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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟖
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐈𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐄'𝐒 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒

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After splitting from the girls, Rylee and Morgan followed the four boys through the forest while calling out for Ben. The Fitzherbert girl couldn't help but glance over at the son of Captain Hook as they walked through the trees and stepped over fallen logs. Every time she looked at the back of the boy's head, her mind wandered to Pete and Raiden. She couldn't help but think about where they could possibly be during this crisis. The last the blonde princess heard from them, they were on their way to the Enchanted Lake to help Jane set up for her birthday party. Rylee hadn't received any texts or calls from them since that morning.

As she continued to think about the missing boys, Rylee's eyes left the pirate and fell on her redheaded best friend walking beside her. The Fitzherbert girl knew Morgan had been worrying about her boyfriend since they discovered what was happening. And on top of it all, she was still having an internal conflict that began when they reunited with the pirate trio. Throughout their journey, Rylee knew that Morgan had been trying to gather the courage to tell Gil about Raiden. After about two months since they left the Isle, All negative feelings toward the son of Gaston left Morgan. And it wasn't long after that when she started dating the son of Robin Hood, who she had known since she was a child.

It wasn't long before they reached the top of one of the many small hills that resided in the forest surrounding Auradon Prep. Carlos soon came to a stop before sitting down on a rock and calling Dude over to him. While their furry friend returned to the son of Cruella De Vil, Gil went to stand in front of a berry bush. Jay, Morgan, and Rylee couldn't help but watch him with Harry standing a few feet away from them.

"These things just grow everywhere," Gil said with a large smile on his face as he picked a berry from the bush and popped it in his mouth. The smile on his face did nothing but grow as he chewed the piece of fruit. It wasn't long after that when he looked back at Jay, who simply stared back at him with confusion in his eyes. "Hey, we should play that icebreaker. Um, Jay, I like the way that you can bounce around and jump off things."

The princesses quickly exchanged an amused look before turning their attention back to the son of Gaston to find his smile slowly fading after his eyes fell back on the berry in his hand. "These are free, right?"

"Yeah," Jay responded before he and Morgan hesitated for a moment then walked over to join Gil at the bush, "I like how you get a kick out of a berry bush."

To Rylee's amusement, the three of them continued to converse about everything Jay and Morgan had seen in Auradon. However, she tuned out the conversation as her attention wandered away from them before landing on Harry once again. Her eyes studied the pirate for a long moment as he watched the trio around the berry bush. It wasn't long after that when she noticed his whole body tense. A silent sigh passed over Rylee's lips as the son of Captain Hook turned around to face her. The two of them stared at each other with no emotion in their eyes for what felt like an eternity, neither one of them wanting to be the first to break the silence between them. However, it wasn't long after that when Harry began speaking.

"Are you gonna keep staring at me? Or are we finally gonna talk?" the raven-haired boy questioned, causing Rylee to scoff before pushing past him and continuing down the path.

The princess wasn't surprised when she heard someone following her. Despite wanting it to be anyone but the blue-eyed pirate, it didn't take a genius to know it was him. It wasn't long before a hand wrapped around the Fitzherbert girl's wrist, forcing her to stop. Anger flowed through Rylee's veins as she forced her arm free and spun around to face Harry. She just stared at him for a long moment before letting out another scoff and taking a step in the opposite direction, only for the pirate to grab her wrist again, keeping her in front of him.

"You were never one to keep your mouth shut," Harry said followed by a laugh as the anger continued to build up within Rylee.

"I have nothing to say to you," the Fitzherbert girl hissed before yanking her wrist out of his grasp once again while keeping her glare glued to the boy in front of her.

"Come on, Ryls-"

"Save your breath, Harry," Rylee interrupted without even bothering to hide the hatred in her voice, earning a shocked look from the pirate in front of her, "ever since I met you, all you've done is play games and I'm sick of it!"

Harry's shocked look was instantly replaced with a confused one as he continued to stare down at the princess. "What are you even talking about?"

"What am I- Are you kidding?! You played me! You pretended you cared, only to push me aside when Uma ordered you to! I trusted you! Come to find out that everything that happened between us was because that sea witch wanted you to get every piece of information about Auradon you could get out of me!" Rylee shouted, completely unaware of the group listening in the distance. Her eyes stayed glued to the pirate as she studied every inch of his expressionless face. It wasn't long after that when the Fitzherbert girl took in a shaky breath and continued her rant. "I was finally starting to forget about what happened back on that island. I was getting closer to being my old self again. Then you just came out of nowhere and pushed yourself back into my life!"

"Then just admit that you hate me so that we can move past this," Harry responded just as Rylee caught the hint of anger and sadness in his eyes, only for it to vanish as fast as it came, "and as soon as this little mission is over, we'll never have to see each other again."

"That's the thing, Hook. That's what's been irritating me ever since you turned your back on me," the Fitzherbert girl said in a tone just about a whisper that was barely loud enough for the son of Captain Hook to head, "after everything you did and no matter how mad at myself for letting you into my life, I can't find it within me to admit that I hate you. Because that month on the Isle with you was the happiest I've been in a long time."

Their eyes stayed connected for a moment longer before Rylee let out another shaky breath to gather her courage. To her surprise, she was barely able to gather enough to prepare herself to ask the question that had been on her mind ever since she left the Isle. "So now I have to ask. Hopefully your answer will give me some sort of closure. Was any of it real? Or were you playing me the whole time?"

Harry continued to stare at Rylee in silence with his mouth slightly parted. Her question still lingered in the air that surrounded them, waiting to be answered. The two of them stayed like that for a moment longer before the sound of a twig snapping filled their ears. That caused them to back away from each other before their attention turned in the direction of the sound. Rylee was a bit surprised when she felt irritated at the sight of her friends and Gil walking toward them. All she wanted was for Harry to answer her, and now she doubted he ever will.

While Jay and Carlos sent Harry glares, the Fitzherbert girl's eyes landed on Morgan, only to find her staring back at me with sympathy in her eyes. It was at that moment that Rylee realized that they heard everything that was said between the pirate and the princess. A wave of embarrassment washed over the blonde girl as Harry walked past her and down the path.

It wasn't long after that when Jay, Carlos, and Morgan walked past Rylee to continue their way through the forest. Just as the Fitzherbert girl was about to follow them, Gil stopped by her side and wrapped his hand around her wrist, preventing her from taking another step. The two of them waited until everyone else was out of earshot before Rylee found herself looking up at the son of Gaston. To her surprise, Gil was staring back at her with a hint of sadness in his eyes before he opened his mouth to speak.

"I understand that he hurt you and you probably won't believe me, but he hasn't been the same since you left. He usually keeps to himself. He also yells at everyone a lot more than he used to," the blonde boy explained while Rylee kept her emotionless eyes glued to him. Not even a second after that passed when a small smile appeared on Gil's face. "You brought out the best in him, Rylee. And I know he brought out the best in you, too."

Before the princess had a chance to respond, they heard Dude's panicked voice shouting Carlos' name. Gil and Rylee instantly exchanged a worried look before they sprinted in the direction of the distressed-sounding mutt.

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