’s been a really crazy day. On the plus side, it’s been the longest birthday I’ve ever had. On the minus side, everybody’s under an evil spell. But on the plus side”—Jane paused, raised her hand to her chest, ran her fingers over her Jarlos necklace, and smiled broadly—“Carlos remembered my birthday, see.” In that sense, it had been her best birthday yet.
Jane turned toward her mom with revitalized confidence. “We’re going to figure out how to undo this. We’ll find a way to make this right.”
Back in the woods, Mal and her friends exited Fairy Cottage as dusk fell. “Okay, let’s get this Audrey chick taken care of already,” said Uma. Together, she and Mal should be able thwart the girl, no problem. And when they did, every VK on the Isle would get their freedom.
Uma looked at Mal. “What do you say, girl? Ready to wrap this up?” She and Mal fist-bumped.
Ben marveled at the newfound unity. He didn’t know how it had happened, but he was delighted that it had. “Someday you’re going to have to tell me how you guys all got teamed up.”
Evie smiled brightly. “Actually, Mal promised to let all the kids off the Isle once this is over.”
Ben was taken aback. He glanced
at Mal searchingly.
Mal stared back at him, her eyes full of pain and guilt. She drew a deep breath, hesitated, then decided to come clean. She turned to face her friends and also face the truth. “I have to tell you all something. I lied to you,” Mal said. “The kids won’t be coming off the Isle.” Mal felt ill just saying the words.
Jay shifted his weight and cocked his head in confusion. “What do you mean?”
Mal steeled her resolve before answering. There was no easy way to explain, especially to her friends. But she couldn’t lie any longer. The other VKs needed to know the truth. “The program is shut down,” she told them. “And the barrier will be closed for good.”
The villain kids were stunned. Carlos looked bewildered. Evie stared at Mal, feeling raw and confused. Uma shot Mal the evil eye; she knew she never should have put her faith in that two-timing dragon.
Ben cleared his throat. “For Auradon’s safety,” he added, trying to explain. It didn’t help.
“Hold up,” Uma said, throwing her hands into the air, disappointment coating her voice. “So we’re saving your precious people and your behinds for a lie. I knew it was a mistake to trust you. You’re always out for yourself.”
Harry twirled his hook menacingly in the air. “And you? King Ben, eh? You’re probably just going to throw us back inside, too.” Ben detected a surprising sadness in Harry’s eyes.
Celia marched right up to Mal and confronted her. “You know what? I actually thought you were brave, but you’re just a chicken. Too scared to tell me I was never going to see my dad again,” she raged. Tears of disillusionment filled her brown eyes.
Upset and let down, Celia grabbed the precious ember out of Mal’s hand and threw it into a nearby birdbath. The mighty ember hissed and died out on the water, extinguished for good. Everyone gasped.
“No!” cried Mal. She rushed to rescue the ember as Celia whipped around her head of curls and ran away down the forest path.
“Celia,” Evie yelled after her. The forest at night was no place for a young girl to wander around alone.
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