Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Despite being different schools, Auradon Royal Middle occupied the same campus as Auradon Prep. With such a large castle being transformed into the primary education of the budding country, contractors along with King Beast thought it made some sense. The middle school was the precursor to Prep after all. It helped to keep all the royal children in one safe place than scattered about the land. Where they'd likely be preyed upon by paparazzi or errant villains.

There were few who argued.

Of course, the only complaints eventually had were from the children themselves. Which were naturally brushed aside. Children didn't know what they wanted, according to adults. They didn't know what was truly best for them. They could suffer the education required, thought said adults.

Except it wasn't the education that the few children held grievances against.

Teenagers minded less. Auradon Prep afforded them to enjoy life without the constant bothers of immediate royal obligations. The privacies of making mistakes. To intermingle and relax without politics and parents hanging over their shoulders.

For Auradon Middle students, it was those that were siblings that had problems. Younger siblings, stuck behind, to be more specific. The dorm systems had all the years floors apart, separated by gender and school on top of it all. Classes were in different wings, so there was no chance to meet in the halls. Nor did all siblings share common interests, therefore clubs or extra-curriculars were not viable to meet together. Not to mention there would usually be a slew of other students.

There wasn't really an opportunity to just be…family.

Slamming her locker shut, the loud reverb went unheard in the crowded hall.

'That's the third time this week they didn't meet up with me for lunch. They promised!'

With a flip of her lengthy blonde hair, Alexandria Charming shrugged her school bag onto her shoulder. Resisting to stomp the way to her afternoon classes, Alexandria pirouetted neatly on her heel and strolled to Poise and Politics.

'At least I don't have Physics to worry about yet. The Introduction to Science syllabus looked brutal this year!'

Primly, she adjusted the skirt of her dress, sweeping it underneath as she took her seat next to one of her best friends. Ashaki glanced back with a smirk. The daughter of Aladdin had long ago switched to pants.

"Do you have any clue as to what my sisters were gossiping about at lunch this time?" Alexandria questioned Ashaki as they both set out their notebooks. "They were supposed to sit with me but instead were off table hopping again."

"Again? I'm sorry Alexandria, that might be my fault," Ashaki gave a look of apology. "I'd overheard my brother talking with Akiho and Ben. The new VK's are coming today!"

Alexandria perked up.

"That is interesting news. I thought they would wait till the weekend," Alexandria reached down to her bag, pulling out her pencil case, flipping it open to prepare her supplies. "Was there an announcement I missed that said whose children were coming?"

"Daughter of Ursula, son of Captain Hook, son of Gaston," Ashaki rattled off. "…and Mal's little brother, son of Hades."

"Little brother?" The youngest daughter of Cinderella thought back to where she might've heard of another child of Hades. "Oh right, Mal mentioned him when fighting Maleficent."

"Emir told me he's going to be in our year actually."

"Oooh, do you think he'll have his dad's hair?"

"Hair or fire you mean," Ashaki giggled, "I just hope he's nice like Lady Persephone."

"That would be more important I suppose."

The pair quieted down as the teacher, Ms. Popov, arrived to begin the class.

Hadie discreetly wiped his tears away, playing them off as those of laughter from seeing his cousin faceplant as the Cerberus dragged her from the limo. Quickly, he rushed after Estelle, the canine happily preening under Mal's many pets.

Long awaited greetings were exchanged. Mal hugging her brother tightly before moving on to Uma and Harry. Even Gil received one as she was so happy to see other VK's after so long.

They had barely been on the campus when they were informally introduced to a girl named Ally. Mal had a quick word with her before sending her back on her way. Some other meeting for Mal and Ben to attend.

"I've got to go meet them in a few, so I'll just show you the dorms," Mal said to the group distractedly as she helped unload the luggage from the trunk. A beat passed, Ben and the four new VK's staring at Mal expectantly. It wasn't until Uma called her name and waved a hand in front of the purple-haired girls face that she snapped out of whatever thoughts she was tangled in.

"I'm going to head to the office," Ben chuckled, placing a light kiss on Mal's cheek. "I'll see you all at dinner."

The young king headed towards the main entrance of the school as Mal beckoned the group towards one of the wings. Harry forced Gil to lug all their bags.

"Dorms are held this way. It's split by gender, and normally years," Mal explained. "But we made an exception for Hadie; you'll be rooming with Harry and Jay for this year."

Hadie nodded happily as he walked next to Estelle. He wouldn't lie if asked, the godling was admittedly nervous. A new place, with new rules? As curious as he was, he was a tad scared. At least he'd have the Rotten Four to watch out for him.

Soon, he and Harry were left at their new room. Mal walked away with Uma, Gil and Estelle still in tow.

"Wow, this wood is so much nicer than stone walls!" Hadie jumped up and down, clapping his hands as he and Harry looked around.

The room was painted a neat dark blue, with dark wood furniture and sidings to accent the color. Harry walked over to the double windows and pulled the curtain aside. A field of green swept before them, a forest in the distance.

"We certainly aren't on the Isle anymore," Harry whistled in awe.

"Ooh, ooh, can I have this one?" Hadie clamored up the lone lofted bed excitedly. Below was an alcove fitted with a shelf, desk and closet; another bed extended lengthwise on the ground, its own desk standing neatly against the near wall.

"I don't see why not," Harry chuckled. It would save him the trouble of climbing up and down every day. "I'll take this lower one next to you then. Jay's stuff seems to be in the closet next to the other set. Hopefully I'm assuming right, and he won't mind we picked spots."

Hadie scrambled back down and grabbed his suitcase.

"True, true," he said as he opened the luggage. "Well, I'm going to set up."

"Aye, you do that little Lord."

Rolling his eyes, Hadie placed his books on the desk and pulled out his blanket. A knock came from the door.

"I'll get it," Harry stood warily. A lanky boy with glasses and a number of backpacks hung from his shoulder.

With a huff, Hadie threw his red and blue blanket onto the tall bed.

"H-hi, I'm Doug, Dopey's son. I was tasked with dropping of the new students' school supplies and class schedules," he nervously greeted. "I believe this is where Jay was moved to? I have a pair of bags for one Harry Hook and one…Hadie?"

"Aye, I be Harry Hook," the pirate loomed in the doorway, his shadowed eyes carefully examining Doug for any threats. "Lord Hades' son is busy unpacking."

"Great. Mal picked this red bag out for you and this black and blue one for, um, Lord Hadie," Doug handed over the aforementioned items. "Your names are marked on who's schedule belongs to who. Your primary subjects are marked with blue, electives such as Basic Chivalry are in red along with room number and time."

Harry neatly plucked everything from Doug's hands, the bags dangling heavily on his hook.

"Primaries are split three a day as long periods, alternating Tuesday and Thursdays or Wednesdays and Fridays, your home room is every Monday, with all primaries that day" Doug continued, seemingly unaware of the uncaring look Harry was setting upon him. "Electives are always short periods, but never Mondays—"

"I think we've got it." Harry interrupted, poking Doug in the shoulder in hopes he'd finally leave.

"Oh! Yeah, I'll just, uh, go over to find LeGume then. Mal should already have Lady Uma's things."

Doug smartly sped away as Harry began to growl somewhat reminiscent of Lord Hades. Mentioning Gil had riled the boy up, but referring to Uma so reverently by her godly title than Captain seemed to put him on edge. As soon as the dwarf's son was out of sight, Harry swung the door shut.

Lowering his own bag onto his bed, Harry extended Hadie's over. "Here ye be, little Lord."

"I swear, Harry, you better not call me that every damn time, just use my name!" Hadie exclaimed as he opened the new belongings next to his suitcase. He placed the envelopes of papers, extra books and pencil case on his desk with the rest. A wrap consisting of toiletries was tucked away in a smaller compartment.

'Hmm…No map? Do they plan to show us around and hope we get it the first time?' Hadie thought as he idly sniffed at the cypress and orange scented shampoo.

Harry chuckled as he opened his worn rucksack, placing his few clothes into the chest of drawers built into his new bed.

"I'll consider it, little Lord."

"I'm going to go explore and see if I can't find the library," Hadie wedged his suitcase in the closet's nook. He'd hang up his clothes and photos as well as look through the new stuff later. "Maybe by dinner you'll learn to not be a pest."

More laughter was all Hadie heard before he slammed the door behind him, marching down the long hallway.

'Great, I'm in a strange new world, and I've decided to wander alone,' Hadie grimaced as he trailed along whatever random path his legs decided to set upon. 'Ben should've provided a map or something since evidently no time for a tour yet. Besides, with how big this place seems, I firmly believe it'd take more than just one showing for us to have this place memorized.'

Hadie glanced around. Everything looked foreign and familiar at once.

'Everything looks the same here!' He was on a similar case of stairs that had led to the dorms, but the windows had a completely different view of the grounds. 'I still haven't run into anyone, but you'd think there would be hundreds of other kids here.'

Turning around, Hadie dashed blindly down the rest of the stairs and around a corner. Only to immediately crash into someone.

"Ow!"

'Whoops, speaking of running into anyone…'

"Honestly, shouldn't you know better than to run inside?" An indignant voice pouted.

"I'm so sorry, let me help—" Hadie stood up and offered a hand to the fallen girl. 'Mom taught me some manners at least, just never used them on the Isle, best to use them here I imagine."

His sapphire eyes met brilliant sky blue.

"Oh! You're one of the new students," the girl gently grasped his hand to stand up, fluffing her blue dress neatly. "I suppose I could forgive you this time."

"Much obliged," Hadie laughed, resisting the urge to blush. "I feel like I've been lost for ages, so I started to run around in hope to find someone."

"Well," the blonde giggled. "You've found someone. Were you lost on your way to somewhere in particular? I could point you in the right direction."

"Ah, yeah, we weren't shown around anywhere yet or given maps. I was hoping to find the library."

"Really," the blonde tilted her head, reminiscent of Hadie and Mal's own habit when it came to thinking. "I heard you VK's were more into physical action than studying. You know, hit the field than hitting books."

"I'm an odd one, even by Isle standards," he wasn't going to say expand on anything. Admitting he'd been babied on the Isle still stung. He didn't even know this new person's name yet, there was no way he'd share more information than necessary.

'Oh right, isn't that one of the rules that mom spoke about? I think I'm supposed to introduce myself first as rank demands.'

"I'm Hadie, by the way. Son of Lord Hades and Lady Persephone, God Prince of the Hellenistic Underworld." He didn't bow. Unless this girl was one of his many cousins, he likely outranked her. Godhood and all that. Though he was pretty sure he outranked any of the ones attending school. They were only part God, even if they were older.

The girl curtsied in response, a blush forming on her cheeks. "I wasn't sure if you knew protocol, but didn't want to assume and introduce myself unprompted, sorry."

"It's not really used on the Isle, but mom wanted me to learn," Hadie shrugged, raising a brow at the girl expectantly.

"Yes, it's not really required outside of classes, though some take it more seriously than others. Better safe than sorry, hence…Ah, here I am trying to be proper and I didn't even follow up appropriately! I'm Alexandria, daughter of King Kit and Queen Ella, fourth heiress of Charmington."

"Like I said, we don't really use it, and I haven't been invited to any official functions yet, since I've only just gotten to Auradon. Mom is making sure I don't have to yet," Hadie shrugged again. "So, it's not used a lot in the school?"

"Not really, but it's good practice, you know?"

"Well, drop the formality with me, point me the way to the library and we can consider each other even, yeah?"

Alexandria laughed.

"Sure," she pointed to her right. "Library is three intersections down that hall, to the right, head down two more and go left, out the double doors that go to the inner courtyard, the exact opposite entrance of that is a large foyer. The giant bronze doors that are almost always open is the library. There's computers as well as the lab next door there if you don't have one yet."

"Thanks!" Hadie began to head down the hall. "I'll see you around?"

"At some point, I'm sure," Alexandria beamed.

As the two parted, Alexandria whipped out her phone.

Ashaki, Melody, you'll never guess who I just ran into…literally.

Hadie jogged down the twisting hallways as per Alexandria's directions.

'Okay, I should be coming up on the courtyard,' Hadie paused at a pair of windowed doors, a landscape of trees and benches on the other side. 'I hope I don't forget that list of directions and get lost again.'

As he cut across the pathway, Hadie heard voices. 'By dad, great. More people. I hope they're as nice as Alexandria was.'

Approaching the far side of the court, he found the source of conversation. Two tall boys were arguing, though there was no malice in their tones. One was clearly messing around, trying to pull himself up one of the lower branches one tree while the dark haired one reclined against the trunk of another.

"Just admit it Emir, reindeer are clearly superior to tigers!" The blond struggling up the tree shouted.

"So far it looks like monkeys might be, considering Abu nor Rajah would have issue climbing that tree already."

Hadie couldn't help himself.

"You're both wrong," he puffed up, his height measly compared to the other two who looked down at him in shock.

"Cerberi are clearly the superior animal."

"Like…the three headed hound who guards the Underworld?" questioned the blond.

"Yup! There's a few variations, most descended from Echidna herself, as most are reluctant to attempt to breed the beast themselves," Hadie began to recite, recalling his dad's information sent by Echidna herself after his stint in the Underworld. "The mortal bred versions are too new to see if they have a maximum size yet, and most are put down in fear. But they have uses! Not just as guard dogs, but they make good hunters and detectives and are surprisingly easy to train. Except the original Cerberus apparently, three heads and no brain between them according to dad, at least when he was a puppy—"

Hadie continued to ramble, preening under the rapt and amused attention of the older boys. Until Emir's phone began to ring.

Quieting, the godling brightened upon hearing that the boy was speaking with Mal. He also learned the blonde's name was Akiho.

'Whoops, forgot to introduce myself again. At least now I know I don't have to really follow protocol outside of classes.'

He further warmed up to the pair as Emir advised Mal over the phone she was 'gonna have to cut the training wheels at some point.'

"I'm going to swing by Ben's office and remind him to meet with us for dinner, I'm Emir by the way," Emir introduced himself as he closed his phone, offering a hand to shake towards Hadie. "Your sister is requesting you to be brought back to your dorm now that Jay is back, so she can show you all the way to the dining hall."

"Thanks, I'm Hadie," he said, taking the offered hand. "I guess I'll see the library another time."

"It's not like it can get up and walk away," Akiho grinned, dropping from where he managed to climb into the tree. "It's just through these doors, but I'll take you down the most direct path to your dorm so you can easily find it next time."

"Much appreciated," Hadie skipped towards Akiho, the new pair waving to Emir as he headed down a different path towards Ben's office.

Akiho led them back through the doors Hadie had come through but then led them down a different hall.

"Cerberus definitely sounds cool, but I think it's an unfair comparison," Akiho exclaimed.

"How do you figure?"

Akiho looked down at the excitable younger boy.

'Didn't Mal say her brother was about Herkie's age? He's so much smaller than I'd expect for someone meant to be a full God,' he couldn't help but think. Shaking his head, he elaborated.

"They're a mythical class. A godly or magical creature. I feel like that naturally would outclass a normal animal."

"I guess that's true," Hadie hummed to himself. "I guess that means you're admitting it though! Cerberi are superior!"

Hadie laughed and raced away towards where he saw Mal standing in front of what must be his dorm room.

"One Godling," Akiho said. "Also, he knows more about Cerberi than Ben knows about dragons. Just one friend who knows things about non-mythological creatures would be nice."

"Akiho, you know about spirits and rock trolls," Jay chuckled.

"Those are not mythological creatures now, are they Jay?" Akiho asked, rolling his eyes.

"But they're not mythological if they're real, then," Hadie interrupted. "Mythological implies just that, that they wouldn't be real."

Mal quickly jumped in to derail the conversation, introducing Akiho to Uma and Harry before she took him with her to grab Gil and Carlos.

"Hadie, stay."

"Woof," Hadie shook his head.

"Good to see you, kiddo!" Jay picked up Hadie and wrapped him up in a hug.

"H-hi, Jay!" Hadie grunted, struggling against the tight squeeze.

Mal and Akiho shortly returned with Carlos and Gil in tow. Hadie happily followed their growing group, listening as they bickered with each other.

Uma, complaining about having to room with Blueberry. Mal, impressing everyone with a swift round of magic.

'Right, I can do magic here at some point…hopefully,' Hadie mused. He'd heard that Auradon was pretty strict, but exceptions were at least for those of the Gods.

The group ranted about someone dubbed Sleeping Banshee that Hadie immediately noted to keep an eye out for. If Mal didn't like someone, it was for good reason.

That, and everyone in Auradon seemed nice so far. If even they didn't like one of their own, this person could be a problem.

Hadie edged closer to Mal as they began to run into increasingly more people. He tried to keep track as names were paired with faces until the topic of what dinner would actually consist of came up. Carlos had mentioned enjoying pasta over steak.

"But Mal just said that it was steak night," Hadie said, tilting his head in confusion. "How can you have pasta if they're offering steak? I mean sure, places like Ursula's Chip Shoppe and dad's restaurant had options but that's a restaurant. After all, Dragon Hall didn't even provide lunch according to Mal."

Hadie stopped in shock as they reached the cafeteria.

'There's so many other people! I don't think there's this many even on the Isle…'

He stared nervously into the giant room, the other three new VK's swiveling their heads back and forth in alarm. Rows of tables and chairs occupied the majority of the space. Along one wall was more food than Hadie had ever seen at once.

"And…we can just pick whatever we want?" Hadie asked, his small voice breaking Akiho's heart.

"Yeah Hadie, you just go up and take what you want," Mal said.

"What are you in the mood for?" Akiho asked, Jay and Carlos having already scooped Harry and Gil from the group. "We've got pasta, steak, and it looks like we've got some fish—"

"Fish?" Hadie asked, perking up.

Mal chuckled. "Yep stormcloud, they've got fish here. Between you and me, it's even better than dad's."

"No way!"

"Try it then if you don't believe me!"

Hadie nodded and went over to the fish station.

If it weren't for his mom he'd be overwhelmed, unable to recognize the majority of the choices before him. The fish station was smaller than the others, but it didn't seem he was limited to a single plate. People around him seemed to grab one big choice and then head off to a station filled with vegetables and other sides.

The smell of lemon pulled him in. Luckily, the Isle was privy to a fair few different species of fish and he was able to pick out his favorites. Selecting a rather large looking piece of halibut resting on a bed of potatoes, squash and lemon, Hadie carefully weaved through the crowd towards the additional stations.

A pile of fruit and a drink quickly found its way onto his tray.

Then he saw the dessert station.

He was sorely tempted to pocket extra food. But his mom had made him promise to be on his best behavior. She'd also promised that he would never have to worry about food in Auradon. Hadie would wait, and put his trust with his mom.

Nabbing a bowl of flan, Hadie wandered to the table that Mal's group had sat at. Taking one of the open seats, he prepared to dig in.

"You get enough?" Mal asked Hadie.

"Uh huh," Hadie nodded. "Gods, I can't believe they've got all this food. The delivery barge must have been a good haul this month."

Akiho, Ben and Emir froze while Mal gave her brother a small smile. "Hadie, they don't get delivery barges here."

"They don't?"

"Nope. This is all food from Auradon," Mal said gently.

Hadie bit his lip and tilted his head. "But…none of the food is rotten or moldy like the delivery barges we get from Auradon. I've heard the crew talk about the barges after all Mali."

"I know, Hadie," Mal nodded and sighed softly.

Hadie poked at his food with some concern, but took a small bite of potatoes anyway. He needed to mentally prepare himself if the fish really was better than his dad's.

"So…they eat like this every day?" Harry asked, breaking the silence.

"Pretty much," Jay nodded, digging into his steak.

"Sometimes the food differs but the quality's the same," Carlos added, quickly digging into his own food.

"…do they hate us that much? They've got food like this while the food on the barges is like night and day," Hadie asked Mal, his voice once again breaking the hearts of the three Auradon kids.

He stabbed his fish, mashing it into his potatoes. The news that Auradon had had access to this kind of food all along put him off his appetite. But he knew Uma or Mal would tell his mom if he didn't eat. That, and the Isle way was still ingrained in him. He finally had access to food, Celia and Dizzy would balk if he turned it down.

Hadie tried to focus on his food. Using it as an excuse to avoid talking, he began to shovel it down.

Fortunately, more people appeared to talk to Mal, distracting the other Auradon kids from the awkward silence.

The conversation soon turned to the cousins Persephone had mentioned. Elle, was apparently dating Akiho.

"Harry, if you paid attention, Melody is Elle's little sister, ergo, another cousin," Hadie mumbled to the pirate as Mal continued to think aloud. Evidently, Mal still felt the need to keep watchers on her little brother.

Hadie rolled his eyes. "I'm a god Mali. I do have magic you know."

"Yeah, magic you barely know how to use," Mal said, shaking her head.

"I can work with Fairy Godmother, set up some time for both of you to practice your magic," Ben said.

Hadie was pleased that Ben had remembered that he would need to practice. Snickering into his food as Uma pretended to be offended that she wasn't included, he went over his dad's expectations.

His parents had sent an email to Ben detailing how they wanted Hadie to practice his magic until Persephone returned. The King had promised to forward it to Fairy Godmother who should in turn set up a safe environment for the godlings to practice.

The only time he looked up again was when Mal snapped at the now identified 'Sleeping Banshee'. She was a rather plain looking girl in Hadie's opinion. Her dark blonde hair was overly groomed and her dress, at least in his opinion, was obnoxiously pink with elaborate frills. Maybe that was just his inner Dizzy speaking, it's not like he knew anything about fashion.

'Avoid that one, and probably the rest at her table,' Hadie continued to chew as he carefully looked over each of the Banshee's cronies.

Eventually, Ben departed, Mal following shortly after. Apparently, she had been neglecting her own assignments, much to Hadie's amusement.

'Shame mom and dad would understand with how busy she is. Makes for inadequate blackmail.'

Soon, his plates were cleared. It was honestly more food than he got outside of Saturnalia!

'Ugh, I already feel so full. There looks like there's other kids going for seconds though,' Hadie wondered as he tried not to nod off. He didn't want to head back to the dorm alone, so he stayed as Jay, Harry and Uma continued to catch up.

…

"Hadie?"

…

"Come on Hads," Hadie felt someone shake him. "Harry, help me lift him up."

"Mnn, no I can…" clumsily, the godling stood from where he had ultimately rested his head on the table.

"Nah, it's alright, come here."

Hadie felt himself be hoisted onto Jay's back.

"Sorry about that, didn't realize we'd been talking for so long. Let's get you back to our dorm."

The next thing Hadie knew, Jay was lowering him onto Harry's bed.

"N-no, it's alright!" Hadie bolted up. He still had to contact his parents before he gave in to sleep. "I should brush my teeth and finish unpacking."

"Ah, probably a good idea," Jay shrugged. "We have our own bathroom, through here."

Jay led his new roommates over to the door by his bed.

"There's three shelves, one for each of us to keep our toiletries on. Sink, toilet, bath and shower. I don't really use the bath, showering is faster. You guys will love it."

Jay quickly showed them how to use everything.

"Mal's determined to get food and medicine set up first, but Ben promised to look into getting plumbing for the isle. Basic hygiene you know? This stuff is so nice!" Jay walked back out, Harry in tow. "I'll leave you to it Hadie. Curfew isn't for another couple hours, so I'm going to show Harry around to where his classes are. Mal plans to introduce you to someone in your year tomorrow who can take you to yours."

"Okay, thanks Jay," Hadie nodded, one hand on the door handle. "And thanks for carrying me back. I guess I'm not used to all the food, stomach kind of hurts."

"It is pretty rich here, took us about a week to adjust."

With that, the older boys left the dorm, leaving Hadie standing alone.

Grabbing his pajamas from his suitcase, and the toiletry basket from his desk, he settled them on the lowest shelf next to the shower.

'I guess I should try that shower if I have to take classes tomorrow. It's a good thing Pain and Panic followed mom and dad's schedule to wake us up on time. I don't think I'd be used to be waking up so early otherwise.'

The shower was initially cold to the touch. Turning it towards the heat marker that Jay had showed them, Hadie let it run as he set about to brushing his teeth.

'Jay isn't kidding, that food is so rich,' Hadie thought with a groan. 'Maybe less next time or ask what could be considered lighter. My stomach is starting to seriously hurt.'

Teeth done he turned his attention back to the shower.

He poked at the water.

'Woah.'

Peeling off his clothes, Hadie hopped into the shower.

'This. Is. AMAZING.'

He reached out for the shampoo and body wash, the scents permeating his nose as he scrubbed clean.

Although reluctant to leave, he wasn't sure if there were water limits and decided to call it. Besides, his fingertips were starting to prune.

Mom? Dad? Hadie reached out with his telepathy as he pulled on his pajama bottoms.

Hadie! How has everything been going? You were able to get food, weren't you? Did you eat enough? No one's given you any problems already, have they? Because I swear—

Persephone, let the kid give his piece. I'm sure he's just as eager to tell us as you are to know.

Hadie smiled as his parents bickered over the link. Pulling everything out from his bags, he got to work organizing everything as he told his parents about the rest of his day.

I think I ate too much actually. Stomach really hurts.

Aw sweetie, I'm sorry. What did you eat for dinner?

Mal said the fish was better than dad's! And, to be honest…it kinda was…

Hey, that's a good thing, Hadie! I've only got so much to work with, I encourage you try whatever food they have to offer at that school.

Is fish all you had to eat? His mom questioned.

No, it came with mashed potatoes, and I added some veggies and fruit. I only had one thing for dessert!

And how big was that dessert? Hades sounded amused, suspecting his son may have gotten the biggest thing he could find.

It was just a small cup of flan, dad. Hadie rolled his eyes. It was the plate of fish that was ginormous.

Ah, well it does sound like quite a bit. But that's a good thing! Just eat a bit less until your stomach can handle so much, okay, son?

Jay was telling me the same thing; I get it dad. He yawned as the last of his photos were pinned against the board hanging above his desk.

Alright, just don't be afraid to tell the others if you're having trouble, stomach or otherwise, okay, honey?

Will do, mom.

I'm sensing you're exhausted. Go ahead and get some good sleep. Hades thought with amusement.

You're going to be plenty busy with school I imagine, just don't forget to try to call us every night. Once in a while is okay if you fall asleep early, but do try.

I promise mom. Love you both.

We love you too.

Chapter Text

~ We got all the ways to be W-i-c-k-e-d ~

Jay's alarm blared through the room. Brushing his long dark hair out of his face, Jay laughed as he watched his roommates bolt straight up from their beds.

"Get used to it," Jay tapped his phone, silencing the alarm. "We really only get weekends free, and I doubt you guys want to miss food hours."

With bleary eyes, Hadie looked around. It took him a moment to remember he was in Auradon. He stayed sitting in his bed as Harry and Jay stumbled out of their own beds. Harry began ruffling through his clothes as Jay flung the main curtains to the side and opened the window.

"Nothing like fresh air to start the day," Jay breathed deeply, smiling up at Hadie as the younger boy stared out towards the forest, still blinking away his sleep.

"It's not bright outside yet."

"We're just breaking dawn, so you don't need to worry about the sun just yet," Jay said before turning to Harry. "You mind if I take the bathroom first, Harry?"

"Nah, go ahead," Harry mumbled sleepily as he pulled his night shirt off.

Hadie continued to stare out the window absentmindedly, vaguely aware of Harry emitting curses as he struggled to pull on fresh clothes.

A knock on their dorm door pulled Hadie's attention from the greenery. Carefully, he climbed down from his loft and hopped onto the floor.

"They're on backwards," Hadie mused as Harry attempted to pull pants on. With another swear, Harry fell backwards out of view, avoiding whoever was at the door, and yanked his jeans off.

"Hey sis," Hadie waved sleepily at his sister, the long arm of his grey pajama shirt flopping back and forth. He peered curiously at the small girl behind Mal.

"Hey Hads, did you sleep okay?" His sister stepped forward, pulling Hadie into a hug.

"I think so," Hadie laughed softly, wary of the other person he'd yet to be introduced to. He began to pick at the hem of his shirt. "I fell asleep pretty fast at least. I'll let you know if these Auradon mattresses aren't good enough for me after a few more days."

Mal laughed and took a step back, beckoning to the other girl. "This is Melody, one of our cousins."

"Don't worry about manners with me," Melody grinned brightly, ignoring the hand Hadie had reached out to shake hands with. She leapt onto him instead, crushing the boy in her own hug. Stepping back, Melody brushed her stray black bangs behind an ear. "Mal asked me to be your guide to Auradon since we share a good chunk of classes. On top of being family of course!"

"R-right, well, thanks, Melody."

"Go ahead and get ready, we'll go to breakfast together," Mal shooed Hadie back into his room. "And don't forget to grab your school bag and stuff to take notes with!"

With a nod, Hadie closed the door.

Now more awake, he excitedly changed clothes and prepared his backpack.

'My first day of real school!'

A groggy Harry lumbered along as Mal led him and the more awake pair of Uma and Jay to breakfast. A few feet behind them, Hadie and Melody kept pace.

His schedule in hand, Hadie listened intently as Melody explained all the classes, embellishing more on the ones the cousins would share.

"Ooh!" Melody suddenly perked up as she got towards the end of Hadie's classes. "Looks like all three of us get to share a class! Gym today, Social Studies tomorrow."

"All three of us?" Hadie asked.

"You, me, and Herkie! Each of the Big Three represented." Melody laughed. "I'll be sure to introduce you at lunch break. No one tends to make breakfast plans unless homework and tests are piling up. It's too early to use our brains efficiently until later."

Hadie laughed as well as Melody wriggled her nose at the early hours. As the group reached the cafeteria, Melody was proven right. It was noticeably quieter than dinner had been. The room was only half as full, and most of the students present were sluggish.

Melody giggled softly as she pointed towards a group of boys. One was nodding off into a bowl as another lazily stacked napkins on top of the sleepy boy's head. The last of the group dutiful ignoring the pair as he revised some classwork.

"That's Evan and Neal, sons of Rapunzel and Snow White respectively. Phil Jr is the one reading," Hadie looked at his cousin inquisitively as a blush made way across her face. "he's much nicer than his sister Audrey." Melody finished with a shrug.

"Go get some breakfast guys. I'll grab us a table," Mal waved the group off towards the buffet stations.

"What's your go to?" Melody asked, dragging Hadie by the hand towards the far side of the room. Hadie took it in stride, used to similar antics from Dizzy.

'Yup, definitely gives me Dizzy vibes.' Hadie couldn't help but think, surprising himself in how relaxed he already felt around his new cousin as he allowed her to pull him along by the hand.

He examined the station as Melody grabbed them trays.

'Right, I have to eat light if I'm going to make it through the day. Stomach isn't used to so much yet.'

He picked up a small serving of eggs along with a small bowl of oatmeal.

"I normally have pancakes if dad has the stuff for them, but I prefer to eat a lot of fruit in the morning." Hadie layered blackberries on his oatmeal and filled another bowl with slices of fresh melon. "I don't normally eat three meals a day though, and I was home schooled so I'll just start today light."

"Smart." Melody smiled; her own plate filled with what Hadie saw a sign labelled as 'waffles'. She led them to another portion of the buffet and began covering her waffles in syrup and chocolate chips.

"That's, uh, a lot of sugar."

"No parents to tell us no." Melody continued to smile brightly, pushing the bowl of chocolate chips towards Hadie. It was becoming apparent that either Auradon was just an all smiles, happy go lucky place, or Melody was just generally good natured. He was looking forward to see if she could smirk or if she would be all smiles when being devious. So far it seemed to be the latter.

"Fair point." He grinned back, spooning a few chips onto his oatmeal. No need to go overboard yet. The cafeteria was proving to provide plenty of other opportunities.

They made their way back to where Mal's group was already eating. Gil and Carlos had joined them, the son of Gaston already through a few varieties of eggs. The son of Hades and granddaughter of Poseidon took the seats at the far end to quietly continue their conversation about classes.

"Evan will be in math with us, he was the one stacking napkins on Neal's head. After that we've got gym, and then lunch," Melody began to prattle as she cut up her waffles. "I'll introduce you to Herkie, Evan and our friends then. Science is your only afternoon primary with the rest being electives, and then Wednesday and Friday are the other half. Mondays, since you missed yesterday is everything except electives in short periods plus homeroom."

Hadie nodded along as he dug in, relishing the freshness of the soft melon. It was pretty much as that Doug guy had said yesterday.

"Here," Melody continued, pulling stapled groups of paper from her bag. "Homeroom gives us weekly assignments at once for all the classes instead over the week, due the following Monday. Only projects are assigned in class."

Hadie wiped his hands on a napkin, taking the booklet from Melody. Flipping through it he was reminded of the format his parents had set for him. He carefully slipped it into a binder within his backpack below the table.

"Thanks." He said, his free hand covering his mouth as he continued to chew.

Melody gave him an apologetic look. "Ask one of the boys later for a rundown before you've got Basic Chivalry tomorrow. It's more of a learn by doing class than actual explaining, so I'd go to them so you're not blindsided going in."

"That bad?" Hadie swallowed with a grimace.

"Well," Melody glanced at the other VK's wolfing down their food. "Not as bad as the others, but since you're technically prince you've got more of the pressures on you."

"It's definitely something my mom wants to me to put more work into. She wants to introduce me to the other Gods when she returns."

"Oh, sheesh that's a whole other monster then. Let's just get you through basics, and then Herkie and I can work with you on Godly events, official or just family stuff so you aren't working on it last minute when Aunt Persephone gets back."

"What's Herkie like?" Hadie softly asked.

Melody looked up from her food, a flash of surprise quickly clearing from her face.

"He's excited to meet you, considering you're the only boy his age in the family. Outside of his older brother, Hyllus, at least."

"I can relate to that, no offense. But there's no boys around my age either that I could hang out with on the Isle." Hadie didn't count Regi, if only because they could rarely see each other. "My closest friends there are girls too."

"None taken. There's definitely seems to be a higher girl to boy ratio for our year. If not the entire school. Luckily we aren't a total patriarchy anymore."

'Ah, there it is.' Hadie warily eyed the girl, her face clearly daring him to praise the thought that men should be in control still. 'She's totally capable of some sarcasm or pretension. Do I still say something? I should say something.'

"Yes," he said, feeling put on the spot, "I probably shouldn't say such things around Herkie when we meet, but looking at Zeus, and even some of my dad's choices, show that men can be stupid even as Gods. Don't even get me started on Gaston. Mortals aren't perfect, and the immortals shouldn't be considered so either."

"It's clear that mistakes can be made no matter how old, we just have to be willing to learn from them," Melody laughed. "Luckily we can learn from our elders still making them instead of ourselves. And don't worry about Herkie, he and Macaria are pretty open to admitting Uncle Zeus' problems or educating themselves on them."

"Macaria?"

"Ah, Uncle Herc has three kids. Hyllus, who is in his last year, Macaria in your sister's year, and Herkie is in our year," she sipped at her orange juice. "As far as I can tell, Hyllus is the only one who is as ignorant as his dad about Zeus' indiscretions. He's the only one I'd be wary of unless you have backup. Aunt Meg won't openly share, but she's always willing to education Hercules and their kids if it comes up."

"Yeah, I'd imagine she struggles with balancing her mortal education of 'uh oh here comes Zeus', and staying on the good side of the in-laws."

"Just try not to full on bash in front of Herkie without explaining where you're coming from. We don't need more Zeus versus Hades hostilities." Melody stood from her seat, swinging her bag over her shoulder and taking up her empty tray. "Clearly the older gods don't know how to get rid of a grudge."

"I don't know, some grudges sound acceptable to me." Hadie said, shrugging as he pulled his own bag over his shoulders. "No honest," he protested as Melody gave him on odd look as he waved a farewell to Mal and Co., "you probably eavesdrop on your parents too sometimes, don't deny it! Sometimes you can tell they're not telling you everything and on purpose or not you over hear them saying more than they want to, around you."

"Okay fair," Melody mused as she led them to the first class. "How willingly are you to share insights into the dreaded Lord Hades' reasons to nearly kill his family and overthrow his brother?"

Hadie fell silent, mulling things over. "I only overheard part of it, and I was really young." He paused, eyeing anyone who was close enough to listen is as they moved through the crowded hall. Lowering his voice, Hadie continued, "I don't know how much I should say, but I know dad regrets what he did to Hercules. He just has no qualms with trying to take down Zeus though. Also, we've only just met. I don't know how much I can trust you."

"Well, you don't seem too bad yourself," Melody giggled as she led the pair into a room. "Your mom is also super nice so there's proof your dad can't be a total villain if they're together. There's plenty of reasons why Zeus shouldn't still be King from what I've heard from Grandma Amphitrite. Grandpa Po-Po tends to let bygones be bygones so he rarely shares his gripes. He does like sharing the time he caught Zeus in a net to over throw him though."

"Wait, Uncle Poseidon overthrew Zeus once too?" Hadie hissed as others began to fill seats around them. He and Melody took seats towards the back, ignoring the whispers that followed them. "What was his punishment then?" Hadie cursed the lack of privacy so he could jot things into his journal. Ideas and questions raced through his head.

"Your dad hasn't mentioned anything?"

"He actually likes Poseidon," Hadie shrugged, pulling out the notebook he'd labelled for math.

"You and I can take a weekend and swap stories. Social Studies has an occasional Olympus segment, but the school's not about to piss our family off."

"I look forward to it." Hadie smirked before turning his attention towards the teacher. He quickly jotted his thoughts down on a random page to rip out later. For now, it was time to do the best he could learning to make his parents proud.

Extending a leg behind, Hadie deepened his stretch. Eyes shielded with sunglasses yet again, he watched as his classmates huffed passed him.

Constantly climbing the Lost Revenge had proved to be healthier exercise than whatever most kids in Auradon seemed to be getting. He had been the first to finish the mile run, somewhere under seven minutes. Most of the others were just finishing up their third lap, beginning their fourth and final.

Hadie switched legs and waved as Melody jogged past him, good-naturedly sticking her tongue out at him. A girl with warm, tanned skin ran next to her, eyeing him curiously, turquoise ribbons woven through her braid, bouncing steadily behind. On the other side of the darker girl was Alexandria, her hair shining gold in the sun.

'Does she wear anything not blue?' Hadie idly thought as he finished his last stretch as directed by the coach. Melody clearly favored peach tones, her shirt the same color as the dress she had been wearing before class. 'Though I guess I'm not one to talk, we all seem to wear similar color themes as our parents. Mom kind of enforces that considering not much can go with my blue hair.'

A breeze caused him to suddenly sway. Chills running up his spine.

'Is…is the world spinning?'

He moved towards the trees and took a seat on the grass within the shade. The grass tickled the back of his knees as he leaned back against a tree trunk. The fresh air made his nose twitch, the bright sun, even with sunglasses, combined together to begin building a headache. The godling entangled his fingers with the grass, ripping them upward. The smell of dirt puffed into the air.

Taking a deep breath, Hadie lowered his head between his legs. The scent of the freshly turned dirt helping clear his mind from the overload of new experiences.

'Deep breaths.' He tried to ignore the shakes. 'I can't tell if I'm cold or if I just went to hard when I'm not used to this new environment. So many different smells, and the brightness doesn't help. Still, could be cold. Middle of winter and they have us running in shorts and t-shirts!'

He was so caught up in his breathing that he missed the footfalls of someone approaching. It was the jacket falling on his shoulders that finally caught his attention.

"Memo to you, bring a light jacket for post run, some water and maybe a couple of energy bars." A boy lowered himself onto the grass next to Hadie, offering the exact water and food he had spoken of.

"Sound advice, thanks." Hadie sat up and took the offered bottle and snack. "You don't mind if I drink from the same thing?"

Mirth appeared in the boy's indigo eyes. "I don't mind sharing with family."

Hadie choked mid drink.

"Y-you're Herkie?"

"Greetings, Cousin." Herkie pulled the headband out of his thick brown hair, bangs flopping into his face. "I hope we get along."

Smiling, Hadie returned the water. "I hope we do too." He returned to softly chewing the bar, relishing the bursts of lemon. "Thanks for the jacket, I couldn't tell if I was cold or what. This place is so different than I'm used to."

Herkie gave him a queer look. "Is the Isle that different?"

This time Hadie's shiver wasn't from the cold.

"Hey, don't worry about it." Herkie shrugged. "We can just say we haven't unlocked that level of friendship yet."

"Uh, sure? Whatever that means?"

"You know, like in video games! Level up our friendship and unlock new interactions?"

"I don't know what…video games…are?"

A few minutes later, Melody found her two cousins' enrapt with Herkie's phone. Herkie waxing on about different games and the injustice at the apparent lack of technology on the Isle.

Hadie shrugged when Melody joined Herkie in trying to get him to open up about the Isle again.

"It's supposed to be a prison," he said as they headed to the lockers as class ended. "We have some electricity, but technology is a luxury commodity that the villains aren't worthy of."

The Auradon Godlings shared a look, but let the subject drop as they split into the different locker rooms.

But as the boys changed from their gym clothes into their regular wear, it didn't slip Herkie's notice that anyone paying attention could clearly see his younger cousin's ribs.

Hadie preened under the attention of Melody's friends. Questions and stories were swapped. Anytime the godling began to feel uncomfortable, everyone seemed able to read the mood and easily transition to something else.

He'd first been afraid of getting whiplash, as he was pulled back and forth to be introduced to so many people at once. Evan, who had a mischievous streak a mile wide—he and Hadie already had a pickpocket game going between the two—was overall very laid back and quiet. Neal was sharp, but lived by 'work smarter, not harder'. Ashaki was boisterous and full of gossip, though not with ill intent. Phil—as he needn't be reminded that he was the Junior since his father wasn't around who would've had 'King' attached, and the kid preferred the nickname versus full name anyways—was just as full of smiles as Melody, a laugh always waiting to burst from his lips. Alexandria "Don't you dare call me Alex" glided along, arms looped with Melody as the two girls directed the conversation through a variety of topics.

The son of Hades didn't even notice the stares from other students. They were in their own little bubble, laughing as they headed to lunch together. A wealth of information that Hadie greedily absorbed until they arrived at the cafeteria.

"Come with me, Hads," Herkie looped an arm around his smaller cousin's shoulders, steering him towards the plethora of meals. "You probably haven't had a chance to look at the meal schedule yet, but today is a rarity!"

The two boys' mouths began to water at the buffet of Greek food before them. Hadie barely noticed his feet move as the smell of lamb pulled him forward by the nose.

"How rare?" Hadie stared with unblinking eyes, as if it would disappear if he looked away. Tzatziki and spanakopita quickly made its way onto his tray. How tempted he was to pile everything on, if only his stomach wouldn't protest!

'Though even if my stomach wasn't an issue, I don't think I could out eat Herkie,' Hadie thought as he nervously eyed Herkie's growing pile of food. He couldn't even see the tray anymore.

"Only once every couple of months," Herkie lamented. "There are students from all sorts of backgrounds, so they try to cycle everything. It's pretty standard fare for the most part, but once a week a meal is dedicated to specific cuisines as requested by students."

"What's your favorite outside of Greek?" Hadie asked as his cousin led them to yet another station. There was some sort of prepackaged meals. The godling tried not to audibly gasp as Herkie balanced his hefty tray on one hand and began to shovel a few of the packages into a pocket with the other. "We're allowed to take food out of here?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, that's what this stuff is for," Herkie grabbed a few more things and slipped them into Hadie's pockets. "If you take hot food out, you just have to remember to drop stuff off by the kitchens for wash up, the prepackaged stuff is for snacks or making in the dorms. We're all busy, growing students so you never know when we might get hungry. You can grab food from the kitchens too, even outside of meals. They have baskets for students, especially for study groups. It's a privilege though, we have to be responsible enough to clean up after ourselves."

"Do you make it your thing to know all this?" Hadie looked on with amusement, his own hand reaching out to grab a few items that nibbled at his curiosity. "I just feel like I'm seeing the beginnings of a pattern with you already. Food everywhere."

Herkie's ears turned red. "I burn through calories fast, and my dad, now that he's retired from heroism, focuses on nutrition. We're mortal despite our godly inheritance, so we need to eat a lot, but keep health in mind."

"My favorite outside of Greek is Middle Eastern, by the way. There are a few things similar, like a variation of dolmades, tons of flavor and goat." He and Hadie headed over to where the rest of the group had sat. "Though Zephyr hates it. I personally think it's delicious. Mom and I eat it just to bother Philoctetes."

"I'll have to try it then," Hadie grinned. "Who's Zephyr?"

"Talking about the son of Esmeralda and Phoebus?" Ashaki asked as the godlings took seats.

"Yeah, I was telling Hadie how delicious goat is."

Ashaki sighed longingly, "Yeah, it's one of my favorites too. Zephyr prefers to hang out with Qullana and Keme."

"Again, who?" Hadie rolled his eyes as he began to dig into his lunch. "I'm going to unfortunately need a run down of everyone you mention for a while."

"You're in luck, I know everyone and just about everything that gets spoken in these halls," Ashaki smirked. "Qullana is one of Kuzco's kids, she's got an older sister and a twin brother. Keme is the son of Pocahontas. His siblings are too young to attend."

"Yeah, Ashaki is an unrepentant gossip," Alexandria laughed.

"Ah, one of my best friends on the Isle is like that." Hadie smiled softly, trying to keep the pain of missing his friends down.

"Ooh, anyone we would know of?" Evan leaned forward, quickly recoiling in disgust as an elbow landed in his mashed potatoes.

"Dizzy knows pretty much everyone and knows all sorts of things she shouldn't, just like Ashaki here. Mainly because her grandmother's shop is in neutral territory and everyone passes through." He glanced at Alexandria from the corner of his eye, his voice soft. "She's Drizella's daughter, actually. Though Celia, that's Facilier's daughter, says that Dizzy is actually Anastasia's but bore her for her sister since I guess she couldn't have children."

"I-I have a cousin?" Alexandria whispered. The others stayed silent. "Mom sometimes wonders about Anastasia, as she was the nicer step-sister. But otherwise, my parents were both only children. We don't…we don't have a lot of family."

The clinks of silverware and the hum of the hungry crowd surrounded their quiet bubble.

Hadie swallowed the bite he took as Alexandria had been talking.

"If you're interested, I can ask if she'd like to exchange letters. Dizzy's already on Mal's bring over list," Hadie thought aloud, "you can get to know each other ahead of time."

"I'd like that," Alexandria gave him a small smile.

"So, Hadie," Phil picked up the conversation, hoping to move things to safer topics, "Melody was saying you don't have a language course yet. Seeing as those are part of primary subjects, have you decided what you'll take?"

"Yeah, you're already months behind, I hope you've looked at the options," Evan smirked. "I'd be happy to tutor you in German."

"Nah, join me in Arabic!" Ashaki pouted. "It's incredibly pretty!"

Hadie looked back and forth as the others suggested languages. His mom had explained he'd have to take something. The other VK's had been excused from that requirement as they'd entered the education system so late.

"Melody and I take Greek," Herkie whispered as he leaned towards Hadie. "I think her dad's side primarily knows Danish, so she never learned it at home. Atlantica primarily uses English too since it's the Ocean Realm's trade hub.

"What about your parents? They teach you any?" question after question popped to life in Hadie's head. "Atlantica? I thought it was Atlantis?"

"Hold your horses," Herkie laughed. "Mom and Dad primarily use English at home, since that's the standard for Auradon, even though the rulers selected are French. I know a spattering of words, but to be honest, they like to use it so they can talk in secret," Herkie rolled his eyes as he continued to speak. "Atlantica is further North, near the British Isles, that Triton inherited to rule. Atlantis, is primordial influenced and was lost so long ago after Atlas was imprisoned that it's considered its own sovereignty. Completely different language evolved too."

"Ahhh," Hadie mulled things over. Across from them Melody winked as she continued to eat, letting the rest argue about the benefits of each language. Clearing his throat, Hadie spoke up.

"I've already decided I'm going to take Greek, you guys."

There were huffs all around as everyone returned to eating.

"Mom looked at the classes and made recommendations already. I was taught basics growing up, and my parents would rather I not be too far behind on anything."

Swinging an arm back around Hadie's shoulders, Herkie grinned. "It'll be great having you stick around, Hadie. It's just the 100 series, you'll be caught up in no time."

"Plus, it'll help with whatever magic you're learning," Melody interjected. "We're at the age we learn certain introductory spells or elemental based on which realm our family represents. You can study teleportation with us when we go to Olympus this Summer!"

"Well, when mom comes back, I'll see what she has planned. Outside of my dad's fireball lessons, I only know some of the theories." Hadie wasn't sure if he wanted to be committed to anything just yet. Though he was interested. Hades might've agreed with Persephone to let their son make his own choices, but that didn't stop him wondering what either would think if he just galivanted off to Olympus.

It felt too much like betraying his dad.

The jingle signaling the end of the lunch period pulled the godling from his pondering.

"Go on with Alexandria," Melody said as she stood. "She's the only one of us who has science this period."

"Sounds good," Hadie moved the snacks Herkie had hoarded for him into his backpack and headed out. He found Alexandria waiting for him at the main doors as he dropped his empty tray at a cleanup station.

"You have no clue how happy I am to have you in science with me," Alexandria began as Hadie followed her towards their class. "Obviously I know my classmates, but I'm not close to any of them. And between you and me? I'm terrible with science. My partner and I have gotten through labs, but when it comes to homework and tests, we are absolutely lost."

"And you're hoping I'm good at it?"

Alex paused then sighed. "Oh, sorry if I made that sound as if I expected your help. I just meant having a friend. I don't think Aaron has a problem with me, but outside of classwork, he tends to not speak with me. No one else will pair with either of us since we're the worst in the class."

"I believe you," Hadie tried not to laugh too much at the girl's distress. "You're actually in luck, science is probably my best class. Granted I'm home schooled, but mom swears she taught me with Auradon's curriculum."

"Well, if the teacher doesn't let us partner, could you help me study?"

"Depends, what's your best subject?" He was glad that she already considered him a friend already, but there was no way Hadie was going to trust that quickly. He wasn't about to drop everything the Isle taught him just because he was in Auradon now. For now, this needed to be treated like a trade.

"English, Poise and Politics, and dance." Alexandria spoke after a bit. "Poise and Politics is the girls equivalent of the Chivalry series. Dance is paired to increase grace and is a staple at most major functions."

"We'll have to wait and see on English," Hadie tilted his head in thought. "I've never really had to write stuff beyond comprehension. But…yeah, Melody was telling me to talk to the guys about getting help for Chivalry."

He followed Alexandria into a pristine looking room. White tiles and long black tables paired with plastic chairs neatly filled the area, a few students already milling about.

"You must be Hadie," a plainly dressed, young woman approached Hadie. Her brown hair tied back, though her most interesting feature was the odd lens assortment goggles perched on her brow. She chuckled nervously as one lens swung loose, magnifying one of her bright grey eyes.

"I am, ma'am." He greeted politely.

"Oh, no need for that. Ms. Gwen will do, I'm the science teacher for Auradon Middle." She explained with a small curtsey.

"And you know there's no need to curtsey, Ms. Gwen," Alexandria giggled. "Not in the school environment."

"Old habits die hard, you know," Ms. Gwen blushed. "I was a maid in Enchancia before I pursued science," she added for Hadie's benefit.

"Ms. Gwen, would it be possible for Alexandria and I to be partnered? She's the only one I've met in this class, and I'm already comfortable with her."

"Oh, but of course! For the most part, I let everyone choose who they work with. Though today I was going to ask, Aaron and Tyler had asked to partner from now on, and that also leaves Qullana without a partner. Do you mind being a trio, since that leaves us with an odd number for the class?" Ms. Gwen gestured them towards a girl quietly sitting at the front corner of the class, busily writing in a notebook.

"Not at all, Ms. Gwen, thank you!" Alexandria tugged Hadie towards the daughter of Kuzco, forcing him into the seat next to her.

"Hey, Ana, looks like Hadie and I are your partners now."

Hadie shyly greeted her with a wave as deep, black eyes stared at him in surprise.

"Oh, nice to meet you," Qullana murmured, she tucked her pen into her red headband, gold earrings swaying as she nodded at them. "I hope we work well together."

Breath laborious, Hadie gulped down the water bottle Herkie had given him at dinner. Earlier, the headmistress, Fairy Godmother, had taken Hadie aside after classes to show him the room he was cleared to use for magic practice.

Precautions and rules laid down, he was allowed to experiment outside of the directions of his father, but would only receive one warning if anything went too far. If it happened again, he would be limited to those directions.

He'd gone through the exercises. Checked the theory. A few fireballs later, he'd already lost control.

'I never realized…I can feel the magic so much more without the Barrier. It's overwhelming."

He was thankful now for the meticulous boundaries his dad had the school lay. Each blaze had grown larger with each attempt, before he'd fallen to his knees, exhausted. The fire had fallen from his hands and was immediately dissipated by the wards.

'Might have to stick to theory again for a while. Using magic will have to be kept to small hurts for now.'

The doctor appointment his mom had briefed him on was this weekend. Asclepius would see him personally, to check Hadie's godly development. Maybe he knew could help with the influx of magic.

He thought about sweet Dizzy, talking the socks off anyone in her vicinity.

He thought about Celia, curious and chaotic, but never looking to hurt anyone who didn't deserve it.

He thought about his parents, his dad's minions who were the closest things he had to Uncles on the Isle, and Virgil, all trying to provide for him the best they could.

He thought about the budding relationship with his cousins and all the new people he could already feel becoming fast friends.

"I'm not going to let this opportunity pass by."

Hadie made one last attempt to control a small flame, just like when he first began learning when he was five.

The vomit luckily missed his new shoes.

Good thing Fairy Godmother had ensured cleaning supplies to be kept in one corner.

Chapter Text

Building after building flew by, bits of green fauna a blur as a chauffeur, along with King Ben himself, escorted the latest group of VK's to Asclepius General. Behind the limo was a blacked-out van. Guards, to ensure everyone's, but mainly the King's, safety while in public. Or maybe to keep an eye on the Villain Kids.

Either way, Hadie didn't care.

He was too busy excitedly watching the scenery as it rolled by, nose grazing the cold glass of the window. Steam spread from where his breath hit, a doodle of a smiley face proudly making its home in the condensation. There were so many things he'd never seen before, different cars, different buildings, actual plants. Hadie had made it his personal project to research plants before his mom came back for winter. Something he hoped to bond more over. Unfortunately, since it was nigh winter, he'd have to settle for the library instead of hands-on research.

Across from him sat Harry who was being scolded by Uma. The pirate had been apprehensive enough when Persephone had informed the group they'd be going to the hospital. Now, he was furiously sulking.

"If they want to draw blood, they'll have to beat me in a swordfight! I'll bleed by the blade! I refuse to just give up my blood!"

"Oh, for the Gods sake, Harry, I hate to say this, but can't you be more like Gil?" Uma finally snapped. "He's going along with this just fine! Aunt Steph said they're to help us be healthy like we should've been all along, not hurt us!"

Hadie looked on with amusement as Harry's face colored purple. The older boy couldn't decide if he should burst from being told to copy Fish for Brains, or that the idiot might be braver than Harry. Before he could say anything, Ben spoke up from his seat between Gil and Hadie.

"We're here!"

Hadie glanced back out the window and felt a trickle of trepidation tingle up his spine.

Asclepius General was an intimidating building. Gleaming white stone made up the outer façade, uniform windows reflected the bright sun. Various trees stood strong in isolated areas of dirt; the rest of the area was layered in concrete. The most central tree had a large snake lazily hanging from a branch.

The chauffer stepped around the vehicle after parking and opened the door. Hadie climbed out, ever thankful for the sunglasses. A single guard followed their group up to the hospital, the rest staying behind with the vehicles.

They followed the path through the small gardens, passing the silver snake.

It lifted its head and gazed at Hadie, red eyes unblinking, as King Ben led their little group through the massive front doors. Hadie's head turned as far as it could go as he followed, only turning away when the snake untangled itself and disappeared up into the tree.

"Hello King Ben, we've been expecting you." A young man decked in scrubs stood behind a giant desk. He brushed lime green hair behind his pointy ears and bowed slightly towards the group. "Am I correct to presume these are the intended patients?"

"Yes, um…"

"Antler, sir, I'm one of Asklepios' children." The demigod smiled. "Please, follow me. We made sure to keep things quiet in preparation for this day. We have a private waiting room ready for your group."

'If only Mal's link wasn't muted still,' Hadie thought with some worry. 'Too bad she had that meeting too, so she couldn't come with. She'll be upset to have missed this.'

While Gil closely followed Ben and Antler down a hall, between them and Hadie was Uma and Harry. Holding hands.

'Okay, more like Uma is forcing Harry to follow with, but they're still holding hands!'

"Feel free to take a seat anywhere within. You will be the only people apart from myself and my father to enter here." Antler opened a brightly lit room; comfortable couches lined the walls. A small tray with food and drink sat on a lone table. "I will return shortly to escort Lord Hadie to see our specialist."

As Antler left, Hadie looked around worriedly. "I'm going first?"

"I can go first if you'd prefer Hadie," Uma said. "We're going first because we have to see Asklepios as well as the general practitioner. That way Harry and LeGume aren't waiting forever while we see both."

"I suppose that's okay then," Hadie muttered. He wished he'd had more of a warning though.

Grabbing one of the cups of water, Hadie took a seat by the window.

"You'll like the GP, I promise." Ben said. "I talked to Will just to make sure you guys got someone we can trust."

"And just how do we know can trust this 'Will' and whomever?" Uma said, rolling her eyes in exasperation.

"Will's uncle is one of the greatest inventors ever, for one. You can trust who they sent because it's their purpose."

"Purpose?" Uma's brows knitted in confusion.

"Lord Hadie?" Antler returned, clipboard in hand, interrupting whatever Uma intended to say.

"Trust me, please, Hadie," Ben smiled at the godling. "You'll like them."

Giving Ben a hesitant nod, Hadie placed his half drunken cup down and followed Antler down another hall.

"I present Lord Hadie, here for a full examination." Hadie watched as Antler placed a blue rectangle onto a glowing board. A light passed back and forth underneath, a series of different beeps emanating from the nearby computer.

"There's…no one here?" Hadie said with concern.

Antler smiled, "He'll be here as soon as I shut the door. Patient confidentiality is taken very seriously here."

'Is he supposed to teleport in here or something? I thought I was supposed to see the general care doctor first?' Hadie wondered as he watched the nurse close the door. Suddenly, more beeps began to sound behind him. Turning, Hadie watched as the red box that had been plugged into the computer open up, a large white something expanding.

"Hello. I am Baymax. Your personal healthcare companion."

'Oh. I thought DeVil had been joking when he'd started talking about robots.'

"So…how does this work?" Hadie said cautiously, trying to resist the urge to back away. He was braver than that. Ben said it would be okay, and Mal trusted Ben.

"It is a simple, non-invasive procedure in which I use my built-in analyzer to scan your body."

"Y-you don't need to draw blood or anything?"

"No, my scan will tell me everything I need to know." The round being slowly stepped towards the godling. "It is against my programming to willingly hurt you. I am even designed to be 'huggable'. Would you like a hug while I perform the scan?"

"Um, sure?"

A low hum vibrated through the soft fabric of Baymax as Hadie was engulfed into a hug. Hadie lost himself in surprise at how soft and warm the material was. A few seconds later, Baymax pulled away.

"Would you like a lollipop, while I go over your results with you?"

"Yes, please!" Hadie said excitedly. 'Wow that was fast. And as if I'd turn down candy!'

"My initial record shows you are part of the classified God archives. I am not privy to such information. On a rudimentary level, I am able to identify your most physical attributes that are similar to the average mortal." Baymax began, "You are: entering prepubescent stages and are underweight for your age. Malnutrition is onset, but reversible. I have analyzed your physical structure and have prepared a nutritional direction for Lord Asklepios to follow up with you to ensure counteractive measures are taken where necessary."

The robot paused and looked down. "What color or flavor lollipop would you like?"

"Uh, blue?" Hadie took the offered lollipop and ripped the wrapper off the candy, popping it into his mouth. 'Huh, got a nice tartness to it.'

"I have collected all information that I could from my scan and it is now in your protected records in which only these people have access too," Baymax continued, a screen popping up in front of him to display various faces. "Lord Asklepios will be the one to interpret my findings as he is trained in both mortal and godly physiology. Do you have any questions, concerns or further need of service?"

Hadie frowned as he gazed at the people who would have access to his records. Mal had already told him that their mom had included Ben as a precaution. He'd never seen photos of his grandmother or his 'one acceptable' uncle though. Now that he thought about it, it was probably a good thing he was seeing them now. In case any of them tried to approach them before his mom gave the okay. His eyes kept returning to the first of the photos. It was not a flattering photo of his father to say the least.

'This has to be dad's mugshot…Or Auradon propaganda'

"Is it possible to suppress information from those who have access? I haven't met my grandmother Demeter or Uncle Poseidon yet, and I don't feel comfortable with them having the ability to see my health records." Hadie shook his head, trying to ignore the uncomfortable feeling in his stomach. He'd bring up the photo another time…he was doubtful his parents would have ever wanted Hadie to see his dad in such a state, but he'd still have to bring it up for it to be changed.

An 'X' appeared over the aforementioned Gods' faces. "That is an acceptable request. They were included automatically as guardians in your parents' absence, but your mother has entered stipulations."

"Thank you, Baymax. I have no further questions at this time." Hadie gave a stiff nod, unsure if he were to wait for Asklepios or what to do next.

"I will inform the nurse on duty that you are ready for your next appointment. Please conclude with the phrase 'I am satisfied with my care.'"

"I am satisfied with my care." Hadie beamed as he continued to suck on his lollipop, watching with interested as the robot returned to his compact red container. A short moment later, Antler returned.

"All concluded?" He asked, stepping over to where he had left the blue rectangle on the computer scanner.

"I guess so."

"Great, I'm going to take you to my father's private wing now. It's small, but exclusive to receive those with godly blood." Antler beckoned Hadie through the door. "We've only the one Baymax on site, so we have to let the others use the room."

They headed further into the hospital; the plain white tiles changed to have additional gold patterns.

"The only entrance is through the peristylium," Antler said as he pulled open an ornate door of more gold. "An inner courtyard; we grow our plants needed for brews and ointments here." The demigod further explained. "There's a special one that deters anyone without enough godly blood from being able to snoop. Puts 'em straight to sleep!"

"What quantifies as 'enough' godly blood?" Hadie said, using his hands to signify quotation marks. He took in plant after plant as they passed through the so called peristylium. Statues of different gods, though human sized, struck imposing figures as water poured around them, hydrating the plants. Hadie recognized a few thanks to his father's chess set.

"About five generations seems to be when godly inheritance no longer appears in bloodlines." Hummed Antler, pausing at a large archway. "Here we are."

The first thing Hadie noticed was the soft silver light. Then he noticed the intense red eyes.

"Aren't you the snake that was outside?" Hadie asked, dumbfounded as he stared at the god before him.

The god in question laughed good naturedly, purple curls falling out of place as he threw his head back. Asklepios stood, his chiton of silver and gold fluttering around him.

"Ἀληθῆ λέγεις." Asklepios chuckled some more. Hadie couldn't help but smile at the familiar phrase. Returning the smile, Asklepios turned to his son.

"Thank you, Antler, please proceed with Lady Uma."

Hadie looked around the room as Antler moved to depart. Apart from the desk Asklepios had sat at, there was a couple other chairs and an elevated table-bed hybrid.

"Go on and hop up on the examination table, Lord Hadie." The god of healing motioned towards the hybrid Hadie had been ogling.

"Why are you calling me Lord? You called Uma a Lady too, don't you outrank us as a grown god?" Hadie asked as he hopped up onto the aforementioned table. He frowned as the cover crinkled noisily.

The god smiled, though this time Hadie could tell something was off about it. It didn't quite reach Asklepios' eyes. "You will find you very much outrank me, young Prince. I do outrank Lady Uma, however, but as I treat this as a professional environment, anyone with a title will be acknowledged as such no matter where they rank."

"Ah, well, I don't care much for being called Lord. If permission matters, I wouldn't mind if you just called me Hadie in private like this."

This time the god's smile was real. "I appreciate that, Hadie. That's very kind of you." Asklepios returned to his seat at the desk and typed away, pulling up the record's Baymax had compiled. "In private like this is probably for the best. You'll find very quickly that the Olympians are quite haughty and like to keep the status quo."

Hadie tilted his head in confusion, but Asklepios didn't elaborate. "You sound like you don't like the Olympians. But aren't you one of them?"

"My father is one," Asklepios hummed as he continued to scroll through Hadie's charts. He stood once more, approaching Hadie, another sad smile pulling at his lips. "But I was not born a god. I was a demigod in my youth."

"So does that mean healing was your way of being a hero to become a god?"

"I had no intention of becoming a god. I'm sure others will fill you in at some point. Your father is very familiar with my story, in fact." his silver aura brightened around his hands. "If you'd rather hear my story from myself, you'll have to wait for the next time we meet. The Baymax scan is swift, and Lady Uma should not be left waiting. Now, please lay flat along the table so I may perform my own scans."

Loud crinkling echoed around the room as Hadie scooted further back, lying his head against the table. He tried to relax as the silver began to encase his vision, feeling slightly cool against his skin.

"Okay, I'm going to need you to take big, deep breaths for me. This might feel like a pinch, or a lot of pressure that you aren't used to. It'll just be for a few seconds for each run over." Asklepios began to explain, "What I am doing will allow me to see your aura and how your magic is developing. I'm not sure how things were under the barrier, but there should be a correlation with your magical stage along with your physical development. Do you mind answering a few questions for me?"

"Go ahead." Hadie took a deep breath.

"Did you, or were you able to perform magic under the Barrier? Don't worry, this is all confidential as Baymax disclaimed."

"Yeah, dad showed me how to control fire, though we weren't able to do much. My fireballs were only a few inches large before I came to Auradon."

"Ah, and that leads me to my next question. Here in Auradon, have you noticed any differences with your magic?"

"I-it's too much," Hadie exhaled. He took gulped another breath. "The first few fireballs I conjured were too big for me. I felt so exhausted after. I tried a tiny one just to practice control and I threw up."

"You can sit up, that's all I need to know at this time," Asklepios' hands dimmed, he moved one to Hadie's back, helping the godling sit up. "That sounds about normal from what I know, nothing to worry about. Just follow and adjust to your father's plan as you feel comfortable. I do advice keeping that cautious approach as your magic will grow exponentially till I see you when your mother returns."

"What do you mean? I'm the only god to have been born behind the Barrier, I doubt you have much research to go off of."

Asklepios settled back in his chair, rolling it over closer to Hadie. Leaning back, he pulled out his phone and sent a text out. "Just letting Antler know to give us a little bit more time before he collects you and then brings Lady Uma in."

"There are a few instances similar to yours. None, but two share the exact same circumstances as others, and that is because Lord Hades and Lord Poseidon shared the same fate." Hadie's eyes grew wide as the god of medicine spoke. His dad partially joked or otherwise ranted about the time he eaten as a child, but he was never given much explanation. "They grew up suppressed in a sense, though not as deliberate as the Barrier. As far as I know, Lord Hades and Lord Poseidon developed relatively normal and are as powerful as needed to rule their realms. Another case, is Lord Ares."

Hadie leaned forward, excitement obvious on his face. He was always down for new stories.

"Lord Ares wasn't a newborn when he had been imprisoned like you or your father had been. He was very much in the late stages of his development, though not quite finished. He had been imprisoned by Giants who placed him in a jar. A jar, wrapped in chains, that altogether seemed to halt his ability to use magic. He had inadequate food, or none at all. Magic blocked, he was unable to sustain himself and his own immortality seemed to wane."

The godling's jaw dropped open as he listened. Weren't the gods supposed to be able to take refuge in their immortality? To never truly die? Though now that he thought about it, where had his dad gotten the potion that had turned Hercules mortal?

"After Lord Ares had been rescued, it took a couple months for him to recover. Though since it was a major check point of growth that he was stunted at, he's shorter than most gods and shorter of temper. But as I said, he had almost reached the pinnacle of godhood at that age. You have a few things that strike similar, but not nearly as severe as his case."

"So, I have a couple things my parents would be concerned about, but nothing that can't be taken care of?" Hadie fidgeted in his seat, reaching for the hem of his shirt.

"Yes, the one thing I have to remark is the startling lack of temper exhibited from you so far."

"I get angry sometimes, but dad says I probably got my peppier nature from mom." Hadie shrugged.

"That's possible. The lack of isolation is more what I had in mind." Asklepios wrote something down. "Even your father had Poseidon, and noticeably takes more than Ares does to get truly angry. Lord Hades is known for his finite control on most emotions."

"But Uncle Poseidon is so much more laidback than both, wouldn't that reduce some of the theory that their imprisonments led to hotheadedness?"

"Oh, Lord Poseidon is not as mild mannered as he seems," Asklepios chuckled. "He was just as angry as your father until he married Lady Amphitrite. I swear if Lord Zeus had approved of your father's desires to marry Lady Persephone sooner, we could've avoided the whole Hercules debacle."

Hadie looked on inquisitively. His parents rarely spoke of how they came together. Mostly because his dad couldn't help but rant about his mom's mother or Zeus.

"Now I see our Baymax has generated a food plan. I'll be modifying it slightly as what I have in mind will allow for your stomach to be used to food more easily." The god stood and opened up a cabinet, revealing a mini fridge and handed a box to Hadie. "Keep these hidden, as no mortal can ingest these. Take one piece, and one drink each morning until they're gone. I'll have more delivered through Herkie or Melody, whomever you're more comfortable with at school. Make sure to finish a box every two weeks. Go ahead and take a set now."

Hadie opened the box, a golden glow shining from within. Tiny bottles filled with the liquid gold splashed gently as he adjusted the container on his lap. A small square was attached to each one, wrapped in aluminum foil.

"The bottles are nectar, a drink sustenance for gods, that will do most of the healing. The ambrosia is more of a treat at your age, but important when you're older. It keeps you healthy rather than heals you."

"I've never gotten to have any, but mom would bring them back. Only for her and dad."

"Yes, I would imagine so. They're meant for full grown gods in larger doses. Youths only take them when injured, but I'll be needing you take these for the next five or six months. Micro doses so it's not too much at once."

