A/N: Well... This is a little awkward. It's been a while, hasn't it? I am truly, truly sorry that I haven't updated this story in... a very long time. Also, thank you to those who care enough to still be following this book! It really means a lot to me. I swear, I do have reasons for taking so long. Mostly, I just got massive writer's block for this story. And then life just got in the way (aka Covid and remote school). Anyway, here is the terrible-considering-the-large-amount-of-time-I-spent-on-it chapter.

Third Person POV, Ben:
"Don't you think they deserve a shot at a normal life?"
***

"Well, you need to say something!" Adam exclaims in exasperation. Belle places a hand on her husband's arm before addressing her son as well.

"Your father is right, Ben. The people have to be told something, or there will be panic. They have to know the situation is under control."

"But the situation isn't under control!" Ben thinks, frustrated. Instead, he says, "Of course. I'll have an address written by tomorrow."

As he exits the throne room, he is so lost in thought that he doesn't notice Audrey, Lonnie, and Jane waiting in the hallway until he runs into them.

"Oh! Sorry, guys, lost in thought."

"It's fine, Ben, don't worry," Jane responds.

"We came to help you," Lonnie says.

"What?"

"With the whole 'student disappearance' situation," Lonnie replies.

"You need to find some way to spin this so that people don't panic, we need to placate FG about the magic situation, and most of all, we need to find them. So, we want to help," Audrey elaborates.

"Really? You guys seriously want to deal with writing a speech, the most uptight headmistress in the world, and the press?" Ben asks.

"Of course, Ben," Jane responds, "You're our friend, and we want to help you."

Lonnie beckons him down the hallway as she, Audrey, and Jane start walking toward the exits, "Audrey has already started writing the address, I'm going to hold a school assembly to help reassure the students, and Jane knows how to deal with her mom," Lonnie reports.

Audrey continues as Lonnie holds the door open for all of them, "So, we're going to head back to Auradon Prep, walk up to our dorm, you and I can work on that speech, Lonnie needs to finish writing hers for the assembly, Jane is going to talk her mother into holding said assembly, and then we can all go talk to FG together. After that, we can polish up the big public speech, and get you ready for the address tomorrow."

As they all load into her car, Lonnie shoots him a smile from the driver's seat, "Piece of cake!"

Ben shakes his head in disbelief, "You guys are seriously the best friends ever. After today, I am officially promoting all of you Royal Councillors, no matter what my father has to say about it."

Audrey grins, "Well, it's about damn time."

Storybrooke, Maine
Third Person POV:

After everyone woke up, David and Emma brought the kids back to their sherieff's office, where they all tentatively sat down in chairs around the desk.

"So, where did you guys come from?" David asks.

"We're from a kingdom called Auradon," Evie replies.

"In a different dimension," Uma continues, "Well, we're not exactly sure about that part. But it's our best guess as of right now."

"Um... Okay, do you have any idea how you got here?" Emma queries.

"Well, sort of," Harriet says, "We got transported here while we were reading this storybook Evie found."

"What kind of storybook?" Emma asks.

"Actually, it came here with us," Evie responds. She takes it out of her bag and sets it on the table. Emma tentatively picks up the book, flipping through the pages.

"Is it..." David starts.

"Yup," Emma says, closing the book, "It's exactly like Henry's. Where did you get this?"

"It was in my school library," she answers, "Milo gave it to me."

"Who's that?" Emma questions.

"One of the librarians," Mal says, kicking her feet off the desk as she speaks for the first time since she woke up, "Are we almost done here?"

Emma and David share a look before David responds, "Yeah, we're done. If you don't mind, we're going to-"

Everyone jumps as Regina walks through the door, dropping yet another book onto Emma's desk, "I need your help."

Emma shakes herself out of her surprise, "Uh, yeah, what's wrong?"

"Remember when we found this in Robin's old place? Well, I finally decided to read it, and apparently I have a-" CJ coughs, and only then does Regina turn around, realizing that there are other people in the office.

She narrows her eyes, asking, "What's with the Breakfast Club?"

Regina scans the group, her eyes eventually coming to a stop on Evie. She lets out a small gasp as her eyes widen. Turning back to Emma, she whispers, "Where did these kids come from?"

"They dropped out of a portal in the sky," Emma whispers back, "Why are we whispering?"

"Open the book."

"Which one?"

"Which one do you think? The one I burst in here with and dropped on your desk," Regina replies, all too aware of everyone in the room staring at her and Emma.

"Okay," Emma says, opening the book.

"Go a little further," Regina states.

Emma flips through a few more pages before audibly gasping, "Is that-"

"I think so," Regina responds.

"Excuse me! Not to interrupt what looks like a very touching moment or whatever, but I would like to eat some food, please!" CJ shouts.

"Oh... Sure. We can head to Granny's, right?" David asks.

"Yeah," Emma nods, "We'll catch up with you in a minute."

As the entire group files out of the office, Regina practically falls into a chair, "How is this possible?"

"That you have a daughter? I have no idea," Emma shakes her head.

