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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟕
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐊𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐒

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The very odd-looking group headed straight to the school once they arrived back in Auradon. As they walked through the campus, most of them were using their phones to try to get a hold of anyone who might still be awake. It didn't take long for them to realize that the cell service was out after not being able to make a single call. They soon arrived at Auradon Prep's courtyard, only to see everyone who was socializing there sound asleep. While Morgan walked ahead with Celia, who was gawking at the school, Rylee fell back a bit with Jay so that they could keep an eye on the three pirates. The two of them wanted to make sure they kept themselves in line.

The Fitzherbert girl wasn't surprised to find Gil looking around at everything with a confused look on his face. That continued for another moment before the son of Gaston broke the silence surrounding them. "Everything is so..."

"Freaky," the son of Jafar muttered as he and Rylee continued to look around at everyone who was sound asleep.

"Green!" Gil exclaimed, causing Rylee and Jay to exchange a look before turning their attention back to the son of Gaston. The blonde boy continued to look around at the surrounding plants before he continued speaking. "You have leaves on your trees. And what are those colored things on the bushes?"

"The flowers?" Rylee responded, only for the blonde-haired boy's smile to grow as he studied the plants.

"Flowers are pretty," Gil announced before his attention fell on a bowl of grapes, "cantaloupe!"

While the son of Gaston began eating the fruit, the Fitzherbert girl's eyes landed on Harry. The raven-haired boy was circling a table of sleeping students as if they were his prey. A small sigh passed over Rylee's lips as she made her way over to the smirking pirate, who was taking an unconscious boy's wallet.

"I believe I deserve some compensation for my muscles, my wile, and my role in this endeavor," Harry said after taking all the money out of the wallet, only for Rylee to snatch it out of his hands.

"You do," the blonde princess hissed while putting the money back in the wallet and placing it on the boy's lap. Rylee just glared at Harry as Jay made his way over to them, causing a false smile to form on her face. "Your payment is you getting to keep your little hook and Jay not squashing you like a bug."

"Think I'm scared of the two of you?" the son of Hook retaliated while running his hook down the side of Rylee's face.

As soon as the tip of his hook reached her chin, Jay roughly grabbed Harry's wrist and shoved him away from Rylee. It wasn't long after that when the two of them had a staredown. What felt like an eternity passed when Uma and Mal called for them to knock it off, causing the pirate to send them an annoyed look. Jay couldn't help but roll his eyes as he pushed past the son of Hook before the latter turned his attention back to the princess. The two of them just stared at each other for a long moment before Rylee let out an irritated scoff and went to join the four VKs, who were talking to Dude.

"Hey, do you know what happened here?" Carlos asks his loyal companion, who's licking his jowls after eating a hot dog out of a sleeping student's hand.

"Yup. Audrey showed up. She put everybody to sleep. And then she turned some of them to-"

Dude's story was cut short when Morgan called out to us with a hint of panic in her voice, drawing their attention to her before their eyes landed on the new statue she was standing in front of. "Lauren turned to stone."

"Alright, everybody stay on their toes," Jay told them before they walked over to join the daughter of Merida to study the statue.

"Look, since we're here, let's check the school," Uma suggested after turning her attention away from the frozen students and looking at her temporary allies.

"No," Mal responded, making the three pirates turn around to face her with irritated and confused looks on their faces. It wasn't long after that when the daughter of Maleficent continued her explanation. "Audrey went straight for the crown, so I think it's safe to assume that she's gonna go for Ben and his castle next. That's where we'll go."

"Says who?" Uma challenged as she confidently walked toward Mal with her crew in tow.

An annoyed look instantly appeared on the purple-haired girl's face while taking a few steps forward to meet the daughter of Ursula. "Says me."

"Says you. And that's supposed to mean something to me?" Uma retaliated without even bothering to hide the hatred in her voice.

