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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐍𝐓 𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐀

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Five months passed since Ben was crowned King of Auradon and everything seemed to be back to normal. Well, as normal as Auradon could get. Evie started her own successful dress-making business that her now-boyfriend Doug helped her run. Like most of the male Tourney players in the off-season, Carlos and Jay joined the Swords and Shields Team and were enjoying every second of it. Elliot graduated early thanks to his "amazing mind" and was now attending Auradon University so Rylee was now the only Fitzherbert walking the halls of Auradon Prep until Ruby arrived. As for Pete, he did what he should've done in the first place and went back to Neverland to help Tiger Peony and his father figure out a new way to run the island. While they all had their fun, Mal was helping out Ben, Morgan, and Rylee run Auradon.

It had been a crazy five months but Rylee and Morgan wouldn't trade it for the world...or so they thought.

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Just like every other time Ben and Mal went to talk with some people from Auradon News, Rylee and Morgan went to meet up with Lonnie. When all three of them had the time, they would run laps around the small track in the gym together until Jay and Carlos finished practice with the rest of the Swords and Shields Team. Since it was the off-season for Tourney, Rylee and Morgan wanted to keep in shape for next season and Lonnie decided to join them. But the Fitzherbert girl knew that was just her excuse to watch the team practice.

The three of them ran a few miles and talked about all the events that were coming up shortly. Their laughter and voices carried throughout the gym until they finally noticed the boys' practice coming to an end. Smiles made their way onto the three girls' faces at the sight of Jay and Carlos packing up their things before they stopped running and made their way over to them.

"Come here to try out again?" Chad mocked the three girls as a small smirk formed on his face after seeing Rylee, Morgan, and Lonnie walking over to join them, "you know it's just gonna be a repeat of last time."

"Being on one team with you is enough," Morgan retaliated after noticing a hint of sadness flash across Lonnie's features, earning a small glare from the Charming boy.

"Any plans for after practice?" the daughter of Mulan and Shang asked the two boys from the Isle in an attempt to change the conversation, causing Chad to roll his eyes before he turned to leave.

"We were thinking about grabbing something to eat," Carlos answered as he slung his gym bag over his shoulders and adjusted the straps, "wanna join us?"

"When have we ever turned down food?" Rylee laughed before taking a long sip of her water and wiping her brow with the back of her hand, "just let us change and we'll meet you at your dorm."

"Sounds good," Jay responded as his eyes traveled to meet Lonnie's before his smile slightly grew, "we'll see you guys in a few minutes."

Once their plans were made, the three girls left the boys behind in the gym and headed up to their dorm rooms. Right as they turned to walk down the hall that led to their destinations, they spotted a pile of fabrics with long legs and blue heels walking straight toward them. Rylee, Morgan, and Lonnie just watched for a moment as the figure slowly walked toward them before they rushed forward to help Evie. As soon as each of the four girls had a few rolls of fabric in their arms, they walked together down the hall until they reached the blue-haired girl's room.

"Thanks, guys," Evie sighed as they placed the fabric on her bed after entering her dorm.

"No problem! We were happy to help!" Lonnie replied while she, Rylee, and Morgan watched the daughter of the Evil Queen begin to organize her inventory.

"We were about to change and meet Jay and Carlos for lunch. Would you wanna join us?" Rylee asked Evie, who kept her eyes glued to her fabrics.

"I'd love to!" the daughter of the Evil Queen responded after sending the three girls a small smile then she gestured toward the fabrics on her bed, "just let me finish up here and then I'll come join you guys!"

"Sounds like a plan," Morgan responded as she, Rylee, and Lonnie headed towards the door before the redheaded girl glanced back at Evie, "we'll see you down there!"

After watching the blue-haired girl dig through her pile of fabrics for a moment longer, the three girls left Evie's room to get ready for their upcoming plans. While Rylee and Morgan simply walked across the hall to their dorm, Lonnie made her way down the corridor to hers. It wasn't long after the Fitzherbert girl slipped on her favorite purple sweatshirt when there was a knock at the door. Rylee rushed to get her shoes on while Morgan walked across the room and opened the door to reveal Lonnie, Evie, and Mal standing at the entrance with giant smiles on their faces.

"Ready to get some food?" Mal asked after watching the blonde girl jump to her feet when she finished.

"We're always ready for food," Rylee responded as Morgan let out a laugh before the five of them headed toward the boys' dorm.

After they got the boys from their room, the group of seven went down to the cafe. Rylee and Morgan instantly went to the counter to grab a couple of large pizzas before they went to rejoin their friends. As soon as the pizza was placed on the only table that was big enough to fit their group, they dug in. Their conversation bounced around from Swords and Shields to Evie's business as they enjoyed the best meal served at Auradon Prep. It wasn't long before the topic of interest shifted to how stressed Mal was about everything going on in her new life.

After listening to her friend's words, Rylee started to feel bad for the daughter of Maleficent. It was only five months ago when she had complete control over her life and the freedom to go where she pleased. Now Mal had a busy schedule filled with events she never dreamed of attending and a whole country breathing down her neck. The purple-haired girl never envisioned being part of this world and now she was dating the King of Auradon. Rylee couldn't even imagine living in the girl's shoes.