Delicately, Hadie pulled one of the small bundles out and closed the box, slipping it into his coat's inner pocket. He first snapped off the small square of ambrosia, removing the wrapper he tossed it into his mouth.

He recoiled in shock as the flavor of his dad's crispy garlic chicken burst through his taste buds.

"Oh! Sorry, should've warned you. Ambrosia takes the flavor of your favorite food." Asklepios laughed, his smile apologetic. "You were probably expecting something sweet, huh?"

"Yeah, that would've been good to know. I expected like ενχυτοι, honey cake, not my da—, uh, garlic taking over my mouth."

"Well, heads up on the nectar too then." Asklepios returned to his seat and began typing away some notes into the computer. Hadie popped the cap off the small bottle and swigged it back.

'Oh man, this is great! Tastes just like mom's μελομακάρονα.' Hadie relished in the flavor of spices, honey and orange lingering on his lips. 'Well, I guess this is one way to still taste my parents food even if I can't actually be with them for a while.'

"That should be everything, unless you have any more questions," Asklepios sent another text off. "You should be caught up by the time you hit your next stage of puberty." The god looked up in concern. "You have had puberty and how life works explained to you, haven't you?"

"Hopefully my dad covered everything," Hadie grimaced, though he couldn't stop the warm red that flushed across his face. That had been a terribly embarrassing conversation just before he'd left for Auradon. His mom had added a few things, but left shortly into the conversation as it'd just gotten too awkward for them all to handle.

"I'll speak with King Ben later and have him send your files so your parents don't have to wait." Asklepios pulled out a file with what Hadie recognized as his recently taken school photo. "One last thing then, Hadie. A partial answer to your earlier question."

Hadie turned to look curiously at Asklepios as he handed the glass bottle to the god to be recycled. The god in turn gave him a small booklet, consisting of a food schedule coordinated with the school cafeteria.

"In my story, despite being his grandson, Lord Zeus is my villain," Hadie's eyes grew wide as the doctor continued. "Your father is my hero."

Before Hadie could burst with questions a knock resounded on the door.

"Sir? Lady Uma for her appointment."

With a wink, Asklepios moved to open the door.

"Hey, cuz! That Baymax thing was hella weird, wasn't it?" Uma strutted forward. "Cool, but weird. Told the boys not to worry about it while I waited for my turn for the god check crap." She swung an arm over Hadie's shoulders. "This Olympian wannabe treat you alright too?"

Behind her, Antler looked indignant.

Hadie beamed at Asklepios, giving the god a wave as he moved to leave with Antler. "Trust me, Uma. I think he's pretty cool."

A little while later, everyone had gotten back into the limo.

"They're making me go to therapy," Harry sighed. "My answers to some of the questions apparently means I've got no choice in the matter."

"It's alright, Harry," Uma placed a hand on his shoulder. "I made an agreement with Mal. All of us have to go to therapy for a bit. Any VKs will. It just might be more necessary for some of us more than others. Captain's orders for now, okay?"

Harry sulked, but gave his captain a nod nonetheless.

As the limo lulled into silence, Hadie felt his stomach give a growl.

"Hey Ben?" Hadie glanced at the teen out of the corner of his eye.

"What's up?"

"Do you think we could swing by somewhere for a late lunch? The clock at the entry desk showed it's already almost two in the afternoon."

"Oh, definitely! Sorry, I should've thought of that myself, these things do tend to take a while." Ben leaned back and opened the privacy wall. "Dean, could you swing McDingwall's?"

"Of course, sir."

"McDingwall's?" Harry sniggered.

"Just a fast-food joint," Ben shrugged, unaware of what Harry was laughing at. "A variety of burgers, fries…not particularly healthy, but filling in a pinch."

"What's a burger?" Hadie asked.

The barest of frowns pulled at Ben's lips. Unbeknownst the others in the car, he'd added logs after logs of research trying to discern just what had happened to the Isle's food supply. It still hurt his heart just thinking about how much these kids must have suffered while everyone in Auradon lived in luxury.

"It's a…uh, well, a type of sandwich," Ben stammered. Mal had at least mentioned they had sandwiches sometimes on the Isle. "This place has a choice of either beef, chicken or mutton with a bunch of different things you can put on top. Bacon, catsup, mustard, pickles, onions or cheese. Or all of the above, amongst other things," he finished with another shrug. He felt a growing discomfort as he listed different foods that he wasn't even sure anymore if the other kids had any experience with.

Somehow, Dean found a drive through large enough to fit the limo. A few minutes later, a large order sat on the floor between Ben and the VK's.

Recognizing the logo on one of the drinks, Hadie snatched the cup up.

"It's fizzy!" He exclaimed, the soda just the same as it had tasted on the Isle, but with a delightful new texture. "Oh man, we gotta get a fresh one of these to Virgil!"

Uma snatched away the second box of fries from Hadie's hands. "Eat something besides potatoes, you're so scruffy and you have so much food now!"

Harry piled burgers onto Hadie's lap. "Fiiiine," the godling whined. He shoved a couple into his pocket for later, he still wasn't sure if he could handle much yet.

'But dang if this hella messy chicken burger ain't delicious.'

Typing away at his laptop, Hadie sipped at the juice he had taken from the cafeteria. He still had a bit of homework to catch up on and had decided to take dinner in his dorm.

'I'll drop the tray off in the morning,' he thought as he wrote out the answers to his history homework.

'Then after this assignment, I think it's just Remedial Goodness left. I should probably take a break first, maybe look at that shopping site Melody had mentioned. Oh, and talk to mom and dad.'

Wrapping up his assignment, Hadie sent the document to the printer and a backup copy to his school email. Carlos had balked at how inadequate the Internet safety and introduction to computers class had been for the VK's. After his messy magic practice, DeVil had gathered the new group and gone over a few tips to keep things convenient.

He activated the browser Carlos had installed, AuraBeast, and searched for Hermes' Express. Once Hadie had gotten a look at Carlos' setup and Herkie had shown him a few video games, he was interested in finding something more powerful than the laptop that could really only handle homework. It didn't help when Ben had mentioned books. Uncle Hermes' delivery service could get pretty much anything, anytime. Granted, he had the library to go to now, but that didn't mean he should be limited to it. He scrolled through the site, just generally browsing out of curiosity as he reached out with telepathy to his parents. As interested as he was to budget his parents' allowance to get a laptop, he was far more interested in what Asklepios had meant about his own story.

Dad, you or mom busy?

He let out a whistle as he ran into some premium outfits from a brand Evan had been complaining about. Apparently, some kids took spending money on clothes too seriously, the more the better. Evan preferred the outfits his mom made for him, sturdy and long-lasting value despite what some snobs around the school considered low class. He would definitely have to look into clothes too, if only because he only had a few outfits. Jay had admitted to having to buy more clothes within the first month, but in the meantime was sharing with Harry. The food and exercise had really made the teen fill out more.

Suddenly a shiver of annoyance ran through his head before being suddenly clamped upon.

D-dad? Sorry if I interrupted your work.

Finally alone time with the wifey, and I'm still getting cockblocked…

W-what?

Shit, Hadie, you didn't hear me say anything, got it?!

Hades, are you swearing around our son again?

Hadie, lie to your mother and I'll double your allowance for next month.

Hadie, sweetie, tell me what your father said and I'll double that plus take you to the sweets shop when I'm back in Auradon.

Well, I was looking at buying some stuff for school, and that would really cut the amount of time it'd take to save up…

Oh, come on!

Dad said I was cockblocking him and I don't know what that means!

Okay that was a double lie. He totally knew, Dustin had said it enough times on the ship and got strung up by the underwear for it. Again.

…Hades. The disappointment in Persephone's voice was thick. Hadie could easily imagine his father's sigh. I will deal with you later. How was your doctor's appointment?

Ah, yes that was today. How'd that go? They find anything…wrong? While thankful for the change in subject, the mental link filled with Hades' worry. Whatever crackpot they made you see treat you okay?

They had a robot and it was so cool! His name was Baymax, and he didn't need to draw blood or anything, he had this scanner that could do it all without pain and then he gave me a lollipop!

Ah. Another bout of bribery. Excellent. Hades thought with amusement. Is that robot able to handle godly shenanigans or did ever indecisive Apollo show up?

He better not have, I specifically said no one of the Olympians are to approach our children while I'm away. Asklepios should've handled everything at that hospital of his.

Yeah, I saw Asklepios.

Asklepios? Huh. Glad to hear that kid is doing well for himself.

You know of him, dear? He keeps to himself at functions, I just know he runs the primary hospital.

He totally knows him according to Asklepios! He was so cool! Shapeshifted from a snake, bashed Zeus, even though apparently, he's his grandfather —

Ha! He would. Ol' healing hands is the son of Apollo, took the title of God of Medicine right from under him.

I didn't know Apollo had children. Persephone pondered.

Eh, he didn't raise any of them. They're all demigods apart from Asky. And he only got immortality thanks to me. Not that I got thanks from Apollo for that! Big crybaby…I guess he did sorta side with me that one time I nearly got Zeus dethroned through democracy…

He did say you were his hero and Zeus was the villain. He didn't explain anything though, I wanted to know if you'd be willing to share. Hadie cut his dad off before he could start an off topic monologue.

I admit, I'm curious too Hades. I've certainly never heard of this.

Hrmmm, dunno if it's kid appropriate…To be honest, it's a little of my fault at first too, but in the end it's Zeus who took consequences to the extreme…Similar thing happened with Hippocrates, but that guy was a mortal and at the time healing was very much part of our religion and not something mere mortals were allowed to play with…I got him killed, following a certain…example, shall we say, but Hercules stopped me. Asklepios though, was a demigod. Long before Hippocrates. And Zeus smote him.

WHAT?! Hadie dropped his sandwich, barely catching it from hitting the floor. Both he and his mom jumping in surprise.

Yup. Dead as can be. Managed to swing it that someone with a power like that, one that surpassed even the god that was supposed to be doing the healing, should be made a god himself. That he was a hero to the people. Not like Apollo was doing it anyways. He just drives the sun and writes awful poetry most of the time.

Wow. That's amazing dad. Maybe that was why he was so nice. Though he seems pretty good-natured in general.

Yeah, I remember him being pretty chill. Has an actual brain. Excellent to hear he's treating you well. Hating on Zeusy is just a bonus.

Well, I'm glad you're in such good hands then, darling. Hadie easily imagined his mom rolling her eyes as he cleaned up his dinner and prepared his Remedial homework. Now, did they say anything we should know about? You're not too affected by the Barrier, I hope?

Ah. Well. Hadie hesitated. He didn't think it was too bad, but he knew his parents would worry no matter what. Uh, some dietary issues that they gave me a regimen for, and some nectar and ambrosia to take every day with refills till they want to see me again when mom gets back. Asklepios said that by the time I hit my next stage, I'll have caught up to where I'm supposed to be. He should have whatever information sent to you, he said he would set things up so you didn't have to be left on the sidelines while mom is on the Isle.

Smart guy, like I said. Have you taken those yet? The nectar and ambrosia?

Yup! Didn't warn me it'd taste completely different based on the person! It was disgusting at first until I realized it was dad's Crispy Garlic Chicken!

Hadie blushed as he felt his parents' laughter through the link.

Chapter Text

It'd been a few days since Hadie's meeting with Baymax and Asklepios. The nectar and ambrosia he had to take every morning already felt like it was doing wonders. With a brief yawn, Hadie deftly leapt from his loft, landing quietly on the wooden floor. Jay's alarm was due to go off in fifteen minutes, but Hadie didn't want to risk taking his medicine in front of them. He trusted his surrogate brothers, but just like Mal, they could be too protective. He didn't want to risk either of them accidentally taking any or throwing them out. Asklepios had been clear on the written instructions within the box. Meer mortals would die.

Hadie had gotten a small alarm from online that he'd hidden under his pillow. Instead of screaming for everyone to wake up, it vibrated. This allowed Hadie to take his medicine and have first crack at the bathroom before his brothers woke up. Quickly, he tossed back the nectar and ate the ambrosia before heading into the bathroom. Popping out after a quick shower, he heard the sound of Jay's alarm through the door. Grabbing his deodorant, he headed out of the bathroom. He didn't really feel like using the locker showers after gym, especially since he'd rather be one of the first to reach the cafeteria, but that didn't mean he had to stink either.

"Gooood morning!" Hadie cheerfully greeted Jay and Harry. Striding over to his desk, Hadie took a few of his granola bars and tossed them in his backpack with the deodorant. Even though his stomach was handling things so much better already, he wasn't going to take any chances. It also helped that the program he was on wanted him to be eating as much as he could to make up for the Isle. A luxury, he realized, that other kids wouldn't be able to recover as well from.

"Hey, good morning!" Jay gave Hadie a little shoulder bump. "You really sticking with the earlier schedule, huh?" They watched as Harry ran into the door knob to the bathroom, the pirate desperately needing a cold shower every morning in order to wake up properly.

"Yeah, I like getting to breakfast before everyone and leaving to class before them too. Less people crowding the halls, rushing around."

"Smart. You aren't going on your own though, are you?" Jay looked at Hadie with concern. "You know our rules."

"I haven't forgotten," Hadie smiled sadly. "We've only been off the Isle a week; it'd take a lot more than that to turn me soft. Anyways, Herkie rooms with his brother in one of the closer dorms, so he and I will head to breakfast together, instead of waiting for Melody all the time from the girl's dorms."

"Alright, as long as you're not without someone you trust."

"Not if I can't help it. See you later, Jay." Sharing another smile, Hadie headed out, finding a peppy Herkie, bright-eyed and ready to roll.

"G'morning, Hadie!"

"Good morning, Herkie."

"Have you looked at this week's general homework?" lamented Herkie. "Too many reading assignments this time!"

"I don't mind it," said Hadie, shrugging as he reviewed the growing list of assignments in his head. "Reading was how I spent most of my time on the Isle." He ignored the long side look Herkie gave him.

'Auradonians really don't know how to do subtle, do they?' thought Hadie as the boys followed the quiet halls towards the cafeteria. 'Every time I mention the Isle, it's so obvious they want to ask, it's just…they're so innocent here. Now I get why Mal is so protective of me. I don't want to be the one to burst their perfect bubble.'

Reaching the main hall, they found the final of their trio already waiting.

"Hey guys," yawned Melody, joining them as they entered the large hall. "You read to start the day with numbers, Hadie?"

"Your excitement is infectious," drawled Hadie, amused by Melody's sarcasm. He gathered up a plate of eggs. "Did you even finish like you said you would yesterday?"

He smirked when she only pouted in response.

"Did you bring your laptop? If you don't have too much left, I'll help you bang out the rest of the questions in time for class," offered Hadie, watching as Melody piled up her usual bout of waffles and dumped loads of syrup over them. "For a small fee of course."

"Have I said you're my favorite cousin yet? Because you're my favorite cousin."

"Oi!" pouted Herkie as they settled at a table. "He's not even doing it for free!"

"Get good at math and then we can talk, Herk," said Melody. "Besides, Hadie's been fair. Want me to get those sea salt caramels again?"

"That'd be great," Hadie grinned, digging into his food. "And my rates are an absolute bargain, Herkie! I'm not doing the work for her; I'm teaching her as I go, then she'll be able to do it on her own. Long term benefits for a minor onetime fee."

"Eh, don't mind our goody-two shoes of a cousin, Hads. I'll ask my parents to send two boxes this time under the pretense of sharing." Melody used her hands to put the last word in quotation marks.

"Already falling under the corruption of our VK cousin, Mel?" smirked Herkie, peering up from his food.

"Oh, don't pull that Herkie, I've always been like this. We just haven't hung out enough to really get to know each other."

"You guys didn't? We hung out with family all the time on the Isle."

Herkie gave a sideways glance at Melody, the girl returning an odd grimace.

"My dad had us living in Greece still for a while," Herkie began to speak. "We only moved into Auradon about a year ago after…after grandpoppy died. I primarily stayed around my siblings or the guys for a while. As for Melody…"

"I'm grounded." She deadpanned. "Like, still. On top of us not ever really meeting last year, I was grounded pretty much all summer. And probably till my next birthday."

"Wow, how can you accuse me of being trouble when clearly the girls in our family seem to be the most chaotic?" Hadie teased Herkie. "That's the Morgana mess, wasn't it? Aunt Vanessa mentioned it to me and dad, and mom filled us in since she was over here at the time."

"Yeah, but now my parents know to tell me things. It was even worse finding out Elle knew the entire time, what with her needing to swim to develop leg strength. We're all better now, but—wait, did you say Aunt Vanessa?"

"Yeah?" Hadie pulled back in confusion. "The Barrier caused her and Ursula to split, I think? Dad was confused over the whole thing too, but the human hooked up with one of dad's minions. Virgil is practically my big brother." Hadie tilted his head, trying to think on it more. "Dad decided that since Ursula is his niece, and Vanessa was part of her, that by extension she and Virg are now family."

"Well," Melody said after a beat, "I guess it's no stranger to our family that said family can be our villains."

Hadie looked down forlornly at his food. "I had hoped by being friendly with me, you wouldn't have the prejudices of our parents."

"No, that's not what I meant!" whined Melody. "Family is still family, even if we don't get along. Morgana was the only one to actually try to kill any of us, but, um…I'm just going to shut up now," she trailed off, realizing exactly who she was speaking to.

Herkie and Hadie stared at each other.

"Look," Herkie finally spoke after a minute, "You're not your father. That much is obvious. And you clearly love him, so I'm willing to not speak ill of him, as long as you don't speak ill of mine. Deal?"

"Now who's making deals?" softly smiled Hadie. "Deal. You've both been great to me, and I don't want to lose that. But not at the loss of my own family. Though you didn't say I couldn't bash Zeus, Herkie." He seriously wondered if Herkie knew about Asklepios' story.

"Mom and nonna bash Zeus plenty behind dad's back," chuckled Herkie. "Only once I started asking questions since I'd over heard plenty of things growing up, though. I think Hyllus and dad are the only ones with rose tinted glasses still."

"Well now that our first little tiff is out of the way, can we please get my math homework finished?" Melody's laptop clacked on the table, her tray of demolished waffles pushed off to the side.

"Alright," said Hadie, wiping his hands with a napkin before he moved closer to Melody to look at her questions. "Okay, so this one, we have to first solve for x before we can graph it…"

Gym was more physical than Hadie had ever been used to. There weren't exactly large open areas for groups of kids to play together on the Isle. He ignored Herkie who had started muttering something about Philoctetes and running through forests with swords.

"So we just have to have the most flags at the end?" Hadie said as he tied their team's sash color of pale green around his waist. The students had been divided into a multitude of teams, each with a different color.

"Yep yep," cheerfully said Melody, tying her long, black hair back into her usual ponytail. " We've got this bin here, to lap back to and drop them here. You can't take from the baskets, only worn sashes. So we get to play a few rounds."

"What's Herkie's problem?" Hadie quietly asked, eyeballing their final member as he continued to mutter through his stretches.

"I'm not totally sure to be honest. All I know is apparently his family visited a training camp and their variation of capture the flag involved magic and weapons."

"Okay, but that sounds awesome," said Hadie. "What was so bad about it?"

Herkie stood, dusting dirt from his shorts. "Maybe you can come one day. But trust me, it's hard, and Phil, the satyr that is, is ruthless. Didn't go over basics or even gave us light training, just had dad drop us off without even telling him what we were doing and threw us to the dogs."

"Oh, that does sound yikes. Mal's crew is pretty hardcore about making sure we're up to par, sword spars at least once a week is required for everyone."

"Dude, we should totally spar sometime! There's open gym times posted outside of team practices and we can borrow gear."

"I think Mal had mentioned something like that to Uma and Harry. I wouldn't be surprised if they dragged me to practice at some point soon to make sure I don't fall behind."

A shrill whistle halted their conversation.

"Game One! Countdown starting now!"

The trio of godlings looked at each other and nodded. It didn't matter if their friends were on other teams. They wanted to win.

"Two…One…GO!"

Hadie raced off towards the right, keeping close to the boundary lines. He still only knew a portion of his classmates' names, but he had paid enough attention to learn a few things. He chased after one of taller boys. Despite the kid's long legs, Hadie had seen that the boy's stamina wasn't great from the warm up runs. Less than a minute later and some close calls, Hadie yanked off the yellow flag and dashed back to his team's basket.

Sharing a high five with Melody who had brought back a red sash, Hadie turned to find his next target.

'No, not Ashaki. She's got boundless energy and dodges easily. Not to mention she and her brother are just as good at pickpocketing as Jay. Good for them for keeping up their dad's legacy though.' Hadie began to side step, his back to the perimeter. A moment later he dashed away, avoiding a few who had tried to corner him, nabbing a sash as he passed through the trio that made up the grey team.

The whistle blew again as Hadie stumbled over to his water bottle. They were about to start the fourth game, and while fun, he was beginning to feel worn out. They'd just narrowly missed winning the first game, but had taken the second after reviewing their strategy. After that, the three had decided to just mess around and challenge each other to keep things interesting. They'd only wanted the one win for the pride of it, but it wasn't something anyone felt the need to take seriously.

'It's so much different than the Isle. Everything there has a purpose to survive. Here, it's to be healthy and have fun,' lamented Hadie, thinking longingly of how things could've been all along. 'Though Celia would want to win no matter what.'

Hadie took a small bite of an energy bar and washed it down with a bottle of 'GodAide' that Herkie had brought instead of water. Something about replenishing electrolytes.

"This stuff is pretty good, cuz," sighed Hadie as he finished off the drink, gasping for air.

"Glad you think so," said Herkie. "A lot of people don't like it because there's no sugar, but as I've mentioned, dad is all about staying healthy."

"Your dad?" Hadie gave him a questioning look.

"Yeah, he founded GodAide. Drink of the athletes."

Hadie looked down at the now empty bottle. Now that he looked closer, he recognized the symbol of Olympus and Hercules name in small print on the label.

'Huh. How about that.'

"Next bout, let's go!" Mr. Reese shouted; he blew his whistle again as everyone groaned. "Quit your groaning, this is your last game and then you can hit the showers!"

Placing his snack back into his bag, Hadie jogged out with the rest of the class to the starting positions.

The moment the whistle blew, their group broke ranks and dashed towards their targets. This time, Hadie eyed the shining blue ribbon whipping through the wind as Alexandria dashed close, her hand just missing his own flag. She spun to the side as he made his own attempt.

'This is why I didn't go for their team, girls are always so agile,' Hadie mentally whined as he missed yet again due to Alexandria's evasive manuvering.

Their odd dance was interrupted by a scream.

"I'm so sorry!" came Herkie's voice from across the field. "Mr. Reese, please, someone get help!"

Hadie sprinted towards the commotion. He found the auburn-haired boy was crouched over another boy who was gripping desperately at his own arm. Herkie's own legs appeared to be cut up, blood dripping down his knees.

"Do you think you can stand on your own?" Hadie knelt by the fallen boy as he removed his flag and gestured to the other kid's arm. "I'm just going to make you a splint until a doctor can look at your arm. What's your name? I'm still learning everyone's." He made idle conversation, trying to distract him from the pain.

"K-ky," he grimaced, biting his lower lip as black hair fell into his eyes. "And I think so?" Grey eyes watched closely as Hadie took Ky's and Herkie's flag and folded them into stiff squares to pack either side of the throbbing arm.

"I wish we could've met under better circumstances, Ky," Hadie smiled gently. He wasn't happy it was necessary, but he was thankful for the rudimentary training the Isle gave him when it came injured crew. Especially with the unfortunate lack of proper resources.

"What happened here?" Mr. Reese's appeared above the gathering students, a frown set upon his face.

"It's my fault, Mr. Reese! I'm sorry." Herkie tried to stand but fell back against the grass, his legs patchy with dried blood.

"It's okay, Herkie, it was an accident," Ky ground out.

"I tripped and we collided," Herkie shook his head. "I wasn't trying to hold back at all and swung to grab Ky's flag, but he went to block and…well…super strength and all. I cut my legs trying not to land top of him and make things worse."

Mr. Reese nodded. "Let's get you up and to the bench Ky. I already called a doctor to campus and let Fairy Godmother we'd need the medical assistance more than the nurse could provide. Herkie, hit the showers and head to her office."

Hadie angled himself to better help Ky up as a couple of other kids approached. Recognizing them as those that Ky was normally seen around with, Hadie stepped away to allow them to lead him to the bench.

"But Mr. Reese, surely Herkie isn't in trouble!" Evan had appeared, Ashaki and Alexandria at his side.

As Herkie walked forlornly away, the teacher held a hand up at the rising protests.

"I know it's not his fault, but as it was a serious accident, we need to have an official report together for the parents and the doctor records."

Sliding up to Melody, Hadie whispered to her, "I'm going to ask if I can go with Herkie, he doesn't look like he should be left alone in this."

"Good idea," she nodded firmly. "Mr. Reese? Could Hadie and I go with Herkie? He looked like he really blamed himself."

It took a bit, but eventually they were able to convince him to let them go. Grabbing their things, they rushed off toward the lockers, hoping to wash up in time before everyone else came back, so they could sequester Herkie away from any stares.

Dropping his head, Herkie tangled his fingers nervously through is hair. He desperately wanted to hide. If he could crawl under the chair he was sat upon, he absolutely would. Run to anywhere that wasn't right outside Fairy Godmother's office.

At least he wasn't alone. On either side of him sat his, now very much considered his favorite, cousins. Melody, Poseidon bless her, was trying her best to be the voice of reason, attempting to comfort the son of Hercules with awkward words. Hadie was just as nervous as Herkie though. Not because the blue-haired godling was in trouble too, no. The son of Hades had decided to hang around to simply show support for his cousin-turned-friend. Hadie's nerves were only because Herkie's parents would be arriving soon on campus to meet with Fairy Godmother.

Herkie did his best to focus on Melody's monologue to distract himself from the screams that still echoed in his ears. Everyone knew it had been an accident. Even poor Kyrell told a profusely apologizing Herkie that he was forgiven.

"It'll be alright, I swear Herk." Melody rubbed her cousin's back. "It's not like you broke his arm on purpose."

"Please, Melody," Herkie groaned. "I'm trying to not think about what happened. Right now, I just hope I'm not in too much trouble."

"I doubt you're in any," Hadie said softly. "From what I overheard, Mr. Reese only had you sent to Headmistress' office because they want to find a way to avoid this from happening again. If you didn't have super strength, Ky's arm probably would've been okay."

"Hadie is right, Herkie. I'm sure it's just protocol for parents' to come when something happens, and in this case to also ask your dad for any advice to deal with your strength."

"Dad was worse!" Herkie snorted with a laugh." He's shared so many stories with destroying school property! Though…I guess people were rarely injured on his watch."

"That doesn't mean he shares the stores that he might've, though," Hadie said softly. "There've been loads of times that dad mentions something but refuses to elaborate because it's not something he or mom want me hearing."

They all looked up at the sound of footsteps coming down the hall. There was Fairy Godmother, and behind her…

Herkie and Hadie both audibly gulped.

"Hey, kiddo." Hadie stiffened as Hercules spoke, the god-turned-mortal thankfully ignoring him as he spoke to his son. That was fine by him, he was already tempted to run off and for once was disappointed to not have Mal to hide behind.

Especially now that the hulking figure of his cousin had knelt down, giving a direct line of site to Hades' ex-servant. A lighter violet than Herkie's eyes stared down at Hadie, unimpressed. Hadie shrunk in his seat and looked intently down at the floor.

"I was under the impression that only our son was in any trouble, shouldn't these two's guardians be here as well?" Megara spoke, pulling her husband's attention away from looking over their youngest.

"We're just here for emotional support, Aunt Meg," Melody grinned. "Herkie keeps blaming himself, even though it was an accident. Hadie asked permission for us to accompany Herkie, didn't you Hads?"

Hadie only nodded, too unsure of himself to speak.

He jolted in his seat as a large tanned hand rested on his knee.

"That's very kind of you, Hadie, thanks for being there for Herkie," said Hercules, his voice gentle. "You shouldn't miss lunch though, if it really was an accident, my son has no need to worry. I'll take him out to eat after this. If you don't mind that is, Headmistress?"

"Not at all, Hercules. I'm sorry if it came across as if he was in trouble. It's just school protocol to contact parents in the case of severe injuries. I wanted to discuss possible ideas, if you had any, to prevent it from happening again."

"That's probably for the best. With the move, going over safety measures had fallen to the wayside and only Hyllus has covered them." Hercules stood and looked down at his son, laying a hand on the top of his hair. "Don't worry, Herkie, I injured a fair few people even inadvertently before I was out of high school."

"Really?" Herkie glanced up. "None of your stories ever mentioned anything outside of, y'know, truning buildings into rubble."

An awkward laugh burst out from the hero, a hand flying upward to rub the back of his head. "I was a genuine klutz back in the day, people got injured from either the buildings, or from me accidentally smacking them. I'm surprised I wasn't expelled for all the school damages.

"Now I'm serious you two, nothing for Herkie to worry about. Go ahead, get lunch and make healthy choices!"

"They're kids, big guy, they don't have to worry about healthy eating for a bit, and I'm sure just burned a ton of energy at gym," Megara snorted at Hercules' hero voice. "Thanks for being here though, you two."

Hadie finally looked up, finding both adults with small smiles. He gave them a hesitant nod before turning towards his friends. They both stood, Melody moving to Hadie's side.

"See you later, cuz," whispered Hadie, ready to bolt away from the adults. The two godlings turned away to head towards lunch, stopped only by a dainty hand on either of their shoulders.

"You two should come visit for a weekend, join us for dinner during a break," said Megara as they turned to look her questionably. "Though it may have to wait till I can get permission from your mother, Hadie."

"I-I appreciate the offer, Lady M—"

"Ha, I'm no Lady, kid," laughed the woman. "Aunt Meg, or Meg is fine."

"Thanks, A-aunt Meg."

"See ya, Aunt Meg!" Melody looped her arm through Hadie's and dragged them off towards lunch.

"See you later, Herkie!" They both called back before they rounded the corner.

"Well, that wasn't nerve racking," Hadie said sarcastically, Melody giggling in response.

"I thought it went fine," she rolled her eyes. "Aunt Meg looks scary, but she's nicer than she looks. Just sarcastic. A lot of the time."

After a few minutes, they arrived at the cafeteria hall.

"Melody, Hadie, where've you two been?" Elle called from her seat at a table with Alexandria and her sisters. Ashaki sat nearby with Emir, which by extension included Akiho, Jay and Ben. "Sorry Hadie, you just missed Mal, she left about fifteen minutes into the lunch hour."

"That's alright, thanks for the heads up, Elle," said Hadie softly. "I'm used to Mal leaving so early at this point." He sighed internally. He'd only been around for a week, so he'd planned to give Mal time to work on her schedule, but it hurt to not see his sister as often as he used to. Especially after almost two months of not seeing each other at all. Her link was still closed off, so they couldn't even talk to make up lost time. He sat down his bags next to Melody's and wandered off to get food.

He hoped the rest of the day was quieter. He already felt out of energy, physically and now mentally. At least it was just science left, the practice modules were still simple. After that, he planned to either chill in the library or his dorm.

"Sorry about your brother, Qullana," Hadie and Alexandria settled down next to their class partner.

"Oh, Ky?" asked Qullana as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail. Since they were practicing how to use microscopes, her long hair kept falling in the way. "Mom called me, I understand it was an accident."

"You don't really believe that, do you, Ana?" A round-faced boy slammed a hand on their desk. "Now that Herkie is hanging out with a VK, he gets someone injured for the first time. No way that's a coincidence."

Qullana's deep eyes focused hard on the boy before them. "I don't believe I asked for your opinion, Darwin."

"Now, now, Darwin has a point." Another boy approached them, his hair a dark brown, contrasting greatly against his pale skin.

"No, he doesn't, Aaron," Alexandria bit out. "I thought you were just quiet, but I had hoped you weren't actually a jerk."

"See, mean words for such a pretty face. You'd never spoke to me like that till you started hanging out with this brat."

Hadie frowned. He never felt such need to play the God card before. He usually didn't, but now he felt a similar feeling to when he first met Celia. Indignant. Disrespected. Angry. Alexandria speaking again pulled him from his spiraling thoughts.

"You rarely ever spoke to me before to begin with, so you wouldn't know how I tend to speak in the first place. Your attitude is not warranted, nor is your present wanted. Please get away from our table."

The two boys glared, but walked away as Ms Gwen appeared to start the class. "Don't think you can cause trouble around here, villain. If you're raised by 'em, you must be one."

"Idiots," scoffed Alexandria. "My mom was raised by one, and so was Neal and Evan's. Ignore them, Hadie."

"Eh, I thought I'd run into someone like them sooner, to be honest. I imagine they've just been biding their time."

"Well, don't worry about me believing them. My brother told me it was a genuine accident and he shouldn't have tried to block Herkie's aim. We all know he's got super strength, it's why none of the classes he's set up in have actual physical contact. Even fútbol is out because they're worried how far he could kick a ball."

"Wait, if that's the case, why did Fairy Godmother want to talk to Herkie's parents about precautions still?" Hadie whispered as Ms. Gwen had started roll call.

"It's one of the things that was recommended by his siblings, from what my sister said, since their parents were too busy to prepare the school yet with all their usual safety measures," explained Qullana, doodling in the margins of her notebook. "He even rooms with his brother in case of any possible issues, though I don't know what he'll do when Hyllus graduates at the end of the year."

"Well, thanks for believing us, Qullana. I just want to do well in school, I don't want any trouble," said Hadie, raising his hand as his name was called.

"Feel free call me Ana. Most my friends do. Though those boys aren't on that list but unfortunately use it anyways," she smiled slightly. "Both of you. I know we never interacted much before, Alexandria."

"We appreciate it, Ana," beamed Alexandria. "You'll get along great with Hadie, he spends half his time studying for fun."

"Hey!" the godling pouted, standing as they were dismissed to prepare for their lab. "I thought you wanted my help here, not tease me." He stuck his tongue out as he walked away to grab some petri dishes. Alexandria returned the motion as she turned to set up their microscopes.

"I like to study in my spare time too, not for classes, but just things I happen to like," Ana pattered next to Hadie. "You should meet up with me sometime, whether for school, or we can help find material for personal projects. You're still pretty new, and I know where almost everything in the library is."

"Thanks, Ana, maybe we can meet up on the weekend," they returned to their station. "The syllabus mentions our next big project, so we can look into it ahead of time before it's assigned next Monday."

"That's a good idea," groaned Alexandria, she gave Qullana an apologetic glance. "Sorry you're stuck with me too. I'm not great at the science stuff."

"You're fine," a true grin spread across Qullana's face. "I've never had anyone study with me, so it'll be a welcome learning experience for all of us."

"Actually, could you come with me to the library after class, or after dinner if you'd prefer?" Hadie started, realizing something. "I-I want to find books to teach me about horticulture and different plants of Auradon or other regions."

The two girls peered at him. "Plants, Hadie?" Alexandria asked.

"W-well," he blushed. "I want to show my mom that I learned about what she does too, on top of doing my best in school. I like making her happy."

His face blushed brighter as the girls cooed at him.

It was worth it later, when he returned to the dorm with a pile of books and a student ID. Apparently, he'd missed the instructions for photos to be taken for such a thing. If it meant he could take books out of the library every few weeks, he was thankful.

Either way, he'd be using the hell out of it.

Chapter Text

Hadie had fallen into somewhat of a routine. If he had still been on the Isle, his family and friends, particularly Celia, would have scolded him for predictability. It meant possible ambushes. In Auradon, routines couldn't be avoided. Everything had a schedule. Pressure was added by the 'good' standards of the hero culture.

Being late. Bad.

Speaking out of turn. Bad.

Not doing homework. Bad.

Classes were literal clock work. Meals too. Hadie had to make sure he went to bed about the same time every night in order to waken at the same time each morning. He had to regularly take his medicine as instructed. Homework due dates and curfews.

Only the other VKs kept him on his toes. Whereas Hadie would organize time to meet up with his newfound friends, his family would pop up randomly and drag him off. Just last week Jay had forced Hadie to practice with Gil and then face the son of Jafar himself. At least he won one of the two fights. Harry would have never let Hadie live it down if he hadn't managed to beat Gil.

It didn't help that just like on the Isle, Hadie had only a few places he took solitude. His dorm, or the library.

Which, today, was where he ended up dealing with Harry's antics.

The godling had headed straight to the library after classes. He wanted to take the opportunity to reduce his assignments before dinner. A multitude of teachers meant there was an increase to the workload he was normally used to. Now he understood why Mal always seemed so busy. Having to deal with Cotillion planning and whatever those additional lessons on top of school? Hadie wasn't sure how his sister managed.

Weaving through the bookshelves, Hadie found an empty, secluded table to work at. Carefully, he pulled out his laptop and logged in to the student's study portal. With a few clicks he set up an alarm to remind him when dinner time approached. Though Ashaki would probably remind him. She was planning to meet with him to go over one of the English projects.

'Time to get started…let's see…should I start chipping at the largest assignment or quickly do these smaller bits?' Hadie thought as he examined the autofilled calendar. 'I might leave the English outline to the weekend. It looks like the teachers already break down big projects into steps due each week rather than all at once. Might as well get rid of all the tiny things then. A shorter list is less intimidating.' He decided to start with his least favorite class. Social Studies.

'History is fine and all, but extensive modules for geography is boring. I get knowing the layout of the U.S.A is important for Royal Prep Students considering it'd affect trade agreements, but that's niche requirements. Knowing that China is another continent is hardly important unless someone plans to make it their job. Leave it as general knowledge and let us move on, sheesh.'

He quickly dragged all the title country shapes into the appropriate slots and submitted the assignment.

'By the Gods, that was mind numbing.'

He was about halfway through his weekly homework when Ashaki arrived. Checking his alarm, there was still a little over an hour before dinner.

"Hey, Hadie," greeted Ashaki, settling in the seat across from him.

"Hi Ash," he returned, glancing up briefly as he pulled up their writing guidelines.

"Have you ever done creative writing before?" she asked, prepping her own computer. "Your analysis essay last week was pretty good, but storytelling's a different ballgame."

"No, but I've read just as much fiction as non, so I'm not super worried," said Hadie, "Plus the teach went over the outline and theories. My first probably won't be stellar, but I'll just follow these and take whatever critique for the next time."

"You know, you're so hard to read when it comes to school?" Ashaki giggled, Hadie glancing up at her in confusion. "You take school seriously, but also super laid back about it. It seems like it's almost effortless for you."

"I like to learn," Hadie shrugged. "My parents would be disappointed if I didn't try, but all my effort into it is no fun. Decent grades, better friends is what mom likes to say. The majority of this school is for people's whose futures are predetermined anyways. We help run our families' kingdoms."

"An interesting take. And you're not wrong," Ashaki grinned. "If you're not first in line, some parents allow their kids to go off on their own interests until a certain point where they're expected to at least help."

"Yeah, that's pretty much the standard for the gods. Dad was saying I have to be bestowed a title before I'm officially required to help him. That could be decades away."

"Okay, I'm curious how that even works. The section on the Olympians is so small, but we gotta get on with English a bit more before dinner."

"True, though I couldn't tell you much anyways. Mom won't teach me until she returns to Auradon, and even then, apparently, I can't be officially introduced to the pantheon till I'm 15. What's with these 15 and older rules!"

"Can't tell you, because I have no clue either." Ashaki swung her laptop around. "Okay, first, and possible hardest bit, is creating a character and where you want to go with them. So, let's try to develop that first…"

About half an hour later, they'd eventually managed to create two characters each. Totally without cheating with the use of a random generating prompt.

"I think I'm gonna make Marsh a bounty hunter," said Ashaki, her smile unnerving. "Who hangs out at bars too much in order to get intel."

"What do you know about bars?" asked Hadie, his brow furrowing.

"Evan's dad took us to the Snuggly Duckling last summer. You should come next time!"

Hadie just blinked slowly before turning back to his computer. Sometimes it was best to simply pretend he knew what the Auradonians were saying.

He wrote a note to look it up later.

'Might as well take a break,' he chewed his lip in thought, glancing at his clock. 'Oh, I think the next monthly stipend should've been deposited. Mom said something about auto transfers. Hopefully I have enough and can buy more clothes finally.' Hadie had ended up borrowing some of Evan's clothes, the Coronian being the only other boy that he knew relatively close in size. Having to wash clothes every week really cut into his time. Clicking open a new tab, Hadie opened up .

"I've got plenty of stores to shop from now at least. Instead of digging through this site blindly," Hadie mumbled aloud as he scrolled through Hermes' site. "This frequently shopped by friends feature is useful. Probably for the best. Evan has good economic sense, but you girls have got better a better sense for fashion."

Ashaki merely stuck her tongue out in response.

'Once Dizzy's back, I won't have to worry about that. Though Evie's stuff is too hoity toity for casual wear.'

Social media was impressive in Hadie's opinion, even if he tended to avoid the gossip side of things whereas Ashaki practically lived in them. He just really wanted to be able to text his friends, but the good phones seemed to be more than even the laptops he'd looked at.

'Maybe over the Summer I can ask mom…or save for a year or two. Especially if Mal isn't going to use the Mind link! We need some way to talk if she won't!' He punched in the login for his allowance's account. 'Cool, this month's amount came in. So that's enough to get the list mom helped me make…and I should probably refresh my toiletries basket.'

Hadie couldn't help it. The hot water was just as comforting as his baby blanket that he'd already run through all of the soaps. Much to the dislike of his hair. 'Good thing Melody had some recommendations. I'd prefer something different than her seaweed wrap. Didn't even know conditioner was a thing. But the stuff she uses smells like the rough side of the Docks.'

Finding a matching scent to go with the one the school provided—the wood and citrus combination something he had quickly grown fond of—reminded him of something else.

'Plants…plants…what would be good to start with but easy to hide in the practice room?'

Tilting his head in thought proved to be a good habit. The whizz of a ruler whooshed past his ear.

"Harry." Hadie closed his laptop, his eyes closing in tandem with exasperation at his surrogate brother's audacity. "This. Is a library."

"Eh? So?" Harry wiggled an extra ruler at Hadie before he tossed it onto the table. "Best be prepared no matter the location. If there's an emergency, being quiet isn't important."

"If you're a thief, it can be," Hadie rolled his eyes. "Jay manages. If he can sneak up on me and pinch my ear before I notice, then I have to go spar with him at the gym. Not in the library."

Knowing Harry though…

Hadie moved his hand as Harry slapped the table with the ruler. He winced at the sharp 'crack' that echoed through the silence. Quickly shoving his chair back, Hadie stood and gathered his things into his bag. Stepping to the side to avoid another lunge, Hadie snatched up the other ruler, wincing as another whack of Harry's ruler resounded around their corner.

Ashaki giggled incessantly from her seat.

"You are so not helping Ash."

"Sorry, Hadie, but I'm enjoying this. Have fun?"

Around the corner, they saw Emir peek his head out. "Harry, I didn't think this is what you had in mind when you asked me to lead you where the library was. All just because I mentioned my sister was headed off to study with Hadie?"

"Eh, I forgot where it was even though Jay showed me the first night here. Not like I have a use for the place."

'Sorry kid' Hadie saw Emir mouth as the older prince edged towards Ashaki from out of Harry's view.

"Come, brother," Ashaki teased. "Join me in observing this evening's entertainment."

"Harry," hissed Hadie. "I'll spar, just please, not here."

"En garde!" shouted Harry, his long legs closing the distance between them. Hadie swung his backpack wide in response, knocking the small wannabe sword from Harry's hand. Using the momentum to lug the bag onto his shoulders, Hadie weaved through the bookshelves and towards the exit as quietly as he could.

Of course, Harry had no such qualms.

Heavy footfalls thudded against the wood floors, growing closer, blood thumping in time in Hadie's ears.

'I just need to get out of the library first,' Hadie tried to keep his pace to a speed walk, pretending to not to see the librarian as he headed towards the exit. 'Then I can run hotter than the Phlegethon to at least try to fight back properly.'

"HA! Gotcha!" Harry slid into some shelves, books scattering across the floor as he tried to turn towards his quarry. The table he leapt over gave a loud squeal as it shifted under his weight.

"Why I never," the librarian hissed, quickly coming around from her desk.

"Eep!" Hadie squeaked, dodging Harry's swing again as his shoulders pulled forward to shrink in on himself. "S-sorry Sylvia, I asked him to behave, but he won't leave me alone—"

"Just, out, out, I say!" The bespectacled librarian hissed, shooing them out with the motion of her hands. "I will not have such noise within our studious abode, take your racket outside."

Hadie nodded uncertainly, silently hoping this wasn't a total mark against him.

'Really now! I am absolutely blaming you if I stay in trouble with Mrs. Goof for this, Harry!' Hadie's thoughts grew grumpy as the brothers reached the courtyard.

"Ah, now this is some nice terrain, we could practice maneuvering here," Harry puffed up, proud of his own idea.

"Harry, I love you, but was that your first time in the library? You completely ignored the rules! How are you even doing homework?" Hadie stared at the sky in exasperation. Now that it'd be about a month since they arrived in Auradon, they no longer needed the sunglasses as Autumn was mostly overcast. It was quite nice, being able to see what outside colors were like without hiding everything under a coat of brown or grey.

"Uh, no?" Harry whacked at a bush with his ruler. "Like I said, Jay showed me the way the first night, but what use do I have of a bunch of paperweights? We didn't bother to go in. I'm happy to be in Auradon, but there are more important things than learning this garbage for me."

The pirate paused, lifting his makeshift sword to stare it closely. "That isn't to say it's not important, for you at least. But…I'm just a pirate." He lowered his ruler and turned to stare sadly down at Hadie. "A pirate who can barely read, that is only capable of even basic things thanks to your parents. I'm not just going to laze by, but it's certainly not a priority Hads. Don't worry about me."

"I guess, I just feel you could be so much more if you wanted to, y'know," Hadie frowned, shrugging his backpack off his shoulders and onto the nearby bench. He whipped around and pointed his ruler at Harry. "I guess right now the best thing if you want to be, is my fencing teacher, huh big bro?"

Tossing off his red coat, Harry swept his black curls out of his eyes. "En garde, little brother."

A few days later found Hadie with Uma, watching Estelle for Mal. The wind whipped across the open field, tossing Uma's heavy braids wildly. Hadie pulled his windbreaker tighter against his jaw, the cold biting at his cheeks. They were in the thralls of December, the winter front quickly approaching. Even with his fire powers increasing, he found Auradon to possibly be colder than the Isle. At least when outside, if only because there were less buildings to block the wind.

Which was why he was out alone with Uma. As roommate, cousin and confidante of Mal…If Hadie thought it was cold, why in their dad's name was Mal going around without her jacket?

'Mal's always struggled with the cold more than I did,' Hadie mused as he watched Uma throw another ball out for Estelle to chase. 'She would even sneak in to my room to share my blanket when the nights got too freezing.'

He still wasn't sure what their mom had done to it, but the half-red, half-blue woven linen was always the exact temperature he needed it to be.

"Hey boy," Hadie shook his head free of his thoughts and reached down for the ball that Estelle had dropped at his feet. "Ready?"

The Cerberus yipped and panted, each head swiveling to focus on the tennis ball in Hadie's hand. With a small spin, Estelle dashed a few feet away, ready to give chase at a moment's notice.

"Fetch!" Hadie threw the ball with a might that surprised him. He watched as the ball arced away, giving Estelle a good bit of distance to hunt his prize.

"Think that's your furthest throw yet," Uma said proudly, appearing next to his left. "You're definitely getting stronger."

She glanced at her youngest cousin and smiled softly. "Taller too. Aunt Steph is going to freak, when she sees you again." Uma had to wonder if her cousin would've still had such a growth spurt if he had still been stuck on the Isle.

Hadie hummed noncommittedly, still staring into the distance as Estelle scrambled back with his ball. Only finally speaking after he'd thrown the ball again.

"I wanted to ask, if you're okay with talking about it, but these whole therapy meetings…"

"I quit that already."

"I'm debating on doing that too," he looked down at his shoes. "They…they keep asking about dad…and if mom is…well…not acting of free will."

"I think I get what you mean, don't worry about them," Uma growled. "Definitely drop them. All of these therapists seem to be quacks."

"Yeah…I read a bit online and talked to the school nurse once about how therapy should have gone. Now I plan on talking to Ben next," Hadie huffed. "They're absolutely going about their job wrong. Yes, we didn't really know what was 'bad' versus 'good' and they had to lead us with questions to figure us out, but now they're going in with these predetermined assumptions based on our parents!"

"They need to up the quality for sure. Idiots probably aren't used to dealing with people with real problems. The bitch had the gall to ask me if my dad ever tried to trade me to the other side! Or if I ever asked for anything from my mom, did I have to cut deals there too?"

"Absolute shit," Hadie laughed as Uma shoved him lightly. "You swore first!"

"I'm also captain while you're under 15 still!" grinned Uma, shaking her head, tossing another ball out for Estelle. "But I'll let it slide, I suppose. Gracious being that I am."

"Thanks, Uma," Hadie said dryly. "OOF!"

Their conversation was halted as the heavy Cerberus vaulted into Hadie, slamming him into the ground.

"Estelle!" Uma rolled her eyes, tugging at Estelle's collar till he moved back to sit before the two godlings.

"I miss them," Hadie began with a whisper sitting up to pet Estelle. Uma sat down to pet the one left out head.

"Well of course you do, and I'm sure Mal will take you on one of her visits at some point—"

"Will she though?" Hadie snapped at Uma, interrupting her interruption. "Mom will come back, I'm not worried about that. She promised to take me to the portal sometimes to at least see dad." He shook his head before continuing. "What I was saying was, I miss them, they're missing so much of a huge part of our new lives, but I miss Mal more. They're worried! I'm worried! We discussed this when we first came to Auradon, and I know you asked Mal somewhat, but she still has her link on mute!"

He took a steadying breath, mist billowing about as the hot air met cold. "They're not here, but Mal is. She is, and she isn't. Something is wrong, and she's shut us out!" Pulling his hands from where they'd been buried in his pockets, he waved them around at the frosted dew surrounding them. "It's Winter, and she's taken off her jacket?"

"I know, I've been asking around," said Uma, grimacing. "She talked about indoor heating, which while she's not wrong, the halls are huge with tons of window. The school doesn't keep a lot of heat to begin with. At this rate, I'm going to approach Wonderbreath's daughter."

"Really? You're going to talk to Macaria?" Hadie glanced at Uma in surprise.

"Hey, it's for Mal, even if she doesn't want our help right now. I'd rather talk to lightning bolt's brood than deal with mama's side of the family." Uma glared up at the sky. "I'd reach out to Aunt Steph if I could, but…you know. She's stuck on the Isle and can't do anything, since even she's blocked."

"Yup. All thanks to the idiocy of his cloud brained majesty, and my tetchy, controlling grandmother."

"You're really channeling Uncle Hades there. Isn't your mom making you meet her mom anyways once she's back?"

"Don't remind, please," huffed Hadie. "I'll play nice, but if she even hints at a single negative thing about dad, I won't hold my tongue."

"Ooooh, do keep me updated on how that goes when you get there, you rarely your top."

"Heh, anyways, I don't know how much Melody's family would know anyways. As far as I've seen, Mal's interacted with Macaria more than Elle," Hadie laid back on the hard, frozen grass, Estelle crawling forward so as to lay across his heads across the godling's chest. "And to be honest, Mal seems to be interacting less with even her lately. Even Alexandria's sisters asked me if I'd talked to Mal. It's like she has time for no friends, let alone her family."

"Wait, she's not even hanging out with the prissy princesses? I wasn't sure if she was finally giving into the Auradon fancy, prancy brainwashing, but I hadn't imagined that possible now that we were here."

"Either way, we need to get to the bottom of this," Hadie scratched one of Estelle's ears as the canine began to wine.

"We certainly do, mini cuz, we certainly do."

The room seemed to spin as Hadie finally stumbled back into his dorm room. He couldn't understand how Estelle seemed to have more energy than even him as a supposedly boundless energetic youth. After the long day of hanging out with Mal's dog and Uma, Hadie was absolutely exhausted.

'I know I want my own pet, but if I had gotten my own dog by now, I don't know how we'd manage two whirlwinds.'

Knowing neither Harry or Jay would mind, Hadie fell face first on the nearest bed.

'Mal is totally lying. This is going to catch up with her soon,' Hadie thought, recalling how a few minutes ago they briefly met up with his sister to give her back Estelle. Mal had met them within the atrium, wearing a dress that Hadie wasn't sure even their mother would wear.

'Mom's shown us a few photos of her from Olympus, and outside of her Olympian wear, there's still an edge to her outfits that's not totally Olympian or Auradonian.' He rolled over and stared at the wooden beams above, his windbreaker crinkling beneath him. 'I've reluctantly learned a lot about clothes just from Dizzy alone, and now all my female friends here in Auradon are absolutely insane over it…so Mal, why the hell are you wearing a dress, in this weather, without at least a matching jacket if it's not going to be your jacket.'

"Mooooooom!" He couldn't help but physically yell. He wanted to send his frustration out through the link. Only Uma's words held him back.

Mom wouldn't be able to do anything, and they didn't want to worry her.

Whatever Mal was going through, she would have to hold on till their mom came back.

Frustratedly, he stood up, unzipping his jacket it and threw it unceremoniously into his closet. The door behind him opened.

"Dang, Hads, what's got you in a snit?" Jay asked, entering their dorm after a long practice seminar for R.O.A.R. "These doors are solid oak, and I could still hear you with the door closed."

"By the Gods, Jay, you stink!" Hadie recoiled. "Hit the showers at least before you try to have a heart to heart with me."

"True enough," Jay said, heading towards his own closet to grab a fresh change of clothes. "Nah, come here!"

Jay leapt towards Hadie, attempting to put the boy in a headlock.

"NOPE!" Hadie scrambled over to the windowsill, climbing it to pull himself up into his loft. "Shower first, Jay! Honestly, you're stinking this room up worst than Pain when he gets into the canned tuna!"

"Alright, alright," laughed Jay. "I'm going."

Once he heard the click engage on the bathroom door, Hadie clambered back down. With a sigh, he returned to his closet and pulled out his pajamas. He tugged on the grey long-sleeved shirt, admiring the soft material before his eyes widened in mild surprise.

"Huh, it fits now." He hadn't been paying much attention, but it seemed in the last couple of months, the once baggy sweatshirt's cuffs now properly rested at wrist length. "I guess Uma was right, I have grown a bit."

Moving on from his brief distraction, Hadie reveled in the warmth as he pulled on the long johns, the thermal immediately cutting out the frigid feeling from his legs. Pants on, he turned as he heard the main door creak open once more.

"You getting ready for bed already too, Hadie?" Harry yawned as he shut the door behind him. His black curls appeared to have been tossed madly by the wind, shirt and coat wrinkled and covered in dirt.

"Yeah, it's been a long day," Hadie mimicked Harry's yawn. "Where've you been? You're absolutely filthy."

"Meh, went for a run after messing with Jay's R.O.A.R. practice," said Harry, shrugging. "Wrestled a bit with a couple of the guys. Annoyed the groundskeeper since we kicked up some of the fallen leaves he was gathering to toss out."

"Well, at least you don't stink to Olympus on high like Jay did. He's already taken the shower."

"That's okay," Harry yawned again, peeling off his coat and shirt. "I'll just toss my crap into the laundry basket and wait. I ain't that dirty."

"Says you," snickered Hadie. "Just try not to get it on anything. I'd hate for you to be sleeping in unclean sheets."

"Wot? Has Auradon already started turning you into a prissy prince, little Lord?" Harry raised an eyebrow. "We practically swam in garbage over there."

"We might've lived underground, but mom made sure our clothes and bedsheets were clean," Hadie snapped back. "We have the ability to do these things now, no reason not to use them."

"Hey, hey, I'm just teasing," sighed the brunet, taking a seat at his desk chair. "See? Just gonna hang out over here. Easier to clean if I do get it dirty while I wait for my turn."

Harry watched as Hadie aggressively ruffled through his closet drawers, seemingly looking for something.

"What's eating at you?" he finally asked. "Rough day?"

"Uma and I were discussing Mal."

"Ah."

"Yup."

"Any ideas with what's going on or how we can get through to her?" Harry stood as Jay reentered the room from his shower. "Talking about Mal," he added for Jay's benefit.

"You really think something's wrong?" Jay asked as he wrapped his hair in a towel. Whenever Uma came by without Mal, she would rant that there was definitely something off about her co-captain. So he was at least somewhat filled in. "We've all been so busy, I still haven't really noticed anything…of course that's changed now that's she's wearing more dresses and not her jacket."

"Seriously though!" Hadie pouted. "It's one of her favorite things in the world! Her favorite thing every from mom, just like her necklace is from dad. There's no way, for no reason, Mal would take that jacket off if something wasn't wrong!"

"Well, I'm going to take that shower," Harry ran a hand through his hair. "We can only hope it's really just as simple as her being busy for now. Until we can find evidence of more."

With a wave of his hand, Harry called out one last time. "No need to wait up, mates! We're all exhausted tonight and need some shut eye."

"I dunno, tomorrow is free for all of us isn't it? Why don't we take the night to chill together and watch a movie? We don't have to watch it, but just hangout you know?"

"That sounds a fair idea, lemme wash up, but feel free to get whatever started," the door locked with a click as Harry finally went in for his shower.

"Anything you feel like watching, Hadie?" Jay asked as he plugged in his laptop to the wall projector.

Hadie shrugged. "You've been in Auradon longer, I have barely any clue what movies are still."

"Really? Nothing your friends have mentioned?" wondered Jay as he pulled up the school's streaming list. "Granted it has to be in the school servers, but we can look. Otherwise, I've got some recommendations from Lonnie. Spirited Away or something. Everyone says it's good. Adventure with magic and demons, I think?"

"That does sound interesting! As for my friends… I think Qullana and Ky mentioned a movie called Coco," Hadie thought aloud. He'd gotten a lot closer to Ky through Qullana, the son of Kuzco stopping by to remind Herkie at lunch one day that he wasn't to blame for what was ultimately an accident. "I only remember that one out of any movies mentioned because it's got a magic guitar."

"Of course you would," Jay laughed. "I see both options, so why don't we go for that one tonight. Save Spirited Away for next time."

"Sounds good to me," Hadie pulled his shoes back on. "I'm going to run down to the kitchens and get snacks and drinks before curfew hits. Anything you want in particular?"

"I'm good with popcorn and whatever drinks," Jay called after him. "Don't get any caffeine though!"

It was late into the night that Hadie awoke, shivering. He tried to ignore the burning images in his head. Nightmares formed from his stresses lingering on the precipices of his mind. Feeling around in the dark, he became more alert as he realized his blanket wasn't around him. A cloud moved, allowing moonlight to swath the room aglow. Rolling over, Hadie looked over the edge of his loft, spotting his fallen blanket. Grunting, he swung himself over the edge and onto the windowsill, his footsteps soft as he retrieved his favorite source of warmth.

He paused at the ladder, still worn out from the day to want to bother climbing it back up. He began to make his way up. He heard a clink and hissed, shutting his eyes tight as someone turned on a light.

"C'mere Hads," Jay's arm cutting the lamp's light off as he made a beckoning motion. "Just crawl in with me."

Hadie carefully stepped down from his ladder, wrapping his blanket around his shoulders, snatching his pillow from the top. "Thanks, Jay," the godling yawned. The teen shifted over, allowing room for Hadie to snuggle into the larger bed, the loft being only a small mattress compared to the older boys' being queen sized.

"Anytime Hads," came the reply.

"Budge over some more."

Hadie and Jay turned, finding Harry blearily standing from his own bed, pillow and blanket in hand. His eyes might've well been closed still from what Hadie could tell. "What? It'll be like when we were little kids again, piled into the same bed."

Hadie plopped onto the bed and shifted closer to Jay to allow room for Harry. After some adjusting, they all fitted, though three people were pushing it for a queen mattress.

With another click, Jay turned out the light. Hadie fell asleep again almost instantly, feeling safe with his brothers on either side.

Chapter Text

Papers rustled loudly beneath the buzz of students chatting away as they anticipated the bell for the end of class, their bellies growling as the signal for lunch break soon approached. A teacher walked slowly between the crowded desks, passing out graded assignments with most students shoving the paper haphazardly into their bags, ready to bolt at a moment's notice. The bell finally rang as the teacher passed back the last of the papers, her last words drowned out as feet stomped against the marble, a sea of students escape towards the hall only throttled by the narrow doorway.

With a snap, Hadie tucked away his own paper into his binder, an eyebrow pulling upward in amusement at the 'well done' written in sloppy cursive next to a smiley face. Around him, his friends stood, discussing their plans for later.

"The next step for the project is pretty straightforward if we want to meet up again soon," Ashaki spoke, looking down at her phone as she examined the newest instructions.

"I'd prefer that," agreed Phil. "I already have plans for today though, so if you all want to do it today, I can join some other time."

"Me as well, if you're free after lunch tomorrow, Phil." Ashaki suggested. The prince of Auroria nodded.

"I'm busy for the weekend. Hadie? You and me at the library around 4 then?" Alexandria said as she led the little group of four into the hall.

"That sounds fine," Hadie replied.

Unfortunately, they saw their least likeable pair blocking the direction they'd intended to go.

"Great, he's not even in this class and has shown up to ruin our day," grumbled Alexandria.

"Really, Alexandria?" Aaron scoffed as they moved to pass him. "You're going sully your presence with this ruffian? Honestly, my cousin will hear about this. Someone of her class should educate you on proper conduct and…stations." With a haughty sniff, he turned sharply and walked briskly away.

"Think about it, Alexandria, you could be hanging out with me instead." Darwin smirked. "At least I can appear in fashion unlike your pet here. And my parents don't consist of a convicted monster and a tramp who probably only married him for his money. Of course, mumsie says the Gods are a mess compared to us, it's only natural his mother was desperate for any way out of their clutches." He sneered at Hadie, before turning to follow his friend out.

Phil placed a hand on Hadie's shoulder as if to hold the godling back.

'Don't get me wrong Phil, I'm sorely tempted to throttle that brat,' Hadie grit his teeth, glaring as Darwin walked away. 'But I don't plan to ruin my opportunities here. That'd hurt the work Ben's put in, and Mal's. Not to mention probably make mom cry.' He hissed aloud as soon as the other boy was out of sight.

"He was way out of line, Hadie—are you okay?" Ashaki cut herself off, looking on in concern as Hadie covered his mouth with a hand.

"I may or may not have taken 'bite my tongue' literally trying to keep myself from doing something stupid," Hadie sighed.

"Lemme take a look," Alexandria said as she looked at him with concern.

Hadie felt silly as she gently took his hand, moving it away from his mouth. He blushed as she giggled as he essentially stuck his tongue out at her.

"Um, you have…gold in your mouth?"

Ashaki and Phil moved closer, confusion evident on their faces.

"Ah, I did bite through my tongue then," Hadie swallowed thickly, the metallic sweetness of godly running through his mouth.

"What do you mean?" Ashaki asked curiously.

"Ichor." Hadie simply responded. "Blood of the Gods is gold."

It was hard to avoid scrapes on the Isle, and when he'd cut himself once helping Dizzy clean up her grandmother's shop, his mother had freaked out pretty hard. Healing it was easy for her, but she had immediately gone over to the store and cleaned up the area herself to ensure not even a drop had been left behind for mortals to find. His parents had a hard, long talk with him as apparently the Gods had strict rules, not wanting to risk letting any sort of part of their being landing in mortal hands. Too many magical properties. Mal had only gotten out of it as her blood was still red, having been only magically adopted and not biologically.

"Anyways, don't worry about it, it'll be healed by tonight," Hadie brushed off his friends concerns. There was no way he was going to go to a mortal nurse. He'd reach out to his grandmother before he risked Olympian secrets.

"Sorry about Aaron by the way," said Phil, pulling away and changing the subject as they resumed their walk. "I don't get what the deal is with my mom's mother's side of the family. They're all snobby insane crackpots."

"Wait," Hadie's eyes narrowed, brushing away his spiraling thoughts of magical theory. "You're related to that berk?"

Phil nodded sheepishly. "Cousins. His sister is Ariana, the one from cheer who's always hanging around Audrey."

"Does that mean it's Audrey he's going to tell about Alex and I studying together in the library?" he looked at Alexandria in concern, the girl in question pursing her lips in annoyance at the prospect of the Banshee showing up.

"I wouldn't put it past him," Phil said, running a hand through his brown hair. "Ariana and Aaron aren't really set to inherit anything, so they grasp at royal status anywhere they can get. Even if that means putting down others to feel better about themselves."

"Typical social climbers," growled Ashaki, shaking her head. "Though even dad had to learn the hard way that status isn't what actually matters. At least not to people with a brain."

They all chortled as Ashaki continued to snip at the disgrace such self-absorbed people really were, caring about themselves more than the country and people they're supposed to support.

"Ooh," Ashaki stopped mid-rant and practically purred at the smells emitting from the cafeteria. "Well, I know who's not in the cafeteria today! Care to bet?"

"That's a fool's bet!" Hadie grinned as he saw Herkie waving from across the hall. "There's a decisive lack of Zephyr today."

"You guys are ridiculous," Alexandria pouted. "I can't imagine eating goat either if I had one as a pet like Zephyr. That's just too cruel."

"Food is food," Hadie snapped before he ran off to beat Ashaki to the specialty of the day. He pretended to miss the look of hurt that flashed across Alexandria's face.

'Oh, I'm definitely going to have to apologize later,' Hadie sighed to himself as he piled papadum and chutney onto his plate. 'I get where you're coming from, but sometimes you see the world too innocently, Alex. You grew up with the choice. My friends didn't.'

The guilt gnawed at him, but when he sat down to eat, Hadie found himself at the far side of the table from where Alexandria sat. He tried not to let it get to him further as he turned to Herkie, his cousin nudging him playfully and devolving the boys into mindless chatter. It wasn't till the meal was almost over that Hadie caught a flash of gold from the corner of his eye.

"I'm going to get going," Hadie hastened, clumsily standing from his seat as he interrupted Herkie and Neal's conversation.

"You sure? We've still got ten minutes," Neal asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I, just uh, have some questions for another class," Hadie rushed away. "But I'll be back in a couple minutes, I should be back before you leave!"

Skidding into the hall, the godling hurriedly glanced every direction, desperate to find his quarry. He spotted the tell-tale ribbons of baby blue dancing along her skirt, just about to turn another corner.

"Alexandria!" Hadie called after her, racing down the hall, glad no teachers were in sight to reprimand him.

He hadn't expected her to turn around and walk back at his call.

"Oof!"

"We have got to stop meeting like this," Alexandria grumbled as a profound sense of déjà vu swept over the two of them. Once again, she accepted his offer to stand, gently grasping Hadie's hand to pull herself up.

"Sorry," Hadie said bashfully. "I hadn't expected you to turn around. I thought maybe you hadn't heard me and rushed down the corridor to catch you."

Alexandria smiled cheekily; her hands placed on either hip as she shifted her stance. "And what have I said about running in the halls?"

"Not to," Hadie grinned back, his face clearing of any regrets, as if he'd been innocent all along.

'Maybe I didn't ruin everything.'

"Anyways, just a couple of things I wanted to say before you headed off to class," said Hadie, taking a deep breath. "I'm sorry for being short with you earlier. You're entitled to your opinion, it's just that…" he trailed off, unsure if he was willing to voice the horrors he had witnessed. As Alexandria stared at him, eyes wide with innocent wonder and not a little bit of concern, he searched for words to help him convey even a little bit of what he felt without destroying the girl before him. Her eyes softened as he bit his lip.

"Look, the Isle…" Hadie began again. "Food is a touchy subject," he finished lamely. He couldn't. Not today at least.

Whether it was the angelic-like gaze of the girl before him, or the clinging pain of the Isle, he just couldn't dare to bring himself to break either thing.

"It's okay Hadie," Alexandria softly smiled. "Your apology is enough. It's been coming to light the Isle wasn't, isn't, as virtuous as we in Auradon would have liked to believe. Most of us anyways," she added, glaring down the hallway. A peek to the side and Hadie made out Aaron and Darwin complaining loudly down the main hall. She tugged him into an alcove, out of sight. "Maybe one day you'll feel comfortable sharing, but none of us will force that out of you until you say you're ready, I promise. Now, library at 4 still? I should get off to the last class. Bell's about to ring."

"Thank you," he answered quietly. "And yes, I'm still up for the library."

"Oh! What was the other thing, you said you had a couple things to say?" Alexandria asked as she moved to leave, glancing over her shoulder, the motion tossing her golden wheat-like hair back.

"That was the other thing," Hadie laughed. "Meeting in the library, that is. I wanted to make sure you were still good for it too."

"Perfect, I'll see you then."

Sharing a smile, they turned their separate directions. Hadie's shoulders relaxed in relief as he saw Herkie just exiting the cafeteria.

The final couple hours of class dragged by, Herkie and Hadie swapping increasingly outlandish notes as they suffered through Greek. Melody was sat on the other side of Herkie, rolling her eyes as a toss by Hadie missed his target, the crumpled paper bouncing off her head and onto her desk. Luckily, the teacher's back was turned.

Melody bit back a giggle as she unfolded the note. The boys had been scribbling in rudimentary Greek, crude doodles of monsters falling victim to each other's poorly constructed phrases. Quickly, she drew what she thought was the phrase Hadie had written, a sloppy creation of Λαδον, fell to Newton's theory as golden μήλον fell on his head.

She paused, unsure what to write as a phrase to turn the challenge. Glancing up, Melody refocused for a brief moment as the teacher moved topics. Unlike the two boys, she had little exposure to the language already and would need to pace with the rest of the class.

She settled on an octopus, smirking at the thought of a certain villain falling victim to lightning. Quickly scribbling a note to otherwise leave her out of their insubordination. As soon as the teacher's back was turned again, Melody quickly tossed it onto Herkie's desk, the boy silently giggling as he unfolded the paper.

The trio's faces switched to silent, mild interest as the teacher turned back around, portraying a perfect picture of paragon pupils.

The next note that slid onto Melody's desk was deliberate.

'We'll help you study this weekend to make up for distracting you. Sorry, Cuz!'

She shook her head, sighing softly, but smiled at their sheepish grins.

"You guys are hilarious," exclaimed Melody, sarcasm evident in her voice, as they left class at the day's final bell. "You better follow through with your promise to help me study, we have our first test next week!"