"Oh, no, I know that part. It's all in the first chapter. I mean, how is she here?"

"What are you talking about?"

Regina sighs, "Apparently my mother erased my memory's of having a child, and then had Rumpelstiltskin steal her."

"Seriously?" Emma exclaims.

"Yes!" Regina groans, "Just one more thing. I haven't even finished this book yet. Who knows what more horrors await."

"Well... We should probably go catch up with everyone at Granny's."

"Yeah... Do you think I should- well, you know, talk to her?"

"I don't know. Maybe wait a little bit? See how everything goes," Emma

"Sure. This is going to be one insane day."

Evie's POV:

"So, Granny's is only a couple blocks away," David explains, "Is everyone okay walking?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, let's just get going already!" CJ exclaims impatiently. As we all start walking, I can't help but notice the stares and strange looks we're getting from all of the locals. I can only imagine how odd we all must look.

"Evie," Mal calls out, walking next to me, "We never got a chance to catch up. Tell me everything."

I frown slightly at Mal's twitching fingers, knowing that she wouldn't actually care about what I had to say. She's clearly itching to tell a story of her own. So, I smile and say, "Oh, I haven't been doing anything that interesting. How was Towering Heights?"

"It was the most amazing place ever, E!" Mal gushes, "The Bayou was incredible. The people were so friendly and interesting, the town itself was beautiful, with all the colored lights, it was never dark, and music! There was always music! There was always someone playing some kind of instrument, there were always some people dancing, and... It was just so amazing. It felt like the best party you've ever been to and it just never stopped!"

I smile at the genuine sparkle in Mal's eyes as she talks about her travelling. Sometimes, I think Mal was born to be a tourist. She'd always lived for parties, and experiences, and stories. Sometimes I think that's all she ever thinks of us. Her friends. As stories that she can collect. If I'm really honest, I know that all Mal really cares about is herself.

"That's sounds amazing, Mal."

"It was! But I missed you guys so much."

I smile again, hoping none of my thoughts show through in my expression, "I missed you too."

Auradon City
Third Person POV:

"So, we definitely shouldn't mention the fact that there are no leads as of yet, right?" Audrey asks Ben, eyebrow arched.

Ben sighs and opens his mouth to answer when they both hear a frantic pounding on the door. Audrey shrugs and stands up to answer it. Both of their eyes widen when they see a very frightened-looking Gil.

"Can I come in?" He asks, barreling past Audrey and into the room.

The princess steps backward, startled, and replies uncertainly, "Uh, sure..."

"I need your help," Gil says, "Iria won't sleep or eat anything. I've tried to get them to stop doing magick-y stuff, but she says she can't until they find Uma and Harry."

"Woah. Uh... Sorry, but what can we do about it?" Audrey asks.

Gil wrings his hands, "I'm just really worried. Could you help me convince them to take a break?"

Audrey glances at Ben and their half-written speech, "Well-"

"I think we can take a little time," Ben interrupts, "Besides, we could use a break too, Audrey."

She purses her lips, but eventually says, "What the hell? Lead the way, Gil."

When the trio finally reach Uma and Iria's dorm room, it's pretty obvious why Gil was so worried. The sea witch is sitting on the floor in front of a table that is absolutely covered in potion vials, books, herbs, and crystals. They have bags under their eyes, is frantically flipping through spell books and muttering under her breath.

"So, they've gone crazy." Audrey comments as Iria doesn't even notice the three people in the room.

"I told you it was bad." Gil replies with a frown.

Ben sighs, "Okay. Let me try talking to them."

He walks over to the other sidea of the room and and puts his hand on their shoulder. They jump and turn around, but don't relax when they see his face. Instead, they just goes back to page flipping.

"Hey, Iria. Look at me." Ben says, and they glance up again.

"This isn't happening. This isn't happening, right? They can't just be gone," they state, sounding as though they've repeated this particular phrase many times.

"Just take a breath," Ben replies.

"I'm breathing!" They snap.

"Alright, just... We're going to figure this out."

"Damn right we are! What do you think I've been doing for the past..."

"It's been 24 hours."

"Exactly!" They exclaim, then look at him in confusion, "Why were you here, again?"

"Gil's worried about you."

They scoff, "Gil's always worried about me."

"He says you haven't eaten."

"I'm busy."

"Come on, just come eat something."

"I'm not getting up until I find a way to get to them."

"Fine, then I'll bring you something. Any requests?"

"Bacon. No, waffles. Or ramen. And cheese!" They think for a second, "Maybe I'm just not hungry."

"No! No, that's fine. I'll bring you all of it."

"Oh. Thanks."

"You're welcome."

"Yeah. Bye!" They've already turned back to their spell books, scribbling down some notes in a journal at a promising one.

Ben chuckles and walks over to Gil and Audrey waiting at the other side of the room.

"How'd it go?" Audrey asks.

"Pretty good," Ben responds, "But we have to go to the kitchens."

"Oh, at least they agreed to eat something," Audrey says.

