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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏𝟏
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐋 𝐁𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐋𝐄

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"Uma! Harry! Wait! Please, wait!" Rylee shouted out to the retreating forms of the pirates, causing them to stop in their tracks while keeping their backs toward the princess. Once she was able to get in front of them, the Fitzherbert girl's throat ran dry and her blood went cold. She couldn't help but study the betrayal on their faces as they stared at her. She never thought their emotions would affect her after they did to her and on the Isle. But it did. While Rylee continued to get her thoughts together, she found herself looking over at Harry without thinking. The look in his eyes alone was enough for the Fitzherbert girl to gather enough courage to continue speaking.

"I'm sorry that Mal lied to everyone. I'm even more sorry that Morgan and I helped her keep her secret, but that doesn't mean her mind can't be changed," the blonde girl told them while they continued to stare at her with emotionless looks on their faces. Rylee let the silence surround them once again for a moment before a shaky breath escaped her. "If you stay and help us finish this, then we can convince everyone that keeping the barrier up isn't the right move. That is something I should've been fighting harder for from the beginning."

"Why should we help you save your precious Auradon when we all know that your word means next to nothing?" Uma hissed before crossing her arms over her chest while Harry continued to study the princess in silence.

"You're right, my word does mean next to nothing. But Ben's means everything here," Rylee responded, causing a flash of uncertainty to cross Uma's features before it disappeared as fast as it came. But that was all the motive the Fitzherbert girl needed to continue. "Ben saw something in you, Uma. You're determined and you care so much about those kids on the Isle."

The blonde princess hesitated for a moment before looking over at the raven-haired. "You both are. And Gil is too. All of you care more than you're letting on. You care about everyone. That's why you're so heartset about getting that barrier down. Because you and I both know that the people on that island don't deserve to be there."

Rylee continued to stare into Harry's eyes before catching Uma glancing between the two of them out of the corner of her eye. Just as she thought she was able to get through to the son of Captain Hook, the teal-haired girl nudged him with her elbow. That was all it took for Harry to snap out of his trance before his and Rylee's attention returned to Uma.

"We've already made up our minds, princess," the teal-haired girl announced in a tone that made every bone in Rylee's body match the cold blood running through her veins.

The two of them studied each other for a short moment before Uma rolled her eyes and continued on her way. As soon as her footsteps faded, the Fitzherbert girl found herself looking back over at Harry without a second thought. A small wave of hope washed over her when she found him staring back at her with uncertainty in his eyes. However, when she saw the frown appear on his lips, all the hope vanished as quickly as it came.

"You brought this on yourself, Rylee," Harry whispered just loud enough for the princess to hear while trying to hide all the emotions he was feeling, "now I can finally stop feeling sorry for deceiving you at the beginning of our time together."

The Hook boy studied her in silence for another moment before walking past her and following Uma. It wasn't long after that when Mal appeared out of nowhere and stopped in front of Rylee. Shock coursed through the princess' veins when she received the news that Audrey turned Evie, Jay, Carlos, and Ben to stone. Before either of them could say a word, Celia's cries greeted their ears. Both girls looked up to where her voice originated from right as Audrey's taunting followed the Facilier girl's screams. Rylee looked back at Mal to figure out what to do next, only for her words to get caught in her throat when she saw the Faery girl's eyes beginning to glow a purple smoke started surrounding her. The Fitzherbert girl didn't hesitate to move away from the daughter of Maleficent as she continued her transformation. It wasn't long after that when a dragon appeared in her place and flew toward the top of the Auradon Prep.

Rylee's eyes stayed glued to the mighty reptile as it flew around the school a few times. Mal began hovering just above the roof of Auradon Prep before shooting a ball of fire at the tower, only for it to be deflected by green energy emitting from Maleficent's scepter. Panic coursed through the Fitzherbert girl's veins when she saw pink beams being shot at the daughter of Maleficent, who easily dodged the attacks. As soon as the magic ceased firing upon her, Mal flew toward the school once again. But she soon came to a sudden stop when Celia's cries filled the air once again.

As Audrey's cackles followed the daughter of Dr. Facilier's pleas for help, the sound of approaching footsteps greeted Rylee's ears. That caused her to turn her attention in the direction of the noise to see Uma and Harry racing toward her. The pirates came to a stop at her sides before the three of them looked up to see Mal attempt to reignite Hades' ember. That continued for a long moment before the purple dragon stopped trying, knowing she didn't have enough magic to do it alone.