It wasn't long after Mal finished her venting session when Doug walked over to their table and took his place next to Evie. Rylee watched them with a small smile on her face as he and Evie started talking about Cotillion, which was only a month. The Fitzherbert girl's attention was quickly drawn to Carlos after she caught him perking up out of the corner of her eye. The confusion that flowed through Rylee's veins quickly faded when she realized he was watching Jane as she walked across the room to join them. The smile on Rylee's face did nothing but grow as she watched a joyful look appear on the De Vil boy's face when the girl sat down next to him.

"I don't know how you guys deal with the expectation of being perfect princesses," Mal groaned, only for Rylee and Morgan to start laughing in response before an utterly confused look formed on the purple-haired girl's face, "what's so funny?"

"No one has ever expected us to be perfect," the Fitzherbert girl answered after managing to calm down from her laughing fit.

"Don't you remember who our parents are?" Morgan said through her unstoppable giggles, "both of mine go out to shoot arrows every day and rule their kingdom like it's a game."

"And my dad still steals stuff from the fridge without anyone noticing while my mom walks around our castle barefoot and sings all day."

"Our families are crazy," the two girls finish in unison, completely oblivious to the annoyed look on their purple-haired friend's face.

"Thanks, guys," the daughter of Maleficent grumbled before placing her head in her hands and letting out a long sigh.

"I think what they're trying to say is no one is expecting you to be perfect," Lonnie clarified after sending a somewhat playful glare Rylee and Morgan's way.

"You just need to be yourself," Jane added before she reached across the table and placed her hand on top of Mal's, causing the latter to look up and meet the brunette girl's gaze, "everyone will love you for who you are. Like we do."

Lonnie and Jane's words instantly put a smile on Mal's face before the purple-haired girl let out another sigh. It wasn't long after that when Ben walked into the cafeteria and made his way toward their table. The Beast boy greeted everyone with a wave and a large smile as he took his place next to Mal. The group of Auradon students instantly went back to their casual conversations while they ate their pizza. However, the normality soon ended when Rylee and Morgan saw Ben watching them with a large grin on his face.

"What's with the creepy look, Beasty?" the Fitzherbert girl questioned while using her slice of pizza to gesture toward her best friend.

"It's called a smile, Fitz, you should try it sometime," he countered as his grin grew, making Rylee rolled her eyes while Morgan let out a small chuckle.

"Seriously, though. What's with the huge grin?" the Macintosh girl asked rather loudly, causing everyone to stop their own conversations to tune into theirs.

"I just had the best idea," he answered as he leaned on the table in a way that made it seem like he was keeping the world's darkest secret before he whispered, "I want to bring over more kids from the Isle."

"That is a great idea, Ben!" Carlos exclaimed before he looked over at Jay, who had a far less happy look on his face.

"Just be careful who you choose."

"I'm not going to choose," Ben told the son of Jafar before his attention landed back on his two royal advisors, "Rylee and Morgan are."

His announcement caused everyone to send him utterly confused looks, only for Ben's smile to grow impossibly bigger. After Rylee exchanged a glance with Morgan, the two of them looked back at their best friend with concerned looks on their faces.

"Why would you want us to choose?" the Fitzherbert girl questioned as she gestured to herself and the redhead next to her, "you of all people know we have a hard time making decisions. We still question why you chose us as your advisors."

"Plus, we know next to nothing about the Isle and which kids are ready to come to Auradon," the Macintosh girl added while everyone at their table nodded along.

"That's the best part! You're gonna go to the Isle!" Ben exclaimed, ignoring the skeptical looks he was receiving from everyone around him, "you can meet some of the kids that live there and decide who should come over next."

Silence surrounded them as Rylee and Morgan took in their friend's words before smiles made their way onto the two girls' faces. They kept it a secret from everyone but going to the Isle had always been a secret dream of theirs. They really wanted to see how they live over there so that they could figure out ways to improve the conditions. It wasn't long after the two girls shared a grin when their attention landed on the shocked faces of the four from the Isle.

"Not that they can't handle it, which they probably could, but why would you send them to the Isle?" Evie asked the question that was running through all the villain kids' heads.

"Because I need them to meet the kids firsthand," Ben answered without skipping a beat.

"Then send us. Evie's just sugar-coating it. Let's be honest, they won't last long over there," Mal stated, earning annoyed looks from the two girls in question.

"She's not wrong," Carlos said, cutting off Rylee and Morgan's argument before it even started, "it's not easy to survive there."

"It won't be forever and we don't have to be on the Isle very long," the Fitzherbert girl retaliated. It wasn't long after that when her eyes landed on the son of Jafar, who was staring back at her with uncertainty in his eyes. "We can handle it."

"We aren't gonna be able to talk you out of it, are we?" Jay questioned, only for the concern in his eyes to transform into disappointment when the two girls shook their heads in response.

"Then it's settled," Ben announced with the grin still plastered onto his face, "Fitz and Mac are going to the Isle."

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