"We promise, honestly!" Herkie and Hadie spoke at the same time.

"You guys are hanging out too much with Emir and Akiho," Ashaki popped up behind them.

"No such thing," they both stuck their tongue out.

'Though I wouldn't be if Mal found time to hang out.' Hadie idly thought as he and Herkie separated from their group to head up to the older students' dorms. 'I think I've hung out with everyone else's siblings more than my own blood!'

Entering his dorm with a farewell to Herkie, Hadie reorganized his bag with everything he'd need to still work on when at the library. He couldn't help but think of all the different times Mal flaked on him as he went to shower.

Though he saw her almost every day, Hadie felt like he rarely actually got to see his sister. Granted, with the age gap, his knew Mal had her own friends and responsibilities. Just like on the Isle. But she always set time aside for him. At least twice a week, if not every other day, even if it was just hanging out in the den, or each other's rooms, spending time in silence as they did their own things.

When he asked Mal to practice art together, she directed him to one of Evan's many sisters. Which, while educational, Hadie was never actually interested in getting as good at art, he just liked watching Mal work.

Even trying to speak with her at lunch, she was surrounded by other kids, or rushing off to her next class or meeting. Alexandria had swept in, her lunch times normally spent with her own sisters, dragging Kitty and Lucy with her to fill the empty seats left by Mal and a couple other girls' departure. Hadie was just ashamed he didn't hide the look of hurt better, though he appreciated the Charming girls' attempts to distract him. He didn't hesitate to take the opportunity to get to know them more, the older girls having embarrassing anecdotes of their little sister. They encouraged him to visit when break rolled around, saying they would deal with Chad if he was a brat about it. Apparently, he was in an on and off relationship with the Banshee.

That tidbit was all sorts of weird. Honestly, Hadie got all sorts of weird vibes from Chad. Stories from all sorts of sources didn't add up. A proper Charming one moment, and a sleazeball the next.

Hey, he was in a new world, there was no way he wasn't going to dig around and learn about who was around him. Who he could trust? He might've been all smiles and high energy even on the Isle, but that didn't mean he never took precautions.

Mal protected him too much. Hadie was thankful for it, of course. But that didn't mean he couldn't make his own efforts. Knowing she and their parents would flip if he was running around the Isle just mean he kept it on the downlow. Never putting himself in harm's way. Like a dangerous game of telephone, that unfortunately lives of children depended on. He still traded letters every week with Celia and Dizzy. Information, knowledge…backed up with a meal? Easy trade.

It was like his own Uma and Henry to Mal. His magical Facilier and a red head, perfectly positioned to learn things of interest. Even to adults, children were seen and not heard.

In the end, something about Chad didn't fit. Not doing his own homework even? Despite being an heir in which some of the classes were required? Because when Hadie had finally made it into the library for the first time…It had been Chad who had indiscriminately helped him find the exact books he needed for chivalry. And answered in detail about the social studies project at the time…in what trade systems were active and environmental concerns.

So why did he act so dumb?

Then there was Emir and Akiho. With them thrown into the equation, Hadie felt like he was surrounded by Jay and Harry 24/7. He felt protected, entertained and exasperated all at once the moment they popped up. He loved them for it. Intelligent chaos. He wanted to be just like them growing up.

Just a few days ago the pair had taken Herkie and Hadie under their wing, infiltrating Ben's office to rearrange his books to spell silly words instead of the exact genre and author order the King had had them in. Then they'd snuck out of the school just before curfew, Akiho driving them into the market side of town to get freshly spun ice cream and departing with pockets full of candy.

But out of the pair, he drifted closer to Akiho. No siblings to feel like he was poaching from his friends. Fighting for attention. That might've been why Hadie even found himself hanging out with Ben sometimes, watching Estelle.

He hated the feeling of being alone. He'd seen what it'd done to his dad. Shunned by the gods for working with death, for taking his role as ruler of the Underworld seriously while they partied away.

Hadie didn't want to end up like that. Split off from family, friends. Whoever he ended up falling in love with.

'Alone.' Hadie rested his head against the porcelain walls, the hot water running a torrent over him for the last half an hour as he lost himself in his thoughts. 'And if I feel alone, even surrounded by friends…'

How did Mal feel?

Cutting off the hiss of the water, Hadie gathered his things and readied himself to finish the rest of his homework. At least he'd be in good company.

'Despite her innocent flair, Alex always has that cheerful glint of mischievousness. She's not naïve on purpose. It's...refreshing."

Though thoughts of the Isle were still on his mind, Hadie was thankful for the opportunity for Alexandria to distract him. It had been going rather well until they'd been interrupted by the very people they'd hoped wouldn't show despite earlier warnings.

It had been going fine at first.

"Hey," Hadie smiled, standing as Alexandria appeared. He stepped to the side and pulled out a chair for her to sit. He had to practice for Basic Chivalry somehow.

"Thank you," Alexandria's smile brightened, relieving Hadie of some of his stress as her voice was as cheerful as ever. He had been worried that Alexandria would've still possibly harbored some reservations from his rudeness earlier in the day.

They worked together amicably, Alexandria beginning to tackle their English essay first while Hadie took the time to finish off his own essay for Remedial Goodness. It had been awkward at first, the assignment asking for a detailed explanation on how he might've viewed rules on the Isle versus ones in Auradon. It wasn't until Alexandria interrupted his solemn thoughts that he realized he'd been utterly silent.

He felt bad, but Hadie couldn't help the relief he felt when Alexandria was easily distracted by the idea of making a younger sibling club. While he agreed that he didn't like the doting protections that came with having older siblings, Hadie really did feel explaining more about the Isle would tarnish the pureness that radiated from his friend. He did like the idea of being First Mate though.

He had just wrapped his Remedial Goodness essay up and was preparing to move on to assist Alexandria when a flash of teal caught his attention, braids flashing briefly down an aisle. Hadie tried not stare back as he saw his cousin and her first mate continuously peer through the bookshelves at him.

'Honestly, I dunno if it's because he's with Uma, but Harry you are breathing so heavily, Estelle could probably pick up what you ate for lunch on the other side of the school.'

Then Hadie realized there might've been another reason, particularly when he heard Harry groan.

"I've yet to find a girl to be anything less than ravishing in Auradon."

Hadie bit back a snicker as the next noise Harry made was a slight yelp as a smack briefly echoed in the library, Uma huffing as she flexed her hand from slapping her first mate.

Though he frowned as he found the reason why.

The Sleeping Banshee herself.

Oh, and Aaron's sister Ariana, along with some other mindless cheer crony.

While Hadie was willing to be dismissive of his godly status for the benefit of his friends, for Audrey to brush it aside as nothing in her eyes was just asking for punishment.

"It's clear you don't understand how hierarchies work."

'It seems neither do you,' Hadie couldn't help but glare as Alexandria tried to verbally spar with the older girl. 'I can only move upwards? Last I checked, even without proper induction to Olympic ranks, my standing is far higher than yours. Brat.'

As Alexandria's face began to frown, a defeated, lost look gracing her brow, Hadie clenched his teeth in anger.

"That doesn't seem fair," Hadie said, raising an eyebrow as both royals looked over at him. "So what? You can just interfere in the business of anyone lower ranked than you?"

'Not even dad acts like that. Even if you become queen of Auradon or only Auroria, the business of other kingdoms is not yours if it doesn't break the law!'

"Glad to see someone gets it," Audrey nodded.

Hadie smirked a little. "So why won't you leave Mal alone? Considering she's the daughter of a God , I'd think that would be higher on the ranking scale than a mere princess . Oh, no offense Alex."

"None taken."

Hadie returned Alexandria's small smile, glad she hadn't minded his shortening of her name. She'd been quite vocal about only her immediate family calling her such, when they first met, but he supposed maybe being in front of a common enemy, she wouldn't argue.

Audrey moved to speak again, eyes narrowing in anger. A pleasant surprise in the form of Mal suddenly appeared, her hand falling gently upon Hadie's shoulder.

A more shocking surprise in the form of Chad Charming came along, an odd look on his face as he defended his sister from his currently ex-girlfriend. Though why Chad wanted to get back together with Audrey confused the Tartarus out of Hadie.

At least the Banshee and her brainless hanger-ons were gone.

Frowning as Harry and Uma began to argue, their voices rising, Hadie couldn't help but notice an odd tint to Mal's skin.

'Is she…shivering?'

"Guys, I hate to be that person, but this is the library," Mal sighed. "If you're going to stay here, you're going to need to keep your voices down."

Hadie perked up, his concerns flying out the window at the opportunity for his beloved, yet pesky family to leave him to his work.

"Thank you, Mal!" Hadie nodded. "Come on guys, I don't want to get kicked out of here! Again."

"Again? Meaning you've been kicked out of the library already?" Mal asked.

"Harry tried to start a sparring lesson with a ruler last week," Hadie shrugged. Alexandria blinked in surprise at how he was acting like that sort of behavior was normal.

And yet, from what she'd seen, it probably was.

Hadie's shoulders hiked up in protest as Uma messed up his hair. "Fine you little bookworm. I'll behave. But only because you're my cousin."

"Gee, thanks," Hadie muttered as he tried to straighten his hair back out. He let it go though as Alexandria giggled.

"I dunno, I think your hair looks kinda cute with a little tousle to it," she whispered to him as Hadie's family discussed sparring and Mal's lack of a jacket. He stared in surprise as Alexandria reached up and brushed one of his blue locks away from his eyes.

He found he didn't mind.

Alexandria pulled away, pretending to flick away some lint from her dress. "There's nothing wrong with dresses," Alexandria spoke. Uma had begun dismissing the likelihood, apparently disliking the idea of Mal switching up her look now and again.

"Yeah, we can't wear the same thing every day, how are you supposed to do laundry if you're still wearing the stuff?" Hadie mumbled under his breath. "Shower clothed?"

Shortly after, Mal departed, leaving Uma's questions unanswered.

"Look, either I'm crazy or Mal's changed,"Uma began to speak again as soon as Mal disappeared from view.

"Well, why can't it be both?" Hadie asked and then quickly dodged a whack on the head form his older cousin. "You're right though Uma. Mal loves her jacket, she's always had it on since I can remember."

They discussed it for a little bit longer, Alexandria even trying to add her own input, though she didn't know Mal nearly as well. Her particular idea of reaching out to Macaria and Elle was a good one, though Hadie could see the apprehension in Uma's eyes.

'Huh,' a lightbulb appeared suddenly above Hadie's head. 'I wonder if Herkie and Melody know telepathy too, then. Seriously though, Mali! All of us are muted? By the look on Uma's face, you better have our Auradon family on mute too…'

"So…are you guys going to go spar or just stand over our table in awkward silence?" Hadie pulled himself out of his wandering thoughts, glancing at his unfinished homework and then expectantly at his cousin and Harry.

"Ah! Right you are, my young Lordling,"Harry gave a sweeping bow, black curls falling into his face.

Hadie rolled his eyes. "You've been calling me that since I was three , Harry! You outrank me!"

"You're a God. I'm a pirate."

Hadie couldn't help but roll his eyes some more, resisting the temptation to drop his head into the table. "You're first mate. I'm just crew," he grouched back. He didn't mind being crew of course, but for someone Hadie viewed as a brother, he wished Harry wouldn't use a title for him so often.

"And I'm just a fourth in line Princess who'd like to get this essay done."

Sharing a smirk with Alexandria, Hadie happily returned to start his next essay as Harry and Uma finally left to spar. Though he knew he wasn't about to get out of practice either, that still didn't mean he had to look forward to going to dinner gross from training.

'Hopefully I'll beat Jay this time. Not that it matters, one win a master does not make.' Hadie debated with himself. 'I do want to get better though…Maybe one day get good enough to beat even Harry.'

Yeah. Maybe when he hits 20.

Half an hour later, it was Hadie and Alexandria's turn to leave the library. Hadie to get his sword practice in before dinner, and Alexandria to attend a dance club meeting.

"One last thing, Alex?" Hadie grabbed her hand before she could walk away.

"Yes, Hadie?" asked Alexandria, glancing down at where they were holding hands. He quickly dropped his hand; afraid he'd overstepped his boundaries. Apart from Herkie and Melody, as family, he hadn't exactly been physically open with his other friends. Hurriedly, he reached into his backpack, searching for what he wanted.

"Here," Hadie thrust a small, lightly creased envelope towards her. "I try to write my friends on the Isle every week. I've been talking to Dizzy for the last month and she's finally decided to reach out. Sorry it took so long. She's not normally so shy, but here we are."

Alexandria squealed excitedly, snatching the letter from Hadie's hands before throwing her arms around him. "Thank you!" she said, hugging him. "This means a lot to me." She pulled away, the brightest smile he'd ever seen on her face.

"I'll see you later, Hadie," Alexandria called back as she went back on her way, her golden locks bouncing in waves behind her.

"Of course, anytime," he replied, a slight pink hue developing on his cheeks.

When Alexandria later realized Hadie had only called her Alex for the rest of the day…

She found she didn't mind.

Though the brunt of Hadie's mood was gone a few days later, he still couldn't stop the helpless aura that bogged him down. Despite Mal having the ear of the King, reports from his friends on the Isle all seemed to convey a lack of improvement. Food hadn't changed, a sickness was rampart and with Uma's departure, despite Harriet's and Henry's efforts, there'd been an obvious increase in turf wars. It didn't help that there had been an odd air throughout the school all weekend. As if Gaia herself was holding her breath, Helios hiding something to reveal for the next time he peeked over the horizon.

"Guys, guys!"

Today, the little gang was hanging around one of the far sides of campus, various courts for various sports surrounding them. They were debating the best game to play considering Herkie's strength made certain sports like Tennis or tetherball a bit iffy.

Until Ashaki came running up, with news that caused Hadie to bolt up from where he'd been lying on the cement, staring at the clouds out of boredom.

"She what?!"

The AKs stared at Hadie as he leapt up, his scream a fine impression of his dad. His lip curled into a snarl.

"Y-yeah," Ashaki stuttered, concerned at his outburst. "Emir told me that apparently she had been interfering with the food the Isle gets…" Everyone's faces dawned with understanding.

"Hadie?" Melody carefully approached, laying a hand on her younger cousin's shoulder as he tilted his head downward to hide his face. "You're okay now at least, right? You don't have to worry about Isle food, and Ben a-and Mal, they'll make it right."

"You guys have no idea how many of my friends died," he whispered. A drop of water splashed upon the court. Then another. "Children and adults alike! It's a wonder there wasn't mass cannibalism on the Isle!" He clenched his fists in frustration. "We all thought King Beast was doing it on purpose! That even though we kids hadn't committed any crimes, we all were being punished just for who we were…"

The AKs stood there awkwardly, only Herkie daring to approach next to Melody, an indescribable look on his face. Hadie tried to look anywhere but his friend's faces. Phil, with an expression of absolute horror and anger for what his grandmother had done. Ashaki, surprisingly bashful for her gossip, thinking it just generally juicy, asinine news without realizing just what it meant, not just politically.

Hadie felt a stab at his heart as he saw the tears stream from Alexandria's eyes, her hands covering her mouth.

A roll of thunder rumbled above, the shapeless clouds Hadie had stared at only moments before having darkened.

Another tear hit the pavement.

And then so did the rain.

"I don't want to talk about this," Hadie panicked, picking up his bag before bolting from the court, his friends still frozen in place.

Another clap of thunder was heard overhead, but Hadie was blind to it as he ran with no place in mind. He found himself in a glade, the scent of pine all around.

"Hadie, wait up!"

He turned, finding Herkie and Melody standing behind him, both panting and soaked to the bone.

"You guys should've gone inside; this weather is dangerous."

Herkie laughed, though there was no real humor in it. "It won't hit us. I'm the one who started it."

"We figured you wanted to get away. Everyone else did go inside, but we came to get you," Melody stepped forward, pulling her jacket closer to her chin. "You don't have to talk about it anymore, not till you're ready, if you're ever ready!" She hastily added as Hadie moved to take a step back.

Melody raised her hand to the sky, Hadie and Herkie looking on in awe as the water began to pool away from them, as if standing under an invisible umbrella. She took the opportunity to pull both boys into a three-way hug before Hadie could bolt again. This time there was no rain to hide the VK's tears.

"I want my mom," he sniffed. "Fuck, I want my dad." The tangle of arms tightened.

"Sometimes I wake up, expecting to smell the food he makes, especially around this time of year…"

The three godlings collapsed onto the grass, a tangle of limbs, but comfortable in each other's warmth. Melody and Herkie stayed silent, letting Hadie vent everything he'd been bottling up for the last few days.

"You know how you mentioned Saturnalia?" Herkie broke the silence after no one had spoken for a while.

"Mhmm."

"I talked to my dad, and he agrees it's an important time for family," Herkie rolled over, resting his head on a hand as he looked over at Hadie. "No one's really able to reach out to your parents at such short notice, but dad says I can stay for the holiday break if you'd like?"

Hadie glanced at Herkie. "Wait, you spoke to your dad…does that mean you guys do use the mind link?"

"You know about it too?" exclaimed Melody. "You should've said something earlier, we all could've been using it!"

Smiling, Hadie leapt at both his cousins, pulling them into another hug.

"My mom says I can stay over break too, she can send us some seawater," Melody said, sitting on the heels of her feet. "I know you mentioned some magic flare ups, so maybe it would help?"

With a slightly happier nod, the trio stood, ready to head back towards the school. Who knows how many were worried about where'd they gotten off to?

For the first time since he came to Auradon, Hadie didn't feel alone.

Chapter Text

The morning dew had frosted over from the winter's cold. Auradon Prep's halls were quiet as most of the students had gone home for the brief holiday break. Only a lone vehicle, a deep blue SUV, trekked its' way up towards the school, the sound of its engine rumbling through the silence. A few minutes later, all was silent again as the driver parked in the visitor's area and hopped out of his car. A gentle wind blew through auburn locks as the hulking figure hiked the rest of the way towards the school.

The man meandered the halls, seemingly knowledgeable of his destination. A flash of white was seen as he briefly smiled wide, taking in the sight of the mostly empty cafeteria.

"Herkie!" He shouted across the hall, raising one hand into the air as he called the attention of the boy and his cousins.

"Dad!" Herkie leapt up, racing towards his father. Hercules welcomed his son with open arms, lifting his youngest into a hug.

"Hey, there kiddo," he set Herkie down, ruffling the boy's hair as he did. "Surprise!"

"What are you doing here?" exclaimed Herkie, staring up at his father incredulously. "I thought you and mom were going to visit γιαγια with Macaria and Hyllus?"

"They still are, but I realized something," Hercules began, watching as Hadie tensed as the much older cousin glanced in his direction. "Hadie," Hercules continued, nodding a greeting, a gentle smile softening his intimidating stature. "I'm glad to see you're looking well since we last met."

"Hello, nice to, uh, see you too…I'm sorry," Hadie shifted awkwardly, eyes shifting side to side underneath his blue fringe. "I'm not sure how to address you, sir."

Hercules closed the distance between them slowly, Herkie glued to his side, before kneeling down so he wasn't towering over the godlings.

"Hercules is fine," a tan hand rested gently on Hadie's shoulder. "We're family, though it may be odd to address me as cousin considering our age gap for now. Feel free to keep in mind that I rarely acknowledge the Olympian lifestyle, so no need for any titles, okay?"

Hadie nodded, enraptured by Hercules relaxed and naturally jovial voice.

'Though I suppose I should expect that,' Hadie thought as he tilted his head, staring at Hercules inquisitively. 'When Herkie accidentally broke Ky's arm, and both Hercules and Megara showed up, they were nothing but kind, even if Megara was a bit standoffish at first.'

"Now, for the reason I'm here," Hercules smiled broadly, the crow's feet of his eyes crinkled as his voice pulled Hadie from his thoughts. "I don't want to interrupt your plans, but it's your first Saturnalia in Auradon, and I figured it's unfair that you'd spend it alone," He shook his head as Hadie opened his mouth to speak. "I know I gave permission for Herkie to stay, and I know Ariel did the same for Melody even though it's not something their side of the family really celebrates what with Eric sticking to Yule. But the school isn't able to isolate resources for a few students, so I got permission to come down, cook, and spend the day with you kids."

"Really?" asked Herkie, jumping on his dad's back in excitement.

"Absolutely!" the man stood, causing his son to slide off, and puffed his chest in faux pride. "Now, since it looks like your plates have been licked clean, how about you three show me the kitchens so I can get started? I hope you all made healthy choices to start your day." A lopsided grin appeared on his face, looking at the three expectantly, a keen naivety shining in his blue eyes as if he truly did think the kids had made such a decision. "You can tell me about what you normally have, Hadie, just so we have some basis…"

Both boys glanced slyly at Melody as they enthusiastically nodded along as Hercules spoke, at least for themselves. Herkie, fondly followed his father's nutritional advice whereas Hadie tended to keep to fruit and protein. Melody's habit of syrup-drowned chocolate chip covered waffles however…

Don't you two dare rat me out! Melody whined over their mental link, though her outward appearance was all smiles as she nodded along with Hercules' words.

Strong feelings of amusement were all she felt back over the link.

The group of four trailed out of the cafeteria, making it about halfway to their destination before a distraction came along. An echo of a commotion could be heard down one of the halls.

"Okay, color me curious, that came from the entry hall," Melody said, "Adventure detour?"

"Yes!" Both Hadie and Herkie grinned.

"Come on, dad," Herkie tugged at Hercules' sleeve. "Cooking can wait, you said you didn't want to interrupt our plans? Well, our plan simply consisted of taking us wherever our curiosity desires!"

"Just like old times I suppose," Hercules chuckled quietly, then grinned as he used his ‘hero’ voice. "Alright young adventurers, lead the way!"

The four of them tried not to rush down the hallway, hopeful to not miss any of what may have been occurring, their shoes already too loud on the marble floors possibly giving them away. Reaching the end, Melody, then Hadie and Herkie each peeked their heads around the door frame, one at a time to find the source of some rather loud voices. Hercules shook his head at the comical action and simply tilted his head slightly, his height easily lending him an advantage as he peeked around the corner himself. His eyes widened as he recognized just what was going on.

"I don't see why not! If Hercules is able to see him, I certainly should be able, too!"

A large woman with reddish-brown hair stood intimidatingly at the doors of the main hall. She looked out of place, wearing a flowing chiton covered in various flowers and vines, with braided corn husks tied into her hair, a pale green glow emanating from her presence. Across from her, the little group spied the headmistress of the school standing firmly in the strange woman's way.

"I'm sorry Lady Demeter, but I have to refuse you entrance. In the case of Lord Hercules, he is a parent of currently attending students."

"Now, surely this is just a misunderstanding, as his grandmother—"

Fairy Godmother raised a hand, halting the Goddess' words. "I mean no disrespect, Lady Demeter, but you are only listed as an emergency contact. You do not have leave to visit or remove him from campus without Lady Persephone's permission. Which even if you did, it is up to the student in question if he wishes to see you at all."

Hadie bumped into Hercules as he pulled back, trying to press into the wall as if it could devour and hide him.

"I don't want to see her, not without my mom," Hadie whispered, looking down at his feet, trying not to shake with fear.

'Mom has shared mix stories about her own mom, and it's the only time dad tries not to say anything inappropriate even though it's written all over his face how much he doesn't like her! What if she tries to keep me from ever seeing dad again!'

"Hey," Hercules whispered, kneeling down at Herkie and Melody's level where they were still enraptured by the argument, unaware of their cousin's building anxiety. "You two take Hadie down to the kitchens, I'll take care of my aunt and have Fairy Godmother direct me afterwards."

Taking Hadie, by the arm, Herkie led the three of them away, Hercules waiting a few beats before walking out of their hiding spot.

It was a good thirty minutes before the Mini Three saw Hercules again. With a deft hand, Hadie hid the candy the anxious trio had begun to munch on into his coat pocket as Fairy Godmother led the demigod into the room, constant apologies and thanks spilling from her lips.

"I'm the one that should be apologizing, Fairy Godmother," Hercules shook his head as they entered the large kitchen. "I shouldn't have mentioned I would be visiting Hadie as well when I told my mother I was coming. You know how gossipy Olympus is."

Fairy Godmother nodded noncommittally, too aware to of insulting the Gods.

"Apologies for the interruption, students," the fae smiled at the entirely too innocent acting children. "Do try to keep out of too much trouble?"

Turning back to Hercules she waggled a finger at him, "Please make sure to clean up after yourselves, that's all I ask. The kitchen staff would appreciate it."

"Of course, Fairy Godmother," Hercules nodded serioiusly. "You can count on me."

As Fairy Godmother bustled out of the kitchen, Herkie snorted into his cup of hot cider, all too familiar with his dad's hero routine, even if it was entirely genuine.

Hercules clapped his hands and rubbed them together. "Shall we get started?"

"We?" The trio said simultaneously, each tilting their head to the side as they looked at him questioningly.

"I thought you said you were cooking dad? You didn't ask for help!" Herkie protested as his cousins snickered on either side of him.

"Aw, come on, guys! Not even a little bit of help?" whined the outnumbered adult.

"We'll help clean after…" Melody giggled, "by eating the evidence!"

"With a generous amount of snarky commentary!" Hadie added with a smirk.

Shaking his head, Hercules looked around to find the supplies he'd had imported by the school at his own expense just a few days earlier. While he began to cook, the children began to wind down, chattering lightly about school before the conversation changed back onto the purpose of the day.

"—and last year, Grandfather was so drunk, he and Dionysus knocked over the dessert table and started a food fight!" Herkie roared, Melody and Hadie dissolving into their own fit of laughter. "Auntie Hestia was absolutely furious; she lit their chitons on fire! Grandmother let it go for a bit before she finally had Uncle Po-Po hit them with a tidal wave."

"We've done nothing so rambunctious," smiled Hadie, resting his chin on a hand. "We do the μιασμα cleanse, even though we can't really do magic on the Isle, but dad's pretty adamant about keeping souls healthy…" he trailed off, thinking listlessly, resisting the temptation to check in on his parents to see if they had anything planned without the brunt of the rugrats beneath their feet.

Despite speaking with them through telepathy every night, they were all so busy that apart from their Saturday talks, their nightly talks were mainly 'good nights' and 'love yous'. With it being winter, his mom was helping with the influx of souls, especially since his dad was still constantly being bothered with the other villains' problems.

At least the hours the God set aside were being mostly followed, with Hades being quite firm with the use of a complaint box for him to pace through than dealing with an open idiot forum.

A poke at his cheek pulled Hadie from his thoughts, he looked up to see Melody grinning at him as she poked him again.

"Gone down a rabbit hole, have you?" a puff of flour decorated her hair in sharp black and white contrast from when she helped prep the phyllo pastry. After a moment she shrugged, unwilling to pester Hadie for his current thoughts. "My mom did send seawater like she promised, so we can do the ritual if you want. I don't know the words though."

"I know them. And I'll send her a thanks. I still need to write her anyways after she sent that box of spiced chocolate to try last week," Hadie stuck his tongue out as he lightly smacked Melody's hand away as she tried to poke him again. "Your mom is really too kind, Mel."

"I think she's still trying to make up for never telling me the truth about the seawall," she awkwardly laughed. "It's a weird conundrum, being spoiled in addition to grounded. Anyways, you were telling us what you do before you spaced out. My family really does nothing for it. Grandpa Po-Po wants to host us next year now that I know about them though. Or even go visit for my birthday! You're totally invited either way!"

Hadie shook his head fondly as Melody began to ramble. He quickly cut in to answer her question. "We really don't do much. We can't do much, what with the Isle. Dad cooks what he can, but…" he glanced briefly at Hercules who was still busy over the stove. He shook his head again. Hadie was done keeping secrets, at least when it came to his cousins. They'd proved themselves after his little meltdown a some days ago. "We have to keep everything rationed since there isn't exactly a lot of food. It's only a feast with what mom can bring back from Auradon and then we have to try to make it last a year until she comes back again."

The three glanced briefly at Hercules as they heard the clattering of metal.

"Uh, don't mind me," Hercules said, voice muffled by the thumb in his mouth to stopper a small cut. "I've always been a little clumsy."

"It's alright, Uncle Herc," Hadie smirked, much to the once-God’s shock. With the age difference and already the kindness shown, Hadie felt more kinship with the son of Zeus than his actual Uncle. He'd stick to calling Herkie cousin to keep the differentiation. "Dad sucks his thumb too, you don't need to make excuses."

Everyone stared at him for a moment before bursting into laughter.

"A-are you serious?" Melody wheezed, clutching at her sides.

"Absolutely!" Hadie grinned madly. 'Sorry dad, but you're really not the big bad villain you used to be. Scary brilliant sure, fire ooga booga, but that world domination is long gone from the list.'

"Granted, he only does it when he's asleep and mom's off the Isle. Clings to her pillow and everything."

Hadie leaned back in his chair, pleased with his deflection as he continued describing their usual activities of clay crafts and story time. They seemed to think his dad's habit a joke, too outlandish of one of the greatest villains to believe.

'Their loss. I remember crawling in with him once after a nightmare when I was little. I don't think he realized I caught him. Or if he's even aware he does it. The one time Mal and I managed to move his hand without him waking up, he either whines or just starts drooling like crazy.'

A couple hours later, Hercules tugged a cart laden with food towards a private room put aside for them to eat in, the children following dutifully like ducklings as they continued to chatter along, carefully carrying plates and utensils. With the room set, it quickly filled with enticing scents of fennel and clove, racks of rosemary rubbed lamb and feta stuffed bell peppers amongst other drool worthy plates.

"It all looks so good, dad," Herkie groaned as he began to crowd his plate with various pickings.

"H-herkie, hey!" Hadie grasped at his own fork as he attempted to stop the other boy from piling food onto Hadie's plate for him as well. "I'm capable of making my own plate, thank you!"

"I just want to make sure you get a little bit of everything," Herkie protested back. "You need to eat more!"

"Gah, you're like the lunch lady, always trying to fatten people up!" Hadie tugged his plate away before Herkie could add anymore. "Thank you, but at least let me finish this mountain before you have to roll me out of here!"'

"As if we'd ever need to roll you out, Hads," Melody scoffed. "You'd need to eat three servings per meal for a year before you'd have trouble fitting through a door way. Honestly, Uma’s right, if you had your way, you’d only eat chicken and French fries."

"Make that ten years!" laughed Herkie as they all began to dig in. "I feel like everything you've been eating has just made you taller, but you're almost just as skinny as when we first met!"

Hercules chuckled as he watched the exchange. The boys certainly had developed a strong bond no one had expected, and with Melody in tow, it was like he was seeing what the Big Three could've been. Amicable. Happy. Naturally, a.k.a. genetically, chaotic.

'I know you were worried when Herkie first started writing home about becoming close with Hades' son, Meg...'

He'd fought, one of the few times actually, with his parents. Meg hadn't cared either way about her old boss's punishment as long as he left her and Hercules alone. Everyone else saw Hercules as far too forgiving.

'You've done a fine job raising your kids, Hades.' Hercules mused as made a platter for himself. Though he hadn't yet met Mal, only seeing her briefly at Family Day and the Coronation, Macaria had called home praising the girl often enough. 'Maybe one day father will forgive you too. He did it for Poseidon after all. It just took twenty something years.'

"Thoughts?" asked Herkie around a stuffed mouthful of food. "How's it compare to your dad's cooking?"

"Herkie," sternly said Hercules. His son swallowed sheepishly.

"I am willing to say it's just as good as my dad's, but you've yet to convince me your dad's better."

"Maybe dad can ask Grandfather to get your dad off the Isle for even just a little bit," a mad glint appeared in Herkie's eye. Hercules glanced at his son, slightly concerned as if the boy was in tune with the very thoughts he'd been thinking moments before. "I'd love to see a cook off between my dad and yours!"

An amused yet slightly exasperated look crossed Hercules face.

"Herkie, let's not make light of Hades' situation," Hercules interrupted. "Even Hadie, who's done nothing to be on that Isle, was stuck there until King Ben came into power. Even when several gods had been pestering my father, he didn't bother to set a conversation with the previous King to see if it'd even be a possibility."

"T-there were multiple gods?" asked Hadie, tilting his head. "I just know my mom said, uh, grandmother, was pretty vocal about keeping me with her on her farms instead of going between the Isle and Auradon."

"Demeter was absolutely vocal, still is, as you saw today," Hercules pondered slowly counting off fingers. "Her sister Hestia of course, Hermes, Aphrodite and Artemis are all good friends of your mother too. Unfortunately, Hestia no longer sits on the council of Olympus, having retired, so that isn't enough clout to force my father's hand."

Hadie looked down at his plate, slowly chewing as he savored the flavor of the pilaf.

"It's nice to know that there's other Gods I might be able to trust," Hadie eventually said. "Mom doesn't really speak about the other gods because dad tends to monologue and rant for hours. Though trust might be a strong word…I still don't know how I feel about Demeter? Grandmother? I don't even know what to call her!"

"What do you mean, Hadie?" asked Melody as she fashioned herself a poorly constructed gyro.

"Even once I meet her officially, I'm worried she won't like me," Hadie mumbled. "She doesn't like dad, and I look well enough like him…"

"Hey, now, that's nothing you need to worry about until it happens," Melody spoke, as she scooped a less than healthy amount of ice cream into a bowl. "And your mom plans to be right there with you at least!"

"And from what I've heard from my parents, and evident by today, she's desperate to meet you," Hercules smiled gently, placing dessert onto the table. "Your mom is pestered for new photos every time she comes back, so I doubt you looking like Hades has had much impact on Demeter's views. I think she's just genuinely excited to have grandchildren, but since you were on the Isle, she hasn't had the chance to be a grandmother as she would like to be."

Hadie looked down at his plate. He had a feeling the first meeting would be…tumultuous.

'I'll try. If…grandmother…can learn to be tolerable of dad,' he thought as they all dug into their food. 'I'm willing to give her a chance.'

Time moved forward as it's won't to do. Before Hadie knew it, another month and a half had passed since he'd arrived in Auardon.

'Another month and a half closer to seeing mom again,' Hadie hummed happily to himself as he nearly vibrated with anticipation, practically skipping through the halls. There had rarely been a poor day since the revelation that Leah had been sent to the Isle. With her death so soon after, Aaron and his annoying little group had thankfully left Hadie alone. At least for now.

Today would be even better because he'd get to see Mal.

As soon as Mal was done with a Cotillion fitting with Evie—and yes, he called her Evie when Mal or Uma weren't around thank you very much or Dizzy would have his head—she finally had the time to hangout, just the two of them.

The two siblings had both been so busy with school, particularly Mal, that they only seemed to have alone time with each other once a month. Today they were meeting in the student kitchens, the one's where students were actually allowed, usually used for Everyday Skills Without Servants. Like cooking and sewing. The school had changed the name after complaints from the public. Apparently, it'd originally been Life Skills of Commonfolk. Hercules had only used the large kitchens because it had the equipment he wanted. Not to mention being an adult meant it was allowed. The student ones just had a few ovens and stoves, not a giant vertical spit to make gyro meat that no child would know how to handle.

Following the directions Alexandria had given him—something that occurred with increasing frequency—Hadie eventually found the room.

'Seriously. Maps are important, Ben! Should've included that with your Introduction to Auradon package,' Hadie ranted to himself, slipping into the room and hopping on a stool as he waited for Mal. 'Alex has yet to lead me astray, even if I never quite made it to the library that first day, but it wouldn't have been necessary to ask if I'd just had a map!'

"Hey Storm cloud!"

"Mali!" Hadie flung himself into Mal, causing her to drop the bags of ingredients occupying her hands.

"Oof, okay, you're getting way to heavy for that, Hads!" Mal tried not to double over from the impact as she held her brother tightly. "Probably shouldn't risk jumping mom when she gets back too, soon only dad's going to pick you up for much longer."

"I'm only a bit taller Mal," Hadie huffed, pouting at the thought of not being able to sit on their mom's lap anymore.

"As loathe as I am to admit it, you're going to be taller than me one day, Storm cloud," Mal blew a raspberry at her brother as she laid out what she'd brought on a prep table.

"Yeah, well, that's not exactly a difficult achievement there, Mali," Hadie smirked, placing a bowl on the counter and grabbing the cornstarch from Mal in order to fill the bowl.

Mal rolled her eyes as she cut up the chicken. It was weird, seeing what pre-butchered cuts looked like in Auradon instead of having to break down a chicken themselves. The two of them both learned once their dad thought they were old enough to handle knives. Not that that stopped Mal, but wielding a knife in the kitchen was different than wielding a dagger for combat.

As the pair of them set to work, attempting to make the food they missed most, Hadie and Mal talked about everything and nothing. Their desire to simply try to enjoy each other's presence as the normally attached at the hip siblings found their time together too rare while in Auradon.

"I know mom'll be back in a couple months, but only having telepathy to speak with her and dad sucks!" Hadie lamented as he hopped back onto a stool to help prepare the garlicky coating they loved so much. "I miss them."

"I do too, Hadie," Mal sighed, picking up the tray filled of finally prepped chicken. "That's why we're here trying to make some semblance of a taste of home."

"You're doing so well, here in Auradon, though," Mal added, smiling sadly at her brother as she slid the chicken into the oven. "Fairy Godmother keeps me updated on your grades, and you've made plenty of friends. Even had a bit of a growth spurt like I said. Though proper food would do that."

"Being social and smiles doesn't mean everything's fine, it just looks like I've adjusted," Hadie sighed, dropping his chin into his hands as he rested his elbows onto the table, pouting. "Keeping myself busy with school is what I did on the Isle. Now I just have more people my own age to distract myself with. Something you of all people may relate to right now."

He glanced at Mal from the corner of his eyes, he didn't want to do this, but when Mal bottled up, sometimes being blunt and ripping the bandage off was the only way to go. Mal stiffened, Hadie immediately recognizing 'defensive Mal' activating.

"Mal…?" Hadie carefully began. Even when Mal had first entered the room, he could tell there was something wrong. He wanted to ignore it, tried to, but he couldn't in good conscious allow Mal to continue bottling up whatever she had been hiding for the last few months. "Please…talk to me?"

At first Mal turned away, occupying herself with the chopping of garlic.

'Well, that's not the worst she's ever responded with when confronted,' Hadie thought wryly as he waited for his sister to finally say something.

"I'm not entirely sure what you need me to talk about, Hadie," Mal finally said as she began aggressively mixing a sauce together.

"You might've learned the mind link first, but you've always been shit at it," he groused, miffed at Mal's stubbornness. "You don't want to worry our parents, but they've absolutely noticed because you've got emotions of stress and fear feeding over the link every day!"

"I don't know what you're talking about. Even if I was, you shouldn't be getting any of my feelings."

"Uh, because Uma is picking it up and told me? Dad too, he pesters me every weekend to ask, but you're either busy or avoiding me it seems like!"

"A-avoiding you? I would never do that on purpose Hadie, you're my little brother!" Mal stared at him in shock. "I know I'm busy, but as soon as Cotillion is over, I'll try to make more time for you! I know we only see each other a few times a month, but—"

Hadie couldn't help it. That was the last straw. The last drop that overfilled his already brimming cup, the lone dam holding back his own frustrations and worries. He slammed his hands angrily into the counter.

"Come on, Mal! What's going on? It's not a few times a month, it's ONE! You're not even talking to mom or dad at all! For your information, Herkie told me that you have Macaria on mute too and by extension all of our Auradon godling cousins. Not to mention the news ambush where they tried to contact you! But me and Uma as well, barely speaking with us outside of meals? Which, don't think I haven't noticed you've began to skip out on. Or leave early!" He drew a deep breath, his next works weaker and pleading. "Please, Mali. I grew up with you protecting me, helping me. Now let me help you."

"I'm sorry, Hadie, you're too young to deal with my problems. Which there aren't any." She said dismissively. "It's just school and meetings, I swear."

"You swear? But you don't promise. Don't think I don't know the difference Mal! Unless you're willing to swear by oath? No one seems to know anything; it'd help to even just tell someone. Myself, Uma or Ben?"

"I don't have to tell you anything!" Mal shouted, standing up abruptly. She tried to ignore that the difference in their height was almost gone, barely able to look down at her little brother.

"It's my responsibility to protect you! Not the other way around! Don't you remember what happened the one time you were allowed out on your own? I've made sure it would never happen again, even if I had to be around Maleficent just to trick her into dealing with those idiots who tried to kidnap you, permanently. You're my little brother, not my keeper."

"That happened when I was six! I'm almost twice that age now, and older than you were when you started running an entire gang. I just want to help you, is that too much to ask?"

Mal only shook her head, refusing to say more as she crossed her arms.

"You go off sparring with Uma all the time, or your new Auradon friends, but what about me, Mali?" Hadie whimpered. "I've hung out with Estelle more than you, with Ben too! Do you not have time even for your own dog?"

"I can't exactly take Estelle to classes," Mal rolled her eyes and huffed. "And I can't exactly stop sparring, Uma would come after me no matter what. Everyone else comes to me. You're more than welcome to do the same, we can always work on swords together. But I just…don't really have a lot of space in my schedule so it's usually just class stuff, it's not like I've had time to hang out with anyone else either. Anyways, my secrets are mine!"

Hadie felt a scream bubble up in the back of his throat. The urge to throw a little tantrum like he used to when Mal first started to keep what she could about the Isle from him. She was being so flippant about her own problems, ignoring his concerns. Instead, he lowered his voice, knowing defeat. He would have to hope someone else would get through to Mal, before it was too late. He focused a glare on his sister, his lips forming a pout as he shook his head with disappointment.

"Secrets? Secrets are no fun. You won't tell me? Then we're done."

The modified saying fell from his lips automatically, as if he was in a trance. Ignoring the flash of hurt in his already crumbling sister's eyes, Hadie turned away and fled from the kitchen, the temptation of their favorite food abandoned.

'Damn Mal's stubbornness and pride.'

Mal buried her face in her hands as the timer went off for the oven, desperately trying to keep her tears from falling.

Neither noticed the wisps of blue fire evaporating from either of their hair.

Waking up the next morning was hard.

'Is it…cold?' Hadie sleepily wondered as he climbed down from his bed to prepare for classes, the protections of his must-be-magical blanket left reluctantly behind. Taking his usual doses of medicine, Hadie rummaged through his closet for one of his sweaters. 'I'm usually resistant to the cold though…not like…not like Mal. She's going to hate today.'

It stung, recalling yesterday's fight, but Hadie felt absolutely sure that he was in the right.

'I'm not going to be the one to apologize first,' he thought as he turned on the shower water as hot as he could withstand. 'That isn't to say I won't at all, but Mal is the one refusing help. I can't do anything more about that. The only S.O.S she's willing to give right now is 'Stubborn Old Sister'.'

Content that he was right, Hadie settled on ignoring Mal even if it hurt. He'd only listen if she finally opened up and asked for the help she clearly needed.

Getting dressed he threw a jacket on over his sweater as he left for classes, thinking no more of the creeping cold. So assured in his quest to ignore Mal for the time being, he barely gave it a second thought that he never saw her at any point that day.

It was a week later he learned she had fallen ill.

He also learned someone had finally done something, succeeding where he had failed.

And that he had a surprise guest.

The day had started out like any other, except not really. Due to Cotillion preparations, occasionally Fairy Godmother would allow a free day from classes. Melody had gone off with Elle after the older girl had gotten back from a date with Akiho with Emir magically appearing shortly after the two Atlanticans had left. The King's Shadows stayed for quite a while, keeping an eye on the rather rambunctious mass of various younger siblings as they hung out in the library courtyard. At least until Akiho started listing about a hundred possible sandwich combinations and the pair of shadows zoomed off with no other explanation.

Hadie watched from his perch, having beat Akiho and Herkie up one of the trees earlier, as Evan and Ashaki clearly cheated at 'Cheat', somehow sneaking cards into Phil and Neal's hands as they raced to rid their own hands first. He laughed as Herkie hung from a branch, bouncing up and down, shaking the tree they were in.

"Hadie?" The librarian, Sylvia, stood at the doors that led to the library, everyone turning to her as she called out. "There's a visitor here looking for you." Hadie slowly straightened up, like a meerkat peering into the distance towards the door as Sylvia held the door open for Hadie's supposed guest. After Demeter had showed up, he was apprehensive. A soft green glow surrounded the person, obscuring Hadie's ability to properly make out who they were and furthering his concern due to the similar color to his grandmother. His jaw dropped as his eyes widened, finally comprehending who approached, not used to seeing them surrounded in a glow. Jumping down from his place in the tree, he hesitantly spoke:

"Mom?"

Chapter Text

Flametop.

Are you actually a flametop yet? Don't disappoint, I'd hate for my nickname to be wrong. You know I hate being wrong.

Send pictures or something. Like food. And make sure Uma writes to me too. You've only been gone a week and I'm already bored. Make any friends on the other side? Anyone trustworthy or at least somewhat reliable yet? Any jerks we need to give nightmares? Come on, what are the other brats in sunshine land like?

Seriously. I'm bored. It's your fault for leaving. How dare you.

I better be in the next group.

Celia

HADIE!

I demand you send pictures! I asked Celia to put it in her note too. I want to see what Auradon looks like outside of the dingy papers and washed-out magazines. Evie sometimes sends things, but mostly designs she's working on or selfies? I think she called them selfies, with people she's made friends with. She's promised I'll be in the next group.

Do you think that's true? I hope so. You'll try too, won't you? You, me and Celia together again!

What's school like at Auradon Prep? I can't wait to no longer have to attend Dragon Hall. Have you found the library yet? Do you think you could send books?! I hope you don't mind, but in the meantime your mom sometimes lets me borrow a book from your stash.

It's not like you're here to read them. Plus, I bet you've already read about every single one of them in there. Have you made any new friends? Don't you dare try to replace us though! Try to make friends with people that we'd like too, gives us less effort to put in should we finally get off the Isle too.

Kidding!

Do tell me about anyone you end up hanging out with a lot! You know I love to learn about other people. Rumors or what have you. You know Celia does too. Even if she pretends not to care, but as if we would go into a world blind when we've got insight like you now.

Pictures! Don't forget.

Dizzy

To my favorite redheads:

The blue envelope holds your photos. I've labelled each with a small snippet on the back for your perusal, Dizzy. I got DeVil to do them for me. Celia, you know what the other envelope is. Make sure they get theirs.

You don't have to respond to this part right away, Diz, but think it over. One of the people I've begun hanging out with is Alexandria Charming. Queen Ella's youngest daughter, your cousin. Honestly, she and her friends remind me a lot of you. I brought up we were friends and she's genuinely curious about getting to know you. So, there you go, someone to get to know before you get off Isle. Your own Pen Pal. Let me know when you decide. It's your choice.

School is school. A bit more than what mom and dad have made me do, since I rarely did individual projects and presentations. Dad was pretty firm on doing a few though because public speaking is important for learning to conduct minions apparently. THE LIBRARY IS AMAZING. It's huge. I asked the librarian how many books they had and she said well over a million! There's like three or four floors, and I'm still trying to find everything. Luckily, they teach us that there's an order that everything is organized by. Not to mention there's computers. Not only is there more stuff on the computer, but you can use it to find a book you might want. I just pick a book and it'll tell me the shelf number and name to go to. If someone else has it, I can get on a waitlist with a time it should be my turn.

Honestly these are rules I can get behind. The Librarian, Ms. Sylvia is both nice but also scary because she started whisper raging if something happened to any of the books, there would be repercussions? I had to look that word up. I guess dad has used it a few times when ranting about his usual suspects. Consequences, punishments. Basically, big no-nos, she's not the kind of person I think I'd want to get in trouble with.

So, there's Alexandria as I've said. She hangs out with my cousin Melody, one of Ariel's daughters, and Ashaki, the daughter of Aladdin. They're all nice, we share a few classes so we study together. Then there's Evan, I think you'd get along with him CC, we have something of a pick pocket competition going on between each other. Ashaki sometimes joins in, they're both kids of thieves, so I guess it makes sense? Neal, Snow White's son, hangs out with them all too, though we've yet to really connect like the others. Philip Jr, Aurora's son is pretty chill. He and Melody are close I guess, so I'll probably hang out with him more eventually since they visit each other during breaks and I was invited to Ariel's castle.

Weirdly enough, my closest friend here has already been the one you guys knew I was most nervous about. Herkie has been so helpful to me, and he and Melody have been preparing me for when I eventually meet the rest of the estranged family. Don't worry, he hasn't led me astray, everything has aligned with what mom's talked about, so he definitely has shown himself trustworthy.

I don't know how Phil is so chill, because his family is definitely not. He's got a sister and two cousins who are about as bitchy and stuck up as the Angels or Mad Maddy. Mal calls the sister Sleeping Banshee. It's apt.

I haven't seen much outside of the school yet. I got to go out one weekend because they're making all the new VK's go to doctor appointments, see what kind of damage the Isle did to each person. I do have to say, you guys have tons of food to look forward to, I've never gone wanting here.

Now that Ben's in control, keep me updated on Isle status, will you? Hopefully we can start seeing some changes.

And of course, the usual news.

Hadie

Serpent,

I can't believe you were brother to the dragon's daughter all along. It makes sense now why you had me pretend you were a candidate for the Caster's to repay that favor I owed you. You neatly took care of one of us as Mal's enemies and I didn't even know it. Here I thought you were playing the long con to join us and steal intel from the Rats, but it was the other way around. Anyways, my brother will do what I say, he cares about me too much not to. Hearts will follow along, as you well know. We're more interested in learning and practicing than trying to rule the Isle after all.

As for the Mad bitch? I think she's becoming a problem. There's a reason we call her Mad after all.

Just know that I'll uphold our deal. I'll keep the Caster's from maneuvering against Mal as much as I can. Safe passage. But you know how my brother and the bitch are. I want those Magic hating Angels dead though. HOP is doing fine. Hearts has taken in a couple more kids, but with Mal's promises to make the Isle better with the aid of the King, hopefully we can hold out without you here to assist anymore until things improve. At least Fox has taken over your connection to the restaurant, but she's not able to take as much food as you were.

They got any cool stuff I can try throwing into potions over there? I've heard they've got plenty of medicine if you can send some. It would help stave off some of the colds we get popping up in winter.

Jaguar

Blue.

There's change on the wind. The Cackle can smell it. Not all of it good. At least not at first. Be careful.

Red.

To his Highness, Prince Hadie, the Bluest of Rats

Hey Hads, we saw the pictures you sent Celia and Diz! Looking pretty cushy over there in the posh, prissy land of Auradon. By the way, you better still be practicing your swords work, because Celia's come to CJ almost every day that she can, just so she can wipe the floor with you next time you meet. Granted, you've got Harry, Uma, Mal and Jay working with you and I doubt they'd let you slack. But you're also probably avoiding them and not going every day like Celia is, because you're too busy trying to nerd out over all the books.

Hadie, I'm piggy backing off of Ryan's letter. You know how spare paper is out here. Also please visit or something because I swear all the other boys apart from you, Henry and Ry are worthless idiots. At least you bathe.

Oi!

Hey, I said you weren't worthless, didn't I, Ry?

Anyways, Ryan and I have taken over chicken catching duties since Jay is gone. Those buggers are a pain in the ass to catch, how Jay was able to wrangle these things, I've got no clue. It's ridiculous. At least neither of us have face-planted. Uma told us about that before y'all left, she's the one who asked us to help keep supply up at your dad's. Smee's been pretty helpful keeping an eye out for where these feathered fiends wander off to, since he's doing most the management at the restaurant since your dad is busy practically running the Isle. While the food situation hasn't technically improved, there has been an odd peace about. Lord Hades instills order where under Maleficent, it always seemed about survival of the most villainous.

It's definitely improved a lot, at least around the docks. You're probably aware, what with him being your dad and all, but Lord Hades has Celia working with that Virgil guy of his minions to do a lot of the errand running. They handle first dibs and distribution when the Barge comes in now, as well as pick up of the fish. I guess the both of them are also handling the letter system since Celia says to bring them to her when we want to write you. It's surprising how many people from Auradon actually know people on the Isle and are willingly writing. I can't pretend to know where these villains come from and who knew them, good or bad, but it's, I dunno the word…

Disconcerting?

Sure!

Anyways, you better write back! Sky's the limit, innit Hads? That's why we climb.

Ryan & CJ

HADS

I'll think it over. It's pretty tempting, though grandmother threw a fit when I mistakenly asked Auntie Anastasia if she'd heard of Lady Ella's children in front of her. Mother ranted over dinner for ages. What am I talking about, of course I'm saying yes! Auntie just says I should wait and draft some letters first to make a good first impression, so at some point, you'll eventually receive two letters. But only one is for you, no peeking! A boy should not read someone else's letters, let alone two ladies' private conversation!

The school sounds amazing, I look forward to seeing it. I know there are some delays with the next group unfortunately though…Your mom is an absolute God's send, which I guess she would be considering she's a Goddess. She's given me your stuff to study so I can hopefully keep up with you. Celia isn't that interested sadly, so I'm mostly studying alone. I just wish we didn't have to wait till post-Cotillion to join you all! That only leaves one trimester of school left. It's pretty likely CC and I will have to attend summer school. Big siiiiigh.

Wow. That's a lot of people already. I look forward to meeting them! I guess there's all sorts everywhere if you've already found unlikeable people.

Dizzy

Flametop,

I'm still waiting. I guess don't burn anything down trying to prove me right. It'd suck for you to end up back here when I finally get over there. Though that would be fun. Burn down the jerks who put us here. Hey, a girl can dream, can't she? Plus, no need to get excited here and boost your ego, I do miss you. Just a little bit.6

So far, while things are improving with your pops running this garbage land, we're still stuck with the same resources as before. Shit needs to get done. I'd expect it to go faster now that there are VK's holding the King's ear, but I suppose I can't be too picky. Beastie Jr. is moving things decently fast whereas it took what, 20 years for Auradon to even start doing crap to begin with? We're getting somewhere at least, I suppose. But I'm not getting any younger you know!

Though that I have to go to more school instead of just finally being free is lame. Just let me out! LET ME OUT! I've got Freddie and Daddy at least, but I can't stand how boring it's been without being able to see Uma too. But then Uma doesn't practice magic as much as you do and all she does otherwise is lecture me on staying safe and avoiding areas. As if she wasn't scouting those spots when she was our age. I get it 'they walked so we could run', but we ain't even running. We're stuck at the friggen docks all the damn time. As if we don't already know the horrors of the Isle. You know we found another kid to smuggle out of the Square? I don't know what we're going to do if we're leaving the Isle. Dizzy overheard one of the older villains in the shop some days ago. Sounds like this guy got a hold of cigarettes and has been using his kid's skin to put it out instead of risking the shithole Isle shacks burning down. Kind of him, really. To be so concerned. Of course, Diz's grandcrone wasn't too pleased about him coming in to her shop drunk on top of it all. He deserved worse than a bad shave and some clipped ears. He couldn't do jack shit because the crone was letting Dizzy practice on him. She may be a bitch, but mad respect for her. Maybe the winter will frostbite his ass and the bastard can die. We've at least directed his son, a six-year-old, to your dad's place. If we can't get him out and through the Graveyard to Heart's, I may go to Henry about harboring this kid under the deck.

Oh right, think you can get Uma or Mal to send the list of supplies I've included on the other side? Ship needs some repairs if we're going to keep it in tip top shape and insulated to live on. Something's off about this Winter. The Cards never lie.

Celia

To Diz and Celia

Honestly, Diz, you make it sound like you're being scandalous. I promise I won't read either your letters to Alexandria, nor hers to you, without either, or both, of your permissions. Also, good job on fucking up that guy's head. I'm glad your grandmother is finally letting you work on customers. You know what? I've even met Hercules already. He's ridiculously nice, it's hard to remember that my dad is his enemy. One of the few adults I've met so far that don't believe we should be punished for our parents' follies. He didn't come looking for me, like I said, I'm friends with his youngest son. Herkie accidentally broke someone's arm a couple weeks ago, and he got called in. It was awkward, but things are fine I think.

As for the Heart's Orphanage, we'll have to depend on the Isle food improving. Some of those kids are going to be 9 or older soon, and can sneak back towards the Docks to gather supplies if none of us are there to pass things on to Reg anymore. Evie has mentioned bringing Quinn over, but she won't leave until her place is somewhat self-sufficient. Reg and Y don't plan to come over, too ingrained with their lifestyle to have an interest in this side of the water. I think Y is interested in 'helping' with the hospital. It's a little concerning if only because their experiments are hit or miss sometimes. It's not always about helping and just a matter of if they can. I'll pass on the list. I don't think I can send much more than little things. Right now, it's just a few more photos and something Y asked for. Let them know these are considered complete, they're not ingredients. It'll take more time to figure out that kind of stuff, because it sounds like they wanted natural components, not the synthetic drugs most of Auradon uses.

Hadie

To Alexandria Charming,

Greetings, Cousin. I'm sorry it's taken so long for me to write you. I've been riddled with nerves and wasn't sure how to start a dialogue with you. Please don't blame Hadie if it seemed like he'd neglected your request. He also didn't want to push me into it, nor seem like he was spilling your secrets, so rather than have him tell me about you first, I spoke with my, our, Aunt Anastasia.

I was unaware of this, and please tell me if you were, that apparently our Aunt Anastasia has been writing to your mother, Lady Ella, for quite a few years now? She directed me on how to approach you in letter writing, as this is my first attempt at writing a Royal you see, and I don't intend to offend if you find anything in error. The only ones I've written that would count as Royal I suppose is Evie and Hadie, both of whom I've grown up with, so such formality is not expected. That, and it's not exactly taught on the Isle, so neither put much stock in it to begin with.

Aunt Anastasia explained it's proper for you to tell me about yourself first, so I look forward to getting to know you further!

I hope one day we may meet in person, through King Ben's VK initiative.

Many regards,

Dizzy

Greetings, Dizzy!

Hadie gave me your letter, and I am ever so excited to hear you decided to write me in the end. As you can see, I have no qualms with being informal, though I am flattered by your effort! Especially as we are family. That, and, yes, Hadie certainly has a penchant for disregarding the royal status quo, along with his older sister. I don't blame you VKs, from what I've gathered about the Isle, it is not important for you all to get by, and it's stuffy and droll.

It's certainly news to me that Aunt Anastasia was writing my mother! Thank the Gods classes were over, because I had to immediately call my mother and ask her if that was true and how dare she keep that under her hat! Not that she wears hats, but, you know…I can't believe she didn't tell me or my siblings. I asked them, and they said they had no clue either. Though they tend to fib and not tell me things sometimes. Do you have siblings? Sometimes they are such pests.

As for myself, they're all older than me. Chadwick, Chad, is the Crown Prince of Charmington, followed by my sisters, who are fraternal twins, Katherine and Lucille, a.k.a. Kitty and Lucy, before the lineup is rounded off by myself. I love dancing, horseback riding, and embroidery or sewing! Mom and dad don't particularly care for the stuck-up Royal business either, so they like to have us learn everyday skills. That's so cool you're close to Evie! Her designs are amazing!

I told Hadie not to spoil me either with much about you, I want to get to know you for myself!

Looking forward to hearing more from you,

Alexandria

CC – EMERGENCY. OPEN IMMEDIATELY.

Uma wasn't too sure what to do, or where to get supplies here in Auradon. I went to Ben and Akiho instead. Akiho is the nephew to Elsa, the chick with ice powers. He spoke with Ben to assist and give advice of other materials you guys could use to persist against the cold. They're also going to send some food. Direct route, so keep an eye out for a snowflake marked bag before you deliver the rest of the packages and letters. We've got some major news.

I don't know how soon the food system will change, but there's a reason this isn't going through the Barge this time.

Turns out the Barge shouldn't have been so bad all along. Someone was corrupting the crew handling it, and they're going to be fired for taking payments. Most are at least on probation, because they still need a crew to operate. They're not sure how long it'll take for the Barges to get better, since the farms are in a weird season, and the sending schedule needs to be reanalyzed. A Royal, by the by. Yes, a fucking Royal was paying them off to give us poor quality food. They'd purposely open flood bays, make the Barge late, let the food rot so we'd have basically nothing to live off of.

She's being sent to the Isle.

By the time you get this, you probably already knew that.

Sadly, it's Phil's grandma. Mal hates his sister. Ironically, it's Sleeping Beauty's family. Her mom in fact. I can't believe Phil and Aurora are related to such bitches. Audrey, or Sleeping Banshee as Mal calls her, is insanely entitled and keeps trying to force King Ben to marry her instead of date Mal. She's also tried to pick on me. Let's just say Phil was more than willing to swap some of her makeup that changed color when it's exposed to sunlight or sweat.

Thank Y for that would you? And tell her to pass it on to Ginny too. I know, I know, VK's don't do thanks. Can't help it over here though. If it helps, I've included some more treats, for them and the rest of our group, since that's more useful than mere words.

Also…I might write to my Grandmother. Mom's mom. Part of the reason it took me a hot bit to write when the latest Isle member has already been sent off is because…well, she showed up to try and meet me. According to the family gossip line, the fortune pulls you've been getting for the winter are likely because of her. She's salty because she couldn't meet me. If you find the supplies Ben has worked on to be okay, to at least board up for this winter, then maybe it won't be worse than that one year when we found that woman frozen in an alley. I'm supposed to meet her during Spring Break anyways, so maybe I can just send a suck up letter saying I…ugh, I don't know if I could say I look forward to meeting her…But if it'll get her to warm up the winter a tad, I'll do it. Something along those lines with a 'not used to winter, I hope it's not too cold', to try and play off sad child vibes.

Just…stay safe. Just a few more months.

Hadie

Hi Hadie,

It's weird to be writing to you. Sorry I had yet to write after so long. I'm so used to being able to just walk over to the Underworld and drop in for a quick hello before I had to run errands for your dad. Or watching you for your parents. Not that you've needed that for a while, but I've always been looking out for you, you know? At least from a distance. Not that I mean to make it feel like I'm babying you, just…I dunno, you're like my little brother. I hope that's not overstepping, since you're the son of my dad's boss and all. And Lord Hades is kind of my boss too, even if he says we're cousins.

Your dad scares me. He's scary. But nice. Oh man this is hard. We never had to write letters. Wow that makes me sound old. Back in my day… What I'm trying to say is your dad has this big bad reputation, I see him yell and beat up my dad and Uncle Pain, only for him to be nice and patient to me and basically everyone else and it's confusing?

Celia is doing well, you probably know that because she still rants about you and your noncommittal letters of if you get to visit. So, I know you're writing each other. I know Mal has snuck over a few times, but it's been a while. I hope she brings you by next time, we all miss you. But yeah, Celia is around pretty often, so that's staved off some of the loneliness. I didn't really socialize outside of the family after all… I've spoken to Henry sometimes, he tries to get me to fence, but I'm too nervous to be around pointy things still. Maybe one day. I prefer sneaking around and avoiding people than confrontation. Sorry, rambling. Again. Celia's been super helpful. I showed her how to sneak onto the Barge, so we're able to grab more stuff. And her shadow friends are awesome! They pull extra stuff into portals and spit them out once we drop stuff off. She also has more clout on the Isle than I do, so with the letter runs, she's not beaten up like I've been. Adults would beat me up even as a kid just for being a minion…Sorry, I guess that's something I shouldn't be telling you about. Your mom and Mal wouldn't appreciate it since you're still an Under 15.

Food supply has yet to improve even though that Queen of Rods Up Her [scribbled out word] was sent to the Isle. She tried to intimidate me and Celia when we gathered supplies. Intimidate or command? Either way, it was pretty funny when CJ was around once and just cussed her out and waved a dagger around. No clue where she got that thing, since that's an Angel weapon. But it's not like they own the rights to daggers! In the meantime, it's really just Smee and myself at the restaurant these days, it makes me super thankful your dad taught me how to cook. We're making do. Luckily a Rat is always on patrol for us, since Lord Hades isn't around to toss out rowdy [another blacked out word] jerks. They thought we were easy pickings at first since Lord Hades has to deal with the Underworld as well as the Isle Idiots now that Maleficent is gone. It's settled down for the most part now, and we're mostly still just feeding kids than villains.

Sorry if I'm bothering you. Also sorry for not writing since you've left. I hope you're not mad.

I hope you're doing well,

Virgil

Hey Virg!

Don't worry about it being so long, I totally get you! I could've written first, so I feel just as bad, seriously, don't worry. We're both busy, it's fine. I've got tons of school, and Harry and Jay run me ragged to make sure I keep up with sparring. I'm glad Celia is helping you out, dad's got you doing so many things now. But you've always been a huge help to us. If you weren't already family, we'd definitely see you as one of us. I'll tell you one thing for sure, out of all my surrogate big brothers…you're the least annoying.

I hope you consider coming to Auradon one day. You've got time to figure it out, but I hope you come. Let me know if you're interested in anything and I'll see what I can send. I imagine it's intimidating, it's a huge choice, and you're always welcome to return to the Isle. Ben's mentioned figuring out a way to help with mom and dad's agreement, so that might change too, but…you're always welcome to stay with us. Auradon or Isle. I'll be happy for you no matter what you decide in the end.

Stay in touch big bro!

Hadie.

Arms contorted awkwardly around his head as the God of the Dead snored away, drool dribbling from the corner of his mouth onto an unfortunate pillow. Next to him, the Dread Queen Persephone hummed gently in her own sleep, cuddled blissfully into his side. Unfortunately, like most things, it wouldn't last forever.

The pair bolted straight up in bed as a crash echoed down the cavernous network of rooms. Hades glared towards their bedroom door as he realized what exactly the sound could only be.

"PAIN! PANIC!"

Tossing the blanket off his legs, Hades leapt up and stomped towards the door, prepared to throttle his minions.

"Hades."

Hand almost on the doorknob, Hades' head whipped around to stare at Persephone.

"What? They deserve it!"

"Yes, dear, but you need to put pants on first," she looked on amused at her husband's decisively unclothed form, an eyebrow raised. "Not that I mind the view, and it may even make them learn from their punishment more effectively, but I don't think you'd want that."

Glancing down, Hades realized that Persephone was quite right. Sighing, he walked towards where his clothes were haphazardly discarded the night before and found his pants. Ruffling around for a clean pair of underwear, he tugged the bare minimum on before returning to his sulky stomp towards the kitchen. Though it turned out he didn't need to.

Already prostrated before him, Pain and Panic were taking turns repeatedly bowing and begging for forgiveness.

"We are worms! Worthless worms!"

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Hades sighed. "What did you ignorami do now?"

He stepped forward, punting each one down the hall so he could close the bedroom door behind him, allowing Persephone her own chance to get dressed. The two minions skittered around, racing clumsily into the kitchen. Hades sighed again, grumbling lowly as his suspicious were closer to confirmation.

"Did you klutzes break more plates? Persephone wants you to get rid of them from the sink by cleaning them, not break them so we have to throw the pieces away!"

"We're sorry your Deadliness!"

"We are unworthy to serve!"

"And yet, here I am, stuck with you yutzes for eternity," the god growled, mentally checking his sigh counter for another point. "My kids are good workers, Echidna said. I raised them right, she swore. A god should have minions and followers. Proper servants of the Underworld. The first generation was amazing! Great terror known across all of Greece and even parts of Turkey! But no! I get the reject crew miniatures that embody emotions! Too busy inflicting it on themselves than causing terror on mortals like they were meant to!"

A pathetic cluster of flames weakly flickered across Hades' hair and shoulders. Persephone looked on in sympathy, knowing her husband was just venting to vent. Now that he was awake, all he could really focus on was the unnerving amount of stress that the couple knew was radiating from their daughter. Shaking her head, she leaned against the wall to stand in lazy contrapposto, arms crossing as she eyeballed the increasingly common scene.

"You two better not be breaking them just to get out of cleaning them! You lot rarely did them to begin with, but every time they coincidentally shatter? So that we'd just let you off to avoid losing more? There's no way you two are that incompetent!" Hades' hands snapped out, grasping viciously at the imps' necks.

"My wife and I are extremely busy, and rarely get time off together. I asked you buffoons to quietly handle Underworld affairs for just the morning, and the first thing you do, is BREAK SOMETHING?!" With a scream, he threw them across the room, huffing angrily, desperately wishing he could summon a fireball and flambe the wings off the pair. "Fine! Just fine. Either do them carefully, or just stay the fuck out! Leave them to Virgil, at least he's not useless when it comes to washing some fucking dishes. Now you two, get your asses down to the Underworld and cover my gods' damned morning shift like I asked!"

Persephone couldn't help but shake her head some more as the imps ran past her and out the room, the patter of their claws echoing as they stumbled down the stairs to the Underworld office. She could faintly hear the brothers begin to argue, blaming each other for the broken ceramic she could see littering her kitchen floor. With one last glance as Hades rummaged around for the broom and dust pan, Persephone left the kitchen and headed towards the Den. She sighed as her suspicions were confirmed.

"Hello, Virgil," she softly greeted, smiling softly as Virgil didn't flinch inwards. He instead quickly moved to remove his earbuds, standing to greet the Goddess.

"G-good morning, L-lady Steph. I-I'm sorry for my dad and uncle—"

"It's nothing for you to apologize for, Virgil. It's not like you broke a plate, and even if you did, I assure you Hades would not have gotten as angry. You rarely make mistakes as far as we've seen. And again, even if you did, mistakes are normal. Pain and Panic just seem to do it far too often, and repetitively instead of improving like you have."

Virgil just nodded silently, too unsure of his words to say anything in response.

"You're heading out soon, aren't you?" Persephone said, swiftly changing the topic as she was used to Virgil's ticks, knowing his need to avoid awkward subjects. Bashing his father was certainly one of them, as the recently turned adult seemed to feel Panic's faults were his own.

'Panic seems to think the same, anything his son does must be a reflection of his own performance.'

"Y-yeah, the Barge arrives soon. I need to meet up with Celia a-and beat the crowd," Virgil began, though he fell silent at Persephone's frown.

Noticing her indiscretion, Persephone gently placed a hand on Virgil's shoulder. It had taken a while, but the half-imp had at least gotten more comfortable with the King and Queen, now that it had been a few years since Hades had explained that he viewed Virgil as a nephew. Even if it had taken a few years and some mental gymnastics. Still, she needed to be careful with the most microscopic of body language as the boy would easily pick up on it and become twitchy.

