In honor of the upcoming release of Rise of Red and as a birthday gift to the lovely PrismaticFlare, I'm pleased to try my hand at a new fandom. It always bugged me that Descendents got away with three consecutive plots hinging on Ben having no contingency plan for magic while there are canonical cures for hostile spells. This is how I think the end of Descendents 2 would have gone in any rational kingdom. I hope you enjoy it.

The fog didn't lift all at once. It was slower, like the sun peeking through the gaps in a cloudy sky. Ben was aware of her first. Then slowly he noticed that they were in his private dressing room. Finally, he realized that he was in his dress uniform while she wore a vibrant turquoise ball gown.

Ah Cotillion. So that was her ploy.

He tried his best to act calm, under the influence, awaiting orders, until she was ready to provide them. That gave him more time to watch her. She paced across from him, eyes dark and stormy as blue-green braids gently swayed in time with her steps. His eyes were drawn to where she was chewing at her lower lip.

So, she's nervous. Interesting.

A knock sounded at the door, startling them both. "Ten minutes until your entrance, your majesty."

"Th-thank you." Uma stammered out, a dull flush illuminating her face. She closed her eyes, breathed deeply, then turned back toward him. "King Ben, are you ready for your orders?"

Acting on a hunch, Ben let his face relax and nodded once without speaking.

She seemed satisfied. "We will exit these doors in ten minutes as planned. Once on deck, you will be presented first. You will apologize to Mal and then wait for me to be presented. You will then introduce me to your parents as your fiancé. Any questions?"

Ben considered for a moment. "I have a few, actually, but the first is what exactly you intend to accomplish here."

Uma's jaw dropped unceremoniously. "How—you—What?"

He fought the urge to smile. This was not the time to gloat. "I'm serious. I did tell you I'd be willing to listen to you, so why not now? What exactly are you looking to accomplish?"

The villain (well, VK) in front of him had regained her composure and stood stiffly, her gaze wary. "And why should I tell you? Though, I don't understand how you broke my spell or why you haven't called for the guards yet."

Ben smiled softly and subconsciously picked up his freshly delivered glass of water for another drink. "Do you really think the king of Aurodon doesn't have a contingency against hostile magic?"

"I don't think you had a contingency a few months ago when that bitch snuck a love potion into your food."

Ben tamped down on the sudden flare of anger within his chest. Now was not the time. "Well, I wasn't king then. You can't blame us for increasing my security after my coronation, can you?"

Uma scowled and moved to brush her hair behind her shoulder. She seemed startled when her hand met nothing but the fabric of her dress. "So, you had a plan for magic. Congratulations, your highness," she practically spat the words. "So why the hell haven't you called the guards?"

"I always keep my word."

She faltered in the face of his smile. "What?"

"I always keep my word, and I promised I would hear you out."

They were interrupted by the guard again. "Five minutes until your entrance."

Ben responded this time, smiling at Uma even as she backed away from the door, hand holding tightly to the magic shell at her neck. "Please let the others know, my entrance may be delayed by just a few minutes. There is no cause for alarm, but do not disturb me until I call for you."

"Of course, your majesty."

He turned back to Uma who was staring at him in shock. "There now, we have plenty of time. Please, sit."

Her eyes narrowed and she looked back and forth between him and the seat he had offered her. When he showed no sign of moving, she finally stepped forward and took a seat across from him.

"Excellent." He clapped once, channeling his mother. "I don't have refreshments to offer you, but I am ready to hear your petition. Please, what can King Ben of Aurodon offer Uma of the Isle?"

She bared her teeth at him, but the show of strength died quickly under his smile. "Are you waiting for me to apologize? Because I won't do it. You can lock me up or throw me back behind the barrier, but I won't apologize for standing up for myself."

"I know you won't." Ben had shed the political mask. His words were quiet, careful. "Uma, I meant what I said on the Isle. This is your chance to be heard. The people of the Isle are my subjects too. What do I need to know to rule them well?"