"She doesn't stand a chance without that ember," Rylee muttered under her breath before turning her attention toward the teal-haired girl next to her right, "I understand why you don't wanna help Mal or me. I honestly don't blame you after what we did. But Celia did nothing wrong. You need to use your magic to help Mal relight that stone and save Celia."

Uma let the Fitzherbert girl's words sink in right as a loud boom cut through the air. When they looked back up at the top of the tower, they found Mal struggling to stay in the air after being hit by a beam from the scepter. It wasn't long after that when the pirates grabbed the princess' wrists and dragged her toward the action. Once they were closer to the daughter of Maleficent, the teal-haired girl let go of Rylee to prepare her magic while Harry's grip did nothing but tighten, as if preparing to get her away from everything if it went south.

"We're stronger together! We're stronger together! I'm right here, Mal!" Uma called up to the dragon as she tightly clutched her glowing seashell necklace, "regain your might and ignite! I'm right here, girl! I'm right here! Regain you might and ignite!"

After the daughter of Ursula finished reciting the spell a second time, Hades' ember began to shine brightly. Cheers erupted from Rylee, Harry, and Uma before the pirates pulled the princess in for a tight hug. While Mal flew back up to face Audrey again, the three on the ground ended their embrace and stared at each other with shock in their eyes. They stayed like that for a silent moment before a small smile appeared on both their faces, causing a matching one to appear on Rylee's lips.

Their attention was quickly drawn back to the situation at hand when Audrey's laughs cut through the silence once again. Harry kept his arm wrapped around Rylee's shoulder as the three of them looked up at the dragon above them. They were just in time to see another pink beam of light shot at Mal. However, before the scepter's magic could reach the dragon, the future Queen of Auradon used the ember's power to fight against the rosy gleam. Pink and blue battled for dominance for what felt like an eternity before Hades' ember overpowered Maleficent's scepter, resulting in all the pink light to vanish from the sky above them.

Harry tossed his hook through the air as the three teens cheered louder than they thought possible. They jumped around on the grass in front of Auradon Prep with large smiles on their faces. It wasn't long before a pair of arms wrapped around Rylee's waist and lifted her off the ground. She was spun around in a circle a few times as she continued to laugh. That lasted for another moment before she was placed back on her feet. The Fitzherbert girl looked up at Harry to find him smiling down at her as he took her hands into his own. Rylee kept her eyes glued to his until she gathered enough courage to voice the thoughts running through her head.

"I'm really sorry for keeping the truth from you," the princess told the pirate, causing his smile to slightly falter while keeping his eyes locked with hers, "I was just so angry with you after everything that happened on the Isle. I didn't want to tell you the truth. I felt like I needed to lead you on like I thought you did to me."

The son of Captain Hook continued to stare at her in silence, making Rylee think that her words just added fuel to the fire. But what he did next shocked the girl standing in front of him. Harry reached up to tuck a loose hair behind her ear while keeping his eyes glued to hers. Uma's cheers continued to surround them as the smile reappeared on the raven-haired boy's lips. It wasn't long after that when Rylee felt his hands tighten around hers.

"I made the biggest mistake turning down your offer to come back to Auradon with you. And after seeing you in the cell on Uma's ship, I knew I had to find a way to get you home," Harry explained as a hint of regret flashed over his features. It wasn't long after that when the grin on his face slightly grew, but not big enough as it usually is. "I'm sorry for making you feel like all of it was a lie. Everything I felt for you from the moment I saw you was real."

A large smile appeared on Rylee's lips as she continued to stare into the pirate's eyes. But just as she was about to open her mouth to respond, her phone rang. A wave of irritation washed over her as she pulled out her phone, only for it to be replaced with relief when she saw Ruby's name on the screen. Harry watched the princess with a hint of confusion in his eyes as he watched Rylee answer the call.

"Can you please tell me what the heck just happened?" Ruby questioned with a hint of panic in her voice as soon as she heard her sister's greeting, "because I was just eating some of Jane's cake and now I'm waking up in Evie's bed from a nap I don't remember taking."

"It's a really long story, Rue. I promise I'll explain everything later," the Fitzherbert girl responded while keeping her free hand interlocked with Harry's, "I'm just glad everyone's okay."

Not even a second after she finished speaking passed when she received a text message. After telling Ruby she'd call her back, Rylee ended the call to open the text. The smile instantly faded from her lips and her blood ran cold after reading the four words on her screen. The Fitzherbert girl reread the message multiple times to be sure that she read it correctly, only for her concern to grow. It wasn't long before she felt Harry looking over her shoulder. As the son of Captain Hook read over the message, Rylee called Uma over to show her the text she received from the daughter of Maleficent.

MAL:
Audrey's not waking up.

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