"All I ask is you be careful, as always," she looked at Virgil sadly. The Barge arrivals always seemed to get worse by the month, each time a more desperate crowd appearing. Especially as the food had worsened as well. With the vile pest that was Leah arriving on the Isle, a large number of people had spread rumors believing that the Barge would improve soon. Whether this month or the next. Hopefully.

No matter what, things were taking a nasty turn and it would be a while before their new High King would be able to fix their most basic of needs.

"Thank you for your concern, Lady Steph," Virgil straightened, his words oddly serious for the normally nervous boy. "I promise to look both after Celia and myself."

"I appreciate it, Virgil. Both Hades and myself are thankful for the service and company you provide us," she smiled more brightly, though her worry still shone through. "And, of course, the company you've provided our children, though they've luckily found themselves out of this unfortunate grey rock. Have you gotten any letters from them?"

"I'm h-happy to be of some u-use. And, um, I-I've exchanged a couple letters with Mal, though it's been a while. Hadie writes every week, but he tends to cycle b-between his group of friends in Uma's crew along with myself and a couple other kids, s-so I get his every other week or two."

"That's good," Persephone nodded at Virgil's words. "I would have been disappointed to hear my son neglecting his original friends despite any new ones made."

"I don't think Dizzy or Celia would let him get away with such things. I know they're likely to be a part of the next group, and they'd go right after him."

"Yes, most certainly," Persephone said with a tinkling laugh. "Well, I suppose I should let you get out there. I just wanted to check in since, obviously, my husband is already tumultuous in his anger this morning."

"I'm used to it," Virgil shrugged, moving his way to leave the Den. "I told dad I'd take care of the dishes when I'd get back, I don't know why he and Pain decided to try and do it themselves for once."

"A mystery of the world. We had only wanted them to cover the morning shift so that we could handle the likely influx from the Barge this afternoon," Persephone sighed as she waved Virgil off, calling after him one last time. "Safe ventures!"

With all the underlings gone from sight, Persephone cut back to the kitchen just in time to see Hades tossing the broken shards and dust, still grumbling under his breath.

"You're lucky Virgil's gotten used to you acting like this," she interrupted his mutters, hands on her hips. "I can't imagine how traumatized that boy would've been otherwise with how you treat his father and uncle."

Hades paused briefly as he put the cleaning supplies away. Persephone took in his exhausted expression as he turned towards her.

"I didn't even realize he was here," Hades approached her, slumping to lay his head tiredly on her shoulder.

"That's not an excuse. I know you're worried, I am too, but you need to scale back just a tad when you get angry with them whether Virgil is here or not."

"They're my minions, I can do what I want."

Persephone rolled her eyes at her petulant husband.

"Come along dear," she laughed softly. "Someone needs to go back down for beddy-bye time."

"It feels like it's going to be a good day," Hades sang to his wife, rubbing his hands together enthusiastically as they entered their Underworld office. Despite their rather rough start to the morning, Hades was in a decisively good mood. More sleep and cuddles might've been just what he needed. "The gems just seem brighter today, I dare you to tell me I'm wrong."

Persephone looked at Hades with no small amount of amusement on her face. Sliding up close to him, she tucked an arm around his waist and affectionately laid a hand on his chest. "I wouldn't dare dash your hopes, dear, you tend to be right about these things."

Walking over to the inbox where Pain normally worked, Persephone activated the upper arrangement to check her direct messages. Only a couple scrolls materialized before her. Unfurling them, she moved towards her little corner of Hades' desk. They hadn't felt the need to bring in a second one considering she was only there half the year. Another desk just meant things might be tossed onto it and lost amongst all the work, something Hades preferred to avoid. He was nothing if not organized.

The one problem was that he had conveniently 'lost' the folding chairs she had brought the first few years on the Isle with the intent that she could sit with him at his desk when working. It was an obvious excuse to sit her on his lap. Which naturally ended up reducing their work efficiency. But she wasn't about to complain. Not today.

"Bah bop bada…boop bop bedah…" Hades hummed under his breath as he ruffled through his own inbox, double checking the work his minions had done in the morning. "Looks like breaking plates are the numbskulls only mistake for today. Thank you Fates, sheesh!"

"You know it'll only be temporary," she glanced at him amusedly as she read through her missives. "You probably scared them so badly this morning, they shook the entire time they worked today."

"Yeah, well, whatever it takes for them to get shit done right."

"You know if you were mortal, your blood pressure would've killed you by now."

"If I was mortal, I wouldn't have had to deal with their dumbasses to begin with."

Persephone sighed and put down the pen she had begun writing with. "Must you swear so much?"

The God paused, a lopsided grin slowly making its way across his face. "You're always welcome to shut me the fuck up, babycakes," he said, wiggling his brow.

His wife, electing to roll her eyes and ignore him, picked her pen back up and returned to writing her responses to the other Chthonic Gods.

With a brief pout, Hades leaned over and grabbed the first of several bags of soul gems. As the day moved on, Persephone handed him a few more bags as she began the paperwork for each soul he sentenced. For the most part, it was a thankfully peaceful day of just going through their usual motions of soul after soul. For once, they'd gotten through the day without a problematic soul.

For the most part.

The work set up from Pain and Panic was almost finished, only a couple of the King and Queen's normal work hours left. Hades sentenced and filled out allocations for souls, while Persephone finished the other half of each soul's write ups. As the last bag was emptied and processed, the pair was set to take a little break and move to the file backlogs when, suddenly, the room flared red.

Glancing at Persephone, an eyebrow raised questioningly, Hades reached out a long finger to tap at one of the gems embedded in his desk. A small ruby, softly glowing in tandem with one of the emergency notifications on the wall. Persephone pulled out one of the now emptied gems.

A high priority soul had just come in. One of personal interest.

The moment Hades tapped the ruby, the red overhead lighting dimmed. A wisp of dark grey lazily fell from the large ruby on the wall and into the small diamond in Persephone's hand, before it suddenly morphed into a ruby as well. Carefully, she passed it off to Hades.

Waving his hand over the new soul gem, Hades' eyes narrowed as the soul emerged once again, this time onto one of the designated markers he always had the souls line up on when he spoke to them.

His lips curled into a cruel grin as he saw who it was. Persephone stood from her perch upon his knee, straightening imperiously as she glared fiercely at the new arrival.

"Welcome," the God almost purred. "I honestly hadn't expected you to survive in this pocket of luxury for so long."

The soul looked around, confusion and fear evident.

"I-I'm dead?"

Hades and Persephone simultaneously rolled their eyes. It was a question they'd gotten too often for their liking.

"Well, it's not like you suddenly developed teleportation powers and semi-translucent invisibility," barked Hades, sneering as the papers for the soul materialized in his hand. "Even if you somehow miraculously did…you wouldn't have been able to get down here. Y'know. Where the dead go."

Persephone leaned on his shoulder, browsing the papers as he did.

"Oh dear, ran into the Hyenas did you, Leah?" said Persephone, feigning sympathy. "What a horrid way to go."

"Yes! It was wretchedly painful!" The dead woman bawled. "I have been absolutely wronged! I should not have been here on this forsaken Isle in the first place! I am no villain, I am a Royal! I should have died peacefully in my kingdom, my granddaughter at my side with her own children dutifully fulfilling their place as heirs to Auradon!"

Hades eyes fluttered as he recoiled, hands immediately dropping the documents to cover his ears. He rubbed at his temples when Leah finally had a lull in her pontification. Souls like these were the worst. Entitled. Loud. Punishing them and getting rid of them was always satisfying to him once he could relish the quiet again.

And he had a personal interest in this one…

He loved it when he was right. Temporary pain aside, it was indeed turning out to be a good day.

"Well, that wasn't the roll of the dice for you in the end, unfortunately," Hades began, his face set in fake politeness. "According to your files and the thread provided by the Fates, you're facing sweet justice in the end. You got no less than what you deserved. And you're going to get even more here."

"I assure you have I no comprehension of what you could possibly mean," Leah blustered. "Unless you mean that my sweet Audrey will get the life she deserves, what I worked so hard for. To thrive in my honor, finally claiming her rightful place! I have done everything to elevate our kingdoms, therefore ruling Auradon is no less than what my family deserves. Especially compared to a nigh villain, royal or not and his social-climbing wife! A non-royal ruling? It is an attack on tradition, an attack—"

"I think we've heard enough," Persephone finally cut in, aware of her husband's burning fuse. By the twitch under one of his eyes, he was nearly ready to just be done with it and remove the soul from existence altogether. Except she knew neither of them wanted that. They were professionals at the old game, and this soul…this soul needed to see revenge. What exactly happened when someone crossed the very beings that would judge them in Death.

"I-I thought to be judged you needed to hear my case—"

"These papers are a culmination of your entire life. We already know where you're going," Persephone said dismissively, cutting the woman off. They were done letting her talk.

"Ah, well," sniffed Leah, a pompous air returning. "If my body hadn't been destroyed, I'd think you'd be letting me return to the living. Bringing the Villains back to suffer was one thing, but I have unfinished business—"

"Don't make us laugh," scoffed Persephone. "You really think we'd even entertain the idea of you going back? Not only have you abused your position in life, but you have made enemies of us. There's only one place you'll be going."

"Wh-What have I—? Where will I—? What do you mean where I'll be—?" the dead ex-queen stuttered, trying to step back, only to find her form rooted to the odd markers on the floor.

"Shouldn't it be obvious? You're going to Tartarus," Hades growled, glaring at the soul from his seat, a fist slamming angrily into his desk.

"Tartarus? How dare you! I am a Queen! A victim of Evil and a civilian of Good!" Leah shrieked. "You are a villain, and have no business sentencing someone of my caliber! Honestly, I shouldn't even be surprised considering you consort with my worst enemy. What brainwashing you've done to Lady Persephone to put up with the likes of you, while siring a bastard with Maleficent—"

A slap cracked through the room. Hades raised a single brow at Persephone's outstretched hand.

"Silence, mortal." The Goddess' voice echoed fiercly, her brown curls floated in a nonexistent wind, eyes an intense, ethereal green. "You are dead, and you will be judged by our King as all Life goes unto him through Death. Down here, your insignificant soul is equal to every person you deemed beneath you. In my opinion, you are even less.

"You have insulted my husband, myself, and most importantly, my daughter several times over."

As Persephone spoke, a swirling cloud of smoke began to spread across the floor, emanating from Hades to begin chaining its way around Leah's soul.

"Well, way to go, newbie," Hades' grin was full of shark-like teeth, his eyes glowing yellow with Chthonic magic. Leah struggled against the bonds, soon only her eyes were visible with incomprehensible muffles emanating through the smoky gag. "I can brush hits off my ego, but you just had to go and piss off my wife. Ergo, you've lost all privilege of speaking."

Snapping his fingers, a new set of papers appeared before the God.

High Priority – New Arrival: Tartaros

Turning to Persephone, Hades licked his lips. "O Goddess, gorgeous Goddess, wife of mine. Be a doll and let Mali's King Boytoy know a high-class citizen has descended into my possession. Uma or our son for haste, if you don't mind."

Persephone shook her head fondly, running a hand longingly through Hades' hair, dropping it to trail along his jaw—inciting him to growl—before reluctantly moving away to reach out with her telepathy.

Hadie?

…mom? Came her son's reply. What's up? You don't normally reach out until our usual weekend talks.

I have important news that needs to reach King Ben since the letter system takes a bit longer. He wouldn't get the information until next week if that were the case.

What news?

Ex-Queen Leah is dead.

…a-are you serious?

Yes, your father is having quite the time deciding how to punish her. Persephone thought as she glanced back at her husband furiously writing down ideas. The soul of Leah was still entangled in smoke, mouth sealed shut, struggling with fear as she heard Hades' likely punishments.

Hmph. Make sure he doesn't hold back. That woman has been an absolute nightmare. Not just to our family. Hadie ranted over the link. Did you know she treated Phil like shit? Barely recognized him as a grandson, more like a spare.

Watch your language, Persephone scolded.

Sorry, mama.

She smiled softly to herself as she felt his bashfulness through the link.

You are right though, she was unbearable whenever I met her at events, and even in death she acts entitled. She started yelling at your father as if she was the boss of him.

Ooh, I bet dad just loved that.

He was entertained at least. Anyways, I'm sure we'll write an official report to send to King Ben, but please pass this urgent info along to him in the meantime.

I will mom. I was just about to head to his office anyways. Mal has a Cotillion meeting so he and I were going to watch Estelle for her.

That's kind of the two of you. Sounds like you're getting along then?

Yeah, Ben's pretty nice. We hangout now and again, and his friends are funny. It's like he has personal court jesters already. It's a pretty tight knit group, with siblings so a lot of Mal's and Ben's friends overlap with mine. Emir is one of Ben's closest friends and hangs out with Jay a lot too, and his little sister Ashaki is in my year so we meet up a lot.

That sounds lovely, having so many around you that you can trust. Persephone sighed with relief. I know the Isle isn't much on trusting others, but I'm happy you're not letting that hold you back.

…All of my new friends are so kind, mom. I'm glad Dizzy and Celia will be part of the next group, though I know it's taking longer than expected. It's just…

The Goddess closed her eyes wistfully as Hadie paused. She knew what he was trying to say. His emotions easily fed through the link, just as bad at disguising his thoughts as his sister. 'Though that could fade away when he's older, if he puts effort into it like his father.'

I miss you too, my little torch. In just a couple more months, I can hold you again.

I think…I think Mal might need you more, mom. Hadie's voice was practically a whisper in her head, so quiet she had to focus on blocking out Hades' manic mumbles.

What's wrong? We can feel her over the link, but every time we prod, we hit a wall. I have no clue if Pain and Panic's wings can take much more throttling from your father.

I'm not sure to be honest. She seems fine on the outside, but there's just something off. Everyone can see it, but no one is able to figure it out. And you know how Mal is about talking about her feelings. It just seems to be this Cotillion thing.

Ah. Yes, apparently her titling will be held there now instead of being private. I imagine that's a large chunk of her stress.

Oh, hopefully that's it then.

I'm sure it is, Hadie. Like I said, I'll be back soon. Cotillion is scheduled to be just after I return anyways, at least for this year, as I'm to be there are parent representation for when Mal is officially titled as a Lady. Though she should be that anyways through her father, but you know how pesky politics are.

Yeah, not looking forward to when I have to deal with them too. Though I guess I already am on a smaller scale with school.

Yes…I know the school can be a way to foster future relationships what with having so many heirs interacting.

Ugh, don't remind me. I'm already bored with school, I don't want to be bored with dealing with people too! If I'm expected to work with you and dad anyways, why do I have to learn about who invented shoes?!

…Shoes?

A small project essay thing for a science and history overlap…We had to pick an inventor from a list. Neal wrote about the guy whose family made earmuffs because his ears got too cold too fast and got made fun of by other kids.

That…does sound nugatory. Anyways, it's like social class. Education is important in how other's view you, and our political strength is important to keep since we need you and Mal's to help repair your father's…reputation for a better word. Maybe you'll use something, maybe you won't, but at least you'll know it just in case. I know history seems useless, but that deals quite directly into Underworld operations, not to mention figuring out people's backstories without them having to say anything. Knowing where they're from is a million words in itself. And science can be helpful with magic.

Persephone felt her son perk up at the mention of magic.

Okay, okay. I'll keep working on everything. I just need something new to do! It just all seems so repetitive. School, magic practice, hang with friends. But I can't go anywhere until you get back, and I feel trapped. I'm already going through two or three books just for recreation in the library alone!

What about music?

Huh?

I believe the school has music classes.

I don't want to take more classes! Being forced to study something sucks the fun out of it.

What I mean, dear, is that if you ask one of your friends, they may know where the classrooms are. Often, there's instruments you can borrow or at least practice with even if you can't take them from their rooms.

A clattering sound, and a bright light pulled Persephone's attention away from the mind link. A furious red caused her to shield her eyes with a hand, finally able to look around curiously when the light faded. Leah's soul was gone.

Think about it, Hadie. She sent her final thoughts over the link, realizing she needed to get back to work. I have to go, looks like your father has decided. Don't forget to let Ben know!

I think it's a good idea, I'll ask around! And I'll let Ben know, I'm almost at his office. Say hi to dad for me!

She felt the link begin to fade before it rushed back.

Any chance you'd tell me later what dad decided?

Possibly, if it's not too inappropriate for your age.

Awww, okay. Love you, bye!

Love you, too. Persephone thought back with a chuckle, finally ending the link.

"Made your verdict, huh?" Persephone sidled up to her husband and draped her arms around his neck. Hades leaned back in his chair, wrapping his own arm around his wife's waist and pulled her slightly onto his lap. She couldn't help her own lips from curling up as she took in his smug expression, quickly dropping a kiss on the corner of his lips as he looked up to reply. "Our son says hi, by the way. I've asked him to let King Ben know."

"You bet your beautiful backside, I did," he lecherously grinned at Persephone, leaning forward again so that she was pinned between him and the desk, his hands wandering decisively downward to the curves in question. "And excellent. Thank you. I'll be sure to thank him too when we speak with him this weekend."

"Uh huh," Persephone giggled, lightly smacking his shoulder as they touched foreheads. "Work hours darling, focus."

"I don't wannaaaaa," he whined, lightly squeezing before he gave in and moved his hands to simply rest on her hips. "Can't we take the rest of the day off? We saw to the priority souls."

"We're not doing anything except work down here, dear. Break the rule once, and you'll be insatiable, getting nothing done."

"Fiiiine," the God continued to grouse, acquiescing to Persephone's logic. "It's just mass fill outs left, though."

"Did you do the paperwork for Leah? I had finished everyone else till she came in."

"Eh, I wrote down her punishments, but I've sent her off to processing," Hades said, shrugging. "She's the kind of bint who would feel entitled she should be served first, so I'm going to make her wait in line for a bit as part of her punishment."

"Ever the devil, down to the finest of details," she couldn't help but croon. "What tortures have you planned to inflict upon her worthless being?"

"Everything she's hated," smirked Hades. "Everything she viewed beneath her in life. Poverty, people…A simulation of life where she'll never get what she wants. A modified Tantalus curse if you will. She can reach and reach all she wants, but never get the recognition her elitist, narcissistic ass believes she's entitled to. An old servant is around and she tries to order them? One day she might be a servant too, lower ranked and forced to scrub floors. She'll feel hunger and greed just like in life, with no way to quench them."

"How fun. Trapped in twisted realities of her own memories…" Persephone ran a finger down the list that Hades had written. "Wait, does that mean…?"

"I'm utilizing my prisoner now," Hades' eyes glinted with the various shimmering jewels around the immortals. "I needed more safety measures to make sure Maleficent couldn't get out even if she somehow reverted back from her tiny reptilian form. They're trapped within each other's memories, annoying the crap out of each other now. Or at least, Leah is an annoying bug to Maleficent. But the fae is definitely one of the Waste of Fate Thread's worst nightmares."

Persephone leaned down, her hands resting on either side of Hades' jaw as she tilted his head upwards, softly pressing her lips upon his. Easily silencing his triumphant tirade. She moved slightly away, trailing kisses from his mouth and down his cheek, ending with a light nibble on the lobe of his ear. A low moan thrummed from his throat, switching to a whine as, ultimately, Persephone's warmth departed from his lap.

His lip jutted out into a pout as he watched the Goddess walk away from him. He audibly whined as she slightly turned to look back at him over her shoulder, tossing her long, meticulous brown curls back.

"I suppose you've earned a reward for all your hard work today."

Hades stumbled around his desk as his wife suddenly bolted out of the office and up the stairs, her laughter echoing around the caverns as he gave chase. Thankfully, the imps and nephew wouldn't be by for the rest of the day.

He found Persephone waiting in their bedroom, standing nonchalantly near the edge of their bed. His eyes were instantaneously drawn to her ample bosom, still heaving with deep breaths from her sprint. Hades licked his lips as he approached, the Goddess' head tilting up towards him as he was a good head taller than herself. He tried not to let the confusion show on his face as she smacked his hands away when he'd moved to run them up her shoulders, instead he opted to raise a single brow.

Persephone took a single step back and reached up towards her skull shaped brooch pinned upon her shoulder. His other brow shortly joined its brother, raised, as she released the pin's hold upon her dress' strap.

In an instant, her silky, deep green dress was on the floor, and a decisively less clothed Persephone casually sat upon their bed.

"What are you waiting for, Hades?" A dainty finger curled towards him, beckoning him. "You have a reward to collect."

"Gladly."

Chapter Text

The annoying sound of crumpling paper briefly filled Hadie's ears as his fist clenched down on the latest letter from Celia.

'Ah, crap,' thought Hadie as he placed the paper onto his desk and attempted to straighten it out. He liked to keep all the letters his friends sent, but this latest one had taken him by surprise. Adjusting the lamp, he leaned forward in his seat and reread the letter one last time. Thankfully, Jay and Harry were out. He just couldn't help feeling bad that he couldn't help his friends stuck on the Isle when they needed it earlier.

Flametop

That was some much-needed heads up. Not to mention the supplies. I'm assuming you spoke with your grandmother, because we were getting colder and colder with each night, and then suddenly the frost seemed to melt overnight. Still cold as fuck though. In the meantime, we took that kid on board and there will be a letter off to Mal and Uma too. The kid didn't seem too keen on crossing the Graveyard to get to HOP so we'll be taking them on as a potential new Rat-in-Training. They're a little too young for that still, so at the very least, they'll be under our protection.

Otherwise, yea…no change in Barge quality. Think you could keep sneaking better food over? The blankets and quick insulation for the boat was nice, but I'd rather be cold than hungry…

Ignore the first half of this letter.

I know, I know, this is late. Sue me. Couldn't help it. I had waited to send this one off for you because I was waiting to get the others. Plus, I had to hide it. With the initial poor weather, a lot of flammable material is taken no matter what. Got my earlier letter off to Uma so she came through with supplies already, don't worry about us. I finally managed to get this out but even with your gran calling off her extra cold front, it was a pain in the ass to get anything to the Barge crew. I'm glad King Beastie Jr is going to turn them over soon. They would dump out the usual crap, pack up and leave, cowards couldn't stand the biting, icy waters. So, we haven't been able to get them to take the mail system as intended. Report that would you? Sons of bitches. I'd have sent word through your dad, but since it was too cold to really leave town, I couldn't even get out to run errands. I have no clue how Virgil held up. But he said they basically live with y'all usually during winter. Smee and Callux have pretty much been handling the restaurant since your dad is too busy with the Underworld at this time. Though Callux will likely bail once the weather warms up. Never know with either of those Chernabog twins, so he could be Castor all along. Not to mention the idiots who still try to bother your dad with their 'needs'. Whiny bastards. I get its Winter and more issues arise, but I guess no one listens to the fact that my daddy got delegated to deal with it just for the season since he pretty much handles town itself. That's where everyone goes to huddle against the cold after all.

New kid is doing okay. Doesn't really talk. Jake has been trying to teach him letters so we can at least get an idea of what to call him. He responds to 'Letters' though, even if it just means he knows it's time to practice. It might stick as his name in the end.

Anyways. Don't worry. Change is around the corner. We managed to have some fun. You missed the giant party we had when Shenzi said that Queen Bitch was dead. Didn't help when Lord Hades officially confirmed it with an Isle wide announcement. Your parents can really cut a rug by the way, at least that's what Daddy said. I dunno quite what he meant, but it was a pretty fun time anyhow, what with the weather starting to warm back up a tad.

Pulling out his letter stash, Hadie folded the message from Celia, already thinking over how he would respond. 'I guess it's not really my fault considering what Celia said about it at first being too cold to reach the docks. Still, wish things would get better already. Definitely memo to me. Tell Ben and Akiho even the less corrupt of the Barge workers that Akiho let stay employed aren't really doing their jobs.'

Hadie closed the box and sighed. It wasn't fair that he finally made it to Auradon and that everyone still on the Isle was still suffering despite them figuring out what even needed to be fixed. He was a little jealous of the party though.

'I don't need to see mom and dad 'cutting a rug' though. I know what usually follows.'

He wouldn't have been surprised to find out that his parents were currently quite close to be doing exactly that. At least until they were interrupted.

"Please?"

"No, Hades," Persephone sighed as she answered for the twenty-third time that day. Once again, she was elbow deep in sudsy water. Though this time instead of dishes, she was rubbing her hands raw trying to do the laundry.

"Come oooon, babe!" Hades begged, splashing water at her from where he was also currently knelt, though he was doing very little to help finish the chore. "Pleeeease! I'm literally on my knees begging here!"

"I'd appreciate it more if you'd be on your knees helping me finish," huffed Persephone, heaving a water laden dress out of the washbin.

"Sure, fine, here," Hades scrambled to stand. "I'll go set up the heat room so it's ready to start drying, be right back."

As Hades dashed from the room, Persephone sighed once more, lugging the last of the waterlogged laundry out into a woven basket. Setting it against the fitted bars, she braced the basket over the washbin and pressed all over weight against the clothes, squeezing the excess water out to pour back into the container below.

"That God is driving me crazy just as much as Mal is," Persephone grumbled to herself. "Why he wants me to bring back about a hundred pounds of chalk, I've no clue."

"So, I can break down the fucking Barrier is why," said Hades as he reentered the room. "Dry room is ready by the way."

"What? Hades!"

"Whaaat?" he whined, "I said I would set up the room, didn't I?

"Hades you know that's not what I meant!"

"Okay, okay, but it's for Mal!" Hades lifted the heavy damp laundry, following Persephone towards the room he's set up to hang everything. "Months of no communication? Even with the Mind Link, Uma and Hadie occasionally send us a letter! Harry sends me updates with how he's doing, or asks me advice on some of his homework."

"I know," her lips pursed as she began pinning up the laundry. "I plan to deal with it as soon as I'm Auradon again. I won't be letting her brush me off without answers."

"There's still a little over a month for that though, and it just seems to be getting worse by the week!"

"I know, dear, but you don't need to get into any more trouble, and there isn't much either of us can do until I'm off Isle or until Mal gives in and talks to us," spoke Persephone as she put up the last of the clothes. "Or if she speaks with anyone else for that matter."

"Are you sure you can't bring chalk back for me so I can break this damned Barrier down?" asked Hades again as he grabbed Persephone by the waist as she had moved to leave the room.

"I could, but I have no clue how that even works in that brain of yours. Not to mention, you'd still have to wait considering it relies on me coming back from Auradon."

"Ah. Right." Hades let go and proceeded to repeatedly thump his head into the stone wall.

"Hey, hey, hey now," tutted Persephone, resting a hand to tug on his shoulder in an effort to get him to stop. "None of that. I promise you, Hades, I'll take care of it as soon as I get to Auradon."

As Hades continued to beat his head into the wall, Persephone wrapped her arms around him from behind. The action at least made him pause, the wall too far to hit now that he'd been pulled a bit further away.

"You know…that was the last chore I needed to do today," Persephone stepped onto the tip of her toes to purr into Hades' ear, her breasts pressing into his back. "And you've already finished Underworld work, so we could take the rest of the day to…"

"A recommendation I have no business turning down," Hades growled back as he quickly turned and yanked Persephone forward so that she was against the wall instead.

The steam from the already hot room was no help as Persephone mewled under Hades' wandering hands, the God moaning into her mouth as she bit his lip, he in turn drawing one of his legs upwards to press between her thighs.

"H-Hades—"

Aunt Steph? You there? Uma's insistent voice came through the mind link.

"Fuck!" Persephone gasped, shoving Hades away.

"Steph?" Though his face was more amused than concerned at her rare use of language.

"Uma's contacting me, I'm sorry sweetheart," Persephone sighed as she reached back with her telepathy, Hades reluctantly stepping away, guiding her to the Den as their tryst was ended.

…Uma?Persephone finally responded as she sat with Hades upon their sofa.

I hope I'm not bothering you but I wanted to reach out.

You are never a bother Uma. But you hardly ever reach out on the mental link, at least not to me. Is...is something wrong? Is it Hadie? Mal? Persephone tensed, sensing Uma's own stress and worry over the link instead of just Mal's.

It's...Aunt Steph, something's going on with Mal . Everyone's noticed and she won't talk to anyone. Even Ben's concerned.

I can feel her panic and stress through the mental link every day but she's got me on mute, Persephone said with a sigh. She's got her father on mute as well, meaning he's been taking his frustration out on Pain and Panic. Thankfully, ever since Maleficent became a lizard, people have been turning to him to rule the Isle since Mal stated she was his daughter at King Ben's coronation.

I bet Uncle Hades loves that.

You know what, oddly enough he does not,Persephone glanced at Hades and chuckled, receiving a confused look back from the God as he impatiently waited for the conversation to end.But it helps to keep his mind off of Mal and her muted link so that can only be a good thing. Otherwise, he'd drive himself mad. You know he actually reached out to your grandfather to see if he'd heard anything?

Really?!

That had been a difficult time, as Winter approached and Hades was already sulking at the lack of children to spoil for Saturnalia. He'd only slightly cheered up as Leah had been sent to the Isle a few days later.

Yes. He wasn't thrilled when Poseidon didn't know anything and he was even less thrilled when your grandfather recommended that he reach out to Zeus.

Ooh Uncle Hades would definitely not like the idea of reaching out to Zeus.

You would be right in that regard. But because it had to do with Mal, he did so. Granted Zeus also knew nothing but Hades brought me into the conversation otherwise it more than likely would have been derailed with your uncle ranting at Zeus.

It had barely lasted a minute. The moment that Zeus admitted he didn't know anything, Hades slammed the Link shut, leaving Persephone to wrap the conversation up with the estranged brother. That hopefully, if Zeus or Poseidon ever heard anything, to please at least let her know. Especially as Hades would likely sulk and not respond to either brother for a long while.

Uncle Hades can go on pretty impressive rants.

Persephone chuckled and then sighed. Uma, I want to be there for Mal. I don't know what's going on but if she needs me...Gods, if it wasn't for this agreement I'd be by her side right now!

Well then, you're in luck Aunt Steph. Ben said he'd grant you early leave from the Isle. He'd probably have to send a car since there's no way the stubborn old swan known as my uncle would let you leave early through the portal but—."

A car is fine, Persephone said instantly. It's perfect actually. How soon would that car be here?

I'm sure Ben would send it right now but let me ask him. I'll be right back.

Persephone turned to Hades, taking the lull in conversation as a chance to fill him in a little bit before Uma would come back.

"Well?" Hades impatiently asked, his leg bouncing as the other crossed over and tapped the air. "That wasn't a brief talk, what happened?"

"I'm leaving. Sounds like Uma is coming through yet again, just like she did with Hadie. She and Ben are going to sit Mal down to try and get a breakthrough. I'm just waiting to hear back as she is asking King Ben how soon he can get a limo to pick me up." She held a finger up as Hades opened his mouth to speak, Uma having returned to declare Ben's decision.

Ben says he'll send the car right away.

I knew he'd be quick about it but I didn't think he'd be that quick,Persephone responded, one part amazed and one part eyeing Hades in worry.

He's worried about Mal. I think he really cares about her Aunt Steph. I know I don't really do the touchy-feely stuff but I'd have to be blind not to see it.

Well then, I'm glad he's there for her, Persephone said. And I'll be there too. I'll be on the lookout for the car.

Knowing Ben, he might be driving that car.

The link disconnected, signaling Persephone to swiftly stand from her seat and begin getting ready.

"He's sending a car now."

"Now?" Hades jumped up to follow her, the Goddess quickly changing out of her casual sweats and into a pair of jeans and a knit, olive sweater. She would still need to walk the Isle in order to reach the limo, but she also needed to be presentable for Auradon.

"Yes," came the muffle reply, a hairband in Persephone's mouth as she rushed to pin up her hair.

"Here," Hades said, nabbing her peacoat from the closet as his wife tugged on her shoes, Persephone hopping as she made her way back out of the room.

"Wait, Steph," Hades hurried after Persephone, the pair quickly making their way up and out of the Underworld. "Keep your Mind Link open for me to lurk on? I want to be able to know what's going on too, even if I can't talk to Mal."

"I will, I promise," Persephone grimaced as she tried not to openly speed walk to the already waiting limo. "I can't believe it's already here, Hades I—"

"I'll be okay," he said, yanking a door open and ushering her in, quickly pecking her cheek as she sat. "We'll figure everything else out after we make sure Mal is okay. I love you."

"I love you too," Persephone buckled up, waving at Hades as he shut the door just as Isle residents began to appear, their curiosity getting the better of them. A double knock sounded above her head as the God pounded the limo, signaling the driver to take off. Persephone rung her hands stressfully as the car lurched and began to drive back over the temporary golden bridge.

'I'm coming, Mali. I swear you're going to be okay.'

"Ma'am? Lady Persephone? We're here."

Persephone jolted out of her whirlwind of thoughts at the driver's voice, confirming with a glance that she was indeed at Auradon Prep.

"Thank you, ah—"

"Dean, my Lady," the driver bowed as he held the door for her. "I've already texted King Ben of your arrival, he should be here momentarily to escort you to his office."

"Lady Persephone!"

And so he was.

"King Ben. My daughter?"

'Screw protocol' Persephone thought, only giving Ben a brief nod as she swiftly made her way towards the school. 'I need to make sure she's okay.' She heard Ben give some quick orders to Dean before the footsteps of him jogging back up next to her.

"Uma's gone to collect Mal, we'll be meeting in my office," Ben spoke, taking the lead through the winding hallways. "At least temporarily. The plan is to move to my dorm as my friends tend to barge into my office unannounced, but I've distracted them for now by having them organize a picnic for after we hopefully get through to the root of whatever is causing Mal's distress."

"I greatly appreciate this, King Ben," Persephone sighed as the youthful King ushered her into his office, the door closing behind them.

"Lady Persephone," the serious look was oddly out of place on Ben's normally jovial face, the teen's demeanor completely stern. "I would like you to know that I place Mal's happiness before my own. Not only is she a classmate, a close friend in some sort of crisis, but she's my girlfriend and it hurts me to not know what is hurting her."

"Thank you, for being here when I couldn't, King Ben."

"Please, Ben is fine, this isn't official business."

"Maybe one day, King Ben," smiled Persephone, slightly amused despite the gravity of the situation.

The conversation was then halted from continuing as the office door suddenly opened.

"Why are you the way that you are?" Mal's voice came through, quickly followed by a rapport from Uma who just so happened to be leading the way into the room.

"Would you have me any other way?" Uma grinned as she and Persephone made eye contact. The Goddess turned further her face breaking into a smile as she saw Mal's shocked face.

"Mom?"

Persephone hadn't known what to expect. She certainly didn't expect being tackled by her sixteen-year-old daughter. What she didn't expect at all was for said daughter to begin sobbing in her arms. She didn't expect to be clung onto as if the only lifeline left in the world to keep Mal from drowning again.

"Shh, shh, it's okay Mali," Persephone said, gently rubbing Mal's back as Mal's body continued to be wracked with silent sobs. "I'm here."

If a person is the cause of this, I'm likely going to kill them. I have Mal.

Is…is Mali crying? Hades' voice carried back onto the link, the God popping on to spy at the goings-on at Persephone's notice. She felt his anger intensely spike at the revelation. If the friggen beastie boyfriend is behind this, I don't care if he's king! He's dead!

I don't think it's him, but we will get to the bottom of this, Persephone thought as she held Mal tightly, still rubbing her back. Back by the door she could see Uma and Ben speaking in not so hushed whispers.

In the corner of her eye, Ben nodded, just as interested in understanding what had been going on as she was.

"That would be a good idea, King Ben," Persephone spoke up. "As I would also like to know why my daughter is still sobbing in my arms and why I'm just now learning about it!"

Months of no contact. Months of stress and fear pouring through the link. There was no way just Cotillion was the reason anymore.

Gods, she feels cold…where is her jacket?

She's not wearing it? She barely takes that off to even sleep!

No! She's wearing…she might as well be wearing something I might wear here in Auradon! A dress, but not even with a light shrug or shawl!

"We didn't know Aunt Steph," Uma said softly. "We...well we thought something was going on with Mal but we didn't know what it was and it didn't seem fair to worry you since you were on the Isle for your six months."

Persephone sighed and shook her head, looking down at her daughter. "Mal, honey? Are you up for talking? What's wrong sweetheart?"

We should've done something sooner. Demanded Uma to do something sooner even. I know their kids, they shouldn't have to deal with extra pressure or solve what we as adults should be doing, but…

Steph…I'm stuck on the Isle. You were on the Isle. Even if Uma managed to get a hold of Mal sooner, who's to say Ben would've still summoned you? That Mal would even somewhat willingly be in that room, or possible no longer talking to Uma at all?

Despite Mal trying to break away, Persephone held onto her daughter's shoulders, unwilling to risk the chance of her running away as she habitually would. Her heart seized furiously, though she kept her expression calm as Persephone watched her daughter attempt to wipe away tears.

"Hey, hey," Persephone said gently, grabbing her hands as to stop her from wiping away the telltale sign of her crying. "You don't need to be ashamed of your tears Mali. You don't need to put on a brave exterior. Not here. Not around me."

"Or me," Uma nodded.

"Or me," Ben said softly as he walked over to her. "Mal... talk to me. What's going on?"

It took Ben resting a hand on her shoulder and speaking again to keep Mal from retreating further into her silent shell. "If you want, we can go someplace with a bit more privacy."

"This is your office," whispered Mal, refusing to make eye contact with anyone in the room. "I don't know if there's any place with more privacy?"

Ben couldn't help but give her a look. "You and I know perfectly well that Akiho and Emir love to randomly burst in here if they think I've been working too hard. That's not much of a guarantee of privacy."

Persephone and Uma traded relieved looks as Mal let out a small giggle. It was a small thing, but still a good sign. This was possible. They could break through to her, bit by bit.

"Come on," Ben said gently, holding out his hand.

With a sigh of relief from a breath Persephone didn't even know she had been holding, she watched as Mal took Ben's hand and for the first time in a while, smiled. Though there was still some small bit of hesitation left. Mal turned, a look of trepidation on her face as she asked her mother a question, her voice almost pleading.

"Mom are...are you going to be there too?"

"A Cerberus couldn't drag me away," she swore. Not until she understood exactly what was going on. Though mentioning the animal made her realize several somethings. "Speaking of Cerberuses...where's yours?"

"With his attendant," replied Mal as she and Ben led the way to his dorm room.

"As late in the day that it is, I assume classes are over? Is your brother with Jay and Harry then?" Persephone asked, looping an arm through Mal's. She tried not to look concerned as she noticed Mal frown at the mention of Hadie. Was there something wrong with Hadie as well that they hadn't noticed? He'd seemed fine when they spoke to him over the weekend as they always had.

"Ah, we didn't have classes today," Ben explained. We get an extra free day every few weeks to let everyone wind down from our responsibilities. Jane's been running ragged, so I think it's Fairy Godmother trying to help."

"As for Hadie," said Uma, speaking up instead of Mal, which only furthered Persephone's concern. "He's off with his own group of friends, I don't know Auradon Middle's area as well, but he's usually over there or at the shared library."

"He always did like his books," smiled Persephone. Suddenly, Uma tapped Ben on the shoulder, jerking her head towards a different corridor and shared a nod with the boy. Persephone blinked as Uma quietly broke off from the group and headed towards what she recognized as the direction of the dorm she shared with Mal.

In the meantime, they shortly found themselves at Ben's dorm.

'Which makes sense now that I think about it, that he would need to be close to his office.' Persephone thought.

She was briefly amused at Ben's attempt at manners, offering her a stiff wooden chair to sit upon as the only other seating was a bed covered in gaudy blankets of a beautiful shade of blue, marred by the royal beast crest repeating patterns across it. The worried mother kept her grip upon Mal as she guided the pair to sit on the bed, Ben taking the chair instead.

"...mom, as much as I love the fact that you're here, aren't you going to get in trouble with Old Lightning Butt?" Mal's voice pulled her mother's attention as said parent held her so close, the purple-haired Godling may as well be sat on her lap like a little kid again. Persephone was pleased to find Mal leaned into the hug instead of putting up any kind of resistance.

"Zeus can worry about the agreement when he wants to actually provide a good agreement for a mother of two who has a daughter who needs her. King Ben was kind enough to provide a car and Zeus can't really get upset if I came at behest of the King, now can he?"

Not to mention he always said the Isle wasn't his jurisdiction. If he's going to play that card, he can't stop me if Ben himself requested my presence.

One of the few benefits of Mal dating that sunspot. Even if I'd rather she not be dating at all.

Persephone internally rolled her eyes at Hades' commentary.

"You've been around dad too much if you can list a loophole that quickly."

Oh, Mali, you've got no idea…

You say that like it's a bad thing!

"When you become a parent, Mali, you'll learn that you'll do whatever it takes to make sure your kids know you're there for them," Persephone said gently, softly brushing a bit of hair out of Mal's face.

It wasn't until Uma returned with a stack of newspapers that Mal tried to bolt, wrenching herself from her mother's dropped guard and loosened hug. Luckily Ben had leapt up and managed to grab her, but the conversation immediately turned defensive and dissolved into shouting as Uma took to playing offense. From the newspapers to Mal becoming oddly flighty at dragons, more and more was slowly unraveling to show just what had been going on with Mal for the last several months.

Gods, what happened to our talk that dragons were okay, Mal?

Or my talk to stay true to herself and not let Auradon force her to change.

"Uma, just drop it okay?! It's nothing, alright? If I don't go now, we're going to be treated to Natalie blowing up my phone—!"

"Why would this Natalie blow up your phone?" asked Persephone, one of her rare interjections. She had been content to just be a calming presence and allow Uma and Ben try to lead the conversation. "On that note, who is Natalie? I thought I knew all your friends Mal unless this is one from Auradon?"

"She's...she's not a friend," Mal sighed, looking at her mom. "She's my 'handler'."

"...why on Gaia's green earth would anyone think you'd need to be handled?" Persephone growled, her blue eyes flashed, not unlike Mal's.

The hell does that even mean?

"There, um, there were some on my council who thought it might help Mal in navigating the royal life. I was not one of them!" Ben quickly backpedaled as Persephone's eyes pierced him, knowing very well she was not someone he'd want to anger.

He better not have been. Otherwise, I'd still want that chalk and drag him to the Underworld alive! I'll gladly stay stuck on the Isle if it means any threat against Mali is taken care of!

"Considering the status your mother had all her life before marrying your father, I should hope so!" scolded Persephone, unable to resist reprimanding the young King as if it was still his fault, trying to hold back the flood of Hades just as equally flipping out over the Link. "For that matter, I've been working with Mal on navigating life in Auradon. Just in a manner that would also help her survive the Isle!"

"It's true," Uma nodded. "Aunt Steph was a big help in learning diplomacy and all that stuff that a captain of the seas needs to know. Probably comes from having to deal with Zeus for six months."

Ah, it comes from much more than that. Have you really not shared what you do off Isle with the kids?

Outside of helping my mother and the asinine things that occur on Olympus itself? No.

I love how you play the sweet and innocent Goddess. Though the mint plant gig may have given away your bite a bit.

Now is not the time dear.

"You're allowed free time Mal, I don't understand why Natalie would be blowing up your phone." Ben began, visibly upset as their conversation went on. Unless...hang on...Mal, Natalie's not the reason you don't want to be called 'dragon' anymore, is it?"

Ben's question officially activated the alarm bells in Persephone's head. A handler that they hadn't known about, the only new variable as far as she could see.

Persephone's intensified the focus of her glare upon Ben.

"I just can't!" snapped Mal, clearly feeling the pressure. The Godling's eyes flashed bright green, brightening her natural shade.

'Oh, Mal. That's my shade of green too, remember? I adopted you magically, you're more God than fae now. It just seems like it hadn't changed because the magic is channeled through already green eyes and not my darker blue.'

"Because maybe, Ben, I don't want you to realize you're potentially dating the next version of Maleficent' like the entire kingdom already knows—!"

Mal's words pulled Persephone from her thoughts, watching as her daughter slapped a hand over her mouth, clearly having said more than she had wanted to.

"What do you mean the next Maleficent?" Ben carefully asked as he took Mal's hand away from his mouth and holding it in his own. "You're nothing like Maleficent."

"Maleficent could turn into a dragon Ben," Mal said softly. "She's what people think of when they think of dragons...if I have to give up dragons to distance myself from her, I'm fine doing that. They're only clothes and pictures...they're...they're not important."

"What?" Mal asked softly, noticing the shocked looks. "Ben, your safety's more important. If the kingdom thought you were spelled or something because you were dating the next Maleficent—."

Steph, please set her straight, I can't take this anymore, I can't say anything myself!

I know you're right. I've heard plenty enough.

"Malinda!"

"Yes mom?" Mal asked, looking over at Persephone.

"You are not the next Maleficent!" Persephone said firmly. "I seem to remember you standing up against Maleficent at the battle at King Ben's coronation."

Mal sighed. "Mom, it doesn't matter. I'm still genetically connected to the Dragon even if I know you're my mom. All anyone will see is a copy of Maleficent because you can change everything about yourself but you can't change genetics..."

Ben wrapped his arms around Mal, whispering softly into her ear as he gently rocked them back and forth, trying to calm his girlfriend down.

Mal sniffed softly as she buried her head into Ben's shoulder.

"Hey, hey," Ben said gently, putting his hand on Mal's chin and gently raising it up so he was looking her in the eye. "You are Mal . You are one of a kind. You're a dragon themed, spray painting, pirate co-captaining girl who has no qualms about walking into my office to tell me I'm working too long. You are not Maleficent, you are Malinda. And anyone who says otherwise is an idiot. Maleficent doesn't hold a monopoly on dragons, just ask Lonnie about Mushu. Hell, I like dragons. Does that make me like Maleficent?"

"No! Ben, you're nothing like Maleficent!" Mal told him.

"Then why are you?" Ben asked gently. "You're doing the same as me, admiring dragons for the animal they are and not for the person most of us think of."

"Ben, I'm genetically connected to her! Like it or not there's no changing that!"

Do you think Mal would like to be biologically adopted too? It wouldn't wipe out her genetic relations to the demon much, since it's been so many years, but that's not like a bad thing that she can't completely sever that connection.

We didn't go that route because it can be painful.

Because she had started the throes of puberty. Recommendations for minimal was for before or after the final stages. So not for a few years, but maybe when she's far older, we can pass it by her and she can make the decision for herself.

I can think of several issues that might pop up. But again. Not the time.

"Mal, blood does not dictate family or personality," Ben said softly. "Chip is my brother even if we're not connected by one drop of blood. Hell, Emir and Akiho are practically my brothers—the whole Tourney team is actually. My father, before he was turned into a beast, was rude, shallow and arrogant, I'll freely admit that. Am I any of those things?"

Think of your own father Mali, he's an egotistical mad God who likes to abuse his minions on the daily. You're nothing like that.

Hey!

"No!"

"Then why should your genetics have anything to do with Maleficent?" Ben asked.

Persephone shook her head slightly as they waited for Mal to answer. Oh sure, it's just the same thing I've been saying ever since we got Mal back from that witch but what do I know? I'm just your mother. Gods help me when Hadie's a teenager.

What teenager? He's a baby forever whether he likes it or not. They both are.

Hush, Hades. It's happening whether we like it or not.

Preferably not.

Things seemed to finally be improving, a breakthrough made, revealing the root of Mal's distress. Until the real reason of it all interrupted the growing peace. Mal's worries were one thing. The cause of putting those fears in her head was apparently quite an actual monster.

"Gods a minute's peace, is that too much to ask?" Mal moaned as her phone rang, the caller ID showing the infamous Natalie. "Hi Natalie. Yes, yes, I know I'm late...I'm sorry, I was just—."

"I don't care Mal! When will you get it into your ditzy brain that you can't goof off and keep missing meetings? My Gods, the way you're going, I'm surprised King Ben isn't more embarrassed by you!"

Hades' presence came full force into Persephone's mind, his anger flooding with her own. It was all she could do to simply narrow her eyes and continue to glare, nails almost puncturing skin as she tightened her hands into fists.

It didn't even matter that Mal had likely only hit the speaker setting by accident. The unknown wench was yelling at her daughter.

"I know, I know...I'm really sorry Natalie. I'll be right over," said Mal, her demure, droning tone confusing her audience.

How often has this gone on, not even how long, for Mal to just default into a defeated nature so easily? That's not like her at all!

Persephone. Deal. With. This.

No rushing. I want to see if this irritating, insignificant ant says anything else to incriminate her.

"You know we'll have to go over your allotted time, and all your meetings now are going to run into each other. If you didn't have those hours blocked off for magic of all things, maybe I could be a bit more flexible with your schedule but clearly you don't care about getting this right. Gods, what King Ben sees in a slacker like you I'll never know. I'm just glad you finally wised up and got rid of those stupid dragon clothes and leather! You should look like a Lady, not a ruffian. Am I just wasting my time being your handler? Because I'd have thought you would finally get some decent time management? Gods, a Lady doesn't run late to meetings Mal!"

Persephone stared gobsmacked at the phone. At the audacity of a mortal attacking a Godling. Whether or not they believed if Mal was her daughter, Mal at her most basic aspect was considered under the umbrella of the Gods. Every single word from this so-called handler was an attack upon everything that made Mal, Mal. Not to mention things that Persephone knew that Mal was not. The Godling put her all into everything she did.

Evidently, Mal had tried putting her all into the ridiculous demands of this useless handler hence why she was so different.

Yet clearly, it's not just about forcing Mal to be a perfect Auradon reflection of a princess.

No, Hades echoed. This bitch is after ruining Mal for the sake of it, not helping. Methinks something foul is afoot. Memo to me…read their file, and further interrogate a certain someone's soul.

"Yes Natalie, I know...and I appreciate what you're doing..." Mal whispered.

'No Mali, you shouldn't even have to give this useless excuse of a soul the time of day. You're stronger than her.' Persephone clenched her hands, nails sharply printing the palms of her hands.

"Okay that's it," Ben growled. "I've heard enough!"

"Ben, if you don't kill her, I will," Uma snarled, rubbing Mal's back as Mal stared at her boyfriend in shock, Ben having grabbed the phone from her hands.

"Ben, don't—!"

"Malinda, it's either Ben has a talk with her or I have a talk with her," growled Persephone, her own eyes now continuously glowing, though still trying to tamp down the surge of power she felt as her anger continued to grow. "Granted, I'll be having a talk with her either way but it might be better if Ben goes first."

Mal sighed but nodded.

Persephone kept one ear open on the rather heated conversation Ben held with the sycophant that was evidently this Natalia, as she joined Uma in comforting Mal. It was becoming more difficult, as Hades continued to rant telepathically which Persephone's own anger to spike as his constantly flowed through, to keep herself from snatching Mal's phone from Ben and demanding Natalie be smited.

Can we kill her? Send her to me, send her to me, send her to me. Killkillkillkill—

I'm trying not to be tempted here, Hades.

Nonono, KILL. I could punish her so many different ways! No one touches our children and gets away with it! She's unworthy of Life! Bossing my Mal around, running her ragged? I could put her in a field of impervious thorns, planted over hot coals and force her to run across them for all eternity! She hates leather? I can send her to the furies! They'll dress her up and do so many shameful things…

Persephone tuned Hades out as Uma spoke, well aware that her husband may very well be the voice mortals get when they have disembodied voices telling them to commit atrocities.

"So, we can't kill her, right?"

Persephone sighed and turned to Uma as Ben continued to berate Natalie. "I'm still toying with the possibility…Hades has been providing suggestions as to her punishments through the mental link."

Fuck yeah, I am, and you've yet to act on any!

"Mom…don't," Mal said softly. "All it would do is make people think being from the Isle's too dangerous and advocate for permanently separating the two worlds. I…I couldn't live completely separated from you…and think about Hadie. He still needs his mom."

There's your answer, Hades. You'll get her soul in the end anyways.

I always do…Fine. Just make sure her life isn't pleasant while she waits to get down here. It doesn't matter if she tries to change a new leaf and starts walking babies in parks or something. She messed with my little girl, and that means a one-way ticket to Tartarus!

"Alright Mal. I won't smite her. Though I make no promises that your uncle won't at some point if he ever finds out what Natalie did."

"Zeus didn't care about me when I was a baby and Maleficent grabbed me, he doesn't care now," Mal scoffed.

Yeah, probably not Zeusy, but that doesn't mean Po-Po might land lock her. Never be safe on waters again.

"Well at the very least, your father will have fun judging her soul when the time comes," Persephone stated. "He had a ball with Leah."

With an excellent finale, if I don't mind saying so myself.

That's enough from you. I'll speak to you later Hades.

Nanana not yet! I wanna know what you're going to do!

"I'm not surprised," Mal said, shaking her head in slight amusement.

Also tell her to friggen talk to me! If either of us are muted on the link like this ever again, she's in so much trouble, I don't care if it's in twenty years or a hundred! No blocky!

"Speaking of your father, he wants you to talk to him," Persephone stated. "And you're never muting your mental link again young lady. If something's going on with you, I want to know."

Damn right! If her mind link isn't back on by tonight to at least let me check in with her, she's grounded for a month!

I think we'll put a day aside for that, dear. You tend to rant, and I feel like making her keep her link open and have to listen to your whole monologue of concerns is fair exchange to let her just have some time with her friends.

Nyeeeh, alright fine. It's not like she did anything wrong anyways. She just needs to learn to keep us in the loop. I get they were concerned about us not being able to do anything off Isle, but I bet you anything that speaking with us over the link would have helped even somewhat.

"Yes mom. I'm sorry... at first, I thought I could handle it or that Natalie just didn't like Uma for some reason. She kept encouraging me to spend time with Elle or Macaria. But then it was jabs about my clothing on top of all The Gazelle articles and then Leah made a comment at her hearing and it just piled on top of each other... plus you were still on the Isle. I didn't want to make you worried since there was still time in your deal."

"Which is why I'll talk to Zeus about reworking that deal," Persephone stated. "I won't leave your father to his lonesome as that's not fair to him but I won't leave you without someone to turn to."

The mother-daughter pair smiled as they hugged once more, Persephone whispering into Mal's ear. "It's the parent's job to protect the kids Mali. Not the other way around."

Persephone couldn't help but smile as Ben suddenly erupted, shouting to the whole room that he loved Mal, a part of her slightly sad that her little girl was really growing up. On the other hand, she was glad Hades was still too busy ranting about Natalie to have heard the confession.

"...they bet on me and Ben?" Mal spoke, pulling Persephone from her thoughts after she had dropped the revelation that Aphrodite was naturally gambling on just about anyone's love life. Especially fellow family members or high-profile members of the world such as Ben.

"Immortal beings, Mal. We get bored very easily." Persephone said, shaking her head. "Now, I think it's time I have some words with this Natalie."

She caught Ben's eye and held out her hand for the phone. Ben nodded.

"Natalie, I will be continuing this conversation but for right now, Mal's mother would like a word with you," Ben said, his voice still a near growl. "I hope for your sake you don't insult Mal the way you've done with me. Because you will be extremely lucky if you still hold a job at the end of this phone call."

Ben handed over the phone and Mal shook her head, going over to him as to provide her mom some privacy for her call.

"Hello, Natalie, is it?"

"Yes, ma'am, Lady P—?"

"That's all I asked, a yes or no question," growled Persephone. "If you're under the impression that you may sway me with false placations, you will find yourself quickly wrong. I have been present since the moment you called my daughter. I heard every syllable of your vitriol targeted at my child. It doesn't matter if I didn't birth her myself, I raised her. Even if Maleficent sunk her claws into her, it was only as a young child. For the last ten years, Mal has been mine."

"But ma'am!"

"I did not give you permission to speak," Persephone spat. "You are an insignificant mortal who is unworthy to even have the honor of speaking to myself let alone either of my children. So, you can take that presumptuous hoity toity little brain of yours, with any ideas that serving royalty is your calling in life, and throw it in the ocean where it's barely fit to feed the fish!"

The Queen of the Underworld continued to rant, not letting Natalie a word in edgewise. Finally, she settled on an idea, something that would at least be suitable and dangerous, a warning to others. To make an example out of pests who harm her children. Persephone let the rage bubble, fueling her magic as the ferocity eventually settled into a simmer from finally being consumed. A vibrant green enveloped her hands as she reached out into the world, focusing on finding the mortal's soul. Cursing the woman for the rest of her life.

"I'm sure you're wondering what I just did," Persephone stated. "Enjoy trying to grow a garden again Natalie. I'm sure it won't take you long to wonder why everything you touch dies."

With that, Persephone handed the phone back to Ben, taking great pleasure as the teen fired the wretched abuser.

Lucky I can't kill you outright, or I'd have it so the moment you even touch plants, fruits, vegetables of any kind, they would rot away.

If she does anything again, you absolutely should. Suffer now, but another toe out of line at least wrangle Hermes in and make a proper example out of her.

I'll recruit my own mother, Hades. Mal or Hadie might never get along with her considering she bashes you so often, but she'll still protect them as long as they're mine.

Helicopter parent or not, your mom turned that one kid into a lizard because he disagreed with her. I'll put up with her as long as she's good to our kids. Even if I'll never fully trust her.

I wasn't aware she'd transformed anyone…Too many acts of the Gods to keep track of. And you never fully trust anyone. Not even the kids.

That's because I taught 'em, and I can't even trust myself, a wave of amusement came through the link, Hades being much calmer now that Natalie had been dealt with.

I'll talk to you later dear. Drop in on a certain buffoon with his head stuck in the clouds before I at least see our son before I return.

Sounds good babe. Gods, what a mess. At least it's been taken somewhat care of.

Yes, hopefully Mal will recover before too long.

"I'll leave you to that," smiled Persephone, closing her own Link as Ben brought up their picnic plans. "I'm sure your driver is anxious to get me back to the Isle."

Ben shook his head. "Lady Persephone, your invitation here is for as long as Mal wants you. I would never presume otherwise."

"That's very kind King Ben but my husband shouldn't be left to his own devices for too long."

"You'll see Hadie though, right?" Mal spoke up. "He'd be devastated if he knew you'd been here and didn't get a chance to see you mom. He misses you."

"I'll be sure to do that, besides," Persephone smiled. "If you want me to stay Mal, of course I will. Hopefully your father won't go completely insane."

"Dad lasted completely on his own before I was born," Mal pointed out. "Not to mention the five years when Maleficent had me full time."

'Barely Mali, barely. Even with me around, with your mute on link causing him to worry, he was going more stir crazy than normal.'

She sighed softly. "It'd be nice if dad could be here too but something tells me that's almost impossible."

"Nothing's impossible," Ben promised. "Once the kids are off the Isle, I can look into getting some of the adults who don't belong there off as well."

Mal stared at him in shock. "Ben...are you serious?"

"As a heart attack."

"That is a very generous offer King Ben," Persephone said with a small smile. "And one I'll be happy to talk to my husband about. But for right now, if you don't mind, I need to go yell at a few Gods."

"Ooh, try to film it so Uma and I can see!" Mal said with a grin.

"Of course, Mal," Persephone chuckled before leaving in a swirl of leaves.

'Nothing's impossible.'

Ben's words never left Persephone's thoughts as she marched her way up to the gates of Olympus.

'For now, though, Hades joining us off the Isle is just a pipe dream,' but she couldn't help wistfully wish it were so. Just as she raised a hand to open the gates, they swung open quietly on their own. A pale blue and white streak swiftly zoomed up to float before her.

"Steph!" Hermes cheekily grinned, always the mischievous God. "What are you doing up here, babe? You aren't schedule to show for a meeting for another two months!"

"Hermes," Persephone gritted. He didn't deserve her ire. It had a much better target. "I've found out some rather distressing news, and there is only one God that is possibly responsible."

Hermes peered over his glasses with some concern before he pulled back with a sigh. "What'd the big guy do now?"

"Are you aware I have a daughter, Hermes?" she bit out.

"Mal, right? Purple hair, dating the new King, did good for a newbie at magic in that fight against Maleficent."

"I knew you were one of my favorites for a reason. You actually have a brain."

"Oooh, snappy Steph today! Wanna use me as a soundboard to develop maximum effect?"

"You know what? That would be appreciated."

They moved off to a private patch of cloud, Hermes swirling them around so no one would be able to eavesdrop. As Persephone began to rant, letting her words flow as her thoughts became unjumbled into spears, Hermes nodded his head along, throwing in advice.

There were some inconsistencies. Then Hermes pointed out that going in angry and erratic would hurt her argument. Especially when her husband was already known for being angry, and she shouldn't even be off Isle.

"I suppose as the God of Communication, amongst oh so many other titles, you would know best" Persephone sighed but looked up at her friend wryly. "Thanks for helping me get some of it together at least."

"Hey, what are friends for?" Hermes grinned. "I take it with what's going on, you don't plan to head back to the Isle anytime soon?"

"No, most definitely not," Persephone shook her head, frowning. "My daughter still needs me, and I haven't seen my son yet. I promised to at least see him first, in case Zeus forces me to go back. If Zeus doesn't know I'm here, then he can't do so. Though King Ben did say I could stay as long as I wished, I'd rather not risk testing the agreements of the new King and a constituent so soon."

"Sweet idea, Steph. Don't you worry," Hermes said as he reached out a hand, pinky up. "I pinky swear my lips are sealed. The Big Guy won't hear it from me that you're back in town."

"I appreciate it, Hermes."

"Anytime doll, anytime."

For the second time that day, Persephone disappeared in a swirl of autumn leaves.

This time she reappeared in her barely used apartment.

Bumping into the small dining table she'd materialized next to, Persephone sniffed at the stale air, fumbling as she tried to find the light switch. She normally spent time on her mother's farm or Olympus that she only came to the apartment when she needed time to herself.

Eyes blinked furiously as Persephone waited for them to readjust to light. In her rush to the limo, to Mal, she had forgotten to grab her sunglasses. She'd forgotten everything, really. Nothing was more important than her children. But now she was unprepared and unsure of how long she'd stay, even though she'd need to be in Auradon in less than a couple months anyways.

'Good thing I keep essentially a second complete wardrobe here…I should have a backup pair of sunglasses somewhere.'

After a brief cough, she relished in the feeling of channeling more magic, as always when leaving the Barrier, as she waved her hands to revive her neglected plants. Almost immediately the room brightened and the air cleared, a refreshing smell of amaryllis and hydrangeas filling the space instead of the initial staleness as they bloomed.

Persephone hesitated at the sliding doors to the balcony, pushing back the curtains to glance at her plant boxes set against the ocean view. There, the Isle sat in the distance, still covered in clouds. The temptation was strong to bring back the plants slumbering outside. Her delphiniums and forget me nots…Not to mention her narcissus and chionodoxa. But it was still Winter and there was no need to make passerby suspicious. The plants were both symbolic and seasonal. She had been careful to have the apartment kept under a false name. Not even her mother could be suspicious of flowers known to bloom with the melting snow and coming Spring. It allowed for the Goddess to ditch Demeter's farms instead of staying throughout her time in Auradon.

With a sigh, she let the curtain drop, turning instead towards one of the windows and pulling up the blinds to crack it slightly open, letting the rest of the dusty air billow out. Moving back to towards the kitchenette she had originally appeared next to, she popped down the small built-in table, revealing her laptop.

Daintily tucking her feet beneath her as she brought the computer over to the sofa ands at, Persephone debated constructing an email off to King Ben, simultaneously prodding the link to Mal.

'I swear if she doesn't have it open already…'

Hi mom. Mal's voice was still bashful, but less worn compared to the distraught teen she had been hours earlier. What's up?

I was going to email Pri-King Ben, but figured this might be a good time to check in. Firstly, to see if you'd turn on your link like I'd ask, as well as that I would prefer if you could just discuss the plan with him for me rather than having to wait by my computer for a reply.

Oh, sure! He's with me now. What did you want to ask?

While I do have an apartment in Auradon, I believe there's guest quarters at the school? It would be much easier if I could stay on campus, rather than having to get clearance to teleport in every time. That way you and Hadie could come see me anytime you wanted instead of having to wait to reach out to me.

Makes sense. Give me a couple minutes and I'll ask.

Thank you, dear.

Ben says he'll get one approved and ready for you, but a room wouldn't be ready for you till tomorrow.

That's fine. I want to return to the Isle tonight just to get things ready for my stay, if that's possible. I'll deal with Zeus another day, but I don't want to risk him interfering until King Ben officializes my early leave and I still haven't seen Hadie.

As Persephone waited for a reply, she quickly printed a list of what she would need to bring back. Mostly superfluous things, such as the IDs mortals often required, her cellular phone. Items she always kept with her in case someone tried to steal them while she was away.

Mom? Ben says he can schedule the limo to take you when you want. Whether that's after you see Hadie or later into the night. Though I don't know how comfortable dad would want you coming back through the Docks so late, not to even mention how unsafe that would be for the driver. Then for coming back, he could can organize that for tomorrow whenever you want as well.

Yes, not too late is probably wise. It's only about half past four in the afternoon now, when is dinner scheduled for the students?

At about five.

Dusk is a little after six, I suppose that gives me about an hour to visit with your brother. Have the limo ready at a quarter to six and I'll take dinner with Hadie and hang around still if you need me before I leave for the night.

Sounds good. I'll let Ben know. We're still out with friends at the picnic, but I'll definitely see you the moment you come back!

I'll teleport back to the school, could you have him let Fairy Godmother know I'm coming? And you wouldn't happen to know where I could find your brother in case he's moved since Uma mentioned his possible whereabouts.

He's letting Fairy G know now. And oh Gods, he's always near the library right before dinner. I'd check there first.

You say that as if it's a bad thing, dear, Persephone fondly shook her head.

Eh, means I at least have an easy time of keeping an eye on him. Plus, a lot of my friends have siblings that hang around him too, so we just collectively watch out for the younger ones if someone else isn't able to.

I'm glad you're all looking out for each other.

Ruthless yet Loyal will always be our motto, mom. Anyways, we'll get that set up for you, but I gotta go. Harry just challenged some of the R.O.A.R guys to a sparring mini tournament and I totally need to get on this! Love you!

Love you too, Mal, Persephone couldn't help but laugh, knowing that while her daughter would still need some time finding her feet again, her friends would be there to catch her. Have fun.

With the link off, but certainly not muted, Persephone stood from her seat and teleported back to the school, finding herself in the receiving room that had been designated for Family Day.

"Lady Persephone! King Ben had just informed me to expect your arrival," Fairy Godmother bustled into the room, her usual cheery self, smiling a greeting.

"Yes, I wanted to visit my son, possibly stay for dinner if that's alright before I return to the Isle for the night," nodded Persephone, following the fae Headmistress out of the room and down the halls. "Oh, and if at all possible, a copy of his and Malinda's grades. My daughter was supposed to keep us updated, but has been neglecting that request."

"Of course, of course. I can get those transcripts easily for you. I can also have the kitchen arrange either a room, or you and young Prince Hadie could take the meal in his dorm, or, you may join all the students in the cafeteria if you so desire. And I'm sorry that we couldn't have a room ready for you by tonight, but we usually need at least 48 hours' notice."

"I'll let my son decide, I have no qualms should he wish to eat with his friends. And there's no need to apologize, I know this was all last minute."

"No trouble at all, I understand this was a family emergency," Fairy Godmother said pensively as they entered a small golden gilded door, nodding briefly at a redhaired woman with glasses. "Here we are. Lady Persephone, this is Lady Sylvia Goof, our Librarian. According to the grapevine, she sees Prince Hadie at least once a day and will know exactly where you can find him at this time. I'll be off if you don't mind, a meeting to get to, you understand. Do let the kitchens know if you decide to take your meal elsewhere if not the cafeteria, my Lady."

Fairy Godmother departed, leaving the two women to their own devices.

"Lady Goof," greeted Persephone.

"Just Sylvia is fine, Lady Persephone," the woman lazy waved a hand. "My husband may be knighted, but we have no care for the frivolities."

"Sylvia then. Thank you for looking after my son, I hope he hasn't been too much of a handful under your watch."

"On his own, he's been fine," Sylvia smirked. "Young Mr. Hook tends to come around and cause trouble for the poor lad, not bullying though, I have zero tolerance for that."

"I can only imagine, and you don't need to worry about Harry. Hadie grew up with him, they're practically brothers."

"That's a relief. It's just that Mr. Hook doesn't use the library, at least not the way it is intended, so I have not much knowledge of him."

"It's quite alright, thank you for the concern though. Now, do you know where my son has gotten off to? I'm afraid my time is limited and I would like to spend some time with him before I must leave once more."

"Oh, yes, yes, if you'd please follow me," Sylvia said, quickly moving around the desk she had been standing behind, stamping bookplates. "He's actually not here at this time, left not too long ago, but I know he's close by. He likes to louse about in the courtyard just outside the main doors."

"He wouldn't happen to have a hammock or trees to climb out there, would he?" smiled Persephone, obviously amused.

"He asked once if he could have a hammock out there. I believe Fairy Godmother said he may as long as he removes it once he's done. Hasn't done it yet though, I think he's waiting for warmer weather so he could bask in the sun. Otherwise yes, I often find him or some of the others up in the trees," Sylvia answered, leading the pair out the main double doors and through a short, large foyer where Persephone could see a glass door leading out to what must be the courtyard. "And there he is, in a tree as you suspected."

True to form, Hadie was in the tallest possible tree in the courtyard he could find, with Herkie hanging on a lower branch, gently shaking the tree with his weight by bouncing around. Several other children she had yet to personally meet were milling around, playing a card game it seemed at one of the few tables.

Sylvia pushed the door open, holding it for the Goddess.

"Hadie?" Sylvia called out. "There's a visitor here looking for you."

Persephone smiled brightly as her son carefully swung himself down from the tree. She did raise a single brow in some concern at Hadie's warry expression, though she dismissed it as Isle suspicion.

"Mom?" Hadie gasped in surprise, running forward. Persephone moved forward as well, opening her arms wide to clamp her son into a viscious hug, her heart panging slightly as she found him no longer fitting in what had been a smaller mold. He'd grown again.

"Why are you here early? Not that I'm complaining, just pleasantly confused!" Hadie clutched tightly to his mom's coat as he looked up at her. Though there was a part of him that knew. Just slightly too afraid to ask.

For the last hour, the occasional spikes of stress that Mal couldn't even ultimately hide from him, had finally dissipated.