Their staredown was soon interrupted by Evie calling out to them, causing everyone to turn their attention toward the daughter of the Evil Queen to find an irritated look on her face. After staring at the blue-haired girl for a moment, Mal turned her attention back to Uma before announcing that they were heading to the castle. Before the pirate princess could argue, the Future Queen walked away from her and began her journey toward Beast Castle.

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As soon as they reached the castle, they followed Dude as he attempted to track down the King of Auradon. The rest of them called out for the son of Belle and Adam, wanting nothing more than to find him awake in the halls. After walking down the tenth hall, the campus mutt let out a triumphant laugh before announcing a change in direction. Rylee and Morgan couldn't help but exchange a look as they turned down the corridor, knowing that their hope for good news was dwindling. Their attention was drawn back to their current situation when Mal let out an exasperated sigh as her eyes followed Dude's retreating figure.

"Ben could be asleep anywhere," the purple-haired girl announced while throwing her hands in the air in frustration.

"Or turned to stone," Celia added, only for Mal to send her an annoyed look before Evie placed a hand over the younger girl's mouth.

"I got a scent. Very pungent cologne. Easy to track. Follow me, people," Dude announced as he patiently sat at the end of the hall, waiting for everyone to catch up to him.

"That's great, Dude," Carlos praised after a proud smile formed on his face.

"FYI, I give great cuddles, too," their furry friend added before turning around and continuing down the hall.

It wasn't long after that when they started following Dude while Gil rambled about how he never had a pet except for the animals on his father's walls. Just when they made it halfway down the corridor, Rylee stopped in her tracks. Her eyes scanned over the scratches on the walls before her attention moved to a painting that was now cut in two.

"Hold on," the Fitzherbert girl called out, cutting off Gil's story and drawing all attention to her as she ran her hand over the new marks on the wall, "these weren't here this morning. And I know for a fact that this painting was one of Belle's favorites."

After exchanging a look with her friends and somewhat allies, they took one last look at the claw marks before continuing down the corridor. It wasn't long after that when they reached the end of the hall before Mal pushed the two giant doors open and slowly walked inside. Chills ran up Rylee's spine at the sight of all the armor along the wall before everyone, excluding Celia, made their way into the room to look around. When the Fitzherbert girl finished examining some of the shields, her attention was drawn to Harry, who was carefully running his fingers over one of the swords.

"I can feel you lurking," Harry announced, causing the princess to roll her eyes before pushing past him to get to Morgan's side.

"Something doesn't feel right," the redhead said after Rylee stopped next to her, "and it isn't the fact that we're working with Uma, Harry, and Gil again."

"And here I thought you forgave them for what they did," the Fitzherbert girl responded, only to receive an eye roll from Morgan in response before Rylee looked around the room once again, "but, in all seriousness, I get what you mean. The atmosphere in the castle has been off since we entered."

As if on cue, Harry shouted at the bickering Mal and Uma, drawing everyone's attention toward him. Rylee would be the first to admit she was surprised to find the pirate staring at one of the suits of armor with a hint of fear in his eyes. "We have a situation here."

It didn't take long for everyone to follow the pirate's gaze to find the suit of armor in front of them emitting pink mist from its helmet. Before anyone could say another word, the armor stood up as straight as possible and bowed to them. It wasn't long after that when it unsheathed its sword and prepared to fight. "Do you like a prince, Mal? How about a knight in shining armor? Or knights?"

A maniacal laugh followed Audrey's last word as the suits of armor surrounding them began copying their leader. Rylee's eyes looked around the room at the knights before watching two of them block their only exit. After the Fitzherbert girl turned her attention back to the group, Harry and Gil handed her and Morgan swords. Shock coursed through the princesses' veins as they took the swords before sending them grateful nods in response. As soon as everyone was ready, they formed a circle to watch each other's backs and prepared for the fight.

