────── ☼ ☼ ☼ ──────

────── ☼ ☼ ☼ ──────

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏𝟎
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐀𝐈𝐑𝐘 𝐂𝐎𝐓𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐄

────── ☼ ☼ ☼ ──────

As soon as they arrived at Evie's cottage, the four girls along with Doug came rushing out to greet them. Huge smiles appeared on everyone's faces as they shared hugs and laughs with their allies. After they finished their reunions, Rylee and Morgan questioned Mal and Evie about the whereabouts of the younger teens. Relief flooded through their veins when they found out that they were all fast asleep in the bedrooms of the cottage. The princesses were about to run inside to check on their younger siblings and the girls they brought over from the Isle. However, they stopped in their tracks when Mal called out to them.

"They're safe. I promise," the daughter of Maleficent reassured them with a pleading look in her eyes, "we need your help to stop this. Please."

An internal battle within Rylee began as she stared into the daughter of Maleficent's eyes. It wasn't long after that when she exchanged a look with Morgan, both knowing what they needed to do. Sighs pass over their lips before they send Mal nods in response. After the purple-haired girl sent them a grateful smile, she turned her attention back to everyone outside the cottage.

"Okay, so, we all think that Audrey could be at Fairy Cottage. We have no idea where it is," the purple-haired girl explained to her allies before turning her attention back to the Beast boy, "did she ever take you there?"

"Every Fairy Godmother's Day. Where is Fairy Godmother when you need her?" Ben responded with a small smile on his face before it faded as he looked away from Mal and toward something behind her. Everyone instantly followed his line of vision to find Jane staring back at them from her seat at the outside table.

"I wish I knew," the daughter of Fairy Godmother sighed before Carlos sat down in the chair across from her.

While the two of them had an inaudible conversation, everyone else talked among themselves about what to do next. Rylee remained silent as she glanced back at the cottage behind her, wanting nothing more than to run inside and find her sister. But no matter how much she wanted to check on Ruby, the Fitzherbert girl knew she was needed here and couldn't waste the time that could be spent tracking down Audrey.

"Doug, go with Jane," Ben said, drawing Rylee out of her thoughts and bringing her back to the situation at hand, "we need to find Fairy Godmother."

"They might need some muscle," Uma announced after her eyes scanned over the son of Dopey, who sent the teal-haired girl an offended look.

The son of Gaston looked down at his arms. A large smile soon formed on his face as he looked back up at the group in front of him. "I'll go."

"I'll go," the son of Gaston offers with a smile after checking out his own arms.

"Yeah, actually, I would feel better," Carlos declared while keeping his arm tightly wrapped around his girlfriend as he pointed to the blonde boy.

"Yeah, actually, I'd feel better, too," Evie muttered before sending her boyfriend an innocent smile.

The son of Dopey let out a defeated sigh in response before opening his mouth to speak. "Actually, I would, too."

Gil let out a loud laugh as he wrapped his arm around Doug's shoulders and pulled him in for a side hug. "Alright, man, let's do it!"

"Morgan and I can go with them too," Robbie volunteered with a bright grin on his face as he interlocked his hand with the redhead next to him, "they could use all the help they can get."

The rest of their allies watched them walk away from the cottage to start their mission to find Fairy Godmother. Rylee stood between Harry and Pete with her eyes locked on Morgan and Robbie's hands as Gil's laughter continued to fill the air around them. The Fitzherbert girl continued to watch them socialize without a care in the world before opening her mouth to speak. "Am I the only one who's surprised at how quickly Gil got over Morgan and Robbie?"

"Well, Gil's never been one for grudges and Morgan has been as persistent as Evie in trying to get us to be friends," Harry responded after a smirk appeared on his lips, only for irritation to flow through Rylee's veins.

"I wasn't talking to you," the blonde girl muttered under her breath. She thought she was quiet enough that no one heard her, but that was soon proven wrong when she caught Pete glancing over at her. But when he realized he was caught, he looked back over at the five people walking away from them.

"You and I both know that Morgan has never let the past eat away at her. She likes to forgive and forget more than most people," Pete spoke before glancing over at Rylee again so quickly that she barely caught it.

It wasn't long after that when the two boys turned to follow everyone back into the cottage, leaving the Fitzherbert girl with Uma. Rylee didn't need to look to know the pirate princess was staring at her. She let the silence surround them for a moment longer before deciding it was time to break it. "I know Gil told you about what happened between Harry and me in the forest. So are you gonna say something? Or are you gonna keep looking at me like I have a second head?"