Persephone sighed and kept Hadie entrapped in her arms, kissing the top of his head. She was pleasantly surprised to not find him pull away in embarrassment in front of his Auradon friends as he would on the Isle in front of Celia or others.

"Uma convinced King Ben to invite me off the Isle, to help figure out what's been going on with Mali," she whispered. "We routed out the cause, but it's best if we discuss that in private. I wanted to see you before I head back to the Isle for the night."

"Wait, for the night?" Hadie asked, tilting his head.

His mother smiled and ruffled his hair affectionately. "Yes, King Ben is letting me come off the Isle early so that you and Mal aren't without a parent in your corner anymore. I just need to head back to gather my things. I'll be back tomorrow."

"Really?" Hadie gushed. "That's great! I've really missed you, and I know Mali has too!"

"And I've missed you my darling," Persephone nuzzled her nose into Hadie's surprisingly soft hair, marveling at no matter how much he changed outwardly, he was still her happy-go-lucky baby boy. "Now, I have about an hour or so, so I thought I'd stick around to have dinner with you before I leave. The Headmistress said to let the kitchen know if you'd like to eat in your room or a private room, though I don't mind if we stay with your friends and eat in the cafeteria either. Mal is off with her own friends, so she won't be joining us."

Hadie stepped back and glanced over his shoulder towards his friends. "I should at least introduce you, but, um, I'd like to hog you for myself if that's okay. We can eat in my dorm! I'd love to show you some of the things I've been working on."

"I'm perfectly happy to have it be just the two of us," Persephone turned to Sylvia who still stood nearby. "Sylvia, thank you for leading me to my son, but if you don' t mind me asking another favor…?"

"Not at all Lady Persephone, I'd be happy to help! I'll let the kitchens know right away." The librarian scurried away, back towards the library, likely to use the phone Persephone had seen sitting at the desk.

"Thank you!" Persephone shouted out over her shoulder after the librarian, who waved distractedly back as they reentered the library.

"Come on, mom!" Hadie tugged at her sleeve, steering her towards his bemused friends. "Guys, I'd like you to meet my mother! Lady Persephone, Goddess of Spring and Vegetation, Queen of the Underworld, only the best mom goddess out there, not to brag, yadda yadda yadda."

"Hadie!" scolded Persephone, though she couldn't help but smile. His friends were chortling, showing no offense was taken.

"Whaaat?" he whined, also smiling. "If we end up at a formal event, I'll do it properly, mom! None of my friends care anyways."

Persephone sighed, still smiling softly as all of the preteens lined up, bowing or curtseying in turn as they were introduced. "It's nice to meet you all, finally. My son has told me so much about all of you."

"Not a word of what he says is true, Aunt Persephone!" Herkie stepped forward, grinning wryly at his younger cousin. "Hadie is a chronic liar behind the façade!"

"Oh, so you've not been loyal and kind from the moment you met?" Persephone smirked, far too used to similar antics from her immediate family.

The other children laughed as Herkie blustered, blushing awkwardly at his Aunt's quick rebuttle.

"Sorry, Herkie, I'm an old hat at the game. I don't think I would've stuck around if I couldn't keep up with my husband. Otherwise, thank you. All of you, for being there for Hadie as he adjusted to Auradon. I can't imagine it was easy for him without myself or his other friends and family still stuck on the Isle."

"Mooom," Hadie blushed as his mom praised his friends, but the other children just grinned, taking the compliments in stride.

"He's only been a mild pest, Lady Persephone, we're otherwise happy to have him," Ashaki added. "We should head to dinner ourselves, but it's nice to finally meet you!"

"And all of you as well, far be it from me to keep you from your meals," Persephone returned, dismissing the children who quickly ushered through the garden towards what she imagined to be the direction of the cafeteria. "Shall we, Hadie?"

Hadie threaded his fingers through his mother's offered hand, and grasped it tightly, having missed the feeling of holding her hand as they walked around the safe zones of the Isle.

"Let's," a mischievous twinkle flashed in the Godling's eyes as he led Persephone down the very same path that Akiho had taken him on Hadie's very first day in Auradon.

The tinkling of laughter filled the dorm room as silverware clinked upon plates as it cut and pierced a dinner set for two. A small table had been placed in the dorm Hadie shared with Jay and Harry, the two older boys were still off at the surprise picnic for Mal, though there would be plenty time to visit when Persephone returned once more.

"I should ask before I have to go, is there anything you'd like me to bring back with me from the Isle, dear?" asked Persephone, placing her knife and fork down.

Hadie paused, mulling the question over in his head.

"Could…could you bring back my guitar?" blurted Hadie, eyes wide in realization. "Oh, and my personal, favorite books from my bedside! Borrowing from the library is great, but I have to keep them pristine or Sylvia gets cranky."

"Absolutely, sweetheart," replied Persephone. "Does the school have what you need to fix it?"

"Oh, um. I'll have to look up what I need, but I imagine so?"

"Well, I'll bring it either way, we can go to a shop if need be and have them do it for you."

"There are places that will do that?" Hadie hesitated, his fork partway to his mouth. He put it down at his mom's own questioning look. "It's just that, I thought broken stuff just got thrown away, and the Isle is the same. If it's broken, it's broken down even more to scrap. If Auradon has the ability to fix things for themselves, why did they even throw away things in the first place that they didn't have to?"

"They don't exactly have a 'waste not, want not' mentality in Auradon, sadly," Persephone carefully explained. "There is an abundance of resources, money or otherwise, thanks to the multitude of allies joining under the Auradon umbrella. Little is needed to be imported. Even some of what comes from my mother's farms are discounted since that's part of the Olympus-Auradon agreement, despite the farms still being in Greece and other portions throughout the Mediterranean."

"So, it really was just corruption and neglect in the end," Hadie sorrowfully looked down at his plate. "Akiho and Emir said they had been doing food drives, but I guess it came down to former King Beast forgetting the Isle was his responsibility and then no one keeping track of the Barge discrepencies. Better late than never I suppose. Even if hundreds of kids are dead because of them."

Persephone sighed. Hades and herself had always suspected Mal and Hadie could sense death upon the Isle, but neither child openly spoke about what they inherently knew. Certainly not by waltzing down into the Underworld proper and checking the reports. Hades kept a log that auto recorded when someone entered, ensuring he knew exactly when and if his kids entered let alone anyone else, should he have decided to check those logs at the end of a day. She slid a hand under Hadie's chin and lifted his face to look at her.

"What matters is that it's finally being dealt with. The Isle has a hospital now, with proper food. There's still far more to go, like properly living spaces or plumbing, not to mention getting other children who never belonged there off that accursed Isle, but while we won't forget those who were lost by the blind eye of Auradon, it is time to embrace this future."

They shared a somber smile, trying not to recall several either had known to fall to the monstrous lifestyle of the Isle, whether through starvation or violence.

"Is there anything else besides your guitar and a few books?" Persephone asked, returning to her earlier question and changing the subject as she stood. The time to leave was almost upon her.

"No, I think that's it, mom," Hadie smiled meekly. "Apart from school, I think I might focus on getting used to the guitar again in my free time. The school ones are okay, but they just seem to be missing the bass resonation that mine has."

"If you say so, you and your father know far more about guitars than I do," commented Persephone, though she turned as she picked up her peacoat, giving a knowing stare at her son. Something was bothering him and he was unsure how to broach the subject.

'Can't be his grades, I snuck a look at the folder while he was distracted with the arrival of food and the only grade not an A was Social Studies. And they haven't even set trimester finals!'

"Come now, darling, I promise not to get angry, no matter what may be bothering you."

"Well, I think being disappointed with me would hurt more, you're rarely ever angry, mom," Hadie awkwardly scuffed his foot at the floor, rubbing the back of his neck as he avoided looking at her.

"Oh, Hadie, what's wrong?" Persephone tied the belt of her coat closed and embraced her son in what she hoped was comforting hug.

"It's just…I," Hadie returned the hug, sniffling slightly. "I tried getting Mal to talk last week, but we…well, we ended up getting into a fight, and we haven't talked since."

'Well, that explains why Mal was avoiding the subject when I asked about Hadie earlier,' thought Persephone, stiffening at Hadie explanation.

"Are you mad, now?" her son's voice was muffled by her coat, the Goddess' just barely making out the hesitant words.

"No, of course not. I'm not even disappointed," Persephone said, adjusting their stance so her hands could rest lightly on either side of Hadie's disbelieving face. "Sibling fights happen, okay? Just don't let it become a grudge like it has with your father and his brother's."

"Never!" Hadie's face became determined, though his next words were quiet again, slowly building as he became more passionate. "That's why I want my guitar. I was thinking, well, maybe, I could write a sort of apology song or something? I dunno. The way it went down, I feel like Mal should apologize to me first, but I miss her, and if you helped getting her back to her normal self, I'd rather apologize first and let it be bygones so we can hang out like normal again!"

"A good start as any. I'm sure she'll apologize too, but it shouldn't matter who says it first in this situation. Mal was hurting and may have lashed out, or maybe you misunderstood something, I wasn't there. So, it's up to you two to make amends. I simply know she misses you too."

"She does?"

"Yes, she does," Persephone said with a tender smile. "She kept reminding me to see you before I left, even said I couldn't smite people just so I wouldn't be stuck on the Isle to leave you on your lonesome."

"Really? Even if they deserved to be smote?"

"Even then," replied Persephone, kissing the top of Hadie's head before standing back up and preparing to teleport for the last time that day. "Unfortunately, I have to be going now, dear, but I'll be back tomorrow, okay?"

"Missing you already!"

"I miss you too, my little torch," smile Persephone, leaves began to swirl. "I'll see you soon."

It was just past the edge of dusk when Persephone returned to the Isle once more. Hades stood in the doorway to the den, having waited to greet her. He encircled her with his arms and lead her to the couch, the exhausted Goddess sinking into him as they sat together.

"Never had I imagined this. That Mal was trying to put up with suffering all alone," Persephone began to weep, the stress of the day finally fading away.

"None of us did. I can't believe all of this has been going on and she didn't even try to talk to anyone. Or that anyone tried to talk to her earlier!" Hades turned to recline against the arm of the sofa, adjusting so he could move his wife onto his lap and kick up his legs on to the couch. Persephone put up no fight as she snuggled into his chest and lay along him, using Hades' shirt to dab her tears away and sigh as she finally relaxed.

"I…I spoke with Hadie earlier. I guess Uma and he and a few others had tried to, only for Mal to completely bottle up and avoid them. Or at least the topic entirely."

"I'm sensing a 'but' with your hesitation."

"When I saw Hadie before I came back, he admitted to me that he and Mal got into a fight."

"What?!" Hades exclaimed, his head turning down to look at Persephone. "When?"

"I guess about a week ago or so, Hadie tried to do what Uma did today. With far less success."

"I guess Mal's not the only one keeping secrets then," the God grumbled. "He didn't mention anything when we spoke with him the last weekend."

"I know," sighed the Goddess. "I know it's only been a week, but I guess they haven't spoken since. Mal didn't say anything when I spoke to her earlier, and she's the one who told me to at least visit Hadie, so I don't imagine there's any hard feelings."

"Just a lot of worry."

"Yeah…"

They fell into a sullen silence as they took comfort in each other's presence. The parents took solace in the revelation that their daughter's stressed emotions were no longer pounding over the mind link. That after today, they finally knew what had been going on and that Mal was safe again. That Ben was willing to let Persephone off the Isle to help Mal recover.

It didn't matter that they'd be separated sooner. Their children came first.

After a few more minutes, Persephone pulled herself upward towards Hades' shoulder and gently kissed his cheek, her words soft.

"Not that I mind admitting you're right, but…I wish you hadn't been."

"Hey, this isn't what I had in mind either, babe. I knew there were likely going to be prejudice people, but to hurt Mal like this…I didn't predict this at all."

"And if anyone tries to continue Leah's or Natalie's crap, we'll make an example out of them," Persephone growled. "A public one instead of waiting till death or the subtle curse I put on Natalie. I know Mal doesn't want me being stuck on the Isle too, but there are ways to make someone suffer legally. No one harms our children."

"Heh, just make sure to run any plans by me. We can work together to make them as perfect as possible."

Persephone softly smiled and stretched to kiss the edge of his jaw. "Speaking of plans…A few things actually. King Ben has offered me a room to stay on campus to stay close to Mal and Hadie instead of staying at my apartment."

"When you get back? That'll be helpful."

"No, um," Perspehone paused. "Per Mal's request, Ben is allowing me extended early leave from the Isle. I leave again tomorrow."

"What?" Hades sat up, Persephone squeaking as she was abruptly shoved upright. "I guess…I mean, that's good considering what happened, I definitely feel more comfortable with you being there for either Mal or Hadie as needed…"

"But part of you still wants to be a little selfish because you just found out tonight may be our last night together for until next Fall?"

"Well…yes," Hades grimaced, closing his eyes as Persephone placed a hand on his cheek. "I—"

He stopped and sighed. Pulling Persephone close and lying his head into the crook of her neck, he tiredly spoke again.

"I don't regret trying to overthrow Zeus. I'm only one of several who have succeeded, and twenty to thirty years is about how long he likes to punish usurpers. But…with all that's happened, I'm having these lessons stabbed into me over and over that maybe…maybe things would be different if I hadn't gone after Hercules. Maybe I'd be off by now if I hadn't." Hades rambled, his voice muffled as Persephone held onto him, running a free hand through his hair. "I've felt what I did to Zeus when Mal was taken from us. The constant suffering my nephew felt from growing up with a relatively poor family, unable to keep our kids from a night of no food. That persistent nagging in the back of my mind that I abandoned Mal when I let her stay with Maleficent until she approached me on her own. There are so many parallels I can see now, how Zeus and Hera had to sit back and watch their son grow up…We at least have the luxury of knowing Mal is immortal now. Now I'm going to miss Hadie grow up too, unable to help protect our kids while they're supposed to be safe in Auradon. And you're stuck between this entire mess I've made, having missed half their lives to begin with." His voice cracked as he rambled, growing quieter and quieter. "Why are you even with me?"

Persephone gripped tightly at his scalp, biting her lip as she tried not to cry, instead allowing her normally bottled-up husband let his emotions free. Mal had to get her tendencies from somewhere, and both she and her father needed to have those moments to let it out. Today was clearly the breaking point for both. She felt his hands snake around her waist and hold her tighter before suddenly loosening.

"Seriously, Persephone," Hades pulled away from their embrace and stood, his posture sullen as he made his way out of the Den. "This hurts as it is. But…I think it would be best if you stayed in Auradon until Mal and Hadie are grown. None of you deserve to be here."

"Αιδονευς, don't you dare walk away from me!" Persephone screamed after him, lip wavering as she rushed into the hallway after him. She slammed the bedroom door open with her hip before he had the chance to fully close it.

"Gah, Steph!" Hades hissed as her nails dug into his arms, holding him in place.

"I love you!" She scolded, shaking him until his eyes met hers. "For all your mistakes and flaws, you are mine. Just like I am yours. I chose you, I chose to stay, despite everything that stood in our way, despite everything that has happened to us! I. Am. Not. Going anywhere, no matter how much you push me away!"

Her final shake caused them to lose balance, forcing Hades to twist so that they both fell onto the bed instead of in a heap on the floor.

"Persephone…" Hades brushed the hair out of her face, running his thumb across her cheek to wipe away the stream of tears. His words were stopped as Persephone shoved him away, leaving the God confused until he found himself pinned beneath the Goddess as she straddled him.

"Listen to me, Hades," growled Persephone, gripping the collar of his shirt. "You are being an idiot! Did I not adopt Mal despite her not being born of me? Did I not obliterate a damned nymph that had pulled your eye and flirted with you? For every wrong you've done against me, I have stuck around and spun it to something that has bonded us even stronger! Were we not in this same position when you cheated on me with Maleficent? And instead of calling quits, we worked through it! And now we have two beautiful children! If you think for one second that I am going to let you force me away, to have myself and our children rarely get the chance to see you again, to not see them grow up? Then you have another thing coming!"

Persephone shoved at his chest, jumping off the bed in a huff.

"I appreciate you opening up to me," she said, crossing her arms as she forlornly eyed Hades who still lay stunned on the bed. "You need to remember that we made an oath on the Styx when we married. Olympian expectations of 'oh, it's okay for a God to be unfaithful' is stupid, and if you ever do it again, I will follow through with your fear and turn you into a sprig of mint and never look back! In the meantime, I will love you until the end of time. I will love you when our children's grandchildren are grown, so long as you are mine as I am yours.

"Now." she sighed as she sat next to Hades, the God sitting up next to her, gathering her into his arms once more, though with some hesitancy. "Now, there are still discussion to be had. There was more to what I wanted to say earlier. That I'll be returning to Auradon early, to watch over our children. But King Ben, after I get around to lashing out on Zeus for his idiocy which will then reveal my presence of being off the Isle, will then give the order, that so long as Mal wishes it, I can go between the Isle and Auradon freely. Zeus cannot argue against this because, as his argument has been for the last 16 years that we asked for his help, the Isle is not his jurisdiction even if we are Gods who ask for his assistance. So, only Ben can direct us."

Hades sat silently in awe as his wife spoke. His heart thumped as it filled hope. Both at Persephone's declaration of love that harkened back to a time they met before Hercules had even been born, and at the chance that even if he never got off the Isle, the future would be easier for his wife and kids.

"Smart," he finally spoke. "Using his words against him."

She rested a hand on his cheek. "I'm hoping Ben will be able to order Zeus to allow me to use the Mirror-Portal freely, but in the meantime, I'll have to use the limo until I reveal myself. I'm not leaving you alone, Hades. And Mal and Hadie are desperate to see you again."

They touched foreheads, Hades gently laying his wife back on the bed as Persephone continued to whisper into his ear.

"We'll not be apart forever. No matter the distance, it's forever. Together."

The next morning, Persephone gathered the few things she would need to take back to Auradon. The relief she felt when Mal had contacted her over the mind link for the second day in a row stayed with the mother of two as she prepared. The limo would arrive shortly.

King Ben and Fairy Godmother would meet the Goddess and show her the direction to the rooms she would be staying at, in the guest quarters of the school. At least until Cotillion was over, so she could stay close to both Mal and Hadie before she had to attend to her Olympian duties.

"Let's not forget this."

Persephone turned to Hades, the God holding a case with a certain blue guitar.

"Thank you," murmured Persephone as she moved to take it. She paused as Hades' grip refused to budge. "Very funny, Hades, I need to—"

"You're out of your mind if you're carrying all this to the limo by yourself," Hades said, shaking his head. "Only in Auradon for one day and you've already forgotten Isle precautions?"

"Oh, right," sighed Persephone, dropping her hands. "Then how do you expect me to—"

Hades snapped his fingers. Within moments, Pain, Panic and Virgil appeared and gathered up her things.

"Take this all up to the entrance, and wait there. We'll all walk out together; I just need to wrap things up down here."

"Yes, sir!" Pain and Panic saluted before dashing up towards the gated doors, Virgil dutifully following behind them.

"Wait, where are you going?" Persephone asked as she confusedly trailed after Hades. She watched as Hades popped open the small fridge and took out a rather large box.

"Oh of course you did," Persephone fondly shook her head as she peeked in to see the contents. "You made a dish for each of the children? Hades, you need food here more than they need all of this."

"Hey, they clearly need a taste of home, I'll spoil them if I want," Hades shrugged as he tucked the box under his arm and hoisted the guitar case across his shoulders, bumping the door close with his hip. "Besides, you said Beastie Jr was going to allow you to go back and forth even without the portal so you can circumvent my idiot brother's permission."

"I wish none of this was necessary," Persephone sighed, folding her arms. "That…that we didn't even have to worry about being separated from our children. Or each other."

He tucked his one free arm around her waist, holding Persephone close as he kissed her gently on the forehead. "We'll figure something out," he whispered. "I'll miss you, but our kids come first."

Leaning into him, Persephone nuzzled his cheek. "I'll miss you too, of course. You're absolutely right though, Mal and Hadie come first now."

"Take care of them," Hades said, releasing his grip on her hip. Sighing, Persephone made to move away.

"Eep!" squeaked Persephone, as Hades' now free hand captured her by the chin, tilting her head towards him. Her eyes closed as he pressed a searing kiss upon her lips.

"You know I will," she finally managed to say as they reluctantly parted.

"We should get you out there," Hades sighed.

"I suppose you're right," she said, sighing as well.

It was a rare sight, to see both God and Goddess walking together as they emerged from the Underworld home and out onto the Docks. Normally it occurred after a restaurant shift, which was incredibly rare to have both too, as Persephone took care of the Underworld in Hades' absence. Add the odd trio following their King and Queen, no one was sure what to think.

As the pair strolled towards the jetty, where the limo was already waiting, Persephone's arm tucked neatly around Hades', nearby residents bustled out of the way. Only one was idiotic enough to be in the way as his usual brain was off manning Hades' restaurant. That and the dumbest person on the Isle was next to Hook. Hades hoped Gaston wasn't becoming contagious.

"Hades!" Hook emerged from his booth, before giving a light bow. "And Lady Persephone."

"You two better not be drunk already. It's disgraceful," sneered Hades. "Oi! Load the car while I chat with my…associates."

The two imps and Virgil rushed off towards the limo, obviously eager to avoid whatever was happening. The limo driver, the same as yesterday's that introduced himself as Dean, emerged from the car and opened the trunk to be loaded.

"I'll drink when I want! A man should be able to hold his alcohol after all!" Gaston waved airily, still sipping at entire bottle of…

"You're drinking cooking sherry," Hades deadpanned as he recognized the bottle. He had a few bottles himself, now that the Barge was properly stocked, he was experimenting more often. Since the ship didn't contain literal garbage anymore, alcohol was rarely found. It turned out the refuse had been a dumping ground for many of the crew members that didn't want to properly dispose of things.

"Bah! They might've fixed the food around these slums, but I was just fine hunting hyenas! Give me back real alcohol and I wouldn't have to drink this flowery, watered-down brandy!"

Persephone eyed Hades, the God immediately recognizing the signal that she was already done with this conversation.

"Well, as fascinating as your opinion is, I need to escort my wife to her ride."

"Actually, I was hoping you'd satisfy our curiosity on that," Hook said as the couple turned to leave. "It's not Spring. And your Lady had left and then returned and is now leaving again? Is this some new allowance? Or is Her Majesty finally realizing she is worth more?"

"It's a recent development that you have no need to concern yourself with," snapped Persephone, taking another step away. "I have no patience for the smell of your indiscretions nor any assumptions your tiny little minds may fantasize."

"You heard the Goddess," smirked Hades as he made to follow his wife. "It's none of your fucking business."

"Hades." The God in question quickly closed the distance between himself and Persephone, leaving the miffed duo of idiots behind. Though instead of finding himself in trouble, he noticed the slight curl of a smile on Persephone's lips. Handing the guitar to Virgil to put into the trunk, Hades moved to hold open the door for his wife to enter the limo.

"I wish I could take you with me," Persephone whispered as she took the bag of food from Hades.

"Maybe one day," Hades whispered back before pressing his lips firmly against hers one last time. "Don't be a stranger, wifey."

"Never."

Chapter Text

"…why are my sisters hanging around the corner constantly glancing at us?" Alexandria furrowed her brow in concertation. "They're not even supposed to meet me for another thirty minutes."

Hadie angled his locker, the mirror on the door catching Alexandria's sisters indeed peering at them from the merging hallway.

"Oh, my dad, are you serious?" Hadie rolled his eyes and went back to organizing his locker, smiling as Alexandria dissolved into giggles.

"This is what, the fourth time this week that one of our group's siblings have come around to just spy on us?"

"I swear I don't remember it being this bad before Mal and I got into that argument. I shouldn't be surprised though, she always did tend to go overboard with my safety or protection, especially back on the Isle."

Alexandria held back a sigh and pulled at the short, poufy sleeve of her blouse from where it had bunched under the strap up of her bag. Her curiosity had been getting more and more of the best of her. The tiny hints in Hadie and her own siblings dodging any clarification of the obviously less than glamorous lifestyle of the Isle. She wouldn't admit it to Hadie, as Dizzy had asked her not to, but the younger girl had begun to share the horrors of the Isle now that they were closer through the letters they shared, instead of just the bare insinuations Alexandria had always been suspicious of.

The young princess knew it was only because the Isle was improving, or she'd still have been kept in the dark of the suffering that her new friends had grown up with. "As much as I'd like my sisters to hang out with me more often, this frequency feels more akin to babysitting."

"It really does. We're not babies,” ranted Hadie. “Apart from some pesky bullies who are more annoying than they are hurtful, I don't really see any threats out here in Auradon. Not at the school anyways. I haven't exactly gotten to go out anywhere apart from when I went to the hospital. And that was months ago!"

"Oh, true," Alexandria hummed, leaning back against the locker in thought. "We really need to coordinate with the others to make a schedule for Spring Break. Even if we don't like Phil's sister, now that his grandmother is gone, it might be more tolerable to go over. His parents are really sweet, so Audrey might just leave us alone if we're lucky."

"Yeah, I'd hate to leave Phil out of visiting everyone just because we don't like his sister. Even if it's not like he wouldn't be invited to hang out at anyone else's," said Hadie as he shrugged on his backpack and spun the dial on his locker as he closed it. "I'd happily host everyone myself, but mom only has an apartment and at the moment, I'm trying to avoid grandmother Demeter's farms for as long as possible until mom makes me go."

"Not to mention no one is allowed on Olympus that isn't part of the Gods," mused Alexandria as they began to walk down the hall, the pair purposely ignoring her sisters as they walked past despite the twins loud clamoring to hide. Once Lucy and Kitty were out of sight, Alexandria let out a giggle. "You'd think the VK's would wear off on them. Play it cool and wave as if it was on purpose or something, y'know?"

"Maybe they were that loud on purpose," Hadie snorted, laughing softly. "Kitty and Lucy have the same dance training as you, plus some years, they would know very well how to be graceful and quiet."

"Together they can be a bit airheaded though," said Alexandria, nodding her thanks to Hadie as he held open a door that led to the study hall.

"Seems to be the case with all of our siblings," Hadie smirked as he caught Ashaki glowering from their usual study table at her nearby older brother and his girlfriend as they flirted with each other.

"Is this the day of stalker siblings, or were they here first?" asked Alexandria as she slid next to Ashaki, Hadie taking the other seat next to Evan.

"They were here first," grumbled Ashaki as she aggressively sharpened a pencil.

"Now we just need part of Evan's horde of sisters or one the VK's checking in, and we'll have collected our lot," Hadie added, pulling out his notes.

"Emir can stand in for you too, let's be honest," Evan grinned. "Ben and his goons are around so often, they might as well be Harry and Jay 2.0 for ya."

"Hmm, not wrong," mused Hadie, tapping a pen against his lips before he snapped his free hand out towards Evan. "Ah, nu-uh!"

Evan sheepishly loosened his hand, revealing Hadie's room keys, pouting in protest. "You don't keep much else on you worth nicking! I can't exactly switch up targets, to not be predictable!"

"Yeah, well, I don't see the need to carry things like this," Hadie revealed Evan's wallet as he spoke, grinning as he tossed it to him, taking his keys back in turn. "The only time I buy things are on my laptop, and I've got my information memorized so I don't need to pull my card out every time. Keys and school stuff is all I need on person."

"Bah, well I'm not willing to start breaking into each other's dorms," said Evan, though he pursed his lips into a slight smirk at the thought of an all-out war. "Maybe I'll get you a watch one of these days, just so I can swipe it off ya."

"Oh, my gods," hissed Ashaki, interrupting as the movement of Emir giving Emma a kiss caught her eye. "I just want to study, not have front seats to one of my brothers simpering over a pair of big goo-goo eyes!"

Their table dissolved into quiet giggles as they watched Ashaki stand from her seat and walk towards the shelves cluttered with each year's study materials. Which consequently just so happened to be in the same direction as her brother. For a minute, Evan, Alexandria and Hadie watched as Ashaki studied the shelves before finally selecting a few small books and began to return to their table.

Except her motives became clear on her way back. For just as Emir leaned forward to peck Emma's cheek once again, Ashaki tripped. Her recently compiled stack of books flew from her hands and tumbled onto her brother's head, luckily missing Emma.

"By the Gods!" Emma gasped, her hands flying out to hold Emir by his head, the teen clutching at his dark curls, groaning. "Emir, are you alright?"

"Oops, sorry Emir!" gasped Ashaki, shakily standing to pluck the books off his shoulders. "Good thing I only grabbed the reference material and not the class textbooks! Not hurt, are you?”

"N-no, total accident, right? Just be careful next time, sis," Emir smiled weakly as he handed a final book to Ashaki, one hand still rubbing the back of his head. A light blush colored his cheeks as Emma continued to run a hand through his hair, her gaze never wavering in concern, checking for bumps on her boyfriend's head. "Don't worry, Em, these weigh almost nothing! Just a sharp corner bonked me."

"If you're sure, Emir," Emma sighed, letting the matter drop. "And you’re alright, too, Ashaki?"

"Yup, I'm fine!" Ashaki flashed a short smile as she backed away. "Just tripped is all, sorry about that!"

She rushed back towards her table, huffing as she dropped the books onto the table and into her seat, the trio of her friends smothering their giggles at her serious pout.

"That was mean, Ash," Alexandria pouted while Hadie and Evan continued to silently shake.

"What? Nooo, I definitely tripped," Ashaki snarked as Alexandria tiredly shook her head.

"You're around my sisters too much if you're that vindictive. I think they're cute!" Alexandria sighed as she glanced back where Emma still fawned over a rather pleased looking Emir. "If I can handle Chad being a complete flirt, you can handle your brother being in real love."

"He could at least be more like Azir or Lil Shang," Ashaki huffed. "Sure, they both could stand to just be upfront with dating, but then it means they're not shoving loads of PDA in our faces! I like Emma, sure, she and Emir are cute together, but is this really necessary?"

"Says the one who wants to know everything about everyone's ongoings at any moment," mused Hadie as he took one of the books for himself and began to peruse it for notes.

"Hadie has a point," smirked Evan. "You stick your nose in other people's business and constantly try to find out who's dating who, or is the detective work part of the fun?"

"Methinks that it's just that it's one of her own siblings and it'd be weird to live vicariously through them," Hadie laughed.

"Says the guy who willingly allows himself to be limited to rules designed for anyone under fifteen!" groaned Ashaki. "There are plenty of people who date before then!"

"Go be one then," Evan teased as he stole back his pen from Hadie's stash.

"Eh, I haven't vibed with anyone yet. That's why I gotta stick with seeing through my friend's eyes," Ashaki joked in return, sticking out her tongue. "In the meantime, part of why I keep an ear to the ground, why people like which people. What might I ultimately end up finding important when I finally find someone?"

"That moment, when all thoughts go out the window, you know someone so well, someone just has to ask who’s the first person that comes to mind and suddenly their face just flashes before you and your breath is taken away," Alexandria giggled, tossing her hair out of her face. "It's an old cliche."

Hadie felt his mind space out as his vision flashed gold.

"A cliche?" he mumbled as his friends continued to banter around him, shaking his head as he dismissed the moment as Alexandria’s lengthy hair.

‘It’s not like I’d know anything about romance. Outside of love for my family and friends, it's not like I know anything about…loving the way my parents love each other.' He tried not to make a face. Sometimes his mom and dad were cute, but sometimes he thought they were overdoing it and kind of gross.

Maybe in the future he would be able to make sense of it, but at the moment he was only eleven. He wasn’t interested in that icky grown-up stuff.

‘I guess I can always ask Ash and Alex to try that ‘cliché’ trick on me when we’re older,’ Hadie thought with a shrug, rejoining his friends in laughter and studying, vision already forgotten. For at least a few more years, that is.

Sequestered away in a practice room, Hadie found himself almost completely stress free for the first time in his entire life. The Isle was improving, he was able to see his mom at a moment's notice, Mal was safe, and now he could add the familiar comfort of holding his guitar in his hands once more. Sure, Hadie missed his dad, but his mom had promised to take him at some point to visit at least face to face over the portal. Then there was still needing to make up with Mal.

'But that's why I'm here,' Hadie thought to himself as he practiced the chords and scales that he knew. 'To find a way to apologize even if she won't do it first. I don't like the idea of us not talking for so long, even though I said she needs to be the one to do so.'

As the first week of them not speaking had gone on, Hadie wasn't sure he'd ever admit that he felt worse and worse about the whole thing. Hindsight may be twenty-twenty in the end, but all he could do was mull over everything he'd said and wish he'd said it a different way in hopes it had been him and not Uma or Ben that had ultimately saved his sister from the abuse she'd faced.

'Am I a bad brother? Or is it just because I'm still an Under-15 that she simply doesn't listen as much as she does with Uma and the others? I don't want to be a baby to her forever.'

Allowing his thoughts to continue to churn, Hadie idly strummed, only one ear truly listening as he tried to come up with a song to convey what he wanted to Mal. It was hard though, still stuck with only five strings, while the chords he'd found fascinating searching AuraTube seemed more in line with the sound he wanted than what he could currently do.

'Might have to talk to mom again about finding a shop ASAP to get her fixed,' Hadie looked down at his guitar with some concern. 'If there's time. Still have to practice and all.'

Lost in his thoughts, Hadie began to strum a song his dad seemed to hum all the time. The God avoided all explanations when asked, but while Mal and Hadie enjoyed the song, even going so far as to get Hades to teach them the full melody, their mom seemed to smile sadly. In fact, Hadie noticed that his dad seemed to hum it most while Persephone was gone, or only when it was near time for her to leave again.

Contemplating all this while still picking at his guitar, his muscle memory easily adjusting his positions like second nature, Hadie didn't notice someone slip in.

"Oh wow, you're really good!"

Hadie's neck snapped towards the door, finding Neal with his own guitar case in hand.

"Ah, thanks," said Hadie, somewhat bashfully. "I-I didn't know you played?”

"I started taking lessons a couple years ago after seeing a rock concert on TV, though mom and dad said I can't have an electric guitar till my next birthday." Neal pulled the case off his shoulder and carefully laid it on the ground. "Do you mind if I join you? The other rooms have already filled up, and this one is so far back most don't know about it, so…"

"This is normally your room, huh? I noticed it seemed only barely used compared to the other spotless practice rooms," Hadie shrugged. "Feel free, but maybe you can help me, and we could see if we have any gaps in each other's knowledge."

"May I ask how you learned?" asked Neal as he pulled out his guitar, one the color of caramel, the lacquer coat still shiny and new looking. The son of Snow White was clearly trying not to eyeball Hadie's own guitar, the blue paint chipped in places and varnish long faded from lack of materials to keep it well cared for.

"My dad," Hadie answered quietly, looking away. His fingers carefully traced the tiger flame pattern, bumping over where the holes in the varnish were more evident.

"This is Dulce, by the way," Neal quickly changed the subject, hooking the straps onto the guitar and pulling them over his head. "Do you have a name for blue there?"

"Irtyu."

"Ear-true?" Neal furrowed his brow, not trying to make fun of the name, but clearly having difficulty with the pronunciation.

"Ear True makes it sound more poetic than it is," Hadie laughed. "Dad says it's a type of blue in Egyptian, so I basically call blue here, Blue, just in another language. Where did you get Dulce from?"

"If you mean the name, I got it from Ky and Qullana when they were arguing over it. It's a type of sweet where they're from, sort of like caramel, and I thought it sounded cool."

Neal dragged over a stool and sat himself down before Hadie caught him suddenly stare and blink at Irtyu in surprise, immediately hopping back off the stool to peer more closely at the old instrument.

"What?" asked Hadie, pulling his guitar close to his chest, suddenly self-conscious.

"I just realized you've got only five strings! Do you know what weight you're using? I've got a few extra sets, because I used to break them all the time when I first started."

"R-really? I'd appreciate it! And no, I-I've no clue about weights. I've actually never broken a string on this, it's just been like this ever since I got it."

"Huh? How long have you had it?" Neal asked as he ruffled back through his guitar case, pulling some small cardboard squares out. "I tend to break one string at least one every six months if I'm honest."

"S-since I was five," Hadie mumbled quietly before pondering. "I wouldn’t be surprised if my dad or mom managed to do a small bit of magic to preserve it. I dropped it down the stairs once and it didn't even crack. But the missing string has never been there, I've only played with the five."

"That sounds useful, I'm kinda jealous," laughed Neal as he walked back over, gently holding a hand out to take Hadie's guitar.

Hadie glanced at Neal’s hand in trepidation. While he’d grown to trust his new Auradon friends, his guitar was literally his most prized possession…After a few seconds, Hadie slowly handed Irtyu to Neal.

The boy smiled slightly and carefully placed the guitar on the floor and before kneeling over it, Hadie joining him to see how to replace the strings. "Here, this set isn't even open, if you're up to replacing all of the strings. I can show you how since I guess you've never had to. Then we can even go over a couple full chords."

"I'd appreciate that," Hadie smiled softly. He wasn't as close to Neal as with the others, but he had a feeling this might be a good opportunity to get to know him more. "Oh, you wouldn't happen to know any proper luthiers in Auradon would you? I really want to get her fixed, polished back up, you know? See if I can't get Irtyu to her full glory."

"Yeah, I can give you the number of the guy my parents got Dulce from," Neal said as he slowly showed Hadie how to change the strings. "I know repairing varnish can be tricky, but if we get you in contact with him quickly, maybe by dinner? We can get you the guitar back in a week, tops, three days if you're lucky. It'll cost a lot though."

"I don’t think price is a concern, but I'll talk to my mom within the hour then if you want to help me get the process going with the luthier. We'd already spoken about getting my guitar fixed, we just weren't sure where to go."

"Sounds like a plan then!" Neal grunted as he stood back up, handing Hadie back his guitar. "We'll need to re-tune it though; I've got an electric one...with...me?"

Neal looked on; face dumbfounded as Hadie began to sing in pitches as the Godling quickly tuned the first five strings. Fingers flew across the fretboard in arpeggios, checking accuracy before he moved onto the new string.

"This is an 'E' too, right?" Hadie absentmindedly asked as he sharply whistled the two octaves up from the lower E that he already knew was in the right pitch. With a final strum and speedy change of his hands, Hadie plucked out the full E Major for the first time ever on Irtyu.

Letting out his own whistle, impressed, Neal slowly turned back to his own guitar and sat back down on his stool. "I know you said you've been playing for a while, but I don't think I've ever seen someone check pitch without some sort of tuner before." To prove his point, Neal pulled out two tuners, one with holes that somewhat reminded Hadie of a Harmonica when Neal blew on it, the other the electric tuner the dark-haired boy had mentioned before.

"What do you mean? I used my voice, that's technically a way to check pitch."

"Yeah, but I've never met someone with absolute pitch before," Neal grinned as he continued to tune Dulce.

"I don't know what that is," pouted Hadie, trying to resist the urge to pluck away his friend’s guitar as his eye twitched to Neal's slow tuning.

"It's pretty rare, being born with it, some take years to develop a facsimile of it," explained Neal. "Basically, you don't need to hear reference notes. You can sing or play a note instinctually, some can even name the note the moment they hear it, down to the half-step."

"I-I didn't know that was a thing," Hadie blushed at the excited tones in Neal's voice. "I just like music."

"Well, you're certainly capable of doing a lot with it if you put your mind to it," smirked Neal, firing a text off now that he was done tuning. "I just asked my parents to send me the guy's information, but in the meantime, why don't we go over all the chords and whatnot before we have to head out to meet the others?"

"Sounds like a plan to me."

In Ben's office, things were far less carefree.

Ben was slumped in his chair, legs jutting awkwardly straight from his seat as he restlessly swiveled his chair back and forth. His hands wrung at the blue beanie Jay had given him what seemed like eons ago, still dressed in worn jeans and a second-hand jacket, without any obvious markers that he was from Auradon thank you very much, after he had recently returned from a trip to the Isle with Mal and the other VKs so that they could all get Mal her much needed recharge. Now, arms crossed, Emir leaned against the King's desk as the only other seat in the room, the small couch, was completely occupied by Akiho's lanky form as he draped across both sides with amusement. With her back against the wall, Ashaki texted furiously from her seat upon the floor as she waited for her brother to finish his diatribe.

In the meantime, Ben would ignore Emir's grilling about the logistics of this Isle trip, with Akiho's occasional input, hence the blond's amusement. Since it'd happen before, they had been hoping that Ben had at least come up with a better plan to sneak onto the Isle. At least this time Emir knew so that if anything happened, Emma was aware. Which, as Emir had to add, really needed to be officiated into writing that Emma would be heir in place of Ben's rather than some obscure verbal agreement that only a few people could confirm.

Hardly something that could hold up in court.

"I just want to make this as easy as possible for Mal," lamented Ben, interrupting Emir's monologue. "She didn't ask for this, and to have been abused by the very system she'll be brought into… I just want to make it seem like a party amongst friends, not…not a big official event."

"Why don't you include her family in planning then?" Emir wondered aloud. "You've got Uma and Hadie, and a copy of Cotillion goes to Fairy Godmother. You can ask her for another copy so you can still surprise Mal, and maybe get other people's inputs that could make it seem more familiar for Mal than throwing her into the deep end so to speak. Lady Persephone is even staying at the school, I’m sure she would welcome your questions."

"I got that copy from Fairy Godmother this morning, printed it out shortly before you guys came in," spoke Ben, lazily waving a hand as Ashaki clambered up from seat to check the printer. “And that isn’t a bad idea, I’m sure Uma and Hadie would especially have ideas. Lady Persephone though…She’s been perfectly nice, but working with the Gods always makes me nervous, y’know? Mal’s mom or whomever need be.”

Emir wandered over to examine the list over his little sister's shoulder, Ashaki slowly running a finger down the paper herself as she slowly perused the schedule.

"Well, look right here," Ashaki tapped at one point of the itinerary. "You need music for the dances, obviously. But instead of the stuffy classical crap, why don't you have her friends create the playlist?"

"That might work," hummed Emir. "That doesn't even have to be exclusively VK's. Lonnie is a DJ after all. We could totally make this Cotillion a perfect mash up of Isle and Auradon!"

"That's a great idea you two!" Ben hit his hand with a fist, bolting up straight in his seat. "I'll speak with Lonnie and ask Uma if she knows if anyone in their group is musically inclined. I really want this to be a surprise for Mal, so we should all try to keep this from reaching her ears."

"As long as we outsource to friends to be middle men if others are brought in, we shouldn't have to worry about that," said Akiho from where he still lazed across the couch. "The real worry is keeping the reporters out still and getting a hold of anything, since Cotillion is televised and all that."

"I'm not super worried about that since apparently Lord Hermes is going after the Gazelle, and Fairy Godmother has banned all press from school grounds even for official requests till post Spring Break," Ben said as he twisted in his seat to ruffle through his desk, pen and paper appearing in hand, he began to make a list. "So, change seated menu to a buffet...I'll need to talk to Jane about that, it'll be that extra step to make things less formal. And I'll need to find Uma and Lonnie to figure out music."

"Let me talk to Jane, seriously, you need to learn to delegate, Ben," Akiho demanded, the King hesitantly nodding before Akiho added, "That way things will get done faster."

"Okay...so music," Ben wrote down some notes he knew he wanted to ask Uma.

"You know," Ashaki piped up, snapping her fingers. "Hadie is into music."

"Really?" Ben asked. "How'd you find that out?"

"Pffft, I find out about most things going on within the school. And you've got lucky timing on your side it seems," scoffed Ashaki. "Neal found Hadie in one of the practice rooms this morning and they practiced together for a couple hours. Ever since Hadie got his mom to bring back his guitar a few days ago, no one has been able to find him. I haven't heard him, but apparently Hads is really good...I'd trust Neal's opinion because he's the only other one I know that plays."

Ben rubbed at his chin in thought. "Yeah…yeah! I'll see if he'd be willing to play at least for the opening song."

"Well, at least you don't have to worry about changing food, just the service style," Akiho shrugged. "They're used to our options now, so I think you only need to make sure Mal has her strawberries."

"I was thinking of asking the kitchens to set up a fondue station for sure. Plain strawberries in addition to finger sandwiches with cream cheese and strawberries. Angel food cake. Plenty of whip cream."

"Mmmm, dessert sandwiches on top of regular sandwiches? Maybe I need to be titled a Lady."

Blinking furiously, Ben stared at Akiho as Emir and Ashaki cackled. "I should be used to this, and I shouldn't even be supporting your crazy ideas, but…you're already a scion, you could just have a sandwich themed party in general, or for your day of ascension."

"Yeah, but most 'menseses' parties," Akiho pouted, throwing finger quotations on his latest made-up word. "Are stuck up, traditional parties bragging about hunting and serving all the game they can. Ladies can be dainty and have tiny sandwiches. I. Want. Sandwiches."

The King could only sigh and rub at his pinched brow as he stood from his chair and gathered his things, the Agrabah contingent still laughing. "Alright, this is good to start with. I'm going to look for Uma and Hadie. I'll text Lonnie to meet me in a bit too."

"Wait," Emir snatched the papers from Ben's hands. "Why don't you wait till tomorrow? Mal, Uma and Hadie are planning to spend dinner and the rest of the evening with Lady Persephone."

"I want to find Uma before she leaves, then I can use tonight to coordinate with whoever else while Mal is distracted. I want to keep it a secret from her, so if you catch anyone I should talk to since she won't be around, let me know," Ben said, shaking his head. "Yes, they all seriously need family time for the next few weeks, but time is of the essence too. As long as I can get the ball rolling with Uma, I promise to let her take the coordination for that."

"Alright, as long as you're not trying to do every little thing," Emir said firmly. "You've your Kingly duties now too, on top of school. You can't just add Cotillion to all that. You will let Akiho and I take part of this on, and let us help organize things."

"I promise, I'll actually take your help" Ben smiled slightly as gently took the Cotillion itinerary and the newly made notes back from his friend, carefully tearing his notes into thirds. "There's a project I'm already working on and I don't intend to let Cotillion distract me from it."

"Oh? Do tell!" Akiho asked as he swung an arm around Ben's shoulders, he and Emir distractedly taking the offered pieces of paper from Ben.

"Nope! For once, I've got a secret. You'll find out soon enough!" Ben dashed out of the room before either of his best friends could comprehend that they'd been denied answers. He quickly turned down another hall, and another, and another, to ensure neither shadow could follow him.

'It's unfair for us in Auradon to be able to call or visit home at almost any time, while the VK's are completely cut off should they have anyone they care about on the Isle. That's evident from just the first two months in which Mal, Jay and Carlos were here without being able to contact their friends,' Ben thought to himself as he hesitated going towards Mal dorms. Instead, he followed his gut and headed towards the gym. Uma was there more often than not. 'In the end, I want them to feel like the Isle is part of Auradon. More importantly...I would like Mal to call Auradon home.'

He was just in time to spot Harry and Uma coming out of the gym, clearly fresh from a spar.

'But first, I need to get help from her family. And then...then I need to ask certain members a question I've realized I have no business waiting any longer to ask permission for.'

"Hey Uma, hey Harry," Ben smiled as he approached the two pirates. "Uma, I have a few questions for you."

"Hey Benny, what's up?" Uma paused, having not noticed Ben in her desire to head to her dorm. "We were just about to hit the showers; Jay's boys and the cheer squad have the lockers hogged up right now."

"I just wanted to ask if you could help me make some changes to Cotillion," Ben began, continuing at Uma's questioning look. "With what's happened to Mal, I want to make it less stressful for her. Less Auradon stuffiness, and blend in some Isle influences?"

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Uma and Harry nodded seriously to each other. "Did you have anything particular in mind?"

"I've got Akiho talking to Jane about having the kitchen relax things from a menu to a buffet instead. I wanted to see if you or the other VK's would have any ideas, but I want to keep it a surprise from Mal," Ben said, listing a few things off. "I heard from Ashaki that Hadie plays guitar, and was wondering if maybe it'd help if we switched up the music so that it wasn't totally classical and if he'd be interested in playing…or if you know if any of the others in your group is musically inclined. At least for the opening song. I don't want to make you guys just work the whole time. It's supposed to be a party, and you should be able to enjoy it too. Lonnie is good at mixing, so I was hoping to find her and get her on board too."

"A fusion with Lon would be cool, I suppose. And I'm sure Hadie would be willing to play,” Uma said after a bit of thinking. "He's never really played in front of an audience, but the kid's good. And if it's for Mali…" sighed Uma, clearly not keen on saying whatever she planned to say. "If it's for Mal, I'll help out. Hads has never performed publicly, might be nervous, so, I'd be willing to…sing…while Hadie plays."

She glared at Harry and Ben, as if daring them to laugh. Ben noticed her eyes seemed particularly drawn to Harry.

"That would be great!" Ben opened his mouth just slightly before Harry, unsure if the boy would have a sudden bout of foot in the mouth disease. "It would definitely help a lot. After all that Mal's gone through, I just want to make it special and fun instead of an event she has to make sure is perfect. Cotillion should be a reflection of her, not Auradon's expectations."

"That's so sweet, I wanna hurl," smirked Uma as she crossed her arms. "But alright, you've got me sold. You still need to ask Hadie?"

"Yeah, do you know where I can find him?" asked Ben. "While Mal is having some one on one with her mom, I want to talk with him."

"Aye," Harry spoke for the first time since the conversation began. "He's off playing with the junior division near the Tourney field."

Uma snorted. "He means Melody and Herkie. His nickname for the slightly younger cousins of Godling relations. He's not wrong though, I think they were taking a break from studying and going to spend the day burning energy."

"Alright, thanks. I'm going to go ask him now then."

"See you on the flipside, Benny!" Uma and Harry waved as Ben headed back down the corridor.

'It's nice, getting out of the office,' Ben thought as he stepped outside of the school for the first time in a while. 'Not that I haven't been, but…getting out onto the grounds without royal requirements or other obligations is nice.'

With a deep breath, Ben took in the sharp, clean air. An ear twitched as the twitters of birds reached him. His moment of blank peace enjoyed; Ben shook his head clear before reluctantly moving on with the task he had set himself.

'I suppose this technically is a royal obligation, though' reflected Ben as his eyes swept the grounds towards the forest. Though the quarry of his search had grown up on the Isle, their hair made it difficult for them to camouflage. Despite all the beanies Jay had, and all the other hats the VKs seemed to wear, Ben couldn't imagine either Mal or Hadie wearing one.

Whether that was due to pride, or the possibility of their hair turning to fire, Ben wasn't sure. It was something Mal had mentioned being concerned about once though. He had to keep himself from being mesmerized as his imagination began to wander of what purple fire might look like.

His eyes caught a flash of color along the tree line, Ben's body automatically reacting and turning towards the group hanging out around the forest's edge. The small group was running about, chasing one another in no discernable patterns.

"Hadie, wait up!" Ben broke into a jog as he approached the kids, well aware that only his girlfriend's little brother had hair that blue on campus. It was even easier to pick him out of a crowd nowadays as it seemed the Auradon sun, or possibly the boy's developing magic, had resulted in what Mal called an 'ombre' of cobalt and cornflower.

Not that Ben really understood what that meant.

By the time Ben had caught up, he froze in fear as Hadie scrambled up a tree and jumped from branch to branch, the other children running along the forest floor with Herkie in the lead. Until a sudden bough lashed around, knocking the wind out of Herkie.

"Herkie, Hadie!" Ben couldn't help but shout in alarm, trying to close the distance as Hadie suddenly fell from one of the trees and onto Herkie.

"Hey Ben, what's up?" greeted Hadie, completely unharmed, from where he was sitting on top of Herkie, the older boy splayed out on the dirt face down, groaning.

"I-is he okay?" Ben asked. "Are you okay?"

Some giggling emanated from over Ben's shoulder. A glance behind revealed Ashaki, Neal and Melody peeking around the trees. Turning back, he saw Evan appear from the other side of the tree that had its branches smashed into Herkie.

"Yeah, we were just playing hide-in-seek tag," Hadie shrugged. "I got everyone but Herkie here, so we made a trap and the branches whiplashed him right in the gut!"

"That doesn't explain why you were jumping through the trees and onto him…"

"Well, I had to tag him, didn't I?" Hadie laughed, before finally getting up off his cousin.

"Ugh, you didn't have to drop from a tree to do that," whined Herkie as he struggled up, rubbing the arch of his back. "What is with you climbing up stuff to get the literal drop on people? Seriously...you and climbing."

"Yeah, maybe he's really Tarzan's kid," chuckled Evan.

"Gotta take every advantage you can get," shrugged Hadie once more. "Besides, wasn't that your rule to include terrain, Herk?"

"Hey now," Herkie waggled a finger at Hadie. "I didn't accuse you of cheating or anything, just that you didn't have to go all out!"

"Nyeh!" Hadie stuck his tongue out and blew a raspberry. "You're just jealous you didn't think of it first!"

"Okay, okay," interrupted Ben, waving his hands as if to calm the boys down. Not that they really needed it, as it was obvious to anyone in the group that they boys were just teasing each other. "I just came out here to ask Hadie a favor."

'Really though,' Ben thought as the other kids came forward. 'It's like the VKs and AKs should've been friends all along if it hadn't been for the Isle. An outsider would never be able to tell that these two have been anything less than the best of friends.'

"What's the favor?" Hadie grinned, the AK's around them began to snicker. Ben felt an odd chill run up his spine.

'Right. I'm dealing with a VK. Oh man, if only Mal was here to…no, wait. That's why I'm here. For Mal.'

"Mal told me about your fight."

The AK's immediately scattered.

"Weeeeee're just going to wait by trail entrance. See you, Hads!" said Melody as she slowly backed away before bolting after the rest of the group.

"Cowards!" Hadie shouted after them. "Anyways, you were saying? Mal told you, huh?"

"Yeah," Ben sighed. "She doesn't blame you or anything, just so you know."

Hadie shook his head. "Maybe I could've eased her into it, but I don't think I could've done anything anyways. Clearly mom was the only solution."

"That seems to have been the case, unfortunately. Especially since it came down to the powers of my title to get her off the Isle," it was Ben's turn to shake his head. "But I had a point."

"Hey, I'm not complaining. The whole half-year deal is stupid, so I'm just glad to see mom again."

"Maybe we can figure something out one day, but for now, let's just stick with the favor I wanted to ask."

"Oh, right. Sure, what's up?"

"For Cotillion," Ben began, running a hand nervously through his hair. "Mal has had enough stress putting it together, and having to deal with the obscene pressures of noble life…So for the opening dance, I was wondering if you could play your guitar? A familiar face to ease her into it all."

"M-me? Play in front of everyone?" said Hadie, blinking repeatedly. "I-I don't even know what I'd play, let alone for a public performance!"

"That's what you'd have us for, Mini-cuz."

"W-what, Uma!" Ben jumped back as Uma and Lonnie joined them amongst the trees. "Did you follow me out here?"

"Nah, I realized after I sent you off to find Hadie, he wouldn't have much clue of what to do even if he wanted," Uma laughed. "I ran into Lonnie on my way to find y'all and explained the plan. She's got an idea, so I think that'll neatly nip that problem in the bud."

"Yeah, I absolutely want to help out!" Lonnie added. "I've been dying to try out some new mixes on my kit. And these parties have always been so upper crust, it needs a real kick in the ass to actually be fun!"

"We'll need time to practice then, but I'm down," Hadie said excitedly. "Did you already have a song in mind?"

"I've got a couple that I think would be perfect for Mal," said Lonnie. "I'll email you guys the details tonight with a few different options and the breakdowns for song and guitar so you can test them on your own before deciding."

"It'll need to be settled soon," admitted Hadie, his demeanor serious. "I'm serious about practice. I don't like to make mistakes, especially if this is going to be a major event."

"I'll go get those options together now then. See you guys later," with that, Lonnie trotted back off towards the school.

"Thanks Ben, I appreciate this, what you're doing for Mali," Hadie nodded to the King. "I meant what I said. I want it to be perfect then. I owe it to Mal, in addition to an actual apology."

"I think I might be able to help with that," smiled Ben.

It'd been about a week since Mal felt the weight of the world lift from her shoulders. Since Ben, the boy she was so glad to have by her side, blurted out that he loved her… Since Uma, the greatest, most annoying cousin Mal could ever hope would be forever by her side…Since the two of them had dragged her out of the spiraling abuse Mal found herself trapped in.

She wasn't sure if she'd ever felt so content. At least not in a long time. It certainly helped that she had her mom around, on top of properly being able to practice magic to let lose some of the excess emotional energy that had built up over the last few months. Glancing at her planner, Mal was excited to see she had a full hour instead of the usual thirty minutes. Reaching her assigned room, she was surprised to see someone already there, about to enter the next room over.

"Hadie?" Her brother looked over at Mal, his face a careful neutral.

"What are you doing here?" Mal couldn't help but blurt. They'd never run into each other before, though Mal supposed it may have been due to her often being late to start her practice.

"An extracurricular was scheduled late, Fairy G moved my magic time to now so I wouldn't have to skip," said Hadie. He glanced at the planner in Mal's hand, and reached into his bag to pull out his own, flipping to the page that proved he was being honest.

Mal looked back down at her planner; a brand new one. One that wasn't tainted by Natalie. There, in a purple block, was the same time stamp as Hadie's.

Mal had a sneaking suspicion that this was Ben's doing. A few days after Ben had brought her mom back, Mal had told him about her fight with Hadie the week before they'd helped her. It was touching that he cared so much, not to mention she was glad that he and Hadie seemed to have gotten along perfectly without needing her around.

Though she absolutely should've been around.

"Hadie, I—" Mal said again, debating her words.

"Mal, I—" Hadie started at the same time, hesitating.

"You go first," they spoke simultaneously.

"It's just that—"

"I wanted to say—"

They both smiled awkwardly as the two kept interrupting each other.

"Um," tried Mal. "Do you think you could show me how practice has been going for you? We could work together. I just…I've missed so much, and I would like to see how much you've grown."

"Sure," Hadie slightly smiled, though Mal noticed he glanced somewhat oddly at the door to his personal room.

"You don't have to if you don't want to," rushed Mal. "I just thought that…well, I'd like to hang out. It's been too long and…I wanted to say I'm sorry."

"No, it's fine. I'd like that actually," Hadie smiled apologetically as he reached out to open his door, motioning Mal to enter. "And…I need to apologize too. Just be careful, I have some self-study projects I've been working on."

It was her turn to glance oddly at her brother, but Mal carefully entered the dark room.

'Thankfully so few students need to practice magic, Fairy Godmother was able to ward off rooms for each student's personal needs. Though I don't know why Hadie would be concerned, dad's ward scheme was pretty much the same for both of us.'

The light switching on, Mal let out a little gasp of surprise as she entered the small room. It was littered with books, binders bursting with scraps of paper and, interestingly enough, plants. Quite a few plants, actually, in various states of health or growth. Her own room was kept quite bare, since she only had time to let off built up energy and not much else.

"Wow…" began Mal, still taking in the busy appearance of the room. "It's a good thing these rooms are private, there's an insane amount of things going on here and I don't even know where to start!"

"Heh, yeah, I might as well be hitting hyper speed when I'm in here. We only get so much time, I like to attempt as much as I can at once," Hadie smirked at first before sighing. He moved over to where a majority of the plants were sequestered and gently ran a hand over a broad leaf, the slight brown tint fading into bright green. "I have so many different things I'm researching, stuff gets neglected. I try to keep a schedule rotation, but it really comes down to whatever I feel like at the time."

"I didn't even think to practice our powers from mom," Mal joined him, examining the various flowers and stalks in different states of bloom. "I've just been doing fireballs and the like."

"Did you even bother with the refreshers dad always said to do?"

Mal blushed. "No…I totally forgot to do those," she whispered.

"Start doing them. And with that answer, I take it you didn't even do the yearly purification," Hadie admonished her. "That might help with regaining control, if even after the whole thing with…her…is over now, isn't enough to feel like your magic has settled."

"Alright, dad," Mal gently teased before sighing. "Seriously though, thanks for the input, Hadie. I'm sure dad would've told me the same thing if I hadn't cut him out."

"Oh, indubitably," Hadie grinned. "How bad was it when you finally talked to him through the Link?"

"Oh, Gods, at least I'm not in any actual trouble, it's just the cutting everyone out they're upset about," Mal groaned, jumping onto a desk to sit. "Mom threatened to ground me if I ever turned off my Link for so long ever again and said I had to put up with the entire rant in order to be let off the hook. I'm glad Fairy Godmother gave me this week off, just to give me some cooldown time. I still went to classes, I don't need to fall further behind, but it was nice to have a breather from everybody and just…coast for a bit. But a couple nights after the day…the day mom came, I talked to dad…Mom was on the link too, but we were initially having a girl's night, just the two of us in the room Ben reserved for her. Anyways, dad went on for maybe three or four hours before I managed to beg off to sleep."

Hadie gathered up the current notes he was willing to work on, things he was okay with Mal seeing for sure as he let his sister ramble. Allowing her to let off some much-needed steam, and to just…be together. He laid the books on a cleared table as he took in Mal's much needed rant.

"—when we sentenced the Beauty Matriarch from Hell, he seriously tried to get me to believe mom contacted him, Zeus, of all people, so that I would contact her!"

"Mal, not to burst your bubble, but Uma said they did."

"What?" Mal looked at her brother in shock.

"I don't know if this was before or after Zeus tried talking to you, but mom did mention to Uma that dad was so fed up with not being able to talk to you, that clearly something was wrong just by how hectic your emotions were resonating, that he willingly reached out to Zeus to see if he knew anything."

"No, there's no way dad, or hell, even mom without dad knowing, would go to Zeus just to talk to me!" Mal shook her head. "Mom would've gone to you or Uma first, other gods, before Bolts for Brains!"

"And what if mom did go through Zeus?" Hadie lashed back angrily. "Yes, she absolutely would have gone through me or Uma first, but it's not like it would have done any good! None of us were able to get through to you because your link was on mute! Then, when we did manage to see you in person, you'd rush off somewhere, or we'd barely get to hang out one on one anymore and the entire time had to be filled with trying to catch up!"

Hadie took a deep steadying breath. "The moment someone tried to broach anything, you always got flighty. You did it with me, and you tried to do it with Uma, Ben and mom. There's no shame in reaching out to us, Mal. Sure, I could've done it better, been gentler or smarter like Uma, but as you so frequently remind me, I'm your little brother, I'm still learning how to be tactful, but you also need to learn to be more open at least with family and trust us."

Mal picked sadly at some loose dog fur on her jacket. "I know," she whispered. "I regret a lot, but for some reason I just couldn't. It was like being back at Maleficent's again, and it was all I could do to try to keep myself together. I'm sorry for worrying you. For worrying everyone. For not being there for you whenever you needed me, or tried to be there for me in turn. You've done okay though; I was truthful when I said it last time."

"I'm sorry too," Hadie said as he leapt up next to Mal, his legs freely kicking as he swung them from the table ledge. His sister was already stuck in her head with guilt, they didn't need to fight again. "But if I'm honest…I've had my own ups and downs, and you really weren't there, even if it seemed like I was okay."

She looked at her brother in concern. "Was anyone giving you trouble? I know Audrey bothered you a couple times, but𑁋"

"Eh, nothing to worry about there, if I'm honest. Not everyone is cool, obviously, but I always followed Isle code and tried to never be alone if anyone bothersome came around," Hadie smiled wryly. "No, um… The first few times I practiced magic, plus the rich food…I got sick and was vomiting…

“Don't tell mom and dad!" He added hastily at Mal's look of shock. "It was only the first week or two of arriving, though it was a pain to swear Harry to secrecy, Jay was always off at practice. Asclepius helped me figure it out when I finally got to see him, I just had to stick to dad's basic exercises and theories to adjust to the increase, so it's all under control now. You were busy and even if Ben took me to that doctor's appointment, I felt like you needn't be bothered."

"Oh, Hadie, you absolutely should've come to me," Mal pulled him closer into a one-armed hug. "I don't know about being magically sick, but I was having issues too until Fairy Godmother mentioned some tips. I nearly killed Gil with a flare up!"

"Yeah, I heard about that. It was shortly after then, that I almost had my own flare up." Hadie snorted lightly before answering Mal's questioning look. "I found out about Leah starving the Isle, luckily Herkie made that rainstorm to keep me from causing any fireballs."

"We had wondered where that came from, the forecast hadn't predicted it," Mal sighed, rubbing her brother's arm for his comfort and not a little bit of her own. "Again, I'm so, so sorry, Hadie."

"As long as we all have learned a valuable lesson," he said cheekily, shoving at her playfully.

"Oi!"

He found himself in a headlock, Mal roughly tousling his hair. "Come on, come on! Say it!" Mal continued to noogy her brother.

"Never!"

"Say it!"

"Gah, okay, okay, Boreadon!"

"And don't you forget it," Mal laughed, giving a short nod before she lightly punched Hadie in the shoulder. "Thanks, bro. For sticking with me."

"Luckily for you, you're pretty much stuck with me," it was Hadie's turn to laugh, returning the playful shove. "So, you want to see what I've been working on?"

"Definitely! Though, I want to see first how far you've come with that fireball."

"You're in for a treat then," Hadie's grin turned sly, Mal watching carefully as Hadie hopped off the desk and walked over to the plants, picking a rather neglected one to bring over. "You'll want to move, just warning ya."

Mal hopped off and watched as her brother summoned a small, bright white-blue fireball.

"Woah, that looks intense!" Mal wondered. "Didn't they used to be darker? It's also, uh, not as big as I've seen you go."

"I talked to dad, and honestly? Big fireballs are just for intimidation. The goal for this one was to focus as much power as small as I could keep it," Hadie allowed the flame to grow in size, the color beginning to darken as it grew, while Mal felt the heat surprisingly decrease instead.

He brought it close to the edge of the plant, looking unconcerned as the plant caught and began to burn, letting the flame in his hand go out with a wave of his hand.

"I thought you were trying to revive plants, not burn and kill them?" Mal looked on with shock.

"I think I need mom's help more with that, but the point of working with plants right now was to surprise her when she gets back," shrugged Hadie as they watched the plant crumble. "I seem to be able to do minor things with helping already sprouted plants, but trying to go directly from a bulb or seeds is a struggle."

Dissipating the last of the smoke, Hadie dug into the mixture of dirt and ash, revealing a still somewhat green, but blackened bulb beneath with a bit of crispy sprouting.

"So why did you…?" Mal watched as a soft, blue glow suddenly encompassed her brother's hand. A similar glow appeared around the bulb. The small open mouth of the seed cracked open further, before the black bulb unfurled a fresh green sprout, rapidly growing into a yellow tulip.

"I think my powers are a culmination of both mom and dad's," explained Hadie, smirking at Mal's gob smacked expression. "Dad's are easier because it's basic elemental, but when it comes to plants, life or death which are more complex, my powers seem carefully balanced between the two."

"That's really amazing, Hadie," Mal tried to keep the sadness from coming through her smile. Her little brother had come a long way from making wisps of flames since the Isle.

'I've missed so much in just a few months. Hadie…how much has Auradon made you grow? That I missed so much in just a few months? This must be how mom feels every year.'

Mal continued to marvel in awe as Hadie showed her a few more notes he'd been working on, offering to let her borrow them before he moved on to even teach her a new trick.

"Dad wanted to know if this could work between us!" said Hadie as he pulled out a normal blue fireball. "Go on, summon one of yours, you've got to practice too after all!"

Grinning, Mal summoned a pale lilac flame with a flick of her wrist. Her face quickly turned to shock as Hadie lashed out with a hand and swiped her flame.

"Wait, what?" Mal gaped as Hadie held both the blue and lilac flames.

"This should give you an excuse to talk to dad more," Hadie said smugly. "Basically, you should be able to take and control my flame too."

It took a few tries, but Mal was able to hold on to the blue fire as if it were her own.

"Alright Hadie, I think I've got this," smirked Mal. "Now how about we play a game of…

"Catch!"

It was a pair of exhausted and only mildly singed Hadie and Mal that appeared for dinner sometime later, madly grinning and any hard feelings buried.

'Though I'll still be playing that guitar for you, Mal. Ben's right, you deserve to relax instead of some giant stuffy party.'

Chapter Text

The next day, Hadie was rustling through his locker when he heard the clacking of high heels approach. He sighed, ignoring the sound as it grew closer.

'Heels usually mean one of the Banshee's annoying copycats,' Hadie grumbled to himself as he swapped his last class's books for the next. Glancing at the mirror on the inner door, he ran a hand through his hair, straightening the windswept hair from his shortcut through one of the courtyards. 'Aren't they supposed to be on the other side of the school? Probably because no one their own size will put up with their bullying, they have to make pests of themselves amongst the younger students.'

"Um, excuse me?"

Hadie peered downward where he could see someone's legs standing below his locker door, a neat blue skirt and red and gold heels. The soft, polite voice evidently belonging to whoever the person was on the other side of his door. Slightly closing it, Hadie peered around the locker blinking as he saw who it was.

"Oh, hi Evie. Did you need something?"

"I actually had a question for you. Or, well, more of a request," Evie said, her arms tightened around some binders, holding them close to her chest.

"And what would that be? I'm all ears." Hadie asked as he closed his locker door. Now that he knew it wasn't one of the mean girls, he figured it would be impolite to have a barrier between the two while trying to have a conversation.

"Uma mentioned you were performing for Cotillion, so I wanted to ask if you had an outfit planned already?" Evie asked. "And otherwise offer my services if you don't."

"Uh, honestly I was just going to ask my mom since there's still a couple weeks left. I've looked at suits online and I know nothing, and she offered to take me shopping…" Hadie said. He quickly backtracked as Evie's face dropped somewhat forlorn. "I'm not saying no though, just let me look at all my options. I really just have no clue about any of this fancy dress up stuff."

"Okay, it's really no pressure," assuaged Evie. "I don't have a lot of people coming to me for suits, so I was hoping to get more examples out there since Cotillion is televised. Pretty much all of the female contingent of the godlings at school have asked me to make them dresses, but none of the guys. I've made all of Mal's event outfits so far. Even Uma has approved a design to wear. I know guys don't care as much about appearance, but I would like the experience of working on other styles. I've really only dealt with Chad."

"Wait, back up. Uma?" Hadie stared incredulously at the darker blue-haired girl. "Okay, if you can get Uma on board, I'll seriously consider it. I'll tell you my decision by tomorrow night, if not tonight."