Once Evie settled another argument between Mal and Uma, the sound of metal on metal filled the air as they began fighting the enchanted knights. Out of the corner of my eyes, Rylee spotted Carlos slide across the floor on a shield in pursuit of his sword that got knocked out of his hands. It wasn't long after that when her attention moved to Jay and Gil, who were fighting in sync to take down four suits of armor. On the other side of the room, Morgan and Uma were fighting back to back alongside Evie and Mal while Celia stood by the door and shouted out warnings when she could.

Just as Rylee took down the knight in front of her, a loud clang filled her ears. She didn't hesitate to turn her attention in the direction of the sound to find two swords pushing against each other inches away from her face. Her eyes stayed glued to the long pieces of steel before the one blocking the attack pushed the suit of armor away. After watching the suit crash into a wall and shatter to pieces, the Fitzherbert girl turned around to come face-to-face with Harry. The two of them just stared at each other for a moment before the princess sent the pirate a grateful smile. After returning the gesture, Harry went to join Gil as Morgan came to my side. It wasn't long after that when Rylee's attention returned to the situation at hand, only to find all the knights either on the ground or shattered against the walls.

Everyone began celebrating their victory over the knights as their cheers filled the room. Without thinking, Rylee let out a laugh before pulling the closest person to her in for a hug. She felt their arms wrap around her waist before she was spun around in a circle. It wasn't long after that when she was carefully placed back on her feet. Another laugh escaped Rylee as she looked up at the person next to her, only to meet the familiar blue eyes of Harry Hook. Shock filled every inch of the Fitzherbert girl's body as she stared at the son of Captain Hook. Not even a second after that passed when she pushed him away from her and went to stand next to Jay. It didn't take long for Rylee to notice that everyone went back to standing with their respective groups while Evie and Morgan stared at them with disbelief in their eyes.

"Guys, come on. This was so great," Evie said as she looked between the two opposing sides.

"We were a team. We worked together. Come on," Morgan added before her pleading eyes met Rylee's as she reached out to her. The Fitzherbert girl just stared at her hand for a moment before shaking her head at her best friend, only for the latter to let out a defeated sigh. It wasn't long after that when she turned her attention toward Uma. "Come on."

"You know what we should try?" the daughter of the Evil Queen spoke with a smile on her face as she rested her hands on her hips, "an icebreaker."

Morgan and Evie instantly shared a smile while Mal, Jay, Carlos, and Rylee let out irritated groans. On the other side of the room, Uma, Harry, and Gil were staring at the two girls with confused looks on their faces. At the sight of the clueless pirates, the daughter of the Evil Queen clasped her hands together and turned to address the trio.

"You say something you really like about the other person, okay? I'll start," the blue-haired girl told them as her eyes scanned over the pirates in front of her. Rylee had to force back a laugh after watching the three of them try to avoid eye contact with Evie. However, she couldn't hold it back when Evie called out Harry's name, earning an irritated sigh from the son of Captain Hook. "Great accent. Now you go?"

"Is she always this perky?" Uma asked as she looked past the girl in front of her and at Mal.

A smile instantly appeared on Evie's face as her attention moved to the daughter of Ursula. "Oh, it wasn't really your turn, but thank you."

"Okay, Evie, come here," the daughter of Maleficent said while pulling her best friend toward her, "I love you. I love this energy, but we are very short on time. Audrey clearly knows that we're here and we need to get out of here. ASAP."

Uma couldn't help but roll her eyes at their exchange before letting out a long sigh and taking a step forward. "Alright, where does this cheerleader bunk down? Even if she's not there, we might find some sort of clue."

"Actually, she's still in the dorms," Rylee answered with her arms crossed over her chest as she leaned against the wall behind her, "she had summer school."

"What? Summer school? Summer school!" Harry laughed before taking a few steps toward the blonde girl, only for Jay and Carlos to block his path before he got too close. An irritated look passed over the pirate's features before he continued laughing. "No wonder she wants revenge."

"Okay, I need you guys to go find Ben," Mal ordered as she looked at the boys along with Rylee and Morgan, "we will meet back at Evie's in two hours, okay?"

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