Uma couldn't help but chuckle at the princess' words, causing Rylee to finally look over at her. The two of them just stared at each other for what felt like an eternity before the daughter of Ursula began speaking. "Look, I didn't like you then and I don't really like you now. Honestly, I don't know if I'll ever like you. But I did like seeing Harry happy for once in his life."

All the emotions faded from Rylee's body as she kept her eyes glued to Uma. It wasn't long after that when the teal-haired girl sent the princess a small smile before walking inside Evie's cottage. A small sigh passed over the Fitzherbert girl's lips as she looked back at Morgan's fading figure. She watched her best friend until she was out of sight before turning around and walking inside.

────── ☼ ☼ ☼ ──────

Night fell when they finally made it to the surrounding trees of Fairy Cottage. Everyone was silent as they walked through the woods as close to the ground as possible. Ben led the way as he hopped from hiding spot to hiding spot until they were just yards away from the small house in the middle of a clearing. After glancing back at his allies to make sure they were right behind him, the King of Auradon took Mal's hand before sending Rylee a nod. A small smile made its way onto the Fitzherbert girl's lips as she slowly got to her feet and crept up to the fence that surrounded the cottage.

The blonde girl stayed as close to the ground as possible as she stared at Fairy Cottage. When she determined that the coast was clear and Audrey was nowhere in sight, she gestured for her allies to follow. Rylee watched as everyone began walking toward the cottage before slowly opening the gate and making her way toward the cottage's door. Not even a second after they reached it passed when Ben kicked the door open and rushed inside with his allies right behind him. To their surprise, they were greeted by nothing but an empty living room. While Jay and Pete went to check the second floor, the rest of them piled into the spacious area and looked around for anything that could tell them where Audrey went.

"She's not upstairs," Pete announced after he and Jay rejoined them in the living room.

Just as Ben was about to speak, a loud banging broke through the silence surrounding them. Everyone turned their attention toward where the sound was coming from, only to find the pantry door sealed shut. Rylee instantly shared an uncertain look with Carlos before she slowly approached the door. Once she was close enough, the Fitzherbert girl went on her tiptoes to look through the small window. Shock filled every inch of her body at the sight of the familiar blonde boy sitting on the floor. It wasn't long after that when Rylee pushed away the piece of wood keeping the door locked before opening it to reveal Chad sitting in a fetal position.

The son of Cinderella let out a shaky breath as he slowly looked up to meet Rylee's gaze. He just stared at her with terror in his eyes for a long moment before a wave of relief washed over him. "I want my mommy."

The Fitzherbert girl soon offered him a hand to help him, making him suddenly flinch away. After the two of them stared at each other for another moment, Rylee reached down and helped him to his feet before carefully guiding him out of the pantry. The fear in Chad's eyes didn't fade as he looked around at everyone else in the room.

"What happened, buddy?" Ben asked the Charming boy as if he was a child, only for Chad to scan the room before his eyes locked on the blonde princess once again.

"Rylee? Rylee!" the son of Cinderella exclaimed before pulling her into an unexpected and very unwanted hug. After being crushed in the taller boy's arms for a minute or two, Chad pulled away while keeping his arms on her shoulders. He studied her for a moment before looking past her and at the front door. "She's gone? Huh? The door is open. I'm free."

Before Rylee had a chance to respond, the Charming boy's joyful shouts filled the air before he sprinted out the door. Everyone's attention stayed on the door for a moment before looking back over at Rylee. She was surprised when she found them staring at her with smiles on their faces, all amused by her little moment with the son of Cinderella.

"Well, that was interesting," the Fitzherbert girl said while Harry's laughter cut through the air. It wasn't long after that when closed the pantry door while Rylee straightened out her jacket from Chad's show of affection. After sending the giggling boy a smile, the blonde girl let out a small laugh. They all took one last look around the cottage before following Chad's lead and walking outside.

"Alright. Let's get the Audrey chick taken care of already," Uma said as they walked into the clearing that surrounded Fairy Cottage. Her words caused everyone to let out laughs before the daughter of Ursula glanced over at Mal, Evie, and Rylee. "What do you say, girls? Time to wrap things up?"