"I really appreciate it, Hadie!" beamed Evie as she waved off. "You won't be disappointed if you choose me!"

Hey, Uma. Hadie popped open the Mind Link as he headed towards English, briefly returning the wave to Evie.

What's up, mini-Cuz?

Evie made it all the way over to my locker on the other side of school just to talk to me.

What did Blueberry want?

You know you shouldn't really call her that still. I don't need to accidentally call her that around Dizzy when she gets here.

Eh, a problem for another time. Seriously though, what did she want?

Wanted to offer to make me an outfit for Cotillion. I was originally going to talk to mom, she had talked about taking me to be fitted somewhere, but then Evie mentioned she was making one for you and Mal so I just wanted to check if that was true.

Huh, yeah, I guess so. Uma's voice sounded dismissive, making Hadie snicker to himself. His cousin didn't want to admit it, it seemed.

Ha! You're going to be wearing a dress? Oh man, that's gonna be great, I hope there's pictures!

What, you don't know that!

Uh-huh! Evie said that she's only really making dresses because no one but Chad has commissioned suits!

Gah, well, keep your mouth shut, Hadie! I don't need that to get out, it's going to be hard enough once I have to go actually wear it.

Alright, alright, but you know mom would love some photos. Maybe even your grandpa.

We'll get there when we get there. I don't plan on talking to him any time soon. Anyways, for your information…Yes. As much as I hate to admit it. Evie's done good work. I like my…dress…that she designed.

Okay, from you, that basically means high praises considering it's Evie we're talking about.

Yeah yeah, keep this on the down low, would you? Got a rep to keep.

Hmmm, thanks for the help, Cuz. I'm going to think about it more, but it's certainly seeming more and more like the way to go. Also, I'll probably tell Dizzy and Celia, sorry!

Hadie don't you—!

With the Link muted, Hadie smirked, sliding into his usual seat near Ashaki, Phil and Alexandria. He mouthed 'later' to their questioning looks, Ashaki and Alexandria's faces clearly unwilling to let it go unless he told them. He had seen them eyeing him from across the hall when Evie had appeared.

"After class," he hissed quietly. Hadie shook his head exasperatedly as Phil laughed into his hand while the girls nodded, placated for now.

The moment class was over, Hadie found himself cornered in one of the hallway alcoves by the girls, Phil immediately making excuses to leave when he found out the topic was about outfits for Cotillion.

"Sorry, mate, you're on your own," he had said, shaking his head as he backed away. "I've got what I'm wearing figured out, and the girls can go on for hours."

"Coward!" Hadie yelled after his friend as he was yanked in the opposite direction down the hall and into the alcove.

"Well? Spill!" Ashaki demanded.

"Did you need advice on what to wear? Where to shop? Styles or themes?" Alexandria listed her questions off, ticking them off with her fingers.

"Uh, actually," Hadie backed against the wall, taken aback by the overzealousness of the girls.

'Maybe Phil was actually right…it's like I'm suddenly dealing with two Dizzy's at once when she gets going!'

He cleared his throat and shook his head to clear it before continuing. "I was going to go with my mom, because I have no clue what to do, but then right before class Evie approached me offering to design and make me a suit,"

"You said yes, didn't you?" gasped Alexandria.

"I said I'd think about it."

"What do you mean you'd think about it?" Ashaki's mouth dropped open.

"Go for it!" Both of the girls hissed at Hadie.

"Evie is a rising star in fashion already!" Alexandria gushed.

"And every single one of her event designs are custom, originals!" reminded Ashaki, grasping Hadie firmly by the shoulders, shaking him. "You'd be insane not to take it!"

"Not to mention, you said you weren't sure what you'd wear to Cotillion. You could have her design it!" Alexandria added. "You're Mal's brother, a Godling and a Prince! She wouldn't make anything you wouldn't like, or embarrass you on top of possibly sabotaging what she's trying to build."

It seemed Alexandria's words were what cinched it. Explaining the benefits for himself, along with the other parties' possible gains or negatives was just what he needed to fully understand the situation.

'It's like she already knows what buttons to push,' Hadie smiled to himself as both girls continued to rant.

Evie knew what she was doing, and would make sure he looked good. Just having his name tied to wearing one of her designs would look good for both of them.

'On top of supporting a fellow VK. And Dizzy would be upset since it sounds like so many others are going with Evie, it'd be in poor taste for me not to,' considered Hadie, pondering things over to himself. 'Dizzy always did say Evie had a gift. She seems to have found a great balance to satisfying both Auradon and Isle tastes if even Uma, who hates the princess, is willingly getting a dress done by her.'

"Okay," he finally stated. The girls all perked up, eyes lighting up as they knew Hadie had made the right decision. "I'll do it. I'll let Uma know to confirm with her."

"Good! I'm heading to lunch now." Ashaki huffed. "There was really only one choice here, anyways."

"We should probably get to the cafeteria too," Alexandria nodded, her voice somewhat apologetic as Ashaki zoomed off on her own. "Otherwise, all the good plates will be gone." She curled her hand around Hadie's arm and pulled him forward. "I hope you don't mind escorting me," she teased him lightly, flashing a small smile.

"Of course not, Alex," Hadie grinned as he lifted his arm into the proper position.

"By the by," began Alexandria as they strolled down the hall. "I think you'll look quite handsome in whatever Evie cooks up for Cotillion. I'm sure we'll match a tad at least."

"Match?" Hadie raised a brow.

"As if there won't be a bit of blue in your design," laughed Alexandria. "The dress I picked out for this year has various shades of blue as well, so we could match."

"Oh, I thought we needed to coordinate or something bigger. You're not going with anyone in particular?" Hadie said idly, unsure what the feeling that suddenly appeared in his chest was.

"Nah, we're just going as one big group of friends. Doesn't mean it wouldn't be cute if some of us matched though! Besides, I think Melody helped Phil pick out his suit already, so it's not a big deal if we have similar outfits or not."

"So, when I get a consultation with Evie, make sure there's some form of blue included?" Hadie quipped.

"As if she hasn't already created a few designs for you," laughed Alexandria. "Of course, they're going to have blue! There's only so many choices when your natural hair color already establishes a primary color!"

"Hmm, maybe I'll do gold instead and be a walking Auradon flag!"

"Sarcasm aside Hadie," Alexandria smiled with fond exasperation. "You'll look great. Evan's got a decent eye for menswear, so ask him to send you some links to peruse when you get a chance. Then you have something to talk to Evie with when you get down to deciding materials and any changes you'd want to her own designs, and incorporate various details you might want."

"Thanks, Alex, I appreciate the advice," said Hadie as he carefully let go from where their arms were intertwined to open the small side door to the cafeteria. "So, since we're going to be color coordinating, save me a dance at Cotillion?"

"I think that's a given, no need to ask," Alexandria giggled as she walked past him, nodding in thanks as he held the door open.

"I figured I'd get my reservation in early, seeing as you'll be one of the prettiest girls there," Hadie teased as he followed her from behind.

Little did he know as Alexandria was ahead of him, he missed her surprised blush, the golden waves of her hair hiding her reddening ears and face.

It was difficult to stay still. Every fiber of his being was stiff, aching from holding the pose for so long.

'Just a little bit longer,' thought Hadie, trying not to squirm.

"Do you have any particular colors, or preferences for style?" Hadie glanced down at Evie who was busy taking his measurements.

"Uh, I don't know much," said Hadie as he wrinkled his nose at himself in the mirror. He stuck out his tongue in thought. After he'd let Uma know he'd go along with Evie's request, he'd spent a couple hours pouring over Evan's recommendations for suit styles. All to stand still longer than his hyperactive mind liked the next day. "Relatively simple, comfortable? Dark. Some of my friends showed me some examples and I definitely liked the all black with a touch of…I dunno, satin? The materials were mostly matte, but then the lapels or whatever reflected a little bit of light."

"That's a good start," Evie nodded, writing some more numbers down. "You can put your arms down now."

"Great," Hadie sighed in relief as he dropped his arms. "Um…"

"I still have to do your legs. Do you have any other ideas? You didn't want any blue to tie in your hair?"

"Tie…in?"

"So, the suit can match your hair, since it's an uncommon, highly saturated color," Evie explained as she drew the tape against the length of his leg. "Bring it in to make your look more cohesive."

"Oh, um. Yeah, that makes sense," Hadie licked his lips, thinking deeply as he tried to recall the different examples he had seen. Not to mention, the whole thing with Alexandria having blue to match their outfits. "I don't want it to be super intense though. I wear enough blue on the daily and want to shake it up a bit."

"That's fair," Evie hummed. "To start with, I think you'll find silk more comfortable than satin, and we can do a dark blue so that it highlights instead of pops out against the black of the suit."

"Do you think you could incorporate that into the coat lining?" Hadie said excitedly as he shifted his stance for the last of the measurements. "I feel like a brighter blue inside, along with that pocket square thing would be cool, just to have a tiny bit of that pop to match my hair."

"That definitely sounds doable," nodded Evie as she marked the final numbers on her clipboard. "You can hop off now."

"Ugh, thank the Gods!" groaned Hadie as he stretched. "I've never stayed so still in my life!"

Evie shook her head, laughing quietly as she placed her latest patron's information into a folder. She'd digitize it later, but keeping a profile on each customer helped organize tastes and evolving preferences.

"You and Dizzy, even having to stay in one spot, you're practically vibrating energy."

"Maybe that's where I get it from. Both of my parents are practically statues," Hadie wondered as he took the seat Evie motioned him towards. "I feel like I have to take a deep breath and just hold it in order to stay still, ugh!"

"Hey, you're a kid, you shouldn't have to be forced to stay still," Evie shook her head as she laid out the Godling's profile on the table between them. "Though good luck arguing that against the teachers."

"Pfft, that'll be the day," grouched Hadie before perking up as he saw the different photos on the table. "What's all this?"

"I made some preliminary designs because I wasn't sure what you'd like," Evie pushed the folder towards him. "You're free to look, I mainly went off color combinations I figured would work for you, so if you see anything you'd like, let me know."

"Woah," Hadie picked up a couple of the sketches and looked back and forth between the two. "Are these actually possible?"

"Oh sure, it's nothing too hard," shrugged Evie. "And if I'm honest, menswear tends to be simpler. At least for the styles I'm doing. So, compared to the dresses, even if you wanted to add a cape like Chad, it won't be too difficult to get yours done in time on top of everyone else's."

"Do you think you could still incorporate these flame designs?"

"Of course!" Evie exclaimed as she leaned over to the design Hadie had put back down, pointing to a particular pattern. "Let me sketch an updated design to match your previous requests so we can get more of an idea of what the final product might look like…"

Hadie watched with fascination as Evie pulled out some pencils and fresh paper, a sketch quickly forming. A few different bases established, the princess pulled out some colored pencils and began to lay down various patterns and suit cuts.

"This one," eyes hypnotized, Hadie pointed to the designs as they formed, causing Evie quickly to move on to other empty bases to combine the bits that he liked of the first few sketches to finally create a near ideal piece.

"Wait, I just got an idea," Evie said as she examined the latest concept. "What if I change this thread…it'll start dark and blend…just like the dark shirt base…and maybe I can double up on silk? Or triple up, so that it's not too thin so it can stay noticeable…"

It surprised Hadie by how much time had passed before Evie was satisfied with the final 'preliminary' design. It also surprised him with how not bored he had ended up being. He usually just let Dizzy or the other girls ramble, while he listened with only half an ear, but Evie had actually kept his attention and made it interesting. Probably because it was being made for him, rather than in general.

'Does that make me conceited?' Hadie wondered as he walked from Mal's dorm a.k.a. Evie's temporary pseudo-office, and back to his own. 'Thankfully Mal was out with mom for some one on one today. Not to mention Uma helped cover for me. Now I just need my guitar back, I've been stuck practicing with one from the school. I'll ask mom tomorrow when it's time for our own one-on-one'

Everything was coming together.

It took a few tries, but now Hadie had the path to the Main Office memorized. Outside of the first time he'd been by, when Herkie had to wait for his parents since Ky's accidental injury, Hadie had never found himself in the trouble that would send him to the Headmistress' office. Walking past the office in question, Hadie turned down a secluded hall filled with doors similar to the dorms.

The Guest Quarters. For the last week or so, this was where he could almost always be found.

'Two…five…seven…nine!' Pausing in front of the ninth door, Hadie knocked, nearly vibrating from excitement. Rustling movement could be heard from behind the door, a couple moments passing before the door opened.

"Hi, mom!" Hadie squinted up at his mother, still adjusting to the appearance of the Goddess in Auradon. Around the portal, Persephone's aura was dimmed by the Portal's own magic, some sort of channeling of said magic that Hadie wasn't quite clear on.

'A study for another time,' he thought as his mom pulled him into a hug. 'Today is my turn for a one-on-one with mom!'

"Hello, my darling," Persephone smiled gently as she held her son close, running a hand through his soft blue locks. She couldn't help but sigh internally. It hurt, seeing her baby boy for only one month in just shy of an entire year, and now that she could finally be around, he'd gone and had another growth spurt on her. She was quite sure Hadie had been only a little over four feet when she had left last Spring, and he'd been a few more inches than that when she measured him on his birthday as she had always done upon her return.

Now he was a few inches shy of reaching Mal's height.

"Give me a moment to grab my own coat," she added as she adjusted the collar of Hadie's coat, looking him over to make sure he had everything he would need for the day. She had bought him the very coat he wore just a few days before as his other coat had been better suited for winter weather, rather than the cooler Spring that was soon approaching.

"So we're going somewhere after all?" questioned Hadie as he scurried to follow his mother, closing the door behind him.

Persephone shrugged on her coat, a deep blue, and tugged a little brown leather purse over her shoulder to slide in her wallet and keys.

"I promised to take you into the city," she smiled down at her son as she zipped up her coat. "And I figured today would be a good start, since we need to pick up your guitar. I thought you'd like to go with me, instead of getting it by myself."

"It's ready?" Hadie said excitedly, taking his mother's offered hand.

"Yes, I got the call last night. Now, are we ready?"

"I-is this okay, by the way? You just put your things in something so easy to pick from!"

His mother laughed softly as she adjusted her purse, though her smile was more sad than jovial. "Auradon, love, we don't have to worry about that here," her aura glowed brightly as she prepared to teleport them. "But while I don't want you pickpocketing, I give you permission to do so on anyone who somehow manages to pickpocket me, fair?"

Hadie nodded sternly. He could do that.

A green glow encompassed them both before a swirl of leaves crossed his vision. When the leaves cleared, he found himself no longer in his mother's guest room at the school, and instead within a room with a small dining area and kitchenette. A small sofa sat in front of a TV where there was carpet instead of tile covering the floor.

"W-where are we now?" asked Hadie, as he squinted at the room. The photos on the refrigerator began to clue him in however.

"My apartment," Persephone answered as she went up to the kitchenette and ruffled through a drawer. She pulled out a small case filled with different wads of money, Hadie only recognizing the Auradon dollars. "I wanted to grab some cash, just in case. I keep some on hand, since occasionally I have to go to a summit in Greece, or such as when there's a foreign Pantheon delegation to other countries such as Japan. I always use one of your father's cards otherwise."

"I had wondered how dad was still utilizing his finances," Hadie absentmindedly said as he examined the photos of their family on the Isle. He smiled softly as the picture of himself, Mal, Uma, Jay, Harry and Virgil all covered in errant paint.

'I'd forgotten about that. We were helping Mal move the cans when they spilled and it dissolved into a paint fight. Dad was never able to clean that particular storage room.'

"You kids are so adorable," Persephone sighed as she turned around, having finished with calculating however much cash she desired. "You know, I used to only have pictures of Mal in my bedroom, until I realized I never have anyone over? Even Hermes has to go to a P.O. Box to drop off my mail. My own mother doesn't realize my place is in Auradon, she thinks I made a hideout in some obscure location when I want to get away from the Gods."

"No one knows about this place?"

"Where's it's located anyways. I'll take your sister here at some point too, but we stayed at the school when she visited last. You're the first person to be here other than your father when he helped me set it up…" Persephone hesitated. "Before he left for the Isle."

Hadie turned away from the fridge and wrapped his arms around his mom's waist. "Is that why dad sometimes stares at Auradon? He always said he never cared about the goody two shoes, but he always seemed to look at the exact same spot."

"He does that?" Persephone asked in surprise. "Oh, Hades…yes that may be it. Let me show you something before we go…"

She steered her son to the glass double doors, pulling back the curtains and sliding it open so the pair stepped out into the bright sun. Hadie blinked rapidly, squinted as he tried to readjust his eyes to the bright sun after having been stuck in the fluorescent halls of the school and now the dim apartment.

Surrounded by flowers, he stared out as sparkling waters waved at him, while in the distance the dark cloud of the Isle loomed as he knew it had all his life. His mother bent closely to him, a hand on his chin to turn his head slightly towards the direction her other hand pointed out towards the Isle.

"If that's true, I do the same thing as your father. When I don't have time to stop by the mirror, or when I don't want the other Gods finding me since they know where it is, I stand here and right there…is where your father's cave is." She turned Hadie's head again, this time he could easily make out the town square by the way the buildings were placed. "The restaurant's right there, you can see the rusting roof that makes up Jafar's shop on the edge of the neutral zone, and then the blue roof of Curl Up and Dye… When your father and I sneak Link calls, this is where I stand, pretending I'm there with you all."

Looking up as his mother's voice quieted, Hadie reached towards her to gently wipe the tear he could see gently rolling down her cheek.

"One day, we'll all be together again," Hadie whispered as they hugged again. "Whether that's just visiting dad on the Isle, or if Mal convinces Ben, if Lord 'Hey-you-get-offa-my-cloud' doesn't get his head out of his ass, maybe dad can finally be free of the Isle…"

"Language," Persephone snorted, trying not to laugh while she dabbed at her eyes with a sleeve. "I have a feeling it may be a combination, if not the Ben route. Zeus forgave Poseidon after twenty-something years, I'm sure one day Zeus will let your father go in the future."

"Yeah, but how far in the future?" pouted Hadie as his mother led them back inside. He cast one last look at the Isle, wondering how his father was holding up.

"Let's just say, Ben and I have already spoken a couple times, though the first was unintentional," she replied, leading him out of the apartment and into a small hallway. "More recently…I'm quite pleased with some of the questions he asked, it just might be a few years, okay?"

"A bit cryptic there, mom, but okay," Hadie smirked as he followed her into an elevator.

"Well, I'd hate to ruin the surprise, but you'll find out soon enough."

"Promise?"

"I promise, honey," she said amusedly. "Now come along. And a word of warning: There might be some stares. Auradon does love its gossip, and this will be your first appearance in the public eye. Just ignore them, and focus on me."

Hadie tried not to gulp audibly as they entered the apartment lobby, noticing a concierge nod discreetly in their direction and opening a door. His mother steered him in the woman's direction, opposite of the main lobby where there were people milling about.

"Only the staff know I live here," she whispered as they were ushered through the side door. "Now come along, it's a short walk to the city center from here."

They entered a tunnel with lights spaced every so often, eventually appearing in a small garden, before exiting onto a street. Hadie tried not to stare back as other people appeared more frequently, most assuredly gaping at him as he walked hand in hand with his mother.

'Now that I think about it, mom would be pretty recognizable as one of the Gods,' he thought as he tightened his hand around his mother's own tightening grasp. 'I guess there's some amount of brains in the general Auradon population if they can immediately deduce who I am.'

He felt Persephone's hand tighten even further as he suddenly tensed. 'W-what if they think I'm a villain like dad used to be? They attacked Mal just because Maleficent was her life-giver, clearly some of these people don't believe in being different from their blood, or people being able to change.'

For the first time, he truly understood some of the pressures Mal had been under. Hadie grit his teeth and schooled his features into something wide-eyed and innocent, though he stepped closer to his mother, brightly returning her smile even though he knew she could pick out his nervousness.

He tried not to turn at the sound of loud clicking, or the telltale sign of a flash of light in the corner of his eye.

"Let me know if anything catches your eye, darling," Persephone spoke idly, ignoring the wannabe paparazzi. Don't worry, love, if anything gets published apart from idle curiosity, I refuse to allow anything that happened to Mal happen again. I'll have Hermes tear them apart, she fed through the mindlink. She continued aloud, pretending there was no other communication between them. "We really have no spending limit, so any clothes, Gods know you're growing far too quickly for my liking, or books you might like, just say the word. And food of course, should you feel hungry."

"Yes, mama," Hadie said reverently, trying not to smirk at the surprised looks on the nearby folk's faces. He could tell by his mother's tone that she was playing it up a bit. He could do the same. In the meantime, his eyes darted around beneath his fringe, taking in as much as he could. Shops, vehicles, people of all assortments, the smell of food.

His stomach grumbled. He'd never experienced so many various smells, his mouth beginning to water.

"I am a little hungry, lunch was a couple hours ago at the school."

"A sit down place, or would you like to stroll through the open market, try whatever you might fancy?"

"May I really? I'm so used to the school's format, I don't know if I'm ready to try a formal location yet," Hadie spoke as politely as he could, internally cackling at those who were clearly eavesdropping.

The corner of Persephone's mouth twitched upwards as she continued to lead him towards the increasingly stronger scent of smells.

"I certainly don't mind it, there's a dessert place I wanted to take you to anyways, they have some of my favorite flavors of ice cream," she openly laughed. "After a proper meal of course."

"But before we pick up my guitar?"

"Yes, I'd rather not be carrying such a large object around. I have us scheduled to pick it up from the luthier after four."

"So we have a couple hours then," Hadie said before gasping in awe. This time there was nothing fake about it. Persephone smiled down as her son's face changed into obvious wonder. The market was often busy, keeping the stereotypical tone of a bustling trading location. Merchants either there to deliver or sell to the copious number of shoppers. Open stalls of fresh produce, produce being prepared and cooked on the spot for people to consume as they shopped. Hot drink carts were pushed around to stave off the last bites of winter, as swathes of shoppers dove in and out of boutiques with more colors of clothes or items than Hadie had ever known.

"Oh! I did promise to take you to a candy shop, didn't I? For being such a good boy this year."

Hadie couldn't help it, he let out a boisterous laugh, startling a few passerbyers. "I'd forgotten about that!"

"Well, your grades stayed up to standard, and you kept out of trouble, so I certainly think you deserve it and more," Persephone fondly said, leading them down the central lane and towards an extra colorful shop. Hadie's eyes widened and the mountains of various candy. Chocolates, gummies, cotton candy…the list was endless!

"N-now?" He stuttered, practically drooling. "Y-you don't think we should get some real food first?"

"It's meant more as to be a supply for you while at school still," Persephone tilted her head, looking down at her son with no small amount of amusement. "I think you're trustworthy enough to pick some out now, and manage it over the next month. Unless you share it with your friends. But yes, after dinner is when I'd intended to allow you to have some. If you're not too full from that and ice cream, that is."

She laughed as Hadie perked up and began to drag her inside the candy store, the door chiming loudly as he barrelled in.

"Ah, um, gah!" was all Hadie could get out as he was overwhelmed by the variety. Persephone paced quickly after him, nodding at the smiling shopkeep as he welcomed them in. There were quite a few other customers in the shop, some with their partner, but most with their own excitable children perusing the wares. His hand twitched briefly as he shoved down the rising urge to steal everything, old VK urges bubbling up.

Giggling at the sight of a mountain of marshmallows, thinking back to the time he and Mal had roasted them over their dad's fiery head, he gingerly accepted a small basket from his mother to hold whatever his wandering eye might desire.

Chocolate covered marshmallows immediately were snatched from the mountain. A jar of chocolate covered peanuts…chocolate covered toffee and honeycomb…if it was chocolate covered, he nabbed it. Whether it was drenched over salted caramels or cherries or raisins? Even a bar of chocolate filled with bacon bits and one with mint creme. Behind him, his mother giggled, Hadie taking the phrase of 'kid in a candy store' to the most literal extreme.

'I know a couple of the other's birthdays are coming up too. Uma for one…and I think Ashaki mentioned she might have a birthday party over break…Harry's not for a bit yet at least, and Melody's is after Mal's in the summer. Oh, I think Celia's is around the corner too. I should definitely send something for Dizzy as well, since I didn't get to, what with mail being stuck through the first couple months of winter.'

"Buying the whole shop, are we?" a middle-aged man frowned at them, a little boy dressed smartly peeked from behind his leg. "As if he needs all of that junk food."

"Maybe next time," Persephone's lip curled upwards, Hadie copying the somewhat catlike grin. "I made my son a deal, and he upheld his end of the bargain, this is his reward."

"I am, of course, happy to ring you up at any time, my Lady," the gentle, old man that seemed to own the shop appeared next to the other man, glaring slightly at the prospect of the younger man possibly running off a customer. One that evidently had no qualms in buying so much. "I don't plan to retire yet though, but I'll let you know should your son ever be interested in running it! The young lad certainly seems to be a budding connoisseur!"

"Oh yes, he's rarely been allowed sugar, so this is a big treat for him," Persephone smiled kindly. "Oh, you wouldn't happen to have my usual, would you, Mr. Wonka?"

"But of course, Lady Persephone!" He beamed, wagging a finger as the rude man's face turned to shock, likely as Persephone's name was dropped, or that she had a reserved 'usual' at a rather strict shop. "As soon as I heard you returned early, I made sure to have some made! I'll be right back!"

"You have until Willard returns, Hadie, so wrap it up, please," Persephone ignored the other man, leading her son to the last section of the shop.

"What's your usual, mom?" asked Hadie as he examined the foreign selection. Literally foreign, as some had other languages written across them, the Godling was forced to decipher the shorthand labels. He picked up a few more things that piqued his interest. "You come here that often, you're familiar with the owner?"

"Mmm, Willard was, possibly still is, one of the foremost experts in candy. Despite his words, this is his retirement while his heir runs the enterprise he founded many years ago in his prime," Persephone paused as Mr. Wonka skittered through the growing crowd of customers. "As for what it is, you'll see before the day is out."

"Are we ready to be rung up, my Lady and young Lord?" Mr. Wonka asked, a neatly wrapped package in his wrinkled hands. "A tote bag will be needed, I imagine?"

"Yes, if you could, please," Persephone nodded, following the man to a register. She ignored the growing lines as Mr. Wonka led them to his own corner and allowed them to cut the line as the few other employees rang up customer after customer. Hadie smirked as one woman gasped nearby as their total grew larger and larger with Mr. Wonka carefully bagging each order into a pair of decorative linen bags.

"Charged to your account today, my Lady?"

"No, Mr. Wonka, I have a card today," the Goddess replied, handing over a card that appeared to be completely made of silver metal.

"Did you do that on purpose?" asked Hadie as they left the shop a couple minutes later, leaving not a few shocked people around them.

"Maybe a little bit," smiled Persephone, blue eyes lit in mischief. "One part I really just want to spoil you today, since I've never gotten the opportunity. So, don't get used to it. Another is a bit selfish, as I've never gotten to…'show' you off, so to speak and…wanted to rub it in these stuck up Boredonean's faces, one of my perfect children."

Hadie's mouth dropped at his mother's use of the very words she constantly nagged at his father to stop using around him and Mal.

"I'm sorry I'm making this into a bit of a publicity stunt as well, dearest," his mother said after a few beats of silence.

"Oh, don't worry about that!" Hadie finally spoke. "I was just surprised…It's really smart, if I think about our placement in society, but…"

"Hadie…" Persephone sighed as they continued through the marketplace. "There isn't a lot your father or I have told you and Mal about what I handle off Isle…It's not just Spring, and it's not simply helping with a few Underworld things…When you're older, we plan to teach you, especially now that you, too, are off Isle. But, simply put, we have extensive political stances, in our Greek Pantheon and others. I make sure your father's word still carries weight when I'm able to appear and vote in his place. One day, you'll have to maneuver the sharks as well."

"The sharks?" he asked hesitantly.

"You don't need to become a prissy prince, as the others are so fond of saying on the Isle," she replied, well aware of Mal's and the majority of the VK's original distaste for Auradon. She smiled brightly down at Hadie, dodging through the crowd. "But you will need to learn how to present as such. Not to force yourself like Mal nearly did. I simply mean pretend to blend in, say what people want to hear, or make them see what they expect to see. The Prince of the Underworld, nothing prissy about him."

"Right!" Hadie nodded fiercely. "Nothing prissy about me!"

His mother laughed as she was suddenly tugged forward, "H-hadie!"

A scent had brushed against his nose. His stomach suddenly growled against his will. Hadie continued to pull his mother along as he followed the trail within the air.

Clouds of steam billowed from a stall, the crowd becoming denser by other hungry patrons. Drool pooled in the Godling's mouth at the sight of baked bread and meats.

"Finally found something to quell your appetite, my little one?" Persephone laid a hand on his blue locks, holding him in place to avoid accidentally cutting the line. "Piping hot food does sound nice while it's still biting cold out here, doesn't it?"

"It sounds, and smells, amazing!" groaned Hadie as he stared at all the options. "C-could we get some of the meat stuffed boureki? A-and maybe some hot chocolate?"

"No maybes about it, love," Persephone nodded to cart attendant as they reached the front of the line, quickly placing her order of two cocoas and a good amount of the sizeable pastries. Food and drink in hand, Persephone took back the lead towards the main road, the time to retrieve his guitar quickly approaching.

"Ah, hot!" Hadie exclaimed around the large bite of fresh boureki he had taken.

"Careful, dear," his mother admonished as she took a sip of her drink.

"Buh ahm hungweeh!"

Persephone rolled her eyes in amusement as steam curled from both their breath and meal against the frigid air.

"Still, eat slowly. You might not need to worry about it burning you, but you're not immune to hiccups."

Hadie hummed in agreement, sipping his hot cocoa as he savored the flavor of chocolate, not having eaten any of his recently gained haul of candy. Yet. It was a much nicer temperature than the piping hot meat. The cold air helped the food cool quickly in the end, ensuring that by the time they had reached the Luthier's shop, the food and drink were gone.

A tingle ran up Hadie's spine as they entered the room, slightly heated in comparison to the candy shop that had been kept cold for the benefit of the products. It wasn't the change in temperature that caused his slight shiver, but instead the euphony of various instruments being played. An ear twitched as it focused on the direction a string instrument he'd never seen before, one with multiple fretboards, was strummed. An eye twitched when the initial harmonies of the room broke to cacophonous as a child plucked an out of tune note upon a violin. In a corner, a set of twins plinked away at a xylophone, while who appeared to be their older sibling manipulated a piano in time with them.

"May I help you?" One of the many employees of the rather large store approached the Goddess and Godling.

"Yes, actually," Persephone began. "I'm here to pick up my son's guitar. I was notified it was completed as of yesterday."

"I don't believe Herr Reichel had any construction projects recently…" the young man began to confer before an older woman in a similar uniform of a white trimmed, light blue vest hurried over, though she instead had a label marking her as a manager.

"He had a repair project, is what I believe the mademoiselle is inquiring about," the woman explained. "Herr Reichel is in the back giving it a last-minute look over, if you'd like to follow me."

The young man bowed and backed away to attend to other guests while the manager led Persephone and Hadie to a small room occupied by only a neat table and chairs.

"Please wait here momentarily while I retrieve him," said the woman. "You are welcome to take a seat in the meantime."

Taking a seat next to his mother, Hadie shivered again, this time in excitement.

'I wonder how she'll look? There weren't any tinted guitars for sale out front, so I've nothing to compare her color to. Will the magical protection dad put on it still be there?'

"Sie Königliche Hoheit?" A tall, balding man stood in the doorway, two guitar cases in hand as he examined his clients over bespectacled eyes. He bowed slightly before he cleared his throat to speak, a light German accent coating his words, though not affecting his pronunciation. "That is, Lady Persephone? I am Reichel. I hope you don't mind, but I've placed the repaired piece in a new case, since the old one was falling apart."

"That's perfectly acceptable. Do you have a way to recycle the old one? It's no longer necessary if you think it too worn to secure and protect the guitar," Persephone questioned him.

"Yes, of course. We can deconstruct the leather and put it to good use elsewhere," Reichel explained while he placed the old case on the floor next to the table, the evidently newer case was carefully set upon top the cloth. "I know you were quoted for this, but as you said money was no concern, the case is technically another cost added on."

"I expected as such," Persephone nodded. She stood and beckoned Hadie to move forward with her so they could inspect Irtyu. "As stated, I have no problem with prices, so long as they are truthfully documented."

The luthier nodded politely as he unbuckled the case, revealing the repaired guitar.

"It's a good thing I don't actually need to breathe," Hadie joked. "She's taken my breath away."

"That's more something a partner would say to their girlfriend, or a father to his daughter," Persephone snorted, a hand jumping to cover her mouth as she tried not to laugh; Reichel snorted in turn, turning away to hide his smirk.

"Blech, you know I don't care about that stuff!" Hadie stuck his tongue out before he looked over at Reichel. "I do have question for you, sir."

"Yes, young master?" The man turned back to them; his visage serious once more.

"Though my mother rarely admits such manipulation, I'm of the belief that she, or at the very least my father, have performed magicks upon my guitar," Hadie pursed his lips, well aware of Persephone's suddenly uninterested expression. "Don't deny it mother, I've dropped Irtyu down the stone staircase, and there was no damage!

"Well, no more damage than she's already been through," Hadie amended at the luthier's less than pleased look. "She came to us quite worn and broken, and I've seen no change for as long as I can remember."

Reichel looked somewhat placated, though he glanced at Persephone.

The Goddess sighed and then nodded. "Yes, your father inscribed some runes before Mal and Virgil were allowed to present it to you. I let Herr Reichel know so that he could adjust his methods accordingly."

"Quite. I had to contact Signore Geppetto for his advice in magical woodworking. He is old and retired, but his knowledge is sound," the man informed them. "That's why it took me so long, in addition to matching tones for the blue dye and a proper varnish. I had to completely remove the old one and recoat it all. The magical direction was both a hinderance and a blessing."

"It's exquisite work in the end," praised Persephone. "I thank you for your work."

"Of course, but of course," Reichel replied as he carefully closed the case and proceeded to show his clients out of the room and towards the register. "Despite the runes to ensure it maintains propriety, do contact me if anything is found in error, or in further need of assistance."

"We shall, thank you.

It was late into the evening when Persephone returned Hadie to the school. Stars twinkled across the sky, the bright gibbous moon hanging low on the horizon, bookended by the forests.

Hadie quickly organized his now enormous stash of chocolate in its usual spot within a closet drawer before he moved on to prepare for bed. Behind him, Persephone caught up a little with her adoptive sons, Jay and Harry having joined them as the time approached for them, too, to turn in for the night.

The goddess hummed a familiar lullaby as the three boys readied for bed. Knowing the lyrics, it didn't matter if they were no longer babies, that Jay and Harry were nearly men. To her, they always would be the little boys who had to grow up too fast. Her little boys. Even if they might occasionally protest.

'I might not like being called a baby,' Hadie yawned as he emerged from the bathroom, having just brushed his teeth, his memories harkening back to the first time he met Celia. 'But knowing mom, I'll always be her baby boy. And I'll gladly be that so long as it makes her happy.'

With a kiss on her cheek, and one in return upon his forehead, Hadie bid his mother goodnight, clamoring up into his loft. He smiled softly as he watched her take the time to tuck in Harry and Jay for old times' sake, each receiving their own gentle kiss before she clicked the light off and closed the door on her way out. Wiggling down into his blankets, Hadie laid down to sleep.

All that was left was Cotillion, Demeter and the rest of the school year.

'Easy enough, right?'

Chapter Text

Dressed in a deep black suit, blue embroidery creeped up from the edges like flames from the thread catching various party lights as Hadie crossed the large deck of the yacht. His guitar was slung over his shoulder, black strap newly installed as promised by Neal, as he led Estelle towards the waiting room for when Mal would later arrive. Returning to the deck after getting Estelle to stay, he began down the stairs. He could see his performing partner, Uma, making her way through the crowd, having just finished getting ready and checking in on things with Lonnie before she would leave to gather Mal as her escort. He smirked to himself, knowing his cousin was likely not looking forward to the coming photography crowd in which she would have to get her picture taken alongside Mal.

“Looking good, Uma,” grinned Hadie, elbowing his cousin as she approached in a dress of vibrant teal accented by gold. “You wouldn’t happen to plan to get any photos done with Harry, would you?”

“Why would I get photos done with Harry?” Uma looked at Hadie incredulously. “I’m doing them with Mal, and then I am out of there. Damned reporters are already swarming the dock.

“Y’know, one of these days, you’re going to look back and regret it.”

“Pffft, as if,” Uma rolled her eyes. “How about this, I’ll do mine with Harry before the night is over, if you get yours retaken with whatever girl will go with you. It’d be hilarious to see Uncle Hades throw a fit.”

“I don’t know why dad would,” shrugged Hadie. “I’m not here with anyone in particular, we’re all just friends, but I’m sure any of my friends would join me if I asked if it meant you’d get yours done with Harry.”

“You’ve got five, no, three minutes before I change my mind,” growled Uma.

Quickly bolting off to where he had spotted his friends earlier, Hadie searched the growing crowd for any of the girls he tended to hang out with.

‘Besides, Uma didn’t say I couldn’t be related to them. Melody wouldn’t say no!’

“There you guys are!” Just Hadie’s luck to find not only Melody, but Ashaki and Alexandria as well.

“Hey, Hads,” Melody turned towards him, her pale rose dress briefly swirled open around her. “What’s up?”

“Short notice, but I made a bet with Uma that if I can get a girl to do the photos with me, she’ll get additional ones done with Harry! Would any of you be interested?” Hadie quickly explained. It was widespread knowledge by this point that Harry and Uma were in denial of being perfect for each other. “Melody? She never said cousins didn’t count.”

“Sorry, Hads,” Melody tittered. “I’ve already registered to go on with Phil.”

“And I’ve already done mine,” Ashaki shook her head as Hadie turned to her.

“Guess that leaves you stuck with me,” Alexandria smirked as she stepped forward, looping her arm through Hadie’s. “You look great, by the by.”

His words caught his breath as he took in the sight of his friend in a dress that may as well be liquid silver. Her golden hair was up for once, loose ringlets framing her face.

“Not compared to you,” Hadie managed to return as he waved to a now pouty looking Uma as he led Alexandria to the growing crowd of partygoers. He ignored the odd smirks on Melody and Ashaki’s faces.

“Please, Hadie, I don’t need to be bright red for our pictures,” she laughed, some curls of her hair falling across her brow. A flash distracted the pair, not realizing they had just stepped onto the blue carpet.

Adjusting, they posed along the railing, calm waves and soothing moonlight at their backs.

Alright, you win Hadie. I’ll grab Harry later once Mal is all set up. Uma’s voice came through the link just as the final photos were taken.

The proof is in the pudding, Cuz. I’ll believe it once those pictures are in my hand.

…I’m going to get Mal.

Hadie was sure one flash captured his giant, totally not “I’m plotting something” grin. As the last series of photos were taken, he and Alexandria politely answered the standard gossipy questions that most of the press /seemed to be asking. Though most seemed to be directed at Alexandria than Hadie.

‘Because they don’t want to anger my parents by saying something stupid, maybe?’ Hadie thought to himself, smirking as Alexandria gave an unimpressed look at one reporter demanding why they were together and if her parents would be disappointed. ‘Idiots need to remember this is broadcasted. Even dad is watching tonight, ever since Ben set up easier access to channels for dad’s restaurant.’

“And young Lord Hadie? I don’t believe I’ve seen that particular style before, who are you wearing?”

“I have the pleasure of wearing the first full suit design by Evie4Hearts,” Hadie drawled, lazily glancing at the reporter who had asked. He noticed the woman frown slightly at Evie’s brand name. “Though I’ve eagerly explored the new opportunities that being in Auradon presents me, I’m always happy to support a fellow kid from the Isle.”

This really was Evie’s first suit, the princess having only made an ostentatious cape for Prince Chad. And no matter who came from the Isle, as long as they didn’t cross his family, Hadie would gladly stand behind whoever needed to reach their dreams of finally supporting themselves. He just wished they’d move from VKs and AKs. If Ben really did believe the Isle was part of Auradon, if Mal really saw them as good, why keep saying they were Villain Kids? Not all of them were, and even fewer wanted the villain lifestyle. A surprising amount wanted to forget their villainous legacy.

“Princess Alexandria and I have become fast friends, considering she was already close to my cousin Princess Melody,” Hadie cut in, glaring at the man who continued to pester Alexandria about their ‘odd’ relationship. “We’ve all already made plans to meet up over Spring Break, especially since Princess Ashaki’s birthday soiree will be held midway through.”

“But what about—” the reporter tried to add.

“I think we’re all done, wouldn’t you say Hadie?” Alexandria raised her voice and ignored the man.

“I think so too,” Hadie replied and turned to lead Alexandria back off the dedicated carpet. “I need to finish getting ready anyways.”

“Ready for what?”

It was an innocent enough question, but with the paparazzi still hanging onto every word said by anyone near them, Hadie simply smiled.

“It’s a surprise for my sister, mainly,” he finally spoke after they put some distance between them and the interview area that the reporters were confined to. “I like to think I’m pretty wicked on a guitar, and Ben asked me to play the opening song.”

“Wicked, huh?” Alexandria smirked. “I look forward to it then.”

Leaving the blonde back with the female portion of their little group, Hadie moved to take his place near the stage, Ertyu waiting just behind the DJ booth where Lonnie was already wrapping up her prep.

“Sup, Hadie!” Lonnie exclaimed as she leapt over a large cable and tossed an arm around the Godling. “Are you ready to knock the socks off these prissy party people?”

“You know it!” Hadie replied, giving Lonnie a high-five. Though he was actually a little nervous, the older girl’s energy was infectious and distracting enough till it’d be time for them to finally go on.

“I just saw Uma take photos with Mal not too long ago. And Chip took off with her to let her finish preparing for the opening presentation, so if you want to go take your place, I’ll go get Uma so we can get this show on the road!”

“Don’t get too ahead of yourself, Lon, we have to wait for all the airy pompousness first. We start after Ben takes Mal to the floor,” Hadie grinned at Lonnie’s overzealousness, though he still moved towards the stage to take his place, knowing it wouldn’t be too long before it was time to start.

The Godling smirked as Mal appeared, enveloped in various shades of blue and purple, Estelle obediently at her side. He watched proudly as she descended into her waiting group of friends while everyone stood patiently for the last big name to be announced for the evening. Indeed, it was a short five or so minutes later that Ben made his way down the stairs, Lumiere announcing the King’s presence.

His fingers twitched impatiently as Hadie watched his sister and Ben mingle, his hands snapping up the hidden guitar from behind the stage. Antsy, he resisted the urge to rush onto the stage, knowing he had to wait until Ben led Mal onto the dance floor and received Uma’s telepathic signal.

Ready, Hadie? There it was.

Ready as I’ll ever be.

Let’s get up there and show them how we VK’s jam.

As Ben led Mal onto the floor, Hadie and Uma stepped up onto the platform. Uma to one mic, Hadie to the other set up with a stool for him to sit upon as he played his guitar.

He couldn’t help the smile that broke across his face, to echo the feeling in his heart as he caught Mal’s surprise turn into a proud smile as she glanced up at him.

Things were definitely okay between them now.

"Because the night is young. And it's just begun. Let's get it started, get it started. And go till the sun comes up,” Hadie joined in as Uma hit the chorus, his muscle memory from the last few weeks’ worth of practice kicking in to switch the chord. Thankfully, too, as the large crowd and unfamiliar surroundings made him nervous. Ultimately, Hadie couldn’t help but smile as he watched his sister and King Ben perform their opening dance, slowly becoming absorbed with each other as if they were only ones on the ship.

At the end of the song, Alexandria was the first to come up to him, their friends tossing glances that Hadie couldn’t quite place. He’d expected all of them to come up, Herkie in particular as they’d had plans to hit the buffet as soon as the opening was done, but…

He couldn’t find it in himself to complain that it was just him and Alex.

“You weren’t kidding when you said you were good.”

Hadie turned at the sound of Alexandria’s voice. “Uh, ahem,” he awkwardly cleared his throat. “You thought I was bragging?”

“Most boys tend to,” Alexandria shrugged. “Not that you tend to, you were just oddly boisterous the one time you talked about playing. And no one but Neal ever got to hear you play amongst our little group, so no one was sure if you were tooting your own horn or not.”

“Heh, well I’ve been playing almost my entire life. Dad taught me to play since I was five, though I couldn’t reach all the strings till I was seven,” Hadie held out his arm, smiling as Alexandria took it. “Shall we head to the drink and food spread?”

“Let’s.”

The Godling couldn’t help his smile from growing as the various lights seemed to impact the color of his friend’s dress, shades of iridescent blue sparkling around her.

“Well, as I was saying, you really do play well,” said Alexandria, smiling. “I hope I can meet your dad one day.”

“You do?” Hadie’s head whipped around to look at her in surprise. “Most still think he’s terrifying so…”

“I don’t doubt that he is, but your view of him contrasts the black and white tales of Auradon, so there has to be more to him,” Alexandria frowned, tilting her head. “Besides, he clearly cares about you, your sister and your mother. That counts for something.”

“Maybe one day,” smiled Hadie, his voice soft as he poured the pair some apple cider. “Ben, Mal and mom have all spoken about possibly getting a new deal made. They’re just not sure if it would allow dad off the Isle or with mom being able to continue back and forth whenever she wants…”

“Because Zeus?”

“Because Zeus.”

The two sipped at their cider, moving away from the buffet to leave room for other partygoers. There was something odd in Alexandria’s face, a question on the tip of her tongue that she was unsure how to word, but Hadie felt he knew what she wanted to ask.

“No.”

Alexandria glanced at him in surprise. “…no?”

“You want to visit the Isle. Even if I could take you, with the state that I know it’s in…my answer would be no.”

“But…okay,” Alexandria whispered, her voice just barely audible over the noise of the party. “But you said you think I could meet your dad at some point? How would…?”

Glancing around to check for eavesdroppers, Hadie lowered his voice, moving closer to Alexandria. “This is a secret, tell no one. Don’t even let Mal know that I told you.” He waited for the almost imperceptible nod of her head before continuing. “My mom has a hidden portal; Zeus allows it to be opened twice a year for her to move between Auradon and the Isle. Obviously with Ben ruling, she was able to circumvent that. But when it’s closed, she can still use it to communicate. It’s how we could see her when she was gone. Catch up and talk, even if we couldn’t send or receive items or…or hug her.”

Alexandria turned her head slowly, glancing up at Hadie under long lashes. “I’m sorry that your family has to go through that,” she whispered. “I can’t imagine being able to only see mine, but not hold them.”

“Yeah, it’s brutal,” he whispered, staring sadly out towards the ocean. The water shimmered a reflection of the moon, a pair of clouds framing, but not blocking the natural light. He braced a hand on the railing, knuckles quickly turning white as he clenched the bar tightly as he pondered the plight of his family. “I can’t imagine how bad it is for dad, especially with all that happened with Mal. He had been concerned to begin with us being here without mom, and clearly he was right to be.”

“Well, I hope Ben is able to convince Zeus that your mom should be able to come and go freely at least while you and Mal are in Auradon outside of her normal agreement,” said Alexandria, resting her free hand upon his own.

“I hope so too,” replied Hadie, smiling softly.

“Hadie!”

They quickly pulled their hands apart, turning to the source of the Godling’s name. Alexandria couldn’t help but feel her heart warm at the brightest smile that she’d ever seen break out across Hadie’s face.

“Mom!” Hadie stepped away from the banister and flung his arms around his mother, his cup of cider thankfully empty. “I totally forgot you’d be here tonight!”

Persephone laughed, returning the hug before pulling slightly away, her hands holding Hadie by the shoulders as she took in the sight of his outfit.

“I’ve only said about twenty times that I’d be present for Mal’s induction to high society,” stated Persephone. “My, look at you! Aren’t you so handsome tonight!” Hadie blushed as he caught Alexandria giggling behind his mother, the Goddess cooing over him as she bent down to brush her hands through his hair and rub at his reddening cheeks, slightly squishing his face.

“Thanks mom,” grumbled Hadie, though he put up with his mother’s fawning. He then brightened. “Evie made the suit for me when she heard I’d be playing tonight!”

“And you played so well,” Persephone beamed as she straightened back up. “You’ll have to perform for your father sometime. Now that Irtyu is repaired with all her strings, you make her sound like magic.”

“Yeah, Neal, that’s Queen Snow’s son, was a great help,” Hadie said. “I’ll have to get him something nice when his birthday comes back around. Hey! Do you think I could steal Apollo’s music title? He’s already God of so much, it’s not like he needs it.”

Persephone tried not to snort in laughter. “It wouldn’t be easy, but the way he acts, I feel he doesn’t deserve it. His current haiku obsession isn’t great, and he’s insulted us too many times for me to be as sympathetic as I used to be towards him.”

“That sounds like a whole bag of worms I don’t want to open right now.”

“You’d be right,” mused Persephone, before she stepped back and nodded to Alexandria. “But I seem to have interrupted you mid conversation! Would you introduce me to your friend? Properly this time if you don't mind.”

Alexandria gave Hadie an odd look at that.

“I, uh. Might’ve been overly informal introducing my mom to everyone who’d been around last time,” Hadie awkwardly laughed, rubbing the back of his head at both his mother’s and friend’s amused looks.

“Anyways, ahem,” Hadie began, pretending to puff up all hoity toity. “May I present my mother, βᾰσῐλείᾱ Persephone of the Hellenistic Underworld, Goddess of Spring, Fertility and Vegetation, daughter of Lady Demeter the fourth born Olympian—what?! You said to introduce you properly!” Hadie interrupted himself as his mother sighed, one hand on hip, the other massaging a temple.

“Just move on Hadie, I didn’t mean for you to introduce me like a herald.”

“Mother,” Hadie inhaled once more. “This is Princess Alexandria of Charmington.”

“Thank you for putting up with my son, Princess Alexandria.”

“Mom!”

“I’ll admit, it’s been a bit of a chore, but some days are worth it, Lady Persephone.”

“Oi!”

“Well, it was lovely to meet you, Princess Alexandria,” Persephone continued, ignoring her son’s pouting. “I’ll have to find some time to meet with you and his other friends to learn any new embarrassing things my boy has been up to.”

“I'm sure we have plenty of stories to swap,” Alexandria grinned.

“Now, I won’t keep you,” Persephone said as she dropped a kiss onto Hadie’s head before beginning to move away. “I wish to speak with your sister before the official speeches begin. Again, lovely to meet you!”

“You as well, Lady Persephone!” Alexandria called back, giggling at Hadie’s begging eyes and pouty lip.

Their next words were interrupted by an excited Estelle, bounding through the crowd, just barely avoiding people as they moved out of the way, a slightly breathless James Porter ran after his charge.

Alexandria’s laughter mingled with Hadie’s as they moved to also after Estelle, the cerberus’ leash having just slipped away from his caretaker’s attempting grab. Uncaring of the condition of his suit, the purpose of it having been done with, Hadie leapt and belly flopped onto the deck in order to snatch up Estelle’s leash. What he had thought would be a barely made catch, had turned into a mistake as he slid the rest of the way, bumping into Estelle who had stopped for some reason.

“Estelle?” Hadie wondered in concern at the noise he rarely heard begin to emanate from his sister’s dog. “What’s wrong boy?”

Then Estelle began to bark.

James quickly ran up and took the leash from Hadie, too concerned at the trio of frightening barks from the Cerberus.

Preoccupied with the odd growling of Estelle, Hadie didn’t notice a hulking figure step up behind him, a large hand clamping down on the Godling’s shoulder.

“What? Gil!” Hadie tried to pull away, but the son of Gaston had a firm grip, leaving Hadie unable to even slip out of his jacket.

“Sorry, Hadie,” Gil moved his other hand to clasp around the back of the Godling’s neck, getting the Godling to his feet and forcing the boy to follow whatever direction he was pulled. “I’ve got orders to take you down below, you don’t need to see this.”

“Orders? Gil, what’s going on?” Hadie glanced back in concern, James and Alexandria glancing at each other, just as unsure of what was happening.

“Trust me, Hadie, Gil’s got good reason,” Macaria added, coming over with her younger brother. “Herkie, I want you to at least go with him. You can show Hadie a place to hide at least, with some visibility to still get an idea of what’s happening.” She turned back to Hadie, a warning clear in her eyes. “Don’t make me regret this, otherwise if something similar happens again, I won’t even take the time to figure out how to keep you in the loop. Alexandria, get to your sisters and stay calm in the meantime. Harry has gone off to inform Mal. I’m not super sure on everything, but Gil will fill you in.”

Hadie gulped, nodding, but still stood rooted in his place, now unsure of moving. He changed the direction of the nod to Alexandria, convincing the blonde to carefully move towards where they could see her sisters cheerfully speaking, though the youngest princess’ shoulders were clearly tense.

“Please, Hadie! Harry will have my head if I don’t do as ordered!” Gil exclaimed as Hadie still had yet to move. The strength of Gil, plus Macaria’s warning, won out and Hadie allowed himself to be dragged away from his friends, Herkie quietly following behind. “I only had a minute to warn him before he sent me off to find you!”

As they walked away, he could hear Macaria warning the others that they would at least want to get out of the way, but she couldn’t order them around the same way she could Herkie. 

“Gil, can you at least give me an idea of what’s going on?” Hadie grumbled quietly towards the other boy as they skirted the large crowd and down a short set of stairs onto the small lower deck.

“It’s Freddy. He’s here.”

Herkie bumped into Hadie as the younger Godling suddenly froze in the middle of the stairwell.

“He’s what?” yelped Hadie, though that may have been because Gil yanked Hadie from where he’d temporarily become rooted and caused him to tumble down the last couple steps.

“K-keep your voice down, I dunno where he is right now,” Gil whispered, the normally relaxed teen clearly nervous as his eyes darted about. “But I saw him myself, hard not to recognize the bastard.”

“Wait, hold on a second,” said Herkie, lightly jogging to keep up. “Who’s this guy? Freddy, was it?”

“Someone from the Isle,” growled Hadie. “Son of Frollo. A murderer and honestly a heretic to his own, though he believes he’s absolutely righteous. Even though he didn’t know Mal and I are siblings, he and his father tried to convert most of the Isle to believe dad and the others are nothing but false gods. Dad put a quick stop to that though, since Hook is very much not for it, not to mention Ursula also helps rule that side of the Isle even if she’s mostly hands off. Hook wouldn’t want the pirates to risk the deal they have.”

“But he wasn’t invited off the Isle, how did he—?” Herkie frowned. “Is he even a VK? Wasn’t Frollo like super old already? Was this a son sent to the Isle with him or?”

“Tartarus if I know about Frollo pre-Isle, I just know Freddy is Mal’s number one enemy even before Evie when she still hated her! And he was def born on the Isle,” Hadie frowned, trying to quickly figure out what might possibly be going on. “I…he can’t possibly have…Gil we have to go back! He’s going to hurt Mal!”

It wasn’t just Gil that stopped Hadie from bolting back up the stairs. He winced as Herkie’s super strength was added onto his other arm.

“That’s a terrible idea, Hads,” sighed Herkie. “But it’s like Macaria said, follow me, I know a place. I’ve been on this boat a couple times since it hosted a few introductory parties for new students at the end of Summer. It’s close enough to see and hear what’s going on, but you’ll be hidden from this Freddy.”

“But this is going back upstairs, Herkie,” Gil followed along, confused as Herkie indeed begin to lead them up a flight of stairs.

“Right, but it doesn’t go to the deck. The important thing is staying hidden, I didn’t want to take you up the main stairs because you can easily see who climbs up them.” Herkie replied seriously. “When Elle and Melody began attending Cotillion, Uncle Po-Po vetted the captain himself. Sometimes when we need to get away, we hang out on the Bridge.”

“The Quarterdeck you mean?” Hadie asked, blinking as they appeared in a large open room surrounded by buttons and windows.

“Aye, young sir,” a man in a dark blue uniform, trimmed with white greeted them at the door. The gold gilded hat and the gold badge declaring ‘captain’ denoting his position. “The Bridge is used for these more modern ships. Now quickly please, shut the door behind you. We’re under orders to keep the doors locked for now in case other escapees are found. Particularly when a few other VIPs join us. Just got the orders.”

“You already know?” Herkie questioned.

The Captain pointed out where the party was. Crowds of people were visible even from their position far away from the window.

“What about Mal and the others?” Hadie rushed over to where another man stood, observing the chaos on the deck below. Near him, a speaker relayed the radio broadcast of the words of the party.

Gil and Herkie quickly moved to either side of them as Hadie audibly gasped.

“No!” Hadie bit out, only somewhat paying attention to the growls emitting from Gil to his left. “That bastard is really here!”

“WHO IS HERE?” The Captain quickly stood aside, bowing slightly as the previous King was forced onto the Bridge by a desperate Chip, Hyllus and Will. The former King wrestled slightly in the boys’ grips, eager to return to his son on the deck below, but unwilling to hurt his adopted son or the other well-meaning boys. “Will someone tell me what in the blasted nine hells is going on?!” Behind him a meek Belle entered, the Captain keeping his head bowed before he quickly reinstigated the door’s barricade behind the latest small group. “Who is that vagabond?!”

Surprisingly, it was Gil who answered. Clearly years under the protections of the Rats instilled a soldier like ability in him to respond precisely when ordered. Hadie was only surprised because it was Beast that Gil was strongly standing before, instead of responding in fear.

"Kick. His. Arse. Ben." Harry’s words echoed over the radio, adding weight to the already heavy tension of the room.

“Freddy Frollo,” Gil said quietly as they watched crowds of people begin to pool around exits, Belle gasping as she noticed a sword in the dark-haired stranger's hand; Ben taking a blade from Harry and stepping forward. This time Gil did slightly wince as Beast gripped onto one of the blond’s shoulders, glaring out as his son and Frollo paced towards each other slowly, but the son of Gaston endeavored to continue. “He’s just as evil as his father. A coward, a slimeball, the worst kind of womanizer and a murderer.”

"White moves first.” Frollo gestured towards Ben, a mocked salute with blade in hand and a slight bow to the King.

Hadie nodded along, grimacing as they all watched Ben move to instigate the fight, lunging forward with a skilled flick of his blade.

‘Dammit Ben,’ Hadie worried as he watched the clash, only slightly relieved as he saw Akiho keep close to Mal along with Harry, Uma and Jay. On the edge of the cleared area, he could see members of Tourney and R.O.A.R stalk slowly around, covering any way that Freddy could use as an exit. ‘While going on the offensive is good, your movements are too proper. Get dirty!’

Or it wouldn’t be enough.

He was proved right shortly after the thought appeared.

"Ben, watch out!" 

Mutters and gasps were heard all around as Frollo pulled out a small, indiscernible item from the suit jacket, Ben distracted by Mal’s voice.

“Smoke bomb,” Gil and Hadie groaned aloud just before the Angel threw the very item hard against the deck. A cloud of dark red began to fill the air.

“We need to get back down there!” Belle wrenched away from Chip and attempted to return to the door, Beast already way ahead of her, his magical strength easily wrenching the door wide despite the locking mechanism having clearly been engaged.

“Absolutely not!” Chip’s lanky legs aided him in quickly cutting off the former King and Queen’s path. “Ben ordered your safety, and to be frank, you’d only distract anyone trying to apprehend this, Freddy!”

“MOVE. Chip,” Beast demanded, aggressively stepping side to side, trying to get around the former teacup.

“Please, Chip, we can’t let our son be down there alone!” Belle begged.

“He’s not alone though!” Chip responded angrily. “I don’t like this anymore than you do, but he’s King now, and we need to trust him!”

Beast huffed, but still tried to move forward until suddenly the Captain frantically began to speak.

“What was that?” the man exclaimed, squinting at the smoke cloud. “Do we have anything to clear that smoke? Peterson?”

“What was what sir?” The sole deckhand in the room asked.

“There was a thump,” Hyllus spoke for the first time since entering the room. “Over the intercom, did you not hear?”

"Beware, forswear, make this smoke disappear!" Mal frantically screamed, and the red cloud immediately vanished.

“Shit!” Will slammed his hand against the glass.

“No! Is it Ben? Ben!” Belle rushed back over, crying out as she saw her son once more, no longer obscured by the red haze.

Limp against the deck. Frollo standing triumphantly above him, blade raised above.

“Move NOW,” Beast roared again, Chip trembling but standing his ground. It took Hyllus once again to steer the retired King to join his wife back at the lookout, fretting over their fallen son.

“Ben!” His worried shout was joined by many over the intercom, Mal’s the loudest of all as she rushed forward after a moment of hesitation, before something suddenly flew from her hand and towards the enemy. Beast fumbled over the deck controls, trying to find the access to the mic, the captain blatantly refusing as the foray down below continued to unfold.

Freddy Frollo stumbled back; his gloating cut off as a dagger appeared in his shoulder.

"Karma's a tricky mistress, don't you know?"

Mal then rushed forward to Ben’s side, luckily Freddy no longer near enough to be an immediate worry.

Though the extremely worried family contingent would disagree. Until Frollo was behind bars and back on the Isle, he was a threat still needing to be dealt with.

A light scuffle broke out on the deck, Harry trying to run forward to finish the job, a multitude of friends holding him back as Mal looked over Ben.

“Please say he’s still okay, please, Mal,” Hadie could hear the repeated whispers under Belle’s breath, but no words on Ben’s condition were announced. Instead, the clatter of the dagger hitting the deck from where Frollo pulled it from his shoulder broke through the cacophony of chitter and radio static. Instead, new smoke formed, slowly curling across the ship in dark purple swirls.

“Did someone get another smoke bomb?” Gil wondered aloud.

‘That’s no smoke bomb,’ Hadie thought as he quietly walked towards Lady Belle. ‘That’s Mal. A very, very angry Mal.’

He wasn’t worried anymore. Mal was transforming into a dragon and going to quickly take the heretic out. A true embrace after months of rejecting her favorite creature.

“Lady Belle?” The blue-haired prince’s voice was soft as he approached. “Ben’s okay, I promise.”

Tear-filled brown eyes turned sharply towards Hadie, the boy quickly realizing despite the soft exterior Belle presented, she held a devious mind.

‘She and mom would get along,’ the thought began to form, but it wasn’t important, forcing Hadie to shake his head slightly to clear it. “I-I’m able to sense death to a degree, there will be no death at Cotillion tonight. Ben’s thread is nowhere near ready to be cut.”

Unfortunately, that included Freddy.

“Thank you, Hadie,” Belle whispered, tears no longer falling, though her eyes still watered, this time with hope. “I appreciate you telling me this.”

Hadie nodded shyly, avoiding Beast’s eyes before a stream of black caught his eye, bringing his attention back to the window.

“Wicked!” He shouted, laughing as he rushed back forward at the sight of his sister in her terrifyingly awesome dragon form as she stretched towards the moon and released a torrent of fiery breath. Then her wings unfurled.

Then she snapped up Fredrick Frollo and flew into the sky.

Though it wasn’t quite over, the room breathed a collective sigh of relief.

In the meantime, Ben was carried to safety away from the center of the boat where Mal decided to vindictively drop Freddy. Repeatedly.

“Come on,” Chip smirked, relinquishing his hand from Belle’s shoulder. He motioned to Hyllus to do the same. “It looks like Frollo is unconscious. Belle, Adam? Go ahead and get to Ben, I’ll be right behind you.”

“I want to find out how that menace got off the Isle!” Beast shouted as he stomped from the room.

“First we find out if Ben is okay,” scolded Belle as she followed him into the hall. “Besides, you are no longer King. I’m sure Mal and Ben will be more than happy to figure out that monster’s method before shipping him right back where he belongs.”

“We’re free to go?” Hadie begged, looking between his cousins, Gil and Chip.

“Free reign, Hadie, I’m sure your mom is worried about you anyway.”

Hadie winced slightly, but grinned at Chip as they all shuffled out the door, thanks and waves goodbye to the captain and his crew. In seconds, he managed to overtake Ben’s parents has Hadie rushed out of the room and down the stairs leading back out, his youthful legs pumping far faster than either aging mortal would be capable of.

“Hadie, there you are!”

As Hadie descended the steps, Chip’s words rang true, finding his mother already running forward. The Goddess reached up towards him and pulled him off the last few steps and into her arms.

“I’m okay, mama,” he whispered, returning the hug. “Gil took me down after warning Harry. I was up in the captain’s room with Ben’s parents to stay safe.”

“Good. I’ll have to get that boy something nice then.” Persephone said, placing her son back on his own two feet as they headed towards the center of the deck where a final cloud of smoke was forming now that Dragon-Mal had landed, transforming back into her normal self.

"Mal, that was amazing!" Hadie leapt at his sister the moment he was within reach.

"You weren't hurt, were you?" Mal accepted his hug and swung him around with some difficulty, a mixture of exhaustion and dress in the way.

"Gil took me below deck once he saw that Freddy was here," he said. "I wish I could have helped but I think you had everything taken care of."

"Gods help us, the next big event Auradon has, you are not to turn into a dragon and fight a big bad entity, understand?” Persephone exclaimed, brushing a hand over her son’s hair as she passed him to take Mal into her own hug. “I don't think my heart could take it."

"It's not like I plan these things mom," Mal said, melting into her embrace. "Gods...is it weird that a small part of me hopes Freddy survived?"

"Yes," scoffed Hadie, grinning slightly as his sister laughed.

"It's just...we need to know how he escaped for one. And for another, what if he's holding Chad somewhere? I know he said he didn't know who Chad was but that's just it. Freddy always lies. Plus...Ryan deserves to be the one to give the finishing blow to Freddy."

"...well, when you put it like that," the Godling sighed, knowing Mal was right. The letters from Ryan had petered off, only a few lines added on occasion to any word that came from CJ instead of the back-and-forth banter filled letters they had originally sent when Hadie had first left the Isle. Hadie wasn’t sure what he’d be like if he ever lost Mal. Nor did he want to ever have to think about it.

"I'm sure he survived," Persephone said and then paused for a moment. "...your father can confirm that he survived his encounter with your dragon form Mal. But just barely. He'll probably be spending time in a holding cell until Auradon can escort him back to the Isle."

"Good," Mal growled. "Make it the smallest cell we can."

"...so, are you officially a Lady of the Court now? Do I have to call you my Lady?" grinned Hadie, watching as Mal’s face automatically switched to a light scowl. Never mind the fact that they both hated their titles.

"Do it, and I toss you overboard."

Hadie’s face lit up at a sudden thought of flying through the air, being tossed unhinged into the ocean. While he still had yet to learn to swim, he had plenty of cousins on board to summon the water to bring him back aboard.

"In your dragon form?"

"Maybe," Mal chuckled as Hadie grinned.

Persephone shook her head. "What am I going to do with you two?"

"Dunno but you've got eternity to figure it out.” The siblings grinned maniacally up at their mother, her face one of fond exasperation as she continued to shake her head.

Persephone sighed herself, grabbing Hadie by the shoulders much to his protest to steer him to the side as Mal then turned to her few crew members to begin a much-needed interrogation of one Fredrick Frollo.

At least his mom hadn’t taken him away from the deck again. Watching up close was far more satisfying than nail-biting from a distance.

Speaking of nails…

Mom? Hadie whimpered over the link as they watched from the front of the returning crowd while Frollo began spouting rather inappropriate words about Macaria and, in turn, Olympus.

Yes, darling?

Scale back on the grip please?

The biting pressure of Persephone’s nails immediately vanished, just in time for Hadie’s attention to return for Freddy Frollo to be smacked over the head. The felon immediately slumped over.

The crowd practically sighed in relief, the oppressive feeling dissipating as Mal ordered Frollo taken away while she quickly moved her attention to Ben, the King still unconscious, but under the safe attentions of his parents. Another sigh rippled through the crowd as word quickly passed that Ben had awoken, alive, but disoriented.

That didn’t stop him from getting up and doing the last thing anyone in the audience expected. Except the parents of course, as evident by Belle and Beast’s knowing smiles. Not to mention the feeling of pride he could see radiating from his and Mal’s mom, Hadie catching a glimpse of the Goddess wiping away tears when he turned to look.

"It's you and me Mal," Ben proudly announced, kneeling on one knee and box in hand. "It's you and me forever. Will you marry me? Will you be my Queen?"

There was barely a pause before Mal choked out an enthusiastic “Yes!”

The crowd roared with excitement.

Mostly pleased at gaining yet another brother, Hadie couldn’t help but roll his eyes at Mal and Ben kissing. He did grin widely as Harry appeared, excitedly pulling Persephone and the Godling into a giant hug, nearly lifting both off the ground as the pirate was no longer the little boy that had been adopted by the Chthonic family.

Persephone laughed, ruffling both of her boys’ hair before she headed off to speak with Belle now that the cat was out of the bag.

Finally, the party could be enjoyed to the fullest. Even if the King and his to-be Queen got out of participating to get to a quiet room for a very much needed doctor look over.

With the crescendo to all the excitement complete, the yacht began its way slowly towards the harbor docks. Partygoers enjoying food, gossip and company.

‘It’ll still be a while yet,’ Hadie thought as he noticed Uma muttering to Harry and carefully make her way to the stairs he had seen Freddy hauled down earlier. ‘Mom is off speaking to I think cousin Ariel? And Beast about organizing Freddy back to the Isle. I guess Melody’s mom decided to come to be an additional Olympian representation for Mal.’

“What’s up Hadie?” Herkie asked quietly as the rest of their friends chattered and ate merrily, finally able to all hang after the impromptu game of hiding they went through now that the menace was out of the way.

“It’s nothing,” replied Hadie, shoveling a mouthful of shrimp into his mouth so as to avoid answering further. His eyes darted around as Herkie gave him a knowing look.

“I’ll cover for you,” Herkie smirked. “If that had been my sister out there, I’d do the same.”

“...thanks, Herkie.”

“Anytime,” Herkie stepped closer, covering their friend’s view of the younger Godling. “Now get over there, or you’ll miss which direction they went.”

‘Herkie’s got a point. And it’s not fair if I can’t join in and represent my family too. Mom and Dad will have to wait till this bastard is dead. He deserves to be tortured alive too…And Estelle seems to have the same desires.’

Ah. Estelle.

Hadie caught sight of the somewhat pouting dog, one head intently staring at the direction Uma had disappeared in. Nodding to Herkie one last time, Hadie headed towards James.