"Yes. More specifically, bacon, waffles, ramen, and cheese."

Audrey tilts her head to the side and repeats tentatively, "Bacon, waffles, ramen, and cheese?"

Ben nods as Gil stands up excitedly, "Let's go, then!"

Audrey shakes her head and sighs resignedly, "I will never understand you pirates."

Storybrooke, Maine
Third Person:

After everyone got back from Granny's, Regina and Emma retreated into the office while the kids sat outside next to the jail cell.

Regina paces restlessly around the room, "What am I supposed to say? 'Hey, I know we just met, but I'm actually your mother, I had my memories of you erased right after you were born, and Rumpelstiltskin stole you when you were a baby and gave you to a version of me in another dimension.' How sane do you think that makes me sound?"

"Okay, I think you need to sit down and take a breath," Emma says, putting down the book.

"How am I supposed to do this?" Regina continues.

"Regina, listen," Emma stands and stops the frantic woman, "Maybe you should just talk to her before dropping the whole 'I'm secretly your mother' thing on her. She seems really sweet."

"Yeah. Yeah, that makes sense," Regina sighs, finally sitting down.

"Good. Now, not to pile on-"

"Oh, great, what is it now?"

Emma hesitates for a second, "Well, I don't think it was just you."

"What do you mean?"

"I think Rumpelstiltskin stole the children of other villains, too. Like Maleficent, Cruella, Ursula... There's more, but I'll have to keep reading."

"You're kidding!" Regina exclaims, "Do you think we should tell them?"

"I think we have to," Emma replies, "But it's going to take a while to track them all down again."

"What about them?" Regina points to the VKs outside of the office.

"Well, I think we have two options here. Somehow get everyone here, reveal the truth or whatever, and then figure out what to do from there, or just get these kids home and pretend nothing ever happened," Emma looks to Regina expectantly, knowing that she's the one to make the call here. Regina bites her lip and looks toward the outside of the office, where the villain kids are having a discussion of their own.

"Guys, I'm pretty sure that's my mother," Evie says softly.

"The blond one?" Mal asks.

Evie shakes her head, "No, no. The other one. She looks exactly like the woman in this book."

"I can see the resemblance," Carlos comments.

"But what should I do?" She inquires urgently.

"Show her the book. Duh," CJ replies bluntly.

Evie frowns, "But..."

"But what? Not to assume anything, but I'm pretty sure this lady is going to want to know that she has a daughter," she explains flatly.

"Wow. My sister, thinking about other people?" Harry asks. Said sister punches him on the arm.

"Surprisingly insightful there, CJ," Uma nods.

CJ smiles half-jokingly, "Thank you."

"Well, it's not just her, assuming I'm right," Evie continues, "There should be other villains here. Specifically, your parents."

Harriet peaks up, "For now at least, we have to rely on these people. Revealing blood relation could be extra motivation for them to get us out of here, or it could make them want to keep us here. I'd say it's a fifty-fifty."

Mal scoffs, "I think that Harry and Shrimpy would make it at least a 60-40 for them wanting us out of here."

"Mal, what the hell?" Jay groans.

"I know it's a one-hundred percent chance that Mal's mom will want her as far away as possible," CJ taunts.

"Take that back!" Mal exclaims.

"Make me, lizard-breath," CJ growls.

"Guys, cut it out," Evie sighs.

"Hooks, control your manic sister," Mal spits.

"What did you just say?" Harry shouts.

"You're one to talk, you socipathic bitch!" CJ exclaims.

Jay has to hold Mal back from rushing towards CJ, who has Harriet keeping a very firm grip on her arm, both for support and restraint. Evie and watches with a growing horror as the standoff continues, and everyone except for her seems to pick a side.

The Hooks obviously stand behind with CJ, along with Uma and Carlos. As soon as Mal rips herself out of his grip, even Jay goes to stand with the blonde pirate. After only a few seconds, it becomes very clear that Evie is the only one who hasn't chosen CJ. She feels a sense of panic and dread rise as everyone other than Mal and CJ, who are still staring at each other heatedly, looks to Evie expectantly.

Evie's hands start sweating and she chokes up as Mal looks at her with betrayal. Obviously Mal expected Evie to be behind her with no second thought. But Evie did have second thoughs. And third thoughts, and fourth thoughts, and many, many more thoughts as Mal finally huffs and retreats back into a corner.

Evie startles as the two women walk out of the office. What had felt like eternity had only lasted a few seconds.

"Is everything alright out here?" Regina asks them.

"Yes," Evie finds herself answering calmly, "Everything is fine, thank you."

"Well," Emma says, "Don't worry, we're going to get you home."

Auradon City
Third Person:

"Yeah, sure, food was great, but I'm still not done yet," Iria protests, waving them away.

"But you've been working forever," Gil says, "How long are you going to-"

"Yes!" They shout, jumping up with wild excitement. They turn back and smile wider than Ben had ever seen. With a crazy gleam in their eyes, they state,

"I think I've got it."