"You know, someday, you're gonna have to tell me how you guys all got teamed up," Ben told them with a smile as he wrapped an arm around Mal's shoulders and pulled her closer to his side.

"Actually, Mal promised to let all the kids off the Isle once this is over," Evie told the King of Auradon, causing the latter's smile to fall as he turned his attention toward Mal and Rylee. The Fitzherbert girl just stared at Ben for a long moment before finding herself glancing over at the daughter of Maleficent. A guilty look was plastered to her face as she stared at the forest floor before letting out a long sigh.

"I have to tell you guys something," Mal announced after stopping in her tracks and turning to face everyone behind her. While she gathered the courage to continue speaking, Rylee found herself glancing over at Harry without thinking, only to find him staring back at her with confusion in his eyes. It wasn't long after that when the purple-haired girl continued speaking. "Um...I lied to you. The kids won't be coming off the Isle. The program is shut down. And the barrier...will be closed for good."

"For Auradon's safety," Ben added as he looked away from everyone and at the ground beneath his feet.

Confusion and betrayal formed on everyone's faces as they continued to stare at the daughter of Maleficent. Rylee couldn't fight the guilt that began flowing through her veins, knowing that she should've convinced Mal to tell them sooner. It wasn't long after that when Jay and Carlos looked over at her, causing the Fitzherbert girl's blood to run cold.

"You knew about this, didn't you?" Jay questioned as an angry look began to take form on his face while he glared daggers at the blonde princess, "how could you just go along with it?"

"Morgan must have known too. They were both at the meeting with Ben and Mal," Carlos declared while crossing his arms over his chest and looking away from Rylee.

"I don't understand, Rylee," Pete said, causing her attention to leave the betrayed faces of Jay and Carlos before they landed on the son of Peter Pan, "you were such a huge advocate for bringing kids over. Why are you supporting the closure of the barrier?"

"She's not. She hasn't supported my decision from the beginning. Don't blame her for my mistake," Mal told them before Rylee could even open her mouth to respond.

"Hold up. So we're saving your precious people and your behinds for a lie?" Uma questioned as she walked forward to a stand in front of Mal while Rylee continued to scan the faces of the deceived VKs. It wasn't long before her eyes landed on Harry, who looked away the second their eyes met. What felt like an eternity passed before the daughter of Ursula continued speaking. "I knew it was a mistake to trust you. You're always out for yourself."

"And you, King Benny," Harry scoffed as he walked toward the Beast boy before stopping inches away from his face, "you're probably just gonna throw us all back inside."

A lump formed in Rylee's throat when she caught the defeated look in the pirate's eyes. However, her attention soon turned to Celia as she began walking toward Mal. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she stared at the future Queen of Auradon before opening her mouth to speak. "You know what? I actually thought you both were brave. But you're nothing but a chicken. Too scared to tell me I was never gonna see my dad again."

Before Mal had a chance to respond, the daughter of Dr. Facilier grabbed Hades' ember and dropped it into a birdbath. Sparks flew through the air followed by a puff of smoke after the stone made contact with the water. Celia continued to walk away like nothing happened while the daughter of Maleficent rushed toward the birdbath. Panic coursed through her veins as she grabbed the ember from the water before chanting a spell while waving her hand over it. When nothing happened, Mal looked over at Uma with pleading eyes. The daughter of Ursula just stared at the purple-haired girl with disdain in her eyes for a moment before holding up her non-glowing shell necklace.

"Bummer. Let's go find Gil and leave them all to rot," Uma said to Harry without taking her eyes off of Mal before pushing past her and following Celia.

While Mal shouted for the daughter of Ursula, Rylee looked up to meet Harry's gaze. The son of Captain Hook studied her for a long silent moment before anger formed on every inch of his face. "And to think I was gonna tell you that what I felt for you was real. Maybe instead of questioning if I was playing games, you should ask yourself."

Just as Rylee was about to respond, Harry let out another scoff before pushing past her and following Uma. What felt like an eternity passed of her staring at her feet before she looked up to meet Pete's gaze. She was looking for a friendly face, but instead she found the son of Peter Pan staring back at her with no emotion in his eyes. They kept their eyes locked for another moment before the brunette boy gestured for her to go after the pirates. After glancing over at Evie, Jay, and Carlos one last time, Rylee sent them an apologetic look before sprinting after the two pirates.

────── ☼ ☼ ☼ ──────

────── ☼ ☼ ☼ ──────