“Hey, James!”

“Hi, Hadie,” greeted Estelle's watcher. “Do you need something?”

“Yeah, actually. Do you mind if I take Estelle for a bit? He hasn’t really gotten a moment with Mal after everything, so I was thinkin’ I could take him to her for a bit.”

“Oh, that’s a good idea. Sure”

“Thanks!” Hadie gratefully took Estelle’s leash, grinning madly the moment he could turn away and lead Estelle towards the stairs.

“Not yet, Estelle,” Hadie smirked down at his sister’s dog, the heads intently sniffing at the ground in the direction he already knew were the Royal Cabins. He’d seen the map on the Bridge while he’d been stuck up there. “I promise you can see Mal in a bit. I actually had a different plan in mind you might be interested in.”

The cerberus’ ears perked up, tilted a head in question.

“Let’s go find, Freddy.”

Hadie didn’t think he’d ever seen a dog, let alone Estelle, grin evilly before.

With a yip, Estelle took off, tugging Mal’s little brother down the hall. The excitement was short lived as in under a minute, they ran into Uma, Harry and Jay.

“Hadie go back upstairs.”

“Nope!” Hadie stood firmly next to Estelle. “You’re here for the same reason. Freddy hurt Mal. I’m not getting left out this time.”

Uma sighed. “You do what I tell you to. And we don’t tell your mom about this. And make sure to keep Estelle under control. He can play intimidation, but we don’t need to be teaching him poor habits”

Hadie nodded, happily following the trio into the makeshift prison hold, glancing down as he pulled Estelle’s leash forward again. "Okay Estelle, no ripping Freddy boy limb from limb.”

Estelle snorted.

"Should you even be coming with us?" Uma asked. "Your mom and dad would kill me if they found out."

"Which is why they won't find out," Hadie shrugged. "Besides, Mal's my sister and my captain. Freddy tried to hurt Ben and Mal loves Ben. Ergo, Freddy tried to hurt Mal. Therefore, I get to hurt him."

"Spoken like a true Rat," Harry chuckled and twisted his hook as they walked into the room that was acting like a makeshift brig.

"Did something happen?" William asked, looking up at Jay. "Is Ben alright?"

"Ben's fine," Jay told him. "Mal's with him."

"So...why are you four here?"

A cruel grin crawled across Hadie’s face, Jay startling his teammates with deep, humorless chuckles as Uma and Harry swept past the other boys. Estelle growled at the sight of their quarry.

"We're here to make sure Freddy understands the importance of leaving Mal alone," Harry told them.

"I thought we weren't supposed to kill him?" Li asked.

"You'd be surprised of what you can live through," Jay said, his voice low.

There was some hesitation as he too attempted to move forward, the appearance of Emir and Akiho forcing the VKs to hesitate. Only to be pleasantly surprised that they weren’t actually there to stop them.

"Mal wants us to make sure you don't kill him," Emir said. "Other than that...have fun."

Well, not totally that is.

The small family of four, well, five counting Estelle, smirked, glancing at the still unconscious Freddy. His luck had run out. Miguel and Will stepped to the side this time, allowing Uma to pass. She knelt down by Freddy, her shell glowing in her fingers. "Wakey wakey Freddy," she said, her voice a low growl. "This is your personal wake up call from your personal demons."

"Wha...Uma," Freddy growled as he regained consciousness. "Well at least you sinners are admitting you belong in Hell."

"I didn't say we thought we were demons. We said we were your demons," Uma snarled, barring her teeth in a smile that was not friendly in the slightest.

"I'm not scared of you Uma."

"And that is exactly your problem. You should be," Uma said as she stood back up. "Boys, why don't you start us off?"

"Gladly cap'n," Harry nodded, a twisted smile on his face. "I've got just one question for you Freddy. How would you like to be tortured?"

"You wouldn't dare Hook! You don't have the guts!"

"Oh?" Harry asked and knelt down so that he was eye level to Freddy. "Maybe if it was me you went after Freddy, I might have left you alone. But you went after Mal. You went after Ben. You don't touch my captain or what's hers."

‘Screw leaving him alone, Harry. Do us all a favor and get rid of the pest already,’ Hadie glared quietly at the Angel.

"Harry, torture him quietly," Jay said as he examined his nails, looking almost bored with the conversation. "There are guards outside."

"No there's not," Harry snorted. "Besides, after what he did, do you really think anyone would come to his aid?"

"Eh good point," Jay nodded as Estelle started growling at Freddy.

"Don't worry boy, you'll get your turn," Uma muttered, much to Hadie’s amusement.

‘So much for not letting Estelle participate.’

"Keep that hell beast away from me!" Freddy snapped.

"That 'hell beast' might just be your end if you keep talking like that," Uma shot back.

"Did I say anything that was inaccurate?" Freddy asked. "It's an unholy demon—then again, so is Mal so it makes sense it's here."

Uma glared at Freddy, her hands clenching into fists as she glanced over at Hadie.

"Keep my sister out of this Freddy!" Hadie shouted. "The only unholy demon that's here is you!"

"I'd listen to my cousin," Uma growled as Freddy scoffed. "He tends to be right about stuff like this."

"Of course, all the members of your little cult would stick together."

‘Says the leader of the Angels, friggen hypocrite,’ Hadie snorted as Jay voiced the very same thoughts out loud.

"Enough talking!" Harry growled. "I thought we were torturing him?!"

"Hadie, turn around," Uma ordered.

"I'm a VK! I'm not a baby, I grew up on the Isle too!" Hadie gawped at his cousin. You said I could participate!

"You're also under fifteen and I'm the captain. I'm not explaining to your mother why you saw this."

“We agreed we were going to keep this from her anyway,” Hadie grumbled under his breath. But it was the Captain's orders. He had no choice but to turn around.

"Like I said, you don't have the guts Hook!"

“Ouch, right in the solar plexus,” Conner muttered as Harry proved their prisoner very much wrong. Hadie could pick up a few more thumps, a string of curses following each strike from Harry. He rolled his eyes when one of the boys, Li, clamped his hands over the Godling’s ears.

"I probably should have had Hadie plug his ears," Uma noted. "I doubt Li's hands are doing much to block out Freddy's filth."

"I've heard worse on the Lost Revenge!" He pouted as the pressure from Li’s hands increased. It still didn’t do much though. When Uma got angry, her emotions leaked over the link. He could easily switch focus to hear everything through her link, rather than the words directly.

"Why do you think you're not allowed on the ship until the crew cleans up their language?"

He did roll his eyes when Emir broke in again about the no killing rule. They were VKs! They knew how to fight without fatal harm. Plus, they were made of hardier stuff. They had to be, on the Isle.

"Guys, come on," interjected Akiho, halfheartedly. "He's already injured from Mal's dragon form. Don't...don't you think you've 'tortured' him enough? Do we have to go and get Mal?"

"He's the reason I almost only had two cousins on the Isle instead of three!" Uma growled. "If the boys get to have their fun, so do I!"

"Uma, we get that—."

"It's not my fault the little witch couldn't swim!" Freddy taunted. "Come on Uma. You talk a big game but you just hide behind your lap dogs. At least your mother could back up her talk, even if she was a witch."

‘What are they talking about?’ Hadie wondered. Li’s hands covering his ears weren’t doing a very good job of blocking anything out. They were completely removed when their owner, along with all the other guys’ Hadie could see, suddenly winced.

"I don't hide behind anyone Freddy," Jay scrambled into view as Uma snarled. A loud yelp emitted from Freddy. Hadie suddenly had a good idea as to what was happening and tried not to flinch himself.

"That was for knocking Ben out tonight and ruining Mal's night and this is for what you did to Mal when we were nine!" One more yelp could be heard as Uma hit Freddy one last time.

The Tourney team started muttering, some nodding while a couple continued to shy away from the raging Uma.

"Uma, I think that's enough," Emir moved forward, stopping Uma. "I think Freddy's got the picture."

"Can I turn back around now?" Hadie piped up, bored and disappointed that he didn’t get to watch properly.

"I suppose," Uma sighed and Hadie turned back to face his cousin and Freddy.

"Wow, you guys didn't go half as hard as I thought you would!"

"Would you like us to rectify that?

"And face the Tourney team again? No thank you! I want to help!" ‘More like put me in Captain! I wanna have a go!’ But Hadie kept his mouth shut.

"Guys!" Akiho exclaimed.

"Yes?" The four VKs asked, looking at the Arendelle prince.

"Seriously that's enough! Look at him, he doesn't even look human anymore."

"To be honest, he was never truly human." Hadie heard Harry mumble. He couldn’t help but agree. ‘Since when did Auradon treat villains humanely?’

"Yeah Akiho, this is an improvement," Jay nodded. "Honestly I'm a little surprised. Ben's your best friend. I'd have thought you'd be jumping at the chance to punish Freddy for what he did."

"Jay, as a best friend, I want to pummel this cretin into the ground," Akiho stated. "But Mal gave the order that we're to make sure you guys don't kill him. You did some damage and got it out of your system but enough."

‘He hurt Ben. He hurt Mal. He was planning to kill her,’ Hadie’s thoughts raged, glaring as the others spoke around him. ‘It doesn’t matter if Mal can’t be killed. The intent was there. I refuse to stand by and let all the older kids be the only ones to dish out some punishment.’

Hadie raised his free hand and spoke.

"Um, Estelle and I didn't get to do anything.”

"Mal doesn't want Estelle biting anyone, it might confuse him," Uma said. "But come on and get your licks in Hadie. He's wounded enough, he can't do anything."

‘Estelle is smart enough to know who the enemies are,’ Hade thought as he glanced down at said dog. ‘All he needs is permission. Besides, you keep going back and forth on if he would get to do anything and he’s going to be confused anyway.’

But Hadie did feel a rush of affection when his cousin spoke and let go of Estelle’s collar. He glared down at the self-proclaimed Angel who barely gave Hadie a second glance before smirking. “Oh cute, you think it's not going to hurt because I'm younger huh? Too bad I'm a quick study, even if I was forced to turn around, and I'm going to take a page out of Harry's book." Shifting his stance, Hadie swung his leg around so that all of his weight, all of his momentum, was driven through his heel and into Freddy’s already bruised ribs. As Hadie’s left heel dug into the teen’s side, he felt a small crack, too small to be audible. Hadie sneered down at Freddy, who glared in return, knowing full well he couldn’t vocalize the pain in risk of showing weakness. Though the coughing up of blood may have given him away.

Smirking to himself, Hadie stayed silent and nodded slightly to Estelle before he turned away as Emir spoke.

"Okay, now have you gotten all of this out of your system?" Emir asked.

"No, but it'll have to do," Uma sighed.

"Good, so let's go before anyone realizes that we're missing," Akiho stated.

Hadie grinned at the light banter before he caught sight of all three of Estelle’s jaws widening. While everyone else’s backs were still turned, the canine had launched towards Freddy. 

“Oh God!” Freddy screamed as he was bitten in three different places along his arm. “Let go of me you devil!”

“Stop. Don’t,” Hadie rolled his eyes, not sympathetic in the slightest. He pretended to examine his nails and clean them. “Bad dog.”

‘Estelle deserved to get something in too. Mal’s his person after all.’

His amusement and Estelle’s revenge was put to an end when Akiho decided it was enough. “Come here Estelle, you want to go see Mal?”

The intermittent shaking of Estelle’s heads paused, big brown puppy eyes glancing between Akiho and Hadie, the final pair still glaring fiercely at Freddy as his teeth remained sunken into the enemy’s arm.

"That's right," Akiho nodded. "Let go of that nasty arm and you'll get to go see Mal. I'm sure she'd love to see you after the night she's had."

Hadie sighed at Estelle’s light whine as the dog finally focused his stares at his young mistress’ little brother. “Release.”

The tension in the room only faded slightly, most of the people within chuckling as Estelle dashed off to finally hang about his number one person. The group slowly returned to the party, content that Freddy was stuck in a land of nightmares, behind a locked door until he was returned to the Isle.

Though they had been unnoticed when slipping away from the festivities, the return of so many missing members garnered immediate attention. Friend after friend approaching, from Carlos to Lonnie, in concern.

Hadie would remember Harry complimenting Gil for the rest of eternity. Only for Harry to be saved from his embarrassment by the onslaught of calls from worried parents.

‘Guess we’re close enough to get proper reception again,’ Hadie glanced towards the ever growing closer docks.

“Hadie!”

Hadie looked away from his conversation with Herkie and Melody as Alex came running forward. His shoulders relaxed from a tension he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.

"Are you alright?" Alexandria grabbed onto Hadie’s forearms, gasping her question as she tried to steady her breath.

"I'm fine,” he answered honestly. He was far more concerned about his friend, having not seen Alexandria since Gil had taken him to safety. “What about you? Did Freddy—?"

"He never got the chance," Alexandria shook her head. "Gods though, I hope he doesn't have Chad. The fact that he had his invitation..."

"Call him," Hadie offered. "He might be somewhere sleeping or something. Didn't you say he didn't have a date?"

By happenstance, the moment Alexandria retrieved her phone from a hidden pocket, it joined the many other phones in ringing suddenly. 

It looked like Chad was okay after all. Just not sleeping safe and sound. The overall conversation of the older teens still somehow turned to relationships and Hadie attempted to tune them out.

He really didn’t need to know who Evan’s sisters were dating. Thank you very much.

Though he did give Uma a very pointed look when Akiho started ribbing Harry about being in denial for someone himself.

Photos. ASAP.

They’re done, and they mean nothing. I still have no clue what you’re trying to get out of this.

Y’know, we should visit Egypt one day. Mom’s spoken about her delegation trips to the Pantheon there.

What’s your point, Hadie? Hadie snickered. Uma clearly wasn’t having it tonight.

Just looking for song inspiration. Could call it Pirates of the Nile.

“I think my mom’s coming to get me,” Hadie grinned, quickly moving away out of headlocking distance from a glaring Uma while after party plans were still being discussed. Though if it did succeed in getting Uma and Harry together, he just had to get his mom to let him go.

“Hadie!” His mother approached with a large smile. “You’d gone off and I didn’t know—"

"I was with Uma," Hadie said with an innocent smile that Persephone didn't buy in an instant. "Mom, can I join the others in a slumber party?"

"Hmm...I don't know," Persephone said.

"Please mom?!"

"We'll be with him the whole time, Aunt Steph," Uma stated. "After tonight, I promise, it'll be just a relaxing evening with friends."

"...there's blood on Hadie's shoes."

Hadie looked down. A flash of a memory of Frollo coughing up blood appeared in his mind. Whoops.

"That was there this whole time?"

You’re really selling this, Uma.

Hush. You’re the one who forced me to take those stupid photos anyways. Consider this revenge.

"Why is there blood on my son's shoes Uma?"

"He was practicing his kicking and Freddy got in the way?"

Excuses. You’re just shit at lying to my mom.

Oi, what did I say about language! This is why your sassy little brain ain’t allowed back on the ship!

We’re not even on the Isle anymore, why should it matter? Hadie continued to taunt his cousin and captain. They were already caught out. He’d resigned himself to a lecture once he and his mom went home.

Persephone looked at the two of them and shook her head. "Come with me Hadie. Uma, I can't ground you but I'm certainly very disappointed in you young lady."

Damn.

"Does it lessen your disappointment if I said it was Freddy's blood?"

"...you've been around your Uncle too much.” But they could pick up the barest of smiles upon Persephone’s lips as she tugged Hadie towards the disembarking plank, the yacht finally docked for the evening once more.

“Dooooes that mean I’m not in trouble for participating in Freddy’s interrogation?”

He fell silent at his mother’s unimpressed stare.

“We’ll talk later,” she said as they stood in line to disembark. “You will not leave my side again. I have a few things to wrap up, and then we will head to my apartment for the night, understand?”

“Yes, mom,” Hadie quietly replied, only slightly assuaged at his mother’s soft smile as he took her hand. He walked close to her, the skirt of her dress brushing against his legs as they walked carefully down the plank. “What do you need to do?”

Persephone sighed for the umpteenth time that night. She knew he was genuinely curious, but she was already displeased with her son for having snuck off to participate in…less than savory actions. She couldn’t go back on keeping him from heading off with friends for the night either, nor could she just leave temporarily to take him to her apartment and come back. Not after such a stressful night.

“I’m waiting to finish organizing a certain someone’s return to the Isle,” she said softly, trying to avoid letting passerby overhear her plans. Still, she felt the need to be honest with Hadie so he’d understand the seriousness of the situation. Even if he had been part of the Wharf Rats, she was uncomfortable with the vindictive lessons they had felt necessary for him to learn.

The mixture from her and Mal’s attempts to keep him innocent, but also keep him capable was hard to balance.

‘Uh oh, that means…’ Hadie realized.

“Don’t worry about being too careful, gentlemen,” Belle’s voice sounded from further down the dock, her normal, jovial voice was cool and sharp as Hadie and his mother approached where some guards were dragging Freddy into a proper prison transport. “This…miscreant certainly didn’t care when he attacked my son tonight.”

“He’ll be getting a basic health review anyways,” Persephone said as she took a stance next to Belle, hand still firmly grasping around Hadie’s. She raised a stern brow at Hadie as she took in the sight of the knocked out and bloody face of her daughter’s tormentor. “I was hoping to send him tonight or tomorrow, but as our proper medical decrees are finally in place, it looks like he’ll be needing a week or so to heal before we can ship him off.”

‘Oops.’

“I’m not surprised,” Belle sighed, wringing her hands on her skirt. “No one will be punished for it. The students are very protective of each other. I doubt many in the kingdom would be very upset.”

“It’s still the essence of the matter at hand. We can’t just allow exceptions whenever we desire or the example to all the kingdoms under Auradon’s umbrella will send mixed messages,” Persephone frowned. Belle looked at the Goddess in surprise. “That’s not to say I’m against roughing this boy up, but it’s propriety and doing things legal that is important right now. Things are rocky enough with our new young King and his less than accepted VK decree.”

“You’re absolutely right, I just meant since we don’t know who did this to Mr. Frollo, there isn’t much else we can do but proceed as normal,” Belle smiled slightly, looking up to meet Persephone’s eyes.

The Goddess blinked.

“Ah, yes, no one seemed to know anything about Mr. Frollo’s injuries. Didn’t get much of a look of him when he was dragged off after my daughter brought him back for…interrogation.”

“Neither did I. I do have to thank Mal for protecting my son. There shouldn't have been a need for guards on the boat, but clearly things slip through. Otherwise, it’s perfectly acceptable under the clause for a citizen’s defense.”

Hadie couldn’t help the shiver that crawled up his spine as the two Queen’s (although one former) smiled and nodded to each other as if they were discussing the weather over tea.

Why is it that women seemed so much scarier than the men he had met? The girls on the Isle terrified him too. At least he didn’t need to deal with his dad just yet. Though the God of the Dead had been oddly quiet over the mental link, most likely panicking to his wife than possibly worrying either of his children as he watched the live broadcast of one of the largest nuisances of the Isle attack his daughter.

A few minutes later, Fredrick Frollo was hauled off. He would be held in one of the oldest dungeons, unfortunately at the school, but plenty of guards would be assigned to him. It wouldn’t be too big of a deal of him being near the young royals as Spring Break was due to begin in a couple of days anyway.

Persephone and Belle continued to speak in hushed tones for a bit longer, Hadie straining to eavesdrop as distracted as he was watching the docks become busier with partygoers, workers and paparazzi alike buzzing around. Eventually he felt the lights become bleary and tuned out even the most interesting of conversations, yawning as he continued to hold on to his mom’s hand, swaying sleepily.

“Ah, I suppose it is past his bedtime, he’s never gotten to stay up this late,” Hadie heard his mother say, her voice seemingly far away. He felt himself be pulled closer, cuddled into his side as he heard goodnights exchanged between Belle and Persephone.

“G’mnigh, La’ee Belle,” Hadie mumbled into his mother’s dress. He heard soft giggles in reply, a quiet “Goodnight, Prince Hadie” was the last he heard from Ben’s mother before the scent of lavender blossomed around him and the sounds of the docks faded away.

“Come along darling, let’s get you out of your nice suit and ready for bed.”

Hadie blinked and squinted around as his mother flicked on the light of her apartment’s living room.

“Go on, go brush your teeth while I find you some pajamas,” Persephone shooed him into the bathroom.

Tiredly, he brushed his teeth, energy almost completely depleted as his arm moved slowly back and forth. Back…and forth…

Back…

His head jolted upwards as his brain forced him back awake, adrenaline pumping from nearly falling forward.

“Blech, ptooey,” Hadie spat into the sink and rinsed his mouth, stripping down to his underwear just in time for his mom to return, knocking lightly at the door.

“Here you are Hadie,” Persephone handed him a pair of silver, liquid like pajamas. “I’d forgotten I picked these up for you, your old pajamas seemed to be getting a little small.

“Hnnh, thanks mom,” he slurred, pulling the silk pjs on, barely able to spare the energy to marvel at the feeling before he stumbled out of the bathroom and once again into his mother’s arms.

Luckily, she was already in her own golden nightgown of a similar material, unworried as she led them into the sole bedroom of the apartment. Hadie crawled onto the large bed and under the blanket as Persephone turned off all of the lights save for the bedside table lamp before scooting under the covers with him. With a click, the lamp turned off, only a soft blue glow remaining from the bathroom outlet, illuminating the night should anyone need it.

“A far too exciting day in my opinion,” Persephone said softly as she pulled Hadie into her arms, a hand running through his hair as he cuddled into the crook of her shoulder.

“Maybe just a bit,” he laughed lightly before yawning again. “Did you and dad know? About Ben asking Mal?”

‘Was that why mom had been talking to Ben a while back? About changing the agreement with dad?’ He didn’t voice the question, tired and unsure how his mother would react. He didn’t want to make her sad.

“Yes,” Persephone chuckled. “He asked not long after we took care of Mal’s handler.”

The sarcasm was palpable.

“Now, it’s time you got some sleep, we’ve had a long day,” she dropped a kiss upon his head. “Besides, your father’s demanded you and Mal to speak with him tomorrow, just to set his mind at ease.”

“Nnyyyyeeh,” Hadie groaned, shaking his head into his mother’s neck.

“Don’t worry,” she laughed. “He was praising you over the mind link for wanting to look out for your sister, and since the older kids were with you, he figured you were safe from any harm.”

“Heh, that’s cool of him. I’m sorry I worried you though,” Hadie couldn’t help but yawn again, edging closer and closer to sleep. “I’m just happy I’ll get to see dad again, m-maybe see Celia and Dizzy before they get to come to Auradon too…”

His mother stayed silent, unaware of a sad frown pulling at her lips. She didn’t want to ruin his night, knowing anything she had to say would make him awake again. And upset.

“M-mom?”

“Yes, dear?” she whispered.

“C-could you sing for me?” Hadie mumbled into her loose curls. He heard her soft laugh and began to stroke his hair once more, singing;

Baby mine, don't you cry

Baby mine…

The next morning, rays of sunshine warmed Hadie’s face, blue hair tousled by sleep as he sniffed the air, waking to the smell of breakfast. Stumbling out of bed, Hadie tugged off his new, oversized pair of pajamas, well aware of the intention to allow him to grow into the silk, or at least engulf him to make him look smaller for his mom’s benefit once more.

They might’ve technically been rich, but his parents could be oddly frugal.

A pair of jeans, shirt and sweater laid already waiting for him atop the dresser with a note to shower quickly. Doing as told, Hadie showered, dressed and walked down the hallway to find his mother and Mal halfway through breakfast, chatting excitedly about possible wedding plans.

“Already, really? And this early in the day?” Hadie groaned as he moved for the plate set aside for him.

“Well, it’s not like I had planned to get married at all before I met Ben. Kinda need to figure that out soon so that when we do the actual preparations we aren’t going in totally blind.”

“Oy vey, this has barely started and I already don’t want to be surrounded by wedding talk.”

Persephone and Mal rolled their eyes good naturedly at Hadie’s pouting, Mal kicking a chair out from the table for her brother to sit in.

“Come on and eat, bro bro, we’ve got places to be today.”

“Heck yeah we do!” Hadie grinned, taking his seat and began to dig into his eggs and sausage. “Can’t wait to see dad and the crew again!”

He paused from taking another mouthful as he saw Mal and their mom wince.

“Is…something wrong? We’re still going to see dad, right?” His eyes were wide, darting back and forth between the two seated across from him.

“You haven’t told him?” Mal grimaced, glancing at their mom.

“Told me what?”

“Hadie…” Persephone sighed. “I didn’t say anything because it was late and you were falling asleep, but…we’re not going to the Isle.”

“W-we’re not? Why?”

“Because it’s not safe for you,” the Goddess began, holding up a hand as Hadie moved to speak again. “No, don’t interrupt. I don’t mean in the traditional sense, I’m well aware Mal and your crew would look out for you. I know you could even just be restricted to your father’s side of the Isle, but that’s not our concern.”

Every protesting point Hadie could think of died at his mother’s explanation. ‘What else could it possibly be then?’ He gave them a begging, inquiring look, desperate for them to just tell him already.

“Your—” Persephone faltered and cleared her throat.

“Do you want me to, mom?” Mal asked in concern.

“No, no, thank you. I need to say it,” Persephone took a deep breath.

“Mom, you're scaring me,” Hadie whispered much to his mother’s detriment.

“I’m sorry, I just…you can’t go because we can’t risk the Barrier hurting you further,” she finally said, running a hand through her hair. “Asklepios’ latest review, when we went a few days ago, shows that if his theory is correct, that going back under the Barrier could seriously harm your continued recovery and growth.”

The air in the room was stiff as Hadie slumped forward, no longer holding interest in his food. “So, I can never go back? To even see dad again?”

“Oh, sweetie, I don’t mean forever,” Persephone quavered, sliding out of her seat and onto a knee next to Hadie. “Your magic hasn’t completely stabilized and it still has some catching up to do to where you should be. You’ll have to keep checkups every three months, but Asklepios thinks you’ll be okay to visit again at the end of the year at the latest!”

It wasn’t much, but her attempt to placate him worked a little bit.

‘I guess that’s not forever.’ Hadie sighed and closed his eyes. ‘Sure, feels like it though.’

“What are the plans for today then? Are we still seeing dad?”

“Absolutely, we’ll just be going to the Mirror-Portal instead, okay?” 

“Can we go now?” Hadie pouted, ignoring Mal’s pointed look at his barely touched breakfast.

Persephone pursed her lips as she refrained from answering, instead pulling a familiar vial and wrapper from her nearby purse.

“If you’re really not going to eat right now, don’t forget to diligently take your medicine,” she sternly said, handing the ambrosia and nectar to Hadie who immediately down the two morsels. “I expect you to eat plenty after you see your father then.”

“I won’t forget,” Hadie whined. “Missing a day would mean that much longer before seeing dad in the flesh!”

“Too true,” Mal oddly smirked. “You need to get this influx stage to finish its cycle before your body automatically starts the fourth stage.”

Persephone nodded sagely in agreement and stood from where she had knelt. Only offering a mild, though amused, glare as Mal coughed something that sounded like ‘puberty’.

“Come along, your father’s impatient to see you. Both of you.”

Before her children could get another word in, petals and leaves swirled around them. Forming and dissipating just as quickly as they came to reveal a crowded forest around them, and a lone, elaborate mirror standing within a large, hollowed tree.

“Huh, I didn’t know this was in a tree,” Hadie spoke, caught off guard.

“It wasn’t, not originally,” Persephone said as she approached the Mirror. “The tree grew around it, the forest having grown rapidly since I spent so much time here. My magic touches earth innately, not just at a whim.”

Their mother gently touched the side of the Mirror, Hadie making out just the faintest carving of runes throughout the design.

“Hades?”

“Persephone!”

Hadie and Mal immediately perked up at the sound of their father’s voice and quietly moved forward to stand on either side of their mom.

“Hades, have you been waiting by the Portal all day? I told you about when we’d come—”

“I know, I know, I’ve just been worried. I sent the minions away for the day, so I didn’t want to risk…” Hades trailed off, beaming as he took in the sight of his kids appearing.

“I’m glad to see you’re both okay. Seriously, had me worried!” He exclaimed, taking in Mal’s apologetic smile. “Can we avoid any more dangerous situations please? I’d prefer not to test your immortality.”

“You and me both, dad,” Mal said, shaking her head. “The Isle might never leave my heart, but I’d like to retire from the Isle dangers if the Fates could please.”

“Ha, good luck with that,” Hades scoffed. “They do as they please. We can only hope…in the meantime, neither of you are hurt, are you?”

“Nope!” the siblings emphatically shook their heads.

“Harry had Gil take Hadie to hide somewhere the moment they realized Freddy was near,” Mal explained. “You saw everything pertaining to me on the T.V.”

“And your…fiancé? How’s he doing?”

Mal smiled sadly at her dad. “Better. Enough to ease my worries. I just can’t believe you actually gave permission.”

“As much as I hate to see you grow up, I’m not going to stand in the way of my little girl’s happiness,” sighed Hades. “Plus, you and your mother would likely have my head if I’d said no.”

“It was a bit like pulling teeth, but luckily we’d had this discussion about the possibility much earlier.”

“Well, we can talk about details later. As agreed, no actual wedding for quite a few years yet, and I think someone else would prefer to be left out of such talks.” Hades glanced at his son, smirking at the impatient pout on his face, the Godling tapping his foot. “C’mere, Hadie.”

“Hi, dad,” Hadie spoke softly, eyes still downcast after being told he couldn’t visit for a little over six more months.

“We told him.” Persephone simply said.

“Look at you,” Hades sighed. “I sent off a little shrimp of a Godling, a foot shorter than Mali. You’ve sprouted a whole four inches it looks like, and still have more catching up to do.”

“I know,” Persephone cooed, resting her hands on a reddening Hadie’s shoulders and nuzzling his hair. “You should’ve seen him last night, looking so handsome in a suit. I hope you got photos done, Hadie!”

"I saw him on the TV. You played great, Hadie, proud of you kid," Hades grinned down at his son. "Besides, Steph, he's got two good looking parents, he'd be a good looking kid."

Persephone rolled her eyes, but smiled. Off to the side, Mal snickered. “According to Uma, he got them done with a girl.”

Hades tensed. “Oi, I said no dating!”

“Oh, were they with Alexandria, the girl you introduced me to last night? You two were so cute together!”

“Steph, don’t encourage this!”

“It was just a bet with Uma to get her own pictures done with Harry!” Hadie shouted over the noise, Mal’s laughter off to the side suddenly cutting off. “Alex and I are just friends, sheesh.”

“Wait, Uma didn’t say anything about that!” Mal whined.

“Trust me,” Hadie smirked. “I watched her. Did them after she dropped you off at the waiting room so less people would notice. Promised me physical copies.”

“Ah, my devious child, I’m so proud,” Hadie sighed happily, pretending to wipe away a tear. “Well, I’m glad you three are all doing okay.”

“Don’t pretend as if this was a simple social call, Hades,” scolded Persephone. “You were panicking over our telepathy link almost all night the moment Frollo showed up! Begging to see our kids to make sure they were okay yourself.”

The children in question chuckled, well aware of how overprotective both of their parents could be.

“Hey, Hadie,” Mal whispered to her little brother as their parents continued to argue (re: tease each other). She handed him a small wild flower she’d dug up, the boy recognizing it as a branch of mountainbells. “Why don’t you show mom and dad some of the magic you practiced?”

“Oh, good idea!” For the first time that day, Hadie truly smiled, bright and excited.

“Mom, dad!” He called out to interrupt their bickering. The moment they looked over, Hadie and Mal smirked.

The plant ignited.

His parents panicked as they saw him handle a fireball larger than they’d ever let him summon. He heard a click, and Mal’s laughter as she took a photo of their parents’ gob smacked reactions as the fire dissipated, and a brand new, brighter segment of mountainbells bloomed from the ash in his hand.

Okay, so maybe he could’ve showcased his new powers more carefully. They were still impressed though, if Persephone’s squeals and the fond shaking of Hades’ head were anything to go by.

Not even a year in Auradon, and they’d all had their ups and downs. It wasn’t perfect.

But they had each other.

And Hope.

Chapter Text

"Thanks for playing at Cotillion for me, Hadie," Mal said as she walked side by side with her little brother the day after Cotillion. They were heading to meet their mom for lunch, now that the impromptu excitement had been handled. "I never checked out the music rooms, not my scene. But it's cool that they had a blue guitar for you to borrow."

"Huh?" Hadie said intelligently, glancing at Mal as a single dark blue brow raised. "I mean, no problem. It's…It was sort of my way for apologizing for our fight earlier." He looked down at his shoes, slightly embarrassed.

Mal smiled softly at her little brother, amused at the light dusting of pink appearing at his ears. "I appreciate that…I know I said it when we practiced magic together, but I'm sorry I didn't open up to you. To anyone. I let our family stubbornness and my own pride of being able to take care of myself get in the way of letting anyone in. I thought I was keeping all the hurt to myself, but I never realized that by suffering alone, I was making everyone around me hurt to by not letting them understand what was happening."

"Consider your apology accepted, Mali," Hadie smiled widely before he turned oddly serious. "Just know if you ever do something like this again, there will be no holding back. I'll grab Uma too, since she seems to be the only one to force you to communicate!" The serious face lasted all about a second past his mini-speech before he began giggling.

Her own laugh bubbling up, Mal playfully shoved Hadie with her shoulder. "I don't imagine I could ever get away with it again," she said, shaking her head as Hadie lightly bumped her back as they continued the way to their mom's room. She began to tick names off with her fingers. "Between you, mom and dad, Ben, Uma, Jay, Harry…and now all of our Auradon friends, I'm likely to be held hostage by you lot until I speak. Dad alone would lock me in a padded room and baby me for all eternity if he thought he could get away with it."

"I don't think dad needs an excuse to lock either of us away," snorted Hadie. "We could get a papercut and he'd freak out."

"That's unfortunately true," smirked Mal. Reaching their mother's room, she knocked.

"You know," Hadie began as they waited for the door to open. "I didn't borrow a guitar."

"What do you mean?" Mal glanced at Hadie, perplexed.

"Mom brought mine back and Neal helped me get it fixed."

"She did?"

"I did," their mother interjected, smiling as she opened the door to greet them.

"Hi, mom!" The siblings said in unison, happily moving forward to embrace Persephone.

"Hello, my beautiful children," the Goddess smiled, hugging them back. She felt her heart swell. It was good to see the fight seemed little more than an afterthought for the two Godlings. "Are you ready to leave?"

"How are we leaving, did you get another limo from Ben?" asked Mal as Persephone pulled them into her room, closing the door behind them.

"I'll be teleporting us to a friend's place. We're leaving the country for lunch," Persephone idly said as she finished getting ready herself.

"Wait, what?" Mal and Hadie stared at their mother in surprise.

"Can you do that? Can we do that?" blurted Mal, tensing.

"No need to panic, dear," Persephone spoke softly. "I figured you'd like to avoid paparazzi, and this is owned by a friend, so they can guarantee us privacy, even from Olympus."

"That seems a bit over the top though, we could've just stayed at the school again," Mal pointed out.

"You've been humble all your life when it comes to resources, let me spoil my kids once in a while."

Mal pursed her lips but didn't protest any further. She knew her mom had a point, evidence found in the single serving meals that she took and the forcing of snacks by friends.

'Honestly, Mal is just as bad as Ben when it comes to meals, just for different reasons,' Hadie snickered internally.

"So where are we going then?" Hadie asked as they moved back into the hallway and towards the teleportation room.

"A small place in Italy that Hestia and Aphrodite surprisingly co-created," Persephone shrugged as she took one of each of her children's hands and began to glow. Before either child could protest, her teleportation activated and swirled them onto columned balcony.

"Steph!" A voice squealed. "Oh, and these must be the infamous kiddies!"

Both Mal and Hadie stiffened at the sight of a bright, pink, most-definitely-a-Goddess ran towards them from an archway. Her hair was molten gold, and her tanned skin glowed pink in an equally saturated pink dress.

Persephone tried not to laugh at the 'Ew' that burst over the link from the Godlings. Long ingrained was the hatred for the color pink in all Isle citizens.

"'Dite!" The Goddesses hugged each other briefly before Persephone beckoned to her kids. "Yes, my children; Mal and Hadie. Darlings, this is Aphrodite, friend, rival, and Goddess of Love and Beauty."

"Rival? Like myself and Evie?" Mal deadpanned, cutting off as Hadie elbowed her.

Glad to see your old self again, Mal, but kinda need those stuffy mannerisms right now. Hadie thought to his sister. Sorry, he added as he felt her wince at the reminder.

"An honor at last, Lady Aphrodite,"Hadie stepped forward and bowed lightly.

"Official introductions aside, don't worry about it, sugar," Aphrodite smirked, waving a hand uncaringly. "You can call me Auntie, so long as you don't directly insult me, I'm not like some of the Gods who need to have formality every interaction."

Her light cough sounded very much like 'Athena'.

"My husband has already corrupted the kids, 'Dite, you don't need to add to it," snorted Persephone. "And I don't need them getting in trouble with the other Gods before they can make proper first impressions."

"Ugh, you and Hades with the schmoozing and the politics," Aphrodite sniffed before waving them all inside. "I 'spose you already have to be cautious enough being Chthonic, but I can see your family easily regaining the respect you deserve versus this paltry courtesy the other idiots have been giving you."

Mal and Hadie glanced at each other in confusion, unsure of the topic's turn. They were tentative to even add to the conversation, considering they knew little of the current affairs outside of 'it was this God's turn to be an idiot'. They kept their silence at the look from their mother.

"They know well enough to not anger myself, even should Hades never become free of the Isle," scoffed Persephone, rolling her eyes. "Apollo alone forgets that I am equal to Hera and Amphitrite, and Dionysus is too drunk to remember things most of the time! The least of all how I ran things under my mother before I even really knew Hades."

"Just keep in mind if we get the current referendum passed, I want you to buy in," Aphrodite lowered her voice as they entered a dome like area, plucking the menus from a server who appeared at the ready. "Run it by your husband if you must."

I feel like we're missing something, Mal thought to Hadie.

You and me both. I tried to look up stuff at school and there's only Olympus sanctioned information at school, no details.

What kind of stuff?

Any God dad has ever mentioned. Mom and dad themselves. It's interesting to see what the public image for everyone is, versus the gossip. There isn't much on our parents or Underworld operations outside of what happened with Hercules though.

Mal grabbed Hadie by the shoulders, pulling him close as their eyes adjusted to the large, open room with greatly distanced booths set with low candle light. Only a few of them were occupied, but just like how Mal couldn't make out any of their faces, she was sure in the middle of the dark room away from any candles that they were just as difficult to see.

I'll see what I can dig up offline of the school servers, Mal replied as Aphrodite led them to one of the most distance tables and set the menus down.

"I'll let Tia know you're here," Aphrodite whispered. "Now, I must be off. We'll schedule a proper tea sometime. Ciao!"

As quickly as she came, the Goddess of Love rushed off, this time through a pair of doors that could only lead to the kitchens.

"She seems…nice?" Mal looked on bewildered at where the Goddess had disappeared off too before turning her attention to the menu in her hand. "And you're closer to her than I would've thought."

The young woman truly had never considered it, just realizing that her mom may have close friends and confidents even if rarely spoken of. She got even more confused as she tried to read the menu.

"Your initial assessment of us being as you and Evie are now wouldn't be too far off," giggled Persephone as she tapped Mal's menu, turning the Greek characters into English, the funny look of confusion disappearing from her daughter's face. Hadie shook his head as their mom moved to do the same for him.

"Μελέτη τὸ πα̑ν," he mumbled.

"If you'd like," Persephone nodded to her son before turning back to Mal.

"'Dite and I…have a, somewhat, tumultuous relationship," Persephone began quietly. "If only because of some jealously that led to her trying to steal my beauty. A story for a time in which she is not being our gracious host, though."

She gave her children a stern look to signal that they hold their questions for another day.

"I promise to fill you all with proper gossip when I have to teach you properly leading up to Mal's summer introductions, but for now I just want to enjoy the company of my beautiful babies."

Mal and Hadie rolled their eyes, but smiled at their always doting mother.

"Do I have to?" Mal whined. "I already met Zeus, and after this last semester, I think I need a break from the snooty lifestyle expectations."

"It won't be a focused hosting like Cotillion was, more of a grand introduction where your full title is read off, you say your hellos and then we can go."

"Does Uma have to go? Will Macaria and Elle be there?" Mal chewed at her lip. "Shouldn't Hadie have to be there too?"

"Woah, nope, nopenopenope, as much as I'd love to support you sis, I already had my fill of Olympians in having to spend a day with our lovely grandmother whereas you got to skip," Hadie pouted in turn, setting his menu down.

"Plus, official introductions occur at fifteen, dear, Hadie will in time," Persephone explained as a waiter arrived to take their order. "But otherwise yes, Uma will join you. You'll take your lessons together as Amphitrite requested that I teach her as well in her place. And I'm sure Elle and Macaria will be there even if you don't request them."

"I guess that's not too bad then," Mal kept her eyes downcast as thoughts ran through her head. At least she wouldn't be alone, and above all, her family would never let what happened with Natalie occur ever again. Not if they could help it.

But Summer was months away, and from the sounds of it, it would be just brief classes every weekend. No frantic, controlling, crazy person trying to manipulate and run Mal ragged. Her mom teaching was just the perfect bonus, spending time with her for the first year ever in a season they'd never had before?

Mal was actually looking forward to it.

Too bad they were about to get news that would bring back the stress she had finally gotten rid of.

"What do you mean you're postponing the next group?" Hadie looked up in a panic, homework forgotten. They'd all put so much work in organizing how groups would be officially selected just before Cotillion, trying so hard to make the VK initiative as real as it could be.

He'd been hunkered down in his dorm for the last few days, the finals for the Winter trimester quickly approaching now that Cotillion was all done and Spring break was around the corner. Ben and Mal had come in a few minutes ago, the locking of the door sending alarm bells off in his head. Now it made sense. This wasn't the kind of news they wanted all over the school, especially with all the VKs already on edge.

"Trust me, Hadie, none of us want to do this." Ben said as he ran a hand through his hair, his own face expressing disappointment. "Of course, I want to keep going, but the Council has concerns. I can at least promise we negotiated a time limit to how long they can embargo me from bringing more kids from the Isle."

"And don't forget, bro," interjected Mal, laying an arm across Hadie's shoulders. "The Isle is in better care now. They have real food and supplies as needed, not to mention the Hospital is finally up. This is either until we catch Freddy and find the stolen staff and spell book, or we hit two months. That's the agreed upon time limit."

"Alright," Hadie agreed reluctantly. He still couldn't believe that somehow the injured Angel had escaped from his prison, no sign of head nor tail of him in the last few days. "I get those are both very important points and hopefully won't risk anyone else's safety. It's just that Celia and Dizzy have already been stuck on the Isle for six months, I guess I was just hoping they wouldn't have to wait more than a month like I did. I'm the only kid my age from the Isle still!"

"I'm really sorry about that, Hadie. I can't imagine how hard it's been having to make new friends and adjust to Auradon without any other kid your age going through the same experience, but you really have integrated awesomely," Ben rested a hand on Hadie's free shoulder.

"Besides, you're going to be a little distracted with end of year exams by the time the two months is up," Mal lightly joked, giving Hadie a small shoulder shove. "In the meantime, isn't mom taking you to meet her mom when Spring Break starts?"

"Don't remind me," Hadie groaned. "Mom said she's going to be so busy starting the new season that she can't monitor the meeting as closely as she had intended. It's going to be so awkward!"

"I'm sorry, Hads," grimaced Mal, genuinely concerned for his plight. She had already expressed no interest in meeting Demeter, not just for the older Goddess' dislike of their father, but also for not listening to her own daughter when asked for assistance with the Isle. Mal was thoroughly convinced that the Gods held no interests other than their own, the proof in trying to get Hadie off the Isle instead of helping improve the overall livability. At least for now. In the meantime, she had bigger fish to fry. Freddy fish.

"Hopefully she's not too overbearing and keeps her mouth shut if she has any complaints about our…lifestyle."

Hadie snorted at Mal's choice of words. "Care to bet on that?"

Ben snorted too, coughing to cover up his laugh. Despite Mal's words, no one could think of any other possible outcome…but to ask to gamble on it was a challenge Mal could never turn down, the temptation for her was always too much to resist even with such a small chance of victory.

"Alright, little brother, on the off-chance mom's mom, doesn't say something against dad or complain about your Isle upbringing? Fifty bucks."

"Dollars?" Hadie laughed. "You must not be confident in grandmother if you're betting common money instead of drachma!"

"Hey!"

Laughter broke out, Ben jumping up on to Jay's bed as he watched Hadie dodge Mal's swipe, his girlfriend threatening to knuckle Hadie's hair until the friction caused it to burst into flames or force it to all fall out.

Too bad Mal indeed would owe her brother fifty dollars in the end.

Exams done, Hadie waited impatiently at the magical receiving room with his small suitcase packed and ready to go for Spring Break. He'd be bouncing around for the next week and a half, almost every day scheduled to visit a friend or…family. His lips formed a pout as he thought about the impending disaster that he felt meeting his grandmother would be. The only upside is it would be out of the way first, the rest of break spent visiting friends until the last few days…in which depending on how this first meeting would go, would be either just another 'get to know' or an extra awkward 'sorry about last time' dinner. Trying not to think poor thoughts, Hadie shook his head before he stared out the window and tapped his foot restlessly. Though he knew he shouldn't be. His mom had said she'd pick him up at 3:30pm and there was still fifteen minutes until then. It wasn't her fault that he'd gotten excited and finished getting ready early. It just didn't help to mention most his friends had either already left that very morning or the moment their exams were up, so there was no one really around to help distract him.

As luck would have it, his mother arrived early. A soft green glow lit the room and a dust devil of leaves appeared from nowhere, billowing into the shape of the Goddess before a final flash of light faded to reveal her fully. Persephone's face lit up at the sight of her son already waiting for her.

"Hadie!" Persephone swept forward, her long brown skirt fluttering around as she closed the distance towards her son.

"Hi, mom!" Hadie shouted in return as he leapt forward into her waiting open arms, giggling as some of his mother's hair fell loose from its messy bun into his face.

"All ready to go then?" she asked, softly resting a hand atop his head.

"Yup!" exclaimed Hadie as he tugged on her knit green sweater. "Just my backpack with over break homework and a suitcase for clothes."

"Great, well no need to hang around until the time we had planned on, might as well go early," said Persephone. "If you end up needing anything else, we can pick it up another day."

Letting go of his mother, Hadie swung his backpack on and rolled his suitcase over into the designated circle. As his mother took his hand into her own, he took a deep breath and prepared himself for the feeling of teleportation.

Hardly a second later, he found himself standing once again in his mom's apartment.

"Freedom!" Hadie shouted, dropping his backpack and falling face first into the couch pillows.

"Temporarily at least," Persephone laughed as she fell onto the couch next to her son, whacking him lightly with one of the errant pillows much to his indignation. "You had lunch, didn't you? Is there anything you'd like for dinner? Or a snack until then?"

"I'm okay, had plenty of food for lunch at school," Hadie said, smiling up at his mom. "Herkie alone makes sure I eat, let alone Mal and the others. I'm not on the Isle anymore, mom."

The last bit he added softly, knowing Persephone's doting was from years of her children suffering with only her able to fix them when she was around with extra food.

"It's not perfect, but we're okay now," Hadie continued, his mother smiling sadly as he sat up and cuddled up next to her, the Goddess pulling him into a hug. It hadn't been a year yet in Auradon for his sister either, barely even a half. The things she had gone through, Hadie couldn't even begin to fathom, but they'd gotten through it.

"We're gonna be okay."

'This is so not okay.'

Hadie sulked as he squinted up at the bright, blue skies. Nymphs of various colors and plant origins surrounded him, cooing and fawning over him since the moment he arrived. At least he hadn't met Demeter yet.

'Grandmother, I need to refer to her as Grandmother,' Hadie thought to himself as he pouted and flinched away from one nymph that had been brave enough to attempt to touch his hair.

'I promised mom I would be on my best behavior. That this was going to be…difficult and even more different that Auradon had been. Though at least the other kids understand personal space.'

The sound of a throat clearing made the nymphs scatter somewhat to the side. Hadie raised a brow slightly at how they all curtsied, but were otherwise informal in the presence of two Goddesses. Ignoring the tittering for now, he peered upwards, shoulders tense as he was officially presented before his Grandmother for the first time.

His immediate thought was that despite looking similar to his own mom, Demeter's visage held a stern, but laughter lined appearance. The next thought was where he had thought her very tall, when he had seen her at the school near Fairy Godmother. Now Hadie realized she was quite short, at least compared to his own mother who was even shorter than the dainty Hera according to the photos that Herkie had shown him. Mixed in with the plumpness of the Goddess, Demeter radiated an odd mix of strictness with smothering, simpering, kindness.

"Ladies," Persephone frowned at the crowd. "Please refrain from all of you converging on my son until he's gotten used to a few of you at a time."

She held out an arm towards Hadie, the Godling immediately bounding forward and tucking himself into his mother's side. He preened as she smiled down at him, one hand lightly petting his head.

"First off, rules."

"Persephone, now really, I don't thi—"

"Do not touch his hair. Only I, or his sister, despite his protests, are allowed," Persephone barely turned to glare at her mother. "Do not take him off the farm grounds. And that goes to you too Hadie, it means do not wander past the copper fences. Only I will be taking him to and from the properties. Now as this is his first time here, I do want two of you to stay with him at all times until it's time for him to leave. Yes, that includes when he is with you, Mother. He is allowed to tell you no. Any of you. You will listen to him. Remember, despite stories I have shared, you are strangers to him. He is not used to random hugs or anything of the sort, so please give him space to adjust."

Hadie smiled slightly at his mom, some trepidation slipping through. They'd talked about how things would go last night over dinner, and once more over breakfast before coming to the Farms. Rules would be established, he would be introduced to Demeter, then he would be left to the mercy of the Nymphs to be given a small tour before he was expected to be brought in for lunch. He'd then spend the afternoon with Demeter before Persephone return to either have dinner, or take him home depending on how the one on one went.

He was ecstatic. Really.

Totally.

"O, Ματηρα," Persephone carefully began, applying slight pressure onto Hadie's shoulder to push him forward again to be officially introduced. "I welcome you to meet Hadie, first born son of Hades. May he be safe in your care."

"Greetings, Hadie," Demeter nodded, gesturing towards the land behind her. "I accept you into my abode. I offer shelter and food, by the laws of χενια I shall respect you as you respect me…" The stern façade dropped, and a bright smile shed years from Demeter's face as she continued more casually from the traditional demeanor. "I am so glad to meet you at last, as short as our time today will be. Unfortunately, that will have to wait for the afternoon, as Persephone and I must get to work. A proper Spring won't manifest itself after all!"

"Greetings…Grandmother," Hadie said quietly, still partially hiding behind his mother's skirt as if he was five again. "It's an honor to meet you and be welcomed into your land of bountiful harvests."

"Hyacinth, Cassia." Two of the nymphs, one purple and one a soft yellow respectively, approached at Persephone's call. "I entrust my son to your attention for today."

"Yes, my Lady," the pair echoed, curtsying.

Persephone gently took Hadie by the shoulders and kissed him thrice, once on each cheek and upon his brow. "I love you and I'll be back in a few hours for lunch, alright?"

"Alright, love you too," Hadie voiced, trying not to cringe at the 'awes' from the nymphs.

"The rest of you are to tend to your duties," Demeter ordered, she and Persephone preparing to teleport, the grass swirling at their feet as petals and leaves began to form.

The other nymphs pouted, but nodded farewells as the Goddesses disappeared, slowly dispersing themselves to attend to whatever their jobs normally were.

Hadie turned meekly towards Hyacinth and Cassia, admittedly curious but wary nonetheless. He wasn't sure how successful he was in straightening his back when the nymphs suddenly gave him twin smiles, suspiciously bright.

'Maybe I just don't know them well enough? Or is everyone here even more annoyingly cheerful than school?'

As they whisked off their newfound Prince, chattering away about the different farms, plots and animals, Hadie learned the answer.

The latter. Definitely the latter.

"—the animals were impressive; I'd never seen oxen and horses outside of books before! But I have to say my favorites were the so many different orchards, stretching for miles in various states of bloom!" Hadie animatedly chattered, unaware of the surprised, but pleased looks he received from his mother and grandmother. The nymphs serving them lunch, still giggled occasionally, with his assigned watchers blushing slightly at his outburst of eagerness. "I tried to study some flora while at school, but to see them in person, vegetables and fruit rather than just flowers and foliage, and from all sorts of different hardiness zones too! I'm truly impressed, grandmother!"

Persephone glanced smugly at her mother; the older Goddess still shocked at how passionate her grandson had finally began speaking. Demeter had expected a demure, though intelligent boy, long corrupted by her unfortunate daughter's choice in husband. Persephone had proved correct in that the Godling had just needed a bit to settle in and feel comfortable.

"Don't forget to stop to eat, darling," Persephone mused, Hadie looking down in surprise at the food long set before him.

"Mm! Right, sorry!" Hadie blushed and thanked the nymphs. "This looks really good, thank you!"

If Demeter was anymore surprised, her face had difficulty showing it, eyes already as wide as they could go. A child that didn't protest at the lack of meat or sweets? While Demeter's farm did produce a large quantity of meat, the quality standard they held meant a portion was reserved for only the Gods' festivals, with the butcher cuts being quite expensive if exported. Much of their diet otherwise consisted of a surprising amount of fruit, vegetable, fish or bread and cheese.

Such was the meal they were having, a small, vegetable stew with bread as the weather was still cold as Spring only just beginning the yearly thaw.

"Do you like it, Hadie?" Demeter asked softly. "We ensure only the best of qualities."

"Mhm!" Hadie swallowed. "Now I get where mom's been getting the food she brings back from! Really helps dad make the best of our meals! Granted, anything beats scavenging the bottom of the barrel Isle food."

Persephone winced at Hadie's bluntness. The air of the open-aired dining area became heavy with tension. While Hades' name was reluctantly accepted to be mentioned in formal settings, as earlier, in actual conversation was something very much avoided in front of the Goddess of Harvest. Then there was the mentioning of the food.

Demeter was well known to keep to herself and her work, only going to meetings that required attendance. She was also well known to only think of her own opinions, even ignoring that of her own daughter with over a century of disagreements past between them.

Meaning that any grievances of the Isle went unheard. The Isle where her hated 'son-in-law' was after all. But if her grandchild was saying similar things, one who clearly had an appreciation for her own work…now Demeter wasn't sure what to think.

Not that she would bother putting thought into it in the moment. She had the upcoming season to finish manifesting.

"Ahem, well our produce makes even the paltriest of meals pleasant," Demeter sniffed, completely ignorant of the fact that it wasn't Hades' cooking that was the issue so much as the lack of edible ingredients.

Hadie's eyes snapped up, his vigorous energy visibly deflating. He could tell she only understood what she wanted.

"Well, um, I hope you don't mind," Hadie rushed to change the subject. "I saw shipments were being prepared in the apple orchards, and I wanted to repay a favor to a friend who adores the fruit, so Cassia allowed me to mark one for him. I-if that's all right?"

"Oh? Yes, that's fine. Cassia, just make sure that whatever portion of the stock was sent off is marked for personal usage rather than exports."

"Yes, Lady Demeter," said Cassia, the golden nymph smiled politely at Hadie, carefully slipping Hadie another slice of bread. He was quickly becoming fond of her, along with Hyacinth, despite little interaction with the other nymphs. They were so far the only ones who didn't coo and squeal at the sight of him.

Small talk took up the rest of the meal's conversation, some about work and a little school, but otherwise the lunch came to a close. Hadie could feel his trepidation showing, through a finger tapping, his leg jiggling, or the slight twitch in his right pinky toe. Soon, apart from the attending nymphs, he'd be left alone with his grandmother.

It came all too soon.

"Behave, my little lightning bolt," Persephone said under her breath and she kissed Hadie goodbye. "I won't be gone more than a couple hours. If it looks like it's going south, your attendees know what to do."

"I'll try my best, mama," Hadie sighed.

As his mother disappeared once more, Hadie turned tentatively towards his grandmother.

'Bonding Attempt 1 is a go,' Hadie grimaced internally. 'Chances of total success?'

The goddess' smile was equally tentative.

'Okay. Low, but not as low as I was debating.'

His hopeful answer plummeted to absolute zero only a half an hour into their time. To be fair, he had started to get excitable again with the topic and once again made the mistake of mentioning his father. But, why should he have to stay silent on a major influence on his life, villain or no? He was proud to be a Hades' kid. There was nothing Demeter could do to change that, no matter how much she hated it.

They'd spoken of school, and his friends. They'd spoken of his self-study on plants and his hobbies. It had turned from gardening…to swords…to music and magic.

"Ah, godlings and their weapons," Demeter sighed smiling. "It seems our family has changed little. Even Athena with her weaving could weaponize a tiny needle to her advantage in war, just as sharp as her tongue."

"I wish mom saw it that way, Mal and her friends got me my first sword when I turned six and she didn't want me anywhere near it," pouted Hadie, forgetting himself amidst the old memory.

"It shows Persephone has learned the same desire to protect you, as I, her, before she ran off with…" Demeter pursed her lips, avoiding choice words.

"I'm not sure I would say it's a recently learned desire," Hadie slowly said, but his temper was rising, and he was struggling to keep his words contrite. He wanted to build sympathy, not break into an argument. "Mom has always been protective of what she considers…hers. You seem more alike than you'd like to admit."

'Honestly, you remind me a lot of dad,' Hadie kept the thought to himself.

"Hmph, if we were more alike, she'd have listened to me when it came to marriage choices," grumbled Demeter. "She hardly seems happy about her choice whenever she returns home to me."

This time, Hadie openly frowned.

"Maybe, that's because, oh, I don't know, she's forcefully made to leave not only her choice of husband behind, but also her children and miss out half of their lives growing up?"

"Don't take that tone with me, Godling," Demeter pursed her lips and shook her head. "I don't know what lies they've told you, but your father—regrettably that he may be so—has done horrible things! And I'm not just talking about Hercules!"

"I know dad is a villain! I know he's done evil things!" Hadie shouted and stomped his foot, interrupting the Goddess to her surprise, so used as she was to the meek nymphs or the other Gods trying to keep her happy. "But my parents truly love each other, and having to part for so long every year causes them nothing but pain!"

"That is enough out of you!" Demeter ordered, face turning slightly red. "It has nothing to do with now and everything to do with that Hades stole and hid my daughter away, married her without permission and proceeded to forcefully bind her to the powers of the Underworld!"

Demeter gasped and took a step back, Hadie's ferocity growing clear as he swung around to glare at the elder Goddess. Once more, unbeknownst to him, his hair began to wave, curling slightly into embers.

"They've not shared much about their story, I'll give you that, but it is obvious my parents adore and love each other with every fiber of their being! One thing I know for sure is that mom is the one who chose to eat the pomegranate. Dad just offered her the choice!

"You forced the six months because you hate my father and didn't want to see your daughter grow up and go off on her own! Now you want a connection with your grandchildren when all you do is badmouth our dad? You want more grandchildren when the very oath you made is what keeps my parents from having more!" Hadie took a deep breath, shuddering as the energy suddenly dissipated. He gritted his teeth and tilted his head to sneer up at his grandmother, her face a mix of affronted and something he couldn't decipher.

"My mother cries every time she leaves, because she is missing half of our lives. The irony of your selfishness to keep your daughter by your side or to enact some petty revenge, only rips her from hers," he growled before turning away, facing the terrified nymphs. "Until you accept that my parents are happy together, that my father is capable of love and being loved, I have no interest in getting to know you any further."

Demeter stood stunned, silent as she watched Hyacinth and Cassia glance uncertainly towards her before they ran off after the young prince who had already cut halfway across the patch of squash.

Hadie had at least given her a chance. Without a change of attitude, the Goddess knew she had even less chance, according to rumor, with the less forgiving Malinda.

'Ugh, now what am I going to do?' Hadie kicked at the dirt as he continued to stomp away, ignoring the two nymphs that were following him once more. 'I promise that I tried, mom. But there's no way I'm going to just stand there and allow someone to badmouth dad with nary a reprimand!'

"Prince Hadie?"

"Hm? Oh, sorry Hyacinth, what is it?" Hadie paused in the shade of an orange blossom tree, unaware of the blue glow he cast, slowly disappearing; his silent rant put to a halt.

"I-I want to apologize for not speaking up against Lady Demeter," the purple nymph began. "It's just—"

"No, it's alright," Hadie smiled sadly. "Whether you genuinely mean to defend my father, or just keep it from my ears, I'm aware of how things work around here. Her control, her opinion and word, are the driving force of this land. It'd be hard to contest a Goddess, after all."

The worry lines on Hyacinth's face disappeared at his words. She grinned and snatched Cassia by the shoulders, lifting some of the strands of golden flowers away to reveal a pointed ear to whisper into it.

"That's a great idea, Cinth!" Cassia and Hyacinth suddenly grabbed Hadie by the arms and steered him in a singular direction. "Come on!"

"Where are you taking me now?" Hadie protested somewhat, but ultimately let the two lead him to wherever they planned.

"To the one place on the farm that Lady Demeter agreed to not step foot in," Cassia grinned. "Your mom's little get away. This way you can avoid Lady Demeter safely until it's time for you to go!"

It was Hadie's turn to grin. 'Mom's grove! It must be!'

Indeed, he was led to a shaded portion on the most eastern hill of the farm. Old marble columns and frieze framed a small entrance, tightly wound by rose thorns and acacia branches. Unsure of being able to fit through, Hadie willed his magic forth and set a hand carefully upon the branches blocking the entrance, making sure to avoid any thorns. As if the plants themselves were intelligent, they receded at his touch as if bowing. Within the grotto, Hadie found a small pond ensconced by a few poplar trees…and the constant symbol of pomegranate shrubs. A bench sat to the side, cozily placed between cypresses somehow grown within a gazebo to protect against any unwanted elements.

'I guess the obvious answer would be mom's doing,' thought Hadie as he ran a hand across the carved, marble surface of one of the gazebo columns. 'If it weren't for being on grandmother's farm, I imagine she would spend ages here.'

"Hey Cassia?" Hadie called out to the nymphs, not realizing they had halted by the grove's entrance.

"Yes, Prince Hadie?"

Hadie sighed. No matter how many times he said his title wasn't necessary, they still continued to use 'Prince' or 'Lord'. "Do you think one of you could run out to the house for my bag? Or if you guys know of any other books around the compound. I'd just like something to read to pass time."

"Of course!" Hyacinth piped up. "I'll go see if it's still on the porch."

A short while later, Hadie relaxed in the shade, angled so a single beam brightened the pages of a book he'd bought that arrived just in time for spring break. He'd found the first at the school library, but didn't want to risk taking the sequel out while travelling and be subject to Sylvia's wrath if anything happened to it.

'If Ashaki's place is anything like Prince Mekhmet's, I'm looking forward to her birthday party!' Hadie happily read of Prince Charlemagne befriending the fellow prince of a desert land, surrounded by wealth. 'I wonder if I should put more work into learning dance if it benefits fighting skills this much? Or horseback riding like Sharley."

"Lady Persephone!"

"Welcome back, my Lady," the nymphs chattered excitedly as Persephone ducked into the grove, an understanding look on her face.

"Considering I found my mother stomping around and barking orders for the last chores, am I right to assume things didn't go well?"

Hadie bashfully put down his book. "She started saying mean things about dad."

"Oh, sweetie," Persephone gently took the seat next to him along the bench. "I meant what I said that you didn't have to put up with my mother being rude. You shouldn't have to hear that sort of thing, so don't worry about me being mad."

"Really?"

"Really," Persephone kissed the top of his head. "Now come on, let's not stay here any longer than we have too then."

The mother and son took the path leading back to the country-style home of Demeter at the center of the expansive lands, Cassia and Hyacinth trailing behind. As they approached, Persephone could already make out her huffy mother aggressively filling some last-minute export orders.

Nymphs swarmed her and Hadie, the Goddess handing back the bag she'd taken from her son so that he could wait without having to interact with his grandmother one last time. There would be enough opportunity when they came back before his spring was totally over.

"How did your day go?" Persephone asked as she absentmindedly watched her son be reluctantly fawned over by all of the nymphs once more before they would depart for the day. She was pleased to see that he had become comfortable with the ordered pair of Cassia and Hyacinth, the nymphs having never left his side except one at a time and interacting in ways that kept him happy. A good distraction while she checked to see if her mother had anything to say for herself.

"It was less than successful," Demeter bit out, her basket of the early Spring harvest thumped heavily onto a waiting wagon.

"Hmm," vocalized Persephone, unwilling to be led by what she could already tell was a rant by her mother.

"He's clearly inherited his father's penchant for being a conniving little—"

"I'm going to stop you right there," snipped Persephone, her head sharply turning to focus her eyes on Demeter. "You wanted to meet him, I acquiesced. I will not stand for you speaking negatively about either of my children, nor my husband. I have let you go on about Hades for too long, and I'm done. Besides, I only raise my son six months of the year, I don't know what you expect me to do about it."

"You could have taken him with you—"

"Doesn't matter at this point, he's allowed to be in Auradon officially. And he's at the age where he's set the general base of his personality. Conniving father's influence and all as you've succinctly put," where she had avoided letting her mother rant, the younger Goddess felt her own bubble up. Years of discontent, of dismissed dissent no longer willing to be held back in the face of her husband and now her son being insulted. "I did not trust you, any of you, to not take Hadie from me if I brought him back and forth between Olympus and the Isle. To never let him meet or see his father, his sister…Don't deny it! You had pestered me all my pregnancy in the hope I'd give birth here! You knew I would give birth at the turn of the season, and that would leave me unable to bond with Hadie! You had good reasons to keep me off Olympus growing up, and I have the same reservations now! The Isle is a horrible place, and you never listened to me whenever I brought it up, so I will not allow you to continue to bash Hades in front of my son when he looks up so much to his father. A God who has done nothing to manipulate our children. He has been a good father, protecting them, making sure they were fed and happy despite the surrounding conditions."

Just as her son had before, Persephone took a shuddering breath and turned away from her mother.

"You can either accept that my husband is capable of love, that I love him, that our children love him, or you can kiss goodbye any chances of forming a bond with your grandchildren and resign yourself to having only a seasonal working relationship with me, because as soon as Spring is done, I will be gone to take care of my council and foreign duties only."

"We made a deal, Persephone!"

"A deal that requires me to return for Spring to help you begin the seasons once more! Not stay beside you until I must leave again! You never needed me for Summer, you just want me shackled to you! But. That. Is. Not. Our. Agreement!"

Persephone dug her heel into the dirt and whirled around, striding towards her son and forcing the nymphs to scatter.

"Come along, Hadie," she said softly, her son's face wide-eyed and exposing that her voice might've gotten too loud when lashing out her mother. "Let's go get dinner elsewhere."

Hadie quickly latched onto her hand, waving a goodbye to his two nymph companions, but gave no look in his forlorn grandmother's direction as leaves and flowers swirled.

He'd have to return in a little more than a week, but in the meantime, Persephone would make sure her son could breathe easily knowing that she would stand firmly with him against her mother.

Big.

The first thought to pop into Hadie's head at the sight of Charmington Castle…was 'big'.

It was also very pretty. Built of white stone and shining red roofed tiles, the castle practically radiated sparkling magic in the sunlight, gold accenting the enormous towers. On either side of the leading road were rows of cypress trees and meticulously placed flowers. The hillside was included within the giant fenced property, belying to just how expansive the Royal land was even compared to the school that made up Auradon's education despite having been the High King's original home.

Very big.

"Prince Hadie?" A tall, thin and stern looking woman appeared at the top of the steps leading to the castle, her hair in various shades of grey. "Welcome to Charmington castle."

She sniffed, a haughty look on her face as she peered down at him.

Hadie forced his face into something carefully neutral. 'Someone has a stick up their a—"

"You must be Hadie!" A blonde woman in a simple, blush colored dress came down from further up the steps. "Oh, I've heard so much about you! I simply had to welcome you myself when I heard someone new was arriving!"

"Queen Ella, shouldn't you be finishing preparations?!"

"Oh, it's quite alright, Prudence," said the woman Hadie now realized must be Alexandria's mother. "I've only opened the Spring Festival for the last twenty-two years! I have plenty of time to welcome a special guest personally."

"V-very well your Majesty," the older woman curtsied before hastening away.

"Best you stick with me, Hadie, one can get awfully lost in this place if they have no knowledge of this castle," Ella guided the Godling by the shoulder up the seemingly never-ending number of steps. "And don't mind Prudence, she's not as severe as she looks. Or at least she tries."

"It's alright…And no kidding, this place is…ginormous!" Hadie ogled at the expanse of white marble. White. And gold. That's all that seemed to be anywhere with touches of color in the curtains or the obscene number of paintings.

"Why is everything so big? Even the paintings are insanely large!"

"I asked the same thing when I first began living in the castle," laughed Ella as they entered yet another hallway.

"Did I say that out loud?" Hadie blushed.

"Well, it's not like you're wrong," she mused. "Now, you're the first of the children to arrive and I do actually need to get back to preparations, unless you feel like following little old me in the meantime while I check on everything?"

"I hardly think you're old, Lady Ella," said Hadie, giving the Queen a bewildered glance. "At the very least, you certainly don't look it."

"Oh, thank you, that's very kind of you to say," Ella giggled before pointing towards Hadie's watch and handing him a small golden bell. "Now, I'm going to give you this bell. Prudence will have told everyone you've arrived, and, well, your hair alone has you recognizable, so no need to be worried about anyone thinking you don't belong. Keep an eye on the time, and if someone doesn't fetch you for where Alexandria plans to host you, just give that bell a ring and a servant will come running. Feel free to explore, there are servants everywhere so don't worry about getting too lost, even outside on the grounds is fine. I have to be off now, but it was lovely to meet you, Hadie!"

Hadie stared at where his friend's mother had been standing moments before, not even a cloud of dust to denote her whirlwind departure.

"Time to get lost, I suppose?" Hadie shoved the bell into his inner coat pocket, shrugging off the impending confusion, his voice echoing around the hall. There was no response, even though, as Queen Ella had said, a line of footmen stood at attention near a large window, sunlight flooding in like a beacon in the long, dark halls.

If it weren't for the different giant paintings, Hadie would've thought he had been circling the same halls for the last hour as they were the only changing décor. Eventually, he ended up in yet another foyer, but this time one that seemed to lead into the back gardens.

Standing atop the steps, Hadie squinted out at the expansive maze of hedges, trees and flowers. Small buildings were scattered about with a large flat field beyond even that before it transitioned back to the iron wrought fences that guarded the castle.

Once again. Big.

"Oh. It's you."

Hadie turned away from the colorful view and towards the voice. Chad Charming stood before him, an odd assortment of leather items weighing down his shoulder, clothes odder than Hadie had ever seen on the prince, even compared to the older boy's normal wear.

"Prince Chad," Hadie kept his tone polite, nodding slightly. He didn't think he needed to bow, but considering he was in the fellow Prince's own home, he at least owed that courtesy.

"Prince Hadie," Chad sighed. "Alex was supposed to meet you, wasn't she?"

"Right, but your mother said she was still out, and set me to wander the halls until a servant notified me of Alex's return."

"I know your close friends now, but Alex has stated a dislike of anyone not family using her nickname."

"She hasn't said anything to me," Hadie shrugged, face truly nonplussed. He didn't mean to offend her if that was true, but apart from when they first met, his friend hadn't confronted him about using Alex rather than Alexandria.

"Hm," Chad examined Hadie from the corner of his eye, nose slightly upturned. "Well, whatever then. They should be back in an hour according to the text Alex sent me, she asked me to pass on her apologies. And the other kids are usually late, considering they don't exactly have a parent to teleport them to their friend's place."

"You make it sound like a bad thing," Hadie glared at Chad as the boy moved closer, standing alongside him at the top of the stairs to the gardens. "No offense, but you've passed on Alex's apology, and you seem to have a problem with me, so I wonder why you haven't gone off to wherever you seem to have prepared to go off to."

"I don't…have a problem with you," Chad gritted through his teeth.

"My sister then."

"Hardly," scoffed Chad. "She makes Ben happy, and…and it gave me a chance with Audrey—"

Even with strained ears, Hadie couldn't make out the rest of Chad's mumbles, an odd, confused look coming over the Charmington Prince's face.

"What are you going out for?" Hadie interrupted Chad's growing confusion, changing the subject to something with clearer focus.

"Huh?" Chad looked around in surprise, as if a cloud had suddenly disappeared from his eyes. He peered at the leather straps in his hand. "I-I was going to go out riding, it's one of my favorite things to do when I come home."

"Riding?" Hadie wondered aloud. 'Riding what? I've never seen anything like the gear he has.'

"Yeah, horseback!" Chad exclaimed as he began his trek down the stairs. "We've got some decent sized stables, though we only have personal horses now since horse-drawn carriages and using them for farming are kinda obsolete."

"Oh yeah, I got to see my first horses at my grandmother's the other day!" Hadie smiled, not realizing he was trailing after Chad. "Grandmother doesn't really like the idea of technology on her land, so it's mostly oxen drawn to till while horses are for transportation or local supply movement."

"Wait, you've only just seen a horse?" Chad paused. "Did you get to ride them?"

"Huh? No, I was only around for a tour and meeting Grandmother, didn't do much else."

"Y'know what? You're missing out," Chad grabbed Hadie by the arm and started dragging the Godling along. "C'mon."

"Wait, what are we doing?" Hadie yelped in surprise.

"I'm going to teach you to ride a horse!" Chad crowed, as a skip in his step. "We've got maybe an hour, plenty of time to get the basics covered!"

"But—wait, I've never—is it safe?"

"I know all our horses' temperaments; I promise you'll be safe!"

Hadie could only hope it would end well. Or that Alex would appear in time to save him from her brother's sudden crack in mentality.

"Okay, now the particular way I've trained Arthur is different than standard, so keep that in mind," Chad instructed sternly as he led his horse across an enclosed track. Hadie sat nervously in the saddle, only slightly assured by Chad declaring he would never let go of the reins. This time.

Depending on how it went, Hadie wasn't sure he'd like to get on a horse again. At least not without someone he trusted more than Chad of all people.

With a couple clicks of his tongue, Hadie squeezed his legs as firmly as he could, hoping Arthur would feel the motion, to direct the horse into walking forward. He palmed the horn of the saddle, hands slightly sweating from a mix of nerves and Spring heat. With a slight lurch, Hadie breathed a sigh of relief as Arthur slowly moved forward, partially guided by the reins in Chad's hand.

"There you go," Chad encouraged, surprising Hadie with a smile. "Now if you wanted to go faster, we'd move up to a trot, in which I'd lean forward a tad and lash the reins a tad, but since I'm holding onto them, I can just pull and jog aside you."

"H-how fast is a trot?"

"Not too much faster, promise. You wouldn't be even near ready for say a canter or a full gallop, I wouldn't dare put you through that."

"L-let me just get used to sitting in this thing first, it's, uh, not very comfortable."

"Oh yeah, you're not exactly wearing riding gear," Chad covered a laugh with his free hand. "I should've grabbed you a different saddle, sorry."

"I didn't expect so much to go into this anyways, all part of the learning experience," Hadie winced as he bounced on his seat, even at the slow pace.

"I thought the Gods were into traditional riding and everything."

"There are no horses on the Isle as far as I'm aware," Hadie snarked.

"Right, touchy subject what with…everything, sorry," Chad winced at his forgetfulness, well aware that animals were most likely eaten to ensure survival within the prison thanks to Audrey's grandmother. "Ready for that trot?"

"Why not?" Hadie shrugged, clicking his tongue thrice more, sliding further back into the saddle as Arthur lurched forward, Chad now jogging to keep along the stride.

"There you go!" Chad cheered, his years of Tourney and R.O.A.R. allowing him to easily keep up. "How are you feeling?"

"N-not too bad," Hadie winced once again as he landed roughly in his seat with every bounce. He tried to slide back a bit more, but the reach was too far for him to settle all the way without breaking Chad's number one rule for this ride.

Don't let go of the horn.

"Hadie can handle going faster than that!"

A flash of gold swept past Hadie's vision, signaling the arrival of Alexandria on her own horse, with a mane a similar color to its rider. The princess was only partially swung over her own saddle, clad in one of her usual blue dresses.

'Side-saddle,' Hadie recalled Chad's words from the start of their impromptu lesson.

"How was shopping?" Hadie asked dryly.

"Wonderful, thank you for asking," Alexandria laughed. "Now come on, take Arthur for a real ride! He's the second most mild mannered after mom's horse, but he's certainly the fastest of our lot!"

"Now hold on, Alex," frowned Chad. "It's Hadie's first time, and I'm not about to risk him getting injured, you remember our lessons, don't you?"

"Right, right," pouted Alex. "Slow and steady, but that's boring!"

Hadie grinned at the inflection in Alexandria's voice, well aware it was a rewording of his personal catchphrase lamenting his boredom. This time he'd rather be safe than sorry though.

"I think I'm with Chad on this one, Lex, maybe next time."

Alexandria pulled back at her reins, her horse turning in tandem, sticking her tongue out at her guest.

"Wow, such a gracious host," Hadie laughed, using Chad's help to dismount.

"Well, I don't recall giving you permission to call me Lex," Alexandria teased back, trotting by, the tail of her horse flicking the back of Hadie's head.

"Hey!"

Hadie sat nervously with Evan and Phillip Jr sat on either side of him. Across him sat Neal, shaking his head in amusement as Alexandria, Melody and Ashaki wriggled their nose at an odd pot placed near them of an ugly purple color.

"I hope you don't mind stewed prunes for dessert," King Kit smirked. "It's tradition when we welcome a new, fellow royal."

"Since when?!" The four Charming siblings shouted in disgust, glaring at the offending pot of sweet and sour fumes.

Not long after Hadie's impromptu lesson from Chad, the other under 15 years of age royals had arrived to enjoy the day together. Energy burnt from exploring the expansive halls in the extensive game of Hide n Seek. Though it was more like Search and Rescue from how lost everyone would get, Alexandria easily winning as she had grown up in the castle.

Now, they all sat happily munching away at dinner, desperate to replenish some fuel. Though Hadie did have to keep reminding himself to use the manners he learned from Basic Chivalry in the hopes he wouldn't offend his hosts. Granted, Alexandria had told him her own mother came in not knowing the finer details of decadent eating, but he didn't think Lady Ella ever had to worry about appearing like she devoured things like a rapid dog.

No one was touching their plates anymore though, all put off at the thought that Prune Stew might really be for dessert.

And the smell.

"Oh, we just thought it'd be nice to bring back some traditions," Kit added. "T'was my father's favorite dessert, and I decided to bring it back now that you're all home for break, and we're having all of Alexandria's friends over for once, and welcoming a new Royal to Auradon to boot!

"Excuse us for not being able to make every invite!" whimpered Evan, still staring at the bubbling purple pot.

"I don't know if I'd want to come if this is what celebrated guests are welcomed with," joked Melody.

"I don't know if I'd want to come if this is what I'm welcomed home with," pouted Alexandria.

"Oh, now you're all just being dramatic," Ella sighed with a wave of her hand towards a servant as even her elder children pushed their plates away in disgust. "You know we're just teasing you all."

'If you lived how I did, you'd eat it anyways,' Hadie grimaced internally, happy he was fed with real food beforehand than having to suffer whatever atrocity the stew was.

"Well, I thought it was funny, dear," Kit teased, setting his dinner plate to the side as a small crystal glass of vanilla ice cream was set before him. "Free for all on toppings, by the way, kiddos!"

"Oooh, apple crumb and diced, spiced apple bites!" drooled Neal, making essentially an apple pie of his ice cream, the slightly cooked spiced apple cubes melting the ice cream as the prince piled them on.

"You really are addicted to apples, aren't you, Neal?" Lucy grinned as she drizzled chocolate syrup over her own cup.

"Must've inherited all the taste for them from Emma, since she's allergic," Kitty teased as well.

"I confess to nothing," Neal said, licking his spoon from extra apple compote. "I will however extend my thanks now that I have the opportunity for the apple cider that Hadie sent me recently."

"Cider?" Hadie asked. "I didn't send any cider."

"From Lady Demeter's farms? We opened the crate when we got back, and it was just like, 10 jugs of apple cider!"

"And you didn't bring any to share?" yelped Ashaki. "A single container of those is like $75!"

"Ah, well, I just asked if I could send one of the crates in the apple orchard to you as a thanks for your help with my guitar," Hadie shrugged, turning somewhat pink. "I didn't check or think it was anything other than plain, ol' apples."

"Plain, old apples, the Godling says," snorted Phil Jr.

"Well, I'll keep it in mind next time I visit," Hadie said noncommittedly. He'd already explained to his friends that the meeting hadn't gone great, but that he would have to go one more time before end of break, but he wasn't about to trust the nearby servants, nor how gossipy Kitty and Lucy could be.

The only complaints for the rest of the afternoon were from Alexandria as Evan hogged most of the sugar sprinkles.

"Hey, Lord Kit said free for all!"

"Sounds like Mali owes you $50, huh?"

Uma smirked at her best friend and cousin, Mal pouting as she ruffled through her wallet for the money she owed Hadie. The Isle cousins were rallying to meet up with their Auradon equals to visit one of the private family compounds as a late get together since they couldn't all get together for Uma's birthday the other day. From what Hadie had heard, Melody's mother had originally offered another yacht, but for some reason Uma had declined after some hushed whispers between her and Mal.

"I still can't believe she started ranting about dad almost the moment she got you alone," lamented Mal as she handed her smug brother the money. "Seriously, you'd think a Goddess that's been around so long would know to have some tact."

"Just from the little bit I experienced, I think she's just used to getting her way," Hadie scoffed, tucking his earnings away. "Not whiny liking the Banshee, but even mom barely said no to her. Except when it came to us and dad, of course."

"Gods, and to think we have to meet more of them this summer," Uma grimaced.

"Don't remind meeeeee," Mal whined as she threw herself onto her bed, the sheets wrinkling under the fall. "It's bad enough Elle mentioned there's a chance we'll run into the other gods just on this trip. Even if Macaria did put in a request so that we could have the family beach property alone for the day."

"Yeah, sorry to burst your bubble of hope on that, Mal," Macaria spoke as she held the door open for Elle. "While most of the gods will follow grandfather's announcement he made for us, they're not outright banned for the day."

Mal groaned again, dropping her head into her pillow. "When do we go?" the muffled question came.

"In a bit," Hadie said. "Herkie said he'd contact myself and Macaria when his dad said it's okay to come over. I assume you guys were using the link too, considering they entered without you having to say anything." Hadie waved a hello to his older Auradonian cousins.

"Right," Macaria nodded. "Herkie is already back home, since Hyllus is off with some friends checking out colleges since he graduates at the end of this year. So, he'll let one of us know when we're good to head to the teleportation room. Dad's place is cleared for international travel, so we'll head there first, grab Herkie and some beach supplies and off we can go!"

"And Melody?" Hadie asked, curious as to where the final member of their little group had gotten off to.

"At home with mom," Elle spoke softly. "She's still grounded till her birthday comes back around, but mom will have her teleported in when I send word we're all at the beach."

Hadie breathed a sigh of relief. Not just because his other favorite cousin would be there, close to his age at least, but because Melody would need to be teleported by someone else as well. Granted there wasn't a lot of time for teleportation lessons in the already very packed Spring Break, but seeing Mal and Uma already get it down, as well as Herkie, had reminded Hadie of the time he had trouble learning how to use telepathy when he was just shy of six.

'Herkie is also almost an entire two years older than me,' Hadie tried to remind himself. 'I'll learn it in time just as I did before, with practice. We were just more limited this time. Melody is in the same boat, considering she didn't even know she had magic until recently.'

Ayo ayo, boop boop skidoo!

Hadie closed his eyes in exasperation.

Am I to take that as Beach Operation Olympian Party is a go, Herkie?

BOOP is indeed a go!

"Herkie says we're good to go," Hadie said dryly, interrupting the girl talk he had luckily tuned out in his sulky thoughts.

"Is that what the random 'boop boop' thoughts I was getting from my brother were?"

"Apparently so."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" smiled Elle, turning her chair around to head towards the door. "Just like the ocean, time to rock and roll!"

Within a few minutes, the party of five entered the teleportation room. With the help of Macaria, they all disappeared in a flash of clouds and lightning to the humble abode of Greece's greatest hero.

"Look out!"

Uma grabbed the back of Elle's chair at the sound of Hercules' voice and immediately sped out of the way, Macaria herself realizing she forgot to share rather important information as she got out of the way herself which left Mal and Hadie behind in confusion.

"Thanks Uma," Elle squeaked as the chair halted at the bottom of the hill. "I had expected Macaria to grab me like she normally does."

"I wasn't about to leave you defenseless—what normally? What was that giant thing?!" Uma shaded her eyes with a hand, looking back up to the hill they had teleported onto. It didn't do much to help her make out the details on the enormous black mass towering over…

"Mal! Hadie!"

"It's alright," Herkie and his father jogged up to them, slightly breathless. "That's just Kerberos."

"Ker—Uncle Hades' dog?!"

"Yeah," Hercules awkwardly laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "I took him in when father began tampering with the Underworld to try and move it to the Isle. I'm glad I did because last I heard, Nyx chewed him out for attempting to tamper with the Will of the Primordial."

"Wish I could've been around to see that," Uma smirked, though she still kept her eyes on her Chthonic cousins. Just in case.

The enormous Cerberus had leaned down, as low as his towering height would allow, wagging his tail in the air as each giant head crowded around the visitors of his main interest to attempt to snuffle their scent into his memories.

"W-what's he doing?" asked Hadie nervously as Cerberus began to make odd chuffing noises.

"I'm…not actually sure, he's never acted like this with anyone else before," Herkie said, looking at his dad in concern. "That I know of anyways?"

"What's up, boys?" Hercules carefully stepped forward, placing himself between the giant dog and the children of Hades. "They're just some new friends, okay? What's with the noises?"

Cerberus pulled back a tad, two out of his three heads whining at being blocked by their caretaker. The last head wasn't having it and used his giant size to butt Hercules to the side and boofed as if upset.

"Woah, come on Cerb!" exclaimed Hercules, attempting to interfere again only to be gently pinned down by a paw.

"Dad!" Herkie rushed over, lightly placing a hand on Cerberus' paw, neither demigod willing to use force with the dog just yet. "Give us a sec, kids, just, don't make any sudden movements until we figure out why—"

"N-no, it's fine!" Mal's laughter brought back her cousins' attention, the family finding the children of Hades covered in drool as they were given a plethora of doggy kisses by the Underworld Guardian. After their moment of shock, the giant paw moved away from Hercules, Cerberus using a precise and delicate motion one wouldn't expect of his stature to lift Hadie, Herkie and Mal into the air with the mouth of a head each, and onto his back before trotting off towards the sprawling, open fields.

"Wait up!" Hercules shouted, just missing the grab on the wagging tail, the giant dog disappearing down the hillside. Uma followed with Elle and Macaria down the hill and towards the house shaded by trees nearby as they watched the rampart, giant dogs. After jogging to the edge, Hercules looked down the cliffside where dog and boys frolicked. Wrapping an arm around Megara's waist as she approached, they chuckled together at the sight.

"Looks like Cerberus recognized his master's scent in his son," Megara mused as a loud squawk of indignation echoed across the countryside as the boys were covered in slobber.

"I don't think I've seen him that excited in a long time," Hercules replied. "We'll have to have Hadie over more often. I'll talk to Aunt Persephone once school is out for the Summer."

The demigod blinked and tensed. Turning to his wife, he found Megara chewing slightly on her lip, eyes downcast.

"Th-that is…if it's alright with you, Meg?" Hercules took her hands into his.

"He's just a child, Herc," Meg laughed softly. "And he and Herkie obviously adore each other. I won't stand between that."

"Summer it is."

"I'll put in an order for extra fire extinguishers," Meg smirked.

"Or," Hercules thought aloud to himself. "I'm sure a certain daughter of Ariel might not want to be left out."

"Now you might as well just invite Eris into our home too," Meg spoke dryly.

"…I might ask Mulan for advice on new prayer techniques…just in case our family's isn't enough."

Mal relaxed in the sand as she watched Uma and Elle get along as they splashed each other in the ocean waves. The younger group was further up the beach, playing in the shallowest part of the beach where rocks created a natural barrier against any real tides. It was still hard to believe that there truly could be unification between not only their fractured family, but also the entire concept of villain kids and goody Auradon kids. Even if there weren't too many things in common for all the Godling cousins, they were family and that was what mattered.

She was tempted to join everyone in the ocean for once, especially since it turned out the overall area was more of an inlet in the shape of a not quite closed circle, so she didn't need to worry about the tide pulling her out. Not that Mal would need to with Uma, and now Elle, around.

Ariel had even offered to teach her how to swim, which only served to make Mal feel a little worse than she already did. Especially since the young woman had been the reason Uma turned down the sailboat that the mermaid had originally suggested to have a small party for Uma's first birthday off the Isle. Then there was the little snag of being responsible for Hadie while Spring was still processing. There was no way Mal felt she could help Hadie learn, let alone see her nerves if she had to learn beside him. She felt bad about possibly leaving her brother on his own to learn, but with how well protected he would be if he ever decided to learn, he at least wouldn't have the added fear of drowning already ingrained in him.

'But overcoming that particular fear may be one of the biggest personal challenges I'll have to face in life,' Mal grimaced internally, giving one of her fake smiles to Macaria as the girl brought a small holder of ice cream from the lone food service shack on the beach. Thankfully it was ran by some nereids, who knew to leave them alone, even if Mal knew they would be gossipy to every nymph and Olympian within earshot the moment the Godlings were gone.

"You know we won't let anything happen to you, right?"

Mal looked up, startled by the sudden cast of shadow as Uma stood over her, having been distracted as she accepted a strawberry cone from Macaria. Elle sat on the edge of the waves, the shimmer of the aquamarine scales on her tail catching the light as the water glittered, already nursing a cone of chocolate chip.

"I know," she replied softly. "I'm just not ready."

"Hey, it's okay," Elle smiled, fins flexing to prevent her from sliding with the tide. "We'll still be here when you are ready."

"I don't know if I'll ever be," Mal whispered, hesitating. While she had grown to like her Auradon cousins, she still wasn't quite there in comfort to tell them more about the Isle.

'But Freddy is on the loose now…maybe it wouldn't hurt to have a few more allies in the know?'

"Elle…Macaria…In light of recent events, there's something you should know…"

Uma dropped their beach ball in surprise.

"Mal, are you really going to—?"

"Uma, better safe than sorry," Mal shook her head. "Look, I'm not just 'scared' of the water just because I don't know how to swim. If it weren't for Uma, mom, you guys…basically everyone I've grown to trust…if it weren't for the fact that Ben demanded to be the one to confront Freddy, I'm not sure how that fight would've gone…if he hadn't gotten hurt, I don't think I would've turned into a dragon to be able to take that fanatic out so easily."

Macaria settled quietly into the warm sand between Elle and Mal, letting the cool water flick at her feet as they all let Mal ramble. Being the most stubborn of them, it was hard to get Mal to open up in the best of times, leaving it best to let her try to speak her thoughts allowed and get them together so that those she finally opened up to could understand at last.

Comforted by warm sunlight and sweet ice cream, Mal explained all that she knew about Freddy from when she was on the Isle. From what he'd been up to while they were off the Isle.

Flings. Murder, attempted or otherwise.

Nearly drowning.

In the young women's focus, they failed to notice the younger portion of their family wandering from the tide pools and into the trickling river further up the beach.

The river that led up the bluff behind the Cycladic family villa into the trees and brush. Not that they would need worrying, as the Isle was exclusively accessed by the Olympians and the few nereids or nymphs they employed.

Except there had been one Immortal who hadn't been told not to interact with the Godlings. All she saw was a calendar clear of other Gods and an opportunity to see the latest generation.

"Hurry up, slowpokes!"

"Are we even allowed up there?"

Melody laughed at Herkie's question as a breeze swept through her hair, the cascade of black having fallen free of its ribbon.

"What happened to your sense of adventure, Herk?" she shouted as Hadie helped her climbed over a wall of boulders.

"Yeah, weren't you the one who said we should check if there's anything on top of the bluff?" Hadie added.

"I just mentioned that I thought I saw something up there when dad took me on Pegasus once," Herkie huffed as he threw a leg over the wall, careful to not cut his bare knees on the rocks. "I didn't mean to imply we should zoom off and explore. What if our sisters can't find us!"

"Eh, that's what telepathy is for, isn't it?" shrugged Hadie as they looked around.

The Isle didn't seem to have much in the way of trees, just the occasional copse. Tall grass and rocky flowers were the most prominent feature now that they'd put the beach behind them, with only the gurgling river still guiding them.

"So, what did you say you remember seeing?

"Camper van."

"Okay, this whole place is super beautiful and you thought it'd be cool to see if a camper van was up here?!"

"Wow, hold up, I just said I thought I saw one once, not that we should come up here," Herkie tried to explain again, though he knew that his cousins were just messing with him. "Besides, I tried to look for it again next time we flew over and I haven't seen it since."

"Ah, so you were just seeing things?" Hadie teased.

"I…don't think he was," Melody wondered quietly. The boys stepped through the thrush to find what Melody took pause at.

There, hidden in the shade of some ash trees sat a giant RV. A lioness reclined with a bowl of water before the door.

Staring at them.

"Uh…hi?" Melody gave the lioness a little wave.

"Melody!" Hadie and Herkie whispered harshly.

"Are you serious? Gods or not, I'm not about to trust some random person's familiar," Herkie whined. "Screw adventure, how about some self-preservation!"

"I'm with Herk, we don't know who this is," Hadie pointed out. "The open agreement was to not interact with us at the beach. We've wandered away from that now."

A loud chuffing sound pulled them from their argument, the trio realizing they'd gotten a little loud. The lioness had stood, stretching as she made an odd rhythmic rumble as if she was laughing. She went up to the door of the RV and began to headbutt and paw against it. Within a few seconds, the door opened.

"What is it, Xari?"

A Goddess stepped down from the RV, so tall that she had to bend down before exiting. The lion turned to glance at the trio before she slinked back down into the grace, something akin to amusement in the animal's eyes.

There was but a brief pause before she strode towards the Godlings. Though she had a strict and guarded air about her, there was something oddly…free in her movements. Hadie couldn't help but look up in awe at the power she exuded, her lack of full wariness probably because she was a full God versus their budding experience. It might've only been due to his Isle background that he stood his ground while Herkie and Melody moved to shy away.

'She's clearly one of the family,' Hadie thought, tensing at being alone with an unknown entity. 'But she seems older than Zeus, so minor Goddess or not for these days, she must be powerful. And she might even be taller than him!'

Multi-colored hair of blues, greens and purples were pulled back in a high cascading bun, a shock of white splitting right down the middle from her widow's peak. The afternoon sun behind her seemed to create a halo that made it difficult to focus on much else of her features.

His eyes focused again when one of her hands, cladded in a variety of rings, gently cupped his face. The well-manicured hand moved to hold his chin, forcing his eyes to look straight into hers. He stiffened as he stared into dark pools of cyan. It felt as he was a misbehaving child being sternly looked over by a grandmother. 'A modern, fashion-forward grandma, it seems,' wondered Hadie, as he took in her tailored suit with a lapel that seemed to fade into a cape, clasped by…

His eyes widened.

"You each remind me so much of each of my sons," the woman laughed after their moment of silence. The way she did so took the trio by surprised. Instead of a light, graceful motion, the woman threw her head back, hair tossed to the wind and smiled at the sky. Hadie couldn't help the feeling of awe that came over him, of honor, as if laughter wasn't something she gave so freely.

"Here, little ones," her first hand moving from Hadie's face and towards Melody's bring the girl forward to meet her eyes, she lowered her free hand and pulled something out of a pocket, pressing the first item into the great grand-daughter of Poseidon's hand, though it hung limply at her side. She repeated the motion, handing something to Hadie and Herkie in turn.

'Beads? That's what it feels like.'

"May we meet again one day, Godlings."

Hadie's jaw dropped slightly open as the woman took her hand away and with a snap of her fingers, RV and Xari in tow, disappeared in a swirl of flowers and stars.

"There you are guys are, we've been looking for you everywhere!" Mal sprinted through the brush, sand kicking up behind her. "We've been so worried, you shouldn't wander alone, you know. Come on, it's almost dinner time."

Mal looked her cousins over, concerned as even her little brother simply stood there, staring into the distance.

Found the wayward kiddies, Mal sent through her link to Uma, Elle and Macaria. Up the river to the top of the bluff.

No way I'm getting up there, Elle replied. I'll meet you guys at the bottom.

"You all look like you've seen a ghost," Mal poked Hadie in the shoulder before she began to tug on his shirt. "Bro, are you okay? You're making me nervous."

Shaking his head, Hadie grimaced and turned to Herkie. "It's nothing, just…this is private land you said, right? No one else should be able to be out here?"

"Yeah, only immediate family of members of Olympus can come out here," Macaria nodded as she jogged up, staring at Hadie with concern. "Why do you ask?"

Hadie turned to look at where the woman had once stood, his hands shaky as he shoved the gift into his pocket.

"Where did you get that?" Macaria's eyes immediately caught the movement. "Those things are ancient."

"You know what it is?" Melody replied, knowing her other cousins were not willing to answer yet. She had too many of her own questions, each of their thoughts tangled in a hurricane.

"Yeah, Trivia was going over some history crap, but I never really listen," Macaria rolled her eyes, though she watched as her own brother shoved a similar looking line of beads into the Velcro pocket of his swim trunks. "God can make the most interesting things absolutely boring with how he goes on. Anyways, that's a κομβολόι. It's…well I wouldn't really say toy, but they're to keep children from getting bored. A few different ways to play with them, but sometimes they have magical properties."

"Magical?" Hadie's hand slipped back into his pocket, rolling a few beads between his fingers.

"Supposedly," Macaria shrugged. "You just found them up here in the field? The Nymphs and Nereids are good about the lost and found system here and finding owners, but if no one is missing them…Well, we should get going anyways, it's almost dinnertime."

The three Godlings nodded, unsure if they should say they ran into anyone at all.

Let alone the mother of the Gods herself.

"I know this Isle is supposed to be safe, but please don't wander off like that without telling anyone," Mal frowned at her little brother.

Really Hadie, I thought mom, dad and I taught you better! We don't know who we can trust, even if this isn't the Isle of the Lost. You know the stories dad used to tell of how inept the other Gods were.

Hadie rolled his eyes at the back of Mal's head as she and Macaria led the way back down the river.

Honestly Mal, I think you're overreacting. You don't see Macaria saying anything. And don't say maybe she's using the mindlink too! You space out when you use it or you'd know she and Herkie are talking about things totally fine!

Alright, alright, I'll drop it.

Thank you! I get what with everything, but I really do feel like we'd be safe here. Just gotta watch the words in case of eavesdroppers, but no one is going to attack us. Especially with mom able to come in an instant these days.

True. Mal thought with a smile, closing the link.

'Besides, I literally just spilled my guts to our cousins as if I felt the freest I could possibly be, despite that possibility. So…I guess you might be right, lil bro. Not that I'd actually tell you that.'

"Wait, who's that?" Mal frowned as she dashed forward, concerned as she saw someone who was clearly a God towering in the waves before Uma and Elle.

"Wait, Mal!" Macaria shouted after the purple-haired Godling. "It's okay!"

"Nope, she's already off again," Melody chuckled, shaking her head.

"Mal is definitely used to 'react first' rather than ask questions kinda person," snickered Hadie as he jumped back down into the actual inlet, enjoying the feeling of the clear water and the soft sand beneath the waves.

"AHOY FAMILY!"

The God raised a hand and came further towards the land, his lower half still concealed by the water, causing Mal to pause on her dash. Uma and Elle swam back up from where they were apparently speaking to the God and stood next to Mal. Melody, still shaking her head, led the other half of their little family to the shoreline.

"Hey kiddos, hope I didn't startle y'all," the God grinned an oddly charming lopsided smile. His cropped, tangled mess of a beard, but lengthy mullet of hair had vibrant blues and teals with gold speckled eyes of darker blue. "I know Zeus said we should leave the Isle alone, but I figured it'd only be the best time to stop by knowing I could reach y'all!"

"And why would you, whoever you are, want to reach any of us at all?" Mal ordered suspiciously.

'And is it socially acceptable of me to order a God to put a shirt on? It's rare for anyone to not be wearing one on the Isle considering to ward of theft and the cold… Ben was probably being the first to deliberately have theirs off when it wasn't bath day… not that there's anything wrong with it, but, first merman I've met and shirtless strikes me as weirdly…nude.'

Mal shook her head of her further distracting thoughts, especially those of Ben. And the weird pop up of when Kitty had been going over a magazine showing off muscular dad bods like the God before them seemed to have.

"First birthday off Isle, I just had to come around to offer my grandbaby's gift in person!"

"Grand…baby?" Uma uttered, shocked.

"I figured on sight; you must be Uma! I'm your Grandpa Po-Po!"

"I…figured that as well," grumbled Uma, voice changing from shock to unimpressed and unenthused.

"And you could be none other than Mal and Hadie!" Poseidon continued on as if his granddaughter wasn't offended at all. "You both really are the spitting image of your parents!"

Mal tensed. As far as she was concerned, she had her dad's chin and nothing else. A carbon copy of Maleficent.

"Yes, honestly, chin might be your father's, but no one's jawline cuts sharper than Persephone's! Almost as sharp as either of their tongues! It seems to be the reverse on your little brother, though!" Poseidon joked as a jewel and shell embedded trident materialized in his hand.

"The trident? But I thought Grandfather Tri—" Melody began to murmur as she watched her Great Grandfather swirl the trident's tip in the water.

"Hm? That mock up I gave him when Triton took over Atlantica? Bah, that lad is so clumsy his mumsie and I agreed he could only handle a small portion of the oceans power, so I designated him to control trade hubs. Gods knows he'd never be able to act as full dignitary for the different Oceanic beings and pantheons! He's been no fun lately! Used to go off on adventures and do all sorts of stupid things when he was about your ages!"

As the Godlings took in that random bit of information in shock, something burst from the water, speeding along and rampart, too quick for their eyes to make out the details.

"My kids really shouldn't have expected me to fully retire, I've only been running things for about three hundred something years after all!" The God continued to monologue at what seemed to be the top of his lungs. It was beginning to put a pain in their necks looking up at him, and while he blocked out the sun, the green-blue glow of his aura was just as intense as the rest of him.

"Uh, Grandpa Po-Po, do you think you could come down from the tsunami so we don't have to keep looking up at you?" Elle asked, waving her hand slightly as she sat her tail back upon the sand, using Uma's help to not be pulled back by the magical waves.

"Hm? Oh, yes!" Within seconds a much shorter, normal sized Poseidon stepped from the waves, green scales shifting into cargo shorts clad legs, aura dimming to a slightly less intense light. "I let my excitement run away from me, I apologize, younglings."

His newly met family stared in surprise at the difference of the originally boisterous God turned calm.

'He truly is the embodiment of the seas,' Hadie thought to himself. 'Unrestrained, erratic in one second, calm and soothing in the next.'

"Come along now!" Poseidon waved his trident once more at the ocean, a tunnel of sorts swirling open. "While we wait for my gift for Uma to arrive, I suppose I should formally introduce myself as obvious as it has been. Poseidon, Lord of the Seas, all embodiments of water, earthquakes and horses. I represent the solely physical realms of the Cosmos. But as the other kiddies know, y'all niecies and nephews can call me Uncle Po-Po!"

He stared at them expectantly, finally silent.

"Uh…hi, Uncle Po-Po?" Hadie barely managed to squeak out.

"Atta boy, laddie!"

"Eee, Eee!"

From the swirling waves, a horse like creature appeared, braying and squeaking as it splashed excitedly. With bright orange eyes, skin of pale blue and dorsal fins nearly black, but shimmering dark turquoise in the sunlight, the animal beat its hooves into the water.

"There she be!" Poseidon shouted gleefully, waving hand and trident at his apparent gift. "You're free to name her and do as ye wish, but I must be off now! I'll let your Grannie Trite know I stopped by, but she'll be wanting to meet you herself one of these days! Ta!"

Glowing once more, he stepped into the tide and into the tunnel the animal came from, closing it behind him.

"I—huh—WHAT?!"

"BRRrreerrr!"

"Not helpful, thanks." Uma told the animal. "I can't believe Grandpa Po-Po left me a hippocampus. Like what, he got my wish list from like a decade ago?"

"That's Grandpa for you. Besides, ten years is nothing to him, he probably considers it recent," Elle said, shaking her head. "She's all yours now, no matter what. Mom hasn't been successfully in saying no or passing gifts on either. They're weirdly niche and no one would take a gift of the King to his family from said family in case of angering him."

"But where the heck am I supposed to keep a sea pony?" yelled Uma, still utterly flabbergasted as she kicked at the ocean water. "I doubt Fairy G is just going to let me keep her in the pool!"

"The chlorine wouldn't be good for her anyways," Melody chuckled as she went up the mythological seahorse and began to pet them. "I'm sure mom would be willing to add her to our stables for whenever you wish to use her. And you still haven't named her."

"…Titilayo," Uma said firmly. "Now can we go, before any other random gods have a chance to show up? I'm starving."

Mal smiled as they wandered back to the teleportation point. Uma clearly didn't want to share, but Mal remembered that day as they hung out in Uma's room back in the Underworld when they were maybe 11.

Uma's birthday was coming up. She unfortunately had to wait the longest for Persephone to get back to get her gifts. It had been unexpected the first time the Goddess had come back with gifts for each new kid that moved into the Underworld, but now, instead of only Mal and Hadie having birthdays to look forward to, Harry, Uma and Jay could finally say they had more than makeshift dregs to survive with.

Not that they would ever complain about doing what they could for each other, but brand-new things from Auradon? Even Princess Blueberry could never claim to be so spoiled.

Besides, Blueberry hadn't even had a giant birthday bash since the time she didn't invite Mal.

"Uma?" Mal called out into the clubhouse, where they had planned to meet after school. "You here already?"

'I would think so if only because Serpent's is closer than Dragon's,' Mal thought to herself as she entered the room, her cousin nowhere in sight. 'I get dad doesn't want me to be by myself after what happened to Hadie last year, but Jay has his quota to fill! If it weren't for trying to keep the villain image up for his dad and the Dragon, I'd say we'd be better off moving Jay with us permanently too…still, I'm capable of taking care of myself, the Rats have the Town covered after all.'

"Mal?"

Mal spun around to find Uma leaning against the doorframe.

"Uma! A-are you okay?"

"Just a bruise, I was just surprised to see you here first."

"Just a bruise, my ass, what happened?" Mal demanded as she pulled Uma onto the clubhouse bed, careful to avoid the shoulder Uma was clinging to.

"Just got jumped on the way to drop the crappy school stuff at my dad's," Uma huffed. "Luckily dad was already home and he got rid of the jerks pretty fast."

'His longer legs would get him across the Isle pretty fast,' Mal thought.

"Who were they?"

"It doesn't matter, Mal," Uma started.

"Yes, it does! We take care of each other, so don't be so stubborn, you know this!"

"I know, and you're one to talk about being stubborn," laughed Uma, though her voice seemed tired and emotionless. "I mean it doesn't matter because dad took. care. of. them."

"Oh."

"Yeah. Oh."

"At least CC decided she was going to meet with your brother at the Docks. I don't know how that would've gone if she had to see it too." Uma continued as she slumped back against the bed, sighing. "Shame Aunt Steph already left, she's always around for us after school to make sure we're safe coming back through town."

"Yeah…" Mal nodded into her arms as she wrapped them around her pulled up knees. "She's perfect at not being obvious, even if I am slightly jealous she talks to you instead of me until we get home."

"Let me enjoy my one moment with someone who actually acts like a mom," teased Uma. "At least I can trust her to be normal when she comes back with birthday gifts. Dad offered to use one of the ritual knives he smuggled to turn my attackers into minions, but noooo thank you!"

"Wait, that would work?" Mal wondered.

"Haven't you listened to anything your dad said about the Barrier Theories?" Uma laughed. "He goes off about it often enough. The Barrier works against forming magic, but imbued and innate work well enough. One time use though."

"Explains why Maleficent's staff doesn't work anymore, but Blueberry's mom and Yzma's family can still make potions."

"Right? I know I barely can keep up with what's being said for the science of things, but it's easy enough to know that certain things keep properties, mix, and stay innate altogether to work."

"Rule similar to mass, I guess?"

"If you say so," Uma shrugged, smirking. "Maybe we can learn for real one day, if we ever get off this Isle instead of having to worry about survival."

"Agreed. Which begs the question, what would you ask for if you had your birthday off Isle?"

Uma went silent for a good couple of minutes, thinking hard.

"I-I think…a sea pony."

"I…did not expect that."

"My dad asked something similar, and I remember mama mentioning them when we were little…I finally got to see what they were in one of Hadie's books."

"Let me guess, his Beginner's Guide to Mythological Creatures?"

"That's the one," laughed Uma before a slight blush tinted her cheeks. "I was helping Aunt Steph pick some stuff up during one of your…'appearance' days with Jay while she made lunch during Hadie's nap. Came across Hippocampi and, well, I just thought they looked pretty—pretty cool—a-and maybe, if I can't own one, I'd at least get to see one in person one day."

"If you did get your own, just like how I have Estelle, what would you name yours?"

"...Titilayo. Dad said it means happiness," Uma smiled sadly. "Because if I had to pick between a frivolous dream of having a sea pony, versus something full of hope that would help us thrive rather than have to survive…it would be freedom. Freedom would make me happier than anything in the world."

Mal smiled a bright, carefree and honest, smile at Uma as they headed back up the beach with the rest of their family slightly ahead. Freedom really had begun making itself known to those stuck on the Isle of the Lost. A chance at last for the kids who had suffered all their life.

"First step: freedom," Mal said softly, looping her arm through Uma's.

"Last step: happiness," smiled Uma.

It didn't matter how many steps in between, but they were far closer than they thought they would ever be.

"I don't want to go back!"

"Hadie, please, I know you don't want to, but we agreed on this!" Persephone thread her fingers into the braid she had been putting her hair into, turning to look at her son with pleading eyes.

"NO!" Hadie stomped his foot, well aware he was acting like a little brat, but he refused to be around his so-called grandmother for as long as she still spoke horribly about his dad. "I-will-NOT!"

He knew he shouldn't be yelling at his mother, but for whatever reason he couldn't understand, he couldn't get a hold of his emotions.

Instead, Hadie had been hoping that he could just head over to Evan's or Phil's and avoid the entire disaster that had been Demeter's farm. Everyone was supposed to meet up and head to Ashaki's in a couple of days too, for her birthday bash, which he was already stressed enough for as it were, considering it would be an official royal event, no matter how 'casual' his friends said it was going to be.

He didn't need the added stress of an overbearing, micromanaging Goddess hanging over him on top of it all.

"She's just going to be dissing dad again, I know it!" Hadie growled as he avoided his mother's eyes. He could tell he was stressing her out too, his mom having been worried about going back as well, but used to it after years of having to follow through with a Styx-sworn Oath. "It doesn't help that I can't even see him for at least a year, I don't want to have to be around someone who thinks so low of him!"

"I KNOW!"

Hadie stumbled back, landing on the bed, surprised by his mother's outburst. He shrunk down into the pillows and blanket at the rage on her face.

Persephone staggered, arms falling limp from the braid as she stood from her vanity and gently sat on the bed next to him, sighing.

"I know," a tear began to snake down her cheek. "You think I wouldn't? After decades of having to go back and forth? Of having to-to listen to her rant and rage about my choices? It doesn't matter what I say, it never did. She only cares about action."

The Goddess pulled Hadie into her arms, running a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have yelled like that. I miss your dad too… my mom stresses me out too… but unfortunately that's the luck of the draw. She doesn't mind you being a child of Hades, because you're mine. Same for when she found out about Mal, all that matters is that I claimed her.

"For the first time since before your dad got sent to the Isle, I can come and go to him freely, but for you, you just need to be a little patient until you're healthy, okay? Anything that the Isle has done to your detriment, I want my little boy to be as healthy as he can be." Persephone finished, nuzzling Hadie's cheek, causing him to chuckle.

"I'm sorry I yelled too," Hadie sighed, cuddling into his mom. "That wasn't fair to you, and I should know better seeing as I've had to go half my life without you…"

"Well now I can be with you every step of the way," Persephone smiled, ruffling his hair. "I promise I'll try not to be a helicopter parent like my own mother was, but after missing so much you'll have to let me know if I'm getting close to that, 'kay?"

"I don't think it'll ever come to that, but okay," Hadie said, returning the smile.

"I'm sure I said the same thing to my own mom growing up, but trust me, you're going to hit the messy teenage years one day and you'll want to be able to go do whatever you want," Persephone teased, tapping Hadie's nose.

"Bah, well I can at least promise I'll try not to be, too, bratty teenager then," Hadie joked back before sighing. "Should I bring my backpack again, or…?"

"No, I think I'm going to keep you by my side this time," Persephone murmured. "I know the nymphs I assigned you did well, and that you got along with them, so they can trail as attendants again, but I figured you could see what exactly I do instead of feeling babysat all day. Or risk being alone with my mother again."

"Really? I'd love to see you work!" Hadie perked up, giving his mom a hug.

"Well, finish getting dressed, because we need to leave soon," Persephone smiled, patting his cheek. "And if you had let me finish before your little outburst, you would know that we aren't staying all day this time. Not even for lunch."

"No awkward small talk over food?" Hadie breathed a sigh of relief.

"No awkward small talk," Persephone laughed, letting go of Hadie and standing. "If you're a good Godling today, I'll let you pick what's for dinner."

"But what if…Grandmother…says things again?"

"I know it's hard, but I would appreciate it if you stay silent and let me handle it, I promise I won't let her say things as she has been about your father anymore."

"Alright, though I guess she missed that lesson you taught me before coming to Auradon," Hadie smirked as he headed to the living room where shoes were kept.

"What's that?"

"If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all!"

It had gone about as they had expected.

'But mom kept her promise,' Hadie thought as he nervously teleported alongside his mother a few days later into a vibrant, bustling town square.

"You're sure you have everything you need?" Persephone asked as she led Hadie through the cobbled roads and into a part of the old-style city with fancier buildings.

I'm sure, mom," Hadie said exasperatedly as he repeated himself for the twentieth time that day. "It's only for the night, I'll see you again at the party tomorrow."

"I know, I know, I just don't want you missing anything you might need," Persephone said as she kept a check on their surroundings. "It'll be your first sleepover! Not to mention a relatively public appearance amongst many royals tomorrow."

"I guess, but all of my friends have been saying it's going to be casual at Ashaki's birthday, I don't see what we need to be worried about," Hadie shrugged. "I've got the birthday gift, pajamas and toiletries for tonight, my semi-fancy clothes for tomorrow and considering I'm staying with Evan's family tonight, who, might I add, buy most things in bulk, if I forget something, they'll probably have it."

"I suppose, but if you need anything, you need only ask," tutted Persephone as they began up winding paths into the acropolis towards the castle of Corona.

"How about a phone?" Hadie chuckled, though his eagerness was entirely genuine.

"A phone? Why would you need a phone?" Persephone looked down at her son in confusion as they waited for some carriages and vehicles to pass. "We've got telepathy, after all."

"I can't use that with all my friends, only Herkie and Melody, for one. Being able to lookup stuff on the fly, sync my calendar on the go, even check homework rather than only seeing things when I get back to my laptop…I can go, y'know," Hadie joked.

"I'll think about it, but you at least have good reasons," Persephone said, shaking her head as they arrived at gleaming white steps of the marble palace. "Besides, depending on your end of year grades, your dad and I wanted to discuss increasing your allowance. You forget I can see your account, since we pay for you instead of having you and Uma on the VK sponsorships. The only reason Jay and Harry aren't, is because we'd have to get their father's permission."

"Oh boy, I'd pay to see dad confront Jafar or Hook, again," Hadie snickered. He might've been only three, but while he didn't know the cause, he could remember Harry pretty much moving in with them after Hook had broken the now surrogate son of Hades' ribs. "Isn't that why Dad has other people pick up the fish shipments for years now? So, he doesn't punch Hook on site?"

"I refuse to confirm or deny," Persephone said as she pursed her lips, shaking her head before straightening herself as they neared a pair of guards on either side of the large entryway, casts iron pans tied to each belt.

"State your name and business," the guard on the right demanded, an extra ribbon denoting him as higher rank than his compatriot.

"Queen Persephone," the Goddess said shortly. "I am here, escorting my son, Prince Hadie for the frivolities as invited by his friend, Prince Evan of Corona."

With a nod and half-bodied bow, the guard who had yet to speak slipped through the doors and returned not even a minute later with Queen Rapunzel.

"Lady Persephone!" The cheerful, green-eyed woman exclaimed. "So good to see you again, thank you for entrusting us with Hadie for the night!"

"We've known each other how many years now, Rapunzel?" Persephone sighed fondly. "I think I can trust you by now. Especially you out of all the other royals. You helped me make all the blankets for our family, and Hadie uses his every night. It was one of the first things he packed."

"Mooom!" whined Hadie, blushing with embarrassment till he realized it was his turn to speak to Queen Rapunzel. "Good afternoon, Lady Rapunzel, thank you for having me."

"Welcome, Prince Hadie!" the Queen gushed. "Aww, aren't you so cute and grown up now! I've only seen a few pictures of you, from your mom, not Evan, goodness my boy barely takes any, but it's nice to finally meet you, I've heard so much!"

"Oh, uh, thank you, Evan speaks fondly of you as well," Hadie's face began to clash with his hair, turning deep red with his dark blue hair. "And, thank you as well for the blanket, I didn't know you had a hand in it."

"Well enjoy your evening, but I need to take my leave," Persephone said, bowing her head slightly. "I'll see you all tomorrow for Princess Ashaki's party."

"Of course! I hope we can speak more then, Lady Persephone," Rapunzel smiled brightly. "I grant you permission to teleport should you need to do so within the boundaries of Corona's Capital City."

Giving her thanks, and a hug to Hadie, Persephone gave a final curtsy before disappearing in a shower of flower pedals.

"Come on in, Hadie, and thanks for getting me, Andrew, Dillard," Rapunzel said, waving to the pair of guards. "Don't forget to stay hydrated out here, you two!"

As Hadie followed Evan's mother into the halls, he couldn't help but admire the homier, warmer feel, the castle gave off than Alexandria's home. It certainly didn't have the same emptiness, with the warm, beige halls covered in paintings and tapestries.

"I'll be sticking back today, cooking and all, but Eugene says since it's your first time by, along with your cousin, you should get to meet the rest of our family friends over at the Snuggly Duckling!"

"R-right, I think Evan mentioned you guys frequent there…isn't it…a bar?"

"Yup!" Rapunzel said giddily. "But they're all just a bunch of softies and have tons of good stories, I'm sure you'll have tons of fun! I plan to go in a couple weeks myself to catch up with everyone."

"Hadie!"

The Godling in question grinned as he saw his friend Evan bolt down the hall.

"Evan! How've you been?"

"Pretty good, it's too bad you couldn't come with us the other day to the waterpark."

"Oh, uh, yeah, sorry, premade plans and all," Hadie shrugged, only a little sorry. He hadn't admitted to any of the others except Melody and Herkie that he hadn't learned to swim yet.

"Evan, why don't you take Hadie along with to find dad, you guys should probably get going soon before it gets dark."

"Okay, mom! C'ya! Come on, Hadie," Evan crowed, grabbing the Godling by the wrist.

"Until later, Lady Rapunzel," Hadie waved as he was dragged away.

"Hope all y'all have fun!"

The halls of the castle were easier to remember as Evan led Hadie down them, obvious decorative markers everywhere instead of the repetitive emptiness of Charmington Castle that only had occasional unique paintings.

"I hope you're ready for a good party, because my uncles at Snuggly Duckling are always fun," Evan babbled. "Phil, Neal and Herkie are already waiting actually. Dad likes to take the side entrance in order to sneak out without the general population spotting us. Some are still tetchy about dad's past and us all hanging around ruffians as some like to say."

"Considering I live on an Isle of 'ruffians', I think I'll be okay," Hadie laughed as he found himself greeting his other friends and cousin at a discrete looking buggy pulled by horses.

'King Eugene knows what he's doing,' Hadie thought, keeping his face from looking obviously impressed. 'I swear mom and I saw about thirty of these types of carriages just on our walk here alone.'

"Alright kiddies, climb aboard the H.M.S Flynn Rider and we'll be on our way till we gotta be back for din-din!"

Hadie tried not to stare as Evan's dad slid down the banister, his voice nearly sing song as he exclaimed their departure.

"I'm not sure whether to say your dad is cool, or weird…" Herkie mumbled to Evan as Hadie nodded along in agreement, their friends snickering around them, as Neal and Phil had already grown used to the King's antics over the years.

"Why not both?" Evan shrugged as he climbed into the carriage. "Though I wouldn't blame you if we leant to 'mostly weird'."

"Hey, I heard that!"

Luckily, Eugene's experience impressed the new visitors by only taking about twenty minutes or so to sneak out of the city and to a shady, extremely lopsided looking inn built upon the roots and partially into the trunk of a giant tree. Though Hadie wasn't looking forward to crossing the long, narrow bridge again to get back to the Capital City. Without Melody or Uma around, he couldn't help but feel nervous around a lot of water.

'But honestly calling this place a pub is a compliment. I've seen places on the Isle in better shape than this dingy hole."

"WELCOME!" Eugene bellowed, throwing open the creaky, rotten wood door with a bang. "TO THE SNUGGLY DUCKLING!"

"HEY!" A cacophony of deep, gravelly voices yelled back, mugs of whatever choice of drink raised in to the air.

"Oi, it's Rider!"

"Ah boo, who cares about him!" One drunk looking man spat, slumping across a table as he downed the rest of his beer.

"Nah, but he's brought Evan and the lad's friends again!"

"Really feeling the love here, guys, really," Eugene pouted, but he waved his charges into the pub.

"Hiya, everyone!" Evan scrambled up on to a bar stool, cheering alongside the pub patrons as they welcomed him in return. "You guys remember Neal and Phil, but today I'd like to introduce two new friends I made at school this year! Herkie and Hadie!"

"HOI!" Saluted the vagabonds, as they stomped and slammed things.

"Dad said we get to hang out until dinner time, we're having a sleepover at the castle tonight till we have to head to our friend's birthday party tomorrow. But they're having a girl's night, so I figured why not we have a boy's night!"

"Garçon, toss everyone a round, just no alcohol for the kiddies," Eugene asked the barkeep as he tossed a leg over a stool. "And no more than one soda for the lads, milk or juice is fine, but Blondie wants to keep the sugar down since they'll have plenty tomorrow."

"Aye, no problem, Eugene," the Innkeeper replied. "I know better than to serve minors alcohol, and I think Shorty is the only one ye need to be worried about sneaking them anything. Even if it'd just be by accident."

"Hadie, come over here," Evan shouted from across the bar, already deep within the crowded room, surrounded by various hulking masses. "Not everyone is here today, but meet Big Nose, Shorty, Killer, Gunther, Ulf, Atilla…"

'Yeah, I don't think I'm going to get all these names down today, Ev,' Hadie thought as he waved awkwardly alongside his cousin. 'Though some are quite literal.'

"Ah sweet, Atilla made cupcakes, you guys should try 'em!" Evan beamed as he dashed towards where the stalwart figure of the man introduced as Atilla was pulling out a tray of newly iced treats.

"Next time you're visiting us in Corona, you should stop by his shop in the city, Hadie," Evan said around his now stuffed mouth. "His bakery is top notch!"

Hadie carefully selected a chocolate cupcake with cherry frosting, peering into the holes of the helmet, unable to discern anything from Atilla's helmeted face.

"Thanks," Hadie offered.

He got a grunt back in return.

"D'you mind, lad?"

This time he found another guy, covered in pins and scissors, the one introduced with the name Killer, of all possible names.

"Sorry, what'd you need?"

"I just sees a tear in ye shoulder, can patch that up real quick if ye'd like," the tall, skinny man pointed at a small rip in the sleeve of Hadie's shirt.

'Must've got caught on one of the 'welcoming' spikes earlier,' Hadie thought, still slightly exasperated by the odd vibe of the entire place. Evan swung around in his stool.

"Oh yeah, Hadie, Killer is a tailor. Mom tends to go to him when she doesn't have time to repair our clothes herself," Evan gave Killer a smile and a wave before swinging his seat back around, happily chattering with the scarred barman who filled the young Prince a mug of milk from who knows where.

"Um, yeah, sure?" Hadie replied, though he was very much not sure, more worried about where that milk could safely have been stored that could possibly poison his friend than about a hundred dudes near him that looked like they belonged on the Isle offering to assist with mundane tasks and sharp instruments.

After growing up on the Isle, Hadie felt he could tell who were actually dangerous, and while these men certainly had the chops to be, they all clearly nice guys first, bad guys when needed. Though by the way King Eugene was rolling his eyes at one particularly tall, boastful tale, Hadie added 'liars' to the list of features, but table rounds tended to be stretched out truth. He'd had fun though, and when going to bed that night with a tummy full of Queen Rapunzel's dinner spread, the Godling had to agree with Ashaki's recommendation from a long time ago that it was a comforting place indeed.

And for a worn, crowded, rambunctious 'hole-in-the-wall' place, some might even say 'Snuggly'.

"Hey, we're here."

Hadie groaned as he was shaken awake. Blinking away his sleep, Hadie covered his eyes from the brightly glaring sun, hopping down from the covered wagon they'd been in.

'Certainly, brighter than even when I first got to Auradon,' came an angry, sleepy thought. 'I knew Agrabah was desert-riddled, but this heat is insane! Which would explain Emir. Not to mention why Mal likes visiting this place so much.'

"Here, kiddo," a blue-clad hand thrust a pair of sunglasses towards Hadie.

"Oh, thanks, uh—" Hadie trailed off as he took in the person who had handed him the item. It wasn't that their hand had been clad in blue, but the entirety of the being before him was blue themselves.

"I take it you're Genie."

"That I do be do, little guy!" the Genie swooped up before 'POOF', he took on the guise of a butler and began shuffling everyone through the city wall's gate and into a bustling market place.

"Come along, come along, no time to waste!"

"Tamr, tamr!"

"Batekh!"

"Spices!"

"Dresses! Cloth for sale!"

"Dinnerware! Furniture! Even this goat!"

"Hey, that's my goat!"

"It's in my shop!"

The bright colors, even muted by the dark lenses, were everywhere. The people, their clothes, the roughshod stalls, the various smells of spices, grilled vegetables, smoked meats...

It was exquisite. It was energy given form. It was exactly the personification of what Hadie had grown to know the royal children of the country to be.

"Great, isn't it?" Herkie asked as they were guided towards the inner walls where the towering domed palace lay in wait.

"It's amazing!" Hadie gasped. He was glad that the city was so crowded as to disallow large carriages, only the major roads allowing a straight line for caravans for official business. Today, though, as the city openly celebrated their princess' thirteenth birthday, for the guests it would be a casual, internal affair.

"I came here a few times a year even before we moved to Auradon," laughed Herkie, shaking his head slightly at his cousin's swiveling head. "There's something to be said about the energy of any agora that one can't help but enjoy, and the markets here might be the best."

"Ashaki did say that the economy of Agrabah is the strongest in the United States," Hadie mused. "I definitely need to come back and get a closer eye on it all, everything here looks so tempting."

"I could personally do without the heat," Phil joined in. "Melody says even though Greece is quite hot, humid even, at least the sea breezes help you stay cool. I stayed the night here in Agrabah once, and while it's hot during the day, the nights are freezing."

"Ah you poor, frajeeleh human beings," tutted Genie before he whirled around. "Abahbahbahbah, come along now lovebirds, Jasmine said she'd like to start on time today and I don't need to be off wrangling stragglers!"

Eugene smirked as he pulled Rapunzel away from a rainbow display of bolted cloth.

"What's frajeeleh?" asked Evan.

"It's Italian," Genie and Eugene said synchronously.

"I'm surprised there isn't a lot of pickpocketing," Hadie pointed out as they cleared the marketplace. "I know I'd be tempted, and I've seen King Eugene nab an apple and toss it to one of the horses and Evan returned a trinket bag to a kid without the adult thief or the kid noticing."

"Yeah, I'll be reporting that man to Aladdin and Jas when there's time," Rapunzel bit out. "Thieving is pretty much nonexistent in Agrabah now that the lower classes needs are addressed. Considering Aladdin's history, Jasmine now knows where to target and what to do in order to prevent poverty taking root again. Some people are just jerks, preferring greed to reach comfort than hard work."

"Who are we talking about?"

"Al!" Genie teleported next to the sudden appearance of the King of Agrabah, dressed in cream colored, loose clothing. "I can make you a painting from memory so we can track the guy down, but our visiting dignitaries caught a man trying to pickpocket some kids in the marketplace."

"Right, thanks for keeping an eye out," Aladdin said, greeting Eugene and Rapunzel with a friendly shake. "I'll take care of it tomorrow, though. Today's my little girl's birthday after all, no need to think about work!"

"We all gathering in the central assembly or…?" Eugene asked, trailing off his question.

"Lotus Courtyard, actually. The weather is beautiful and we agreed on minimal formality today, so apart from pictures for the ever-persistent information archives, the kids can roll in mud for all I care."

"Don't know how you can call those news vultures, the Archives over here," said Rapunzel, frowning.

"True information only, and it's mainly to record the history of the city," Aladdin replied, waving off his fellow Royal's concern. "We get to control what they get to record about the family at least, so no need to worry about them climbing the walls to get in. Plus, we have Genie to sneak in or magic anything away."

"What happened to magic being outlawed unless permission gained?" Hadie mumbled to Herkie

"Between me and you kid, I'm thankful for the recent law revision on magic now that your sister is engaged to Benny," Genie whispered into Hadie's ear in a suddenly miniature form. "Kid King realized it's pretty oppressive to those who natural have it like us."

"Um? Personal space please?"

"Hey, by the way, you wouldn't be the kid of Hades, would you? Ooga booga dude, big fire, real mean, talks faster than a used chariot salesman?"

"Genie," Aladdin warned.

"What? I'm just askin'," Genie shrugged. "Standing right next to mini-Herc and I can't help but see the uncanny resemblance to back in the day where you and Wonderboy teamed up against the Fire Lord."

Herkie snickered next to Hadie while the younger boy rolled his eyes.

"Dunno if you can describe him like that anymore, but yep, that's my dad," Hadie glared. "Mom says he's relatively mellowed out now."

"Speaking of your mom, Prince Hadie, I might as well let everyone else know that your parents have already arrived, you're the last group to arrive," Aladdin said as he began leading everyone through detailed arches and pillars towards a courtyard decorated with balloons, lights and streamers. "Feel free to mingle with them or whoever for a bit, we have some time before we were going to gifts and cake. Food is free range, so no need to wait for that if you kids are hungry now. I know you're all growing boys!"

"Thank you, Sultan Aladdin," Hadie began, as he had yet to introduce himself formally as normally expected.

"Hey, don't worry about that stuff. No bowing or anything, and just introduce yourself normally to anyone and then you can drop titles with permission. I only used yours since we hadn't met yet, but you can just call me Al, or Aladdin outside of official events. Now be off, all of you!"

"Thanks, Al!" The kids all yelled before dashing towards the garden.

A beautiful fountain spiraled from the center, surrounded by painted terracotta tiles and plants of jasmine, irises and lotus. Tables filled with food and drink wafted gorgeous smells into the wind, a monkey leaping happily as it horded a selection of treats into a little towel. Adults chattered happily with each other as a tiger lounged lazily in the spring sun, belly rumbling as he chuffed from receiving pets from the birthday girl and her fellow princesses who had stayed the night beforehand.

"Hi Emir, Hi Ben, Hi Mal, Hi Akiho!" Hadie excitedly ran up to his sister and three favorite Auradon Princes.

"Hey lil' bro," Mal greeted with a hug, Ben and Akiho giving the Godling a double high-five.

"Hey Hadie, glad you could make it," grinned Emir as the monkey Hadie had seen earlier climbed onto the black-haired Prince. "Have you had a chance to meet Abu yet?"

"Uh, hi?" Hadie waved awkwardly.

"RA REEEE AA AA!"

"Hey, bad Abu!" Emir tapped at the monkey's nose, forcing the monkey silent as he had begun to draw attention from the adults.

"Grrrrrr," Abu voiced, pulling out a spikey blue wig from within his little vest—which Hadie had no clue how that was possible—and baring his fangs angrily as he raised his arms in the air as if he was tall and towering over them all.

"Oh, you're still mad about Lord Hades huh? I know, I know, they look alike because he's Lord Hades' son, but Hadie is a good kid, alright?"

The monkey hissed.

"You like Lady Persephone, don't you?" At the nod, Emir continued. "Well Lady Persephone is also Hadie's mom, in fact Mal is their kid too, and you like her just fine."

Abu chittered awkwardly, crouching down into a sulk before nodding. "Ah eee, rah ah tweeee!"

"Right, so why don't you apologize to our guest? Ashaki made friends with him and we don't want to disappoint the birthday girl, do we?"

"Rrrrr ah ee awa," Abu pouted before leaping onto Hadie's shoulder instead. Monkey and Godling stared at each other for a moment before Abu reached out and patted Hadie on the forehead. The next thing Hadie knew, Abu shoved what appeared to be a devilled egg into his hand before leaping off back towards the snack table.

"Abu causing trouble?" A tawny-tanned woman sauntered up wearing an outfit of teals and turquoise, the tiger that had been by the fountain prowled by her side.

"Minor hiccup," Emir said with a wave of his hand. "Mom, Rajah, meet Hadie, Mal's little brother. Hads, this is my mom, Sultana Jasmine."

"Lovely to meet you, Hadie," Jasmine smiled. "Jas or Jasmine will be fine. I'm just making the rounds before we start."

"Nice to meet you too," Hadie said as his attention was taken by Rajah, the enormous tiger butting against the small boy in a demand for pats.

"Wow, you're soft! Nice to meet you to, Rajah," Hadie laughed before grinning at Akiho. "Maybe Emir has it right, tigers are crazy cool! Definitely better than reindeer so far."

"Hey, you haven't met reindeer yet, hold your judgement!" pouted Akiho.

Hadie winced, but smiled at Rajah's affection, unable to resist the shiver that ran up his spine at the rough sandpapery feel of the giant cat's tongue scrapping his arm.

"You think mom and dad would let me have one?" Hadie joked to Mal, his sister fondly shaking her head.

"Doubtful, stormcloud, very doubtful."

"Hey, you've had Estelle my entire life, maybe it's my turn to get a pet!"

"We can discuss that another time, Hadie," Persephone giggled as she appeared from around some shrubbery. "Was off to use a bathroom, sorry if you missed me."

"All good, mom," Hadie and Mal chimed together as they each gave their mom a hug.

"Alright, now that everyone is together, I think it's time to present thy gifts to our person of honor!" Aladdin announced to the crowd.

"Aw man, but I haven't even had time to greet Ashaki or the other girls yet," pouted Hadie.

"There will be plenty of time for that, and there's supposed to be party games, too," Emir informed him. "Dad's gift is just something interactable and he wants everyone to be able to use them for the games. Party won't end for a few hours, after all."

Hadie nodded and waved towards where he saw Alexandria and Melody gathering, Ashaki moving away from them and towards the edge of the fountain where she sat, center for all to see.

"Yeah, give the princess her loot!" Jay shouted from the other side of the garden to much laughter.

Joining everyone in sitting down, Hadie scratched behind one of Rajah's ears as the old tiger huffed, lying down on the stairs between Godling and Emir with happy chuffing as Emir rubbed the underside of the cat's chin. Mal and Ben sat quietly together on the other side of Persephone who sat close to Hadie, only slightly too nervous from learned wariness on the Isle of the tigers that lived there to let her son be on his own with an animal about five times his weight.

Hadie stuck his tongue out as his sister as he heard her snort when his gift got opened.

'Shrek's a good, underappreciated book, leave me alone,' Hadie smirked to himself. 'Besides, Ashaki expressed interest, so I figured I'd get her, her own copy. Besides, the other book is a joint gift with Phil."

Though he was a tad jealous that Neal had gifted a full bow and arrow set, complete with gift card for resupply. Evan had jokingly gifted a lock picking set, whereas Ashaki had happily accepted tickets for some dance show from Alexandria that she was apparently a fan of. The joint gift Hadie had done with Phil was from a time Ashaki had expressed getting into a sublet of her writing hobby, this one having to do with calligraphy instead of the erratic adventures she adored to make. The second book Hadie had gifted included beginner instructions, alongside a set of supplies from Phil for the princess to practice with.

Aladdin had apparently gotten his daughter mini go karts to ride around the garden paths. They were all definitely looking forward to that.

It had taken more than half an hour to get through all the gifts, excitement growing for the receiver and the younger crowd who would get to participate in the more immediately usable items.

"Now that we've opened everything, for my birthday, and in light of recent events, I'd like to make an announcement," Ashaki took a trembling breath, and hopped up to stand on the ledge of the fountain, straightening her shoulders as she looked out amongst the small crowd of royals. "First of all, I'd like to thank everyone for coming, as well as for the 'loot' as Jay so graciously dubbed them."

The tittering of socializing socialites rose, everyone audibly chuckling at the boy's antics. With a visible gulp, Ashaki spoke again.

"I'm sure all of us take pride in our origins, no matter how large or small. From serfdom, from the streets, or from royalty itself, each of our families' history has shown kindness above all. It is with unfortunate findings, that the Isle of the Lost, a place intended to lock away our fears and enemies to continue towards a better future has turned out to be little more than an experiment in failure."

A few frowns appeared in the crowd, but not towards the words of Ashaki's speech. Rather it was for disappointment in themselves for not upholding their values and believing in a system without double checking things. For letting children suffer. For not being much better than the villains they placed on the Isle in the first place.

"But I am not here to lecture anyone, as I believe everyone here today is in line with the belief that it was not intentional, that we are better and are going to do better. So," Ashaki paused, taking another breath to relax herself. "In the hope that our new King of Auradon will ensure the improvements promised and against anyone who is still not for the progress in making the Isle a humane environment, I would like to put forward my savings and my stipend for this year towards funding the Hospital and infrastructure finally being built."

Hadie jolted in surprise at his friend's announcement, though waves of happiness bolstered within him. Glancing at his mother, he found her openly smiling, one that purveyed genuine enjoyment and her own surprise at the news.

Apparently, it was news to Ashaki's own parents as well.

"Are you sure, sweetheart?" Aladdin knelt down to his daughter, pride on his face, though still concerned. "That's a lot of money and I know how much you like shopping for the latest when it comes to events."

"Don't make me sound so shallow, dad," scolded Ashaki, shaking her head. "I know your stories, I know you want us to be able to get whatever we want with no need to care for, but this is actually important. This is for people struggling, for the people who have died. This is for a better future."

"I know, I just wanted to make sure," Aladdin said with a stern nod as he stood, facing the audience himself. "Then I would like to declare that I will double my daughter's gift. Agrabah is a part of the union that is Auradon now and we feel partially responsible for turning this blind eye. As the purveyor of removing people from a life of destitution, this is unacceptable to the very values of our kingdom."

Mom? Hadie whispered, leaning close to Persephone as he tugged gently on her skirt. An odd pressure appeared in his heart, thumping with inspiration.

Yes, love?

Can… we match Ashaki's gift?

That's a great idea, Hadie! We can absolutely do that.

Hadie's outward smile grew as he briefly took his mom's hand and squeezed it in thanks.

He heard the mutters of the other's, the shouts of agreeing parents, Eugene of Corona most of all, agreeing to add to Ashaki's donation. Off to the side Ben and Mal looked on in glee and surprise that their ideas, hopes and dreams for the Isle were suddenly about to get a large deposit of funds.

That all along, the Royals, the people, of Auradon truly did care about the state of the Isle.

That progress was wanted.

Their dreams could be made.