She stared at him as the clock on the wall ticked down the seconds. He counted the steady beat of the second hand in his head. Five, six, seven.

Did she even believe him? Or would she try to spell him again? Ben was nervous, even if he was doing an admirable job of containing it, if he said so himself.

Twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one.

Maybe she would leave. He was quite certain she could be out the window behind her and into the ocean before he could call for a guard. That certainly wouldn't be ideal, but at least everyone on the yacht would be safe.

Fifty-one, fifty-two.

"Why are VKs on the Isle at all?"

What? Ben studied her for a moment before carefully responding. "My parents believed that the children of known villains were predisposed to follow their parents' footsteps, and that it would be dangerous to allow integration, especially during Aurodon's youth. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, after all."

Uma snorted. "Ah yes. Apples. But, if I may ask, how is Evie doing in Aurodon these days? I hear she's amassed quite a following."

Ben winced internally but managed to hold his gaze steady. "I didn't say it was right—only that it was what my parents believed. If I believed the same, we wouldn't be having this conversation now, would we?"

He watched the flicker of emotion on her face. Touche. "That being said, integration is more complicated than removing a barrier. There are criminals on that island after all. Just because most of the VKs are innocent bystanders does not mean all villains deserve to be pardoned."

"Why not?" Uma hissed, standing abruptly. "Why do you live in splendor while we are stuck groveling in the mud?"

"Do you like your mother, Uma?"

She froze, staring at him like a deer caught in the headlights of his limo.

He doubled down. "Do you trust her? If she were free in Aurodon today with all her magic intact and knew exactly where you were, would you feel safe?"

Uma's eyes were wide, darting from him to the door to the window. She looked on the verge of panic.

"If you, her own flesh and blood, would not feel safe as her neighbor, can you blame the people of Aurodon who may feel the same?"

Uma swallowed hard. "That is b-beside the point. I… we are not all monsters and… well… You can't treat us like we are."

Ben clapped once, startling her. "Ah, so we are aligned. There are both villains and victims trapped on the Isle. I'm glad we agree on that. So, how do we tell the difference?"

They stared at each other, Ben with his calm eyes and carefully regulated breathing against Uma's darting eyes and frantic pulse.

"We have hit a snag, don't you think?"

She let out a snort of… laughter perhaps?... and sank back into her seat. "I suppose I see your point. Maybe I will admit that some of those trapped on the Isle deserve their imprisonment. What then?"

"Then we must find a way to remove those who are victims."

Once again, eyes locked. Ben studied Uma's face. Her bright eyes and care-worn brows. She looked tired and so much older than her sixteen years as she sat across from him.

"You forgot something, your highness." She said the honorific like a curse. "There's no point in removing them if they have nowhere to go."

Ben blinked once, twice. "What do you mean, nowhere to go? You would come to Aurodon Prep like Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos."

Uma's face contorted into a bitter mockery of a smile. "You're better at this king thing than I expected, but you're still naïve. Do you really think most VKs would be willing to put themselves through what those four have endured?"

Ben felt his brain screech to a halt. "What?"

She laughed. It was cold and bitter and sad. She stood up and walked over to the window, staring out. "You have no idea what's it's been like for them, do you?"

He couldn't respond. All he could do was stare as he felt himself going cold.

"They escaped. They got away from their parents and the filth and the shame of the Isle just to become second class citizens in Aurodon. I bet they spend every day looking over their shoulders just waiting for some damn prince or princess to blame every bad thing in Aurodon on them. You think Evie is accepted? She's a novelty. Those jerks buy her dresses and parade around like freaking saints for supporting the poor undeserving VK even while they wouldn't so much as turn their back on her if she was in their home."

She scoffed and turned back to him. "Face it, your highness. VKs may not have a future on the Isle, but at least we have dignity amongst our own. Even Mal buckled under the pressure and trust me, she knows pressure."

Ben could feel his heart hammering. He had had no idea. Mal hadn't said anything to him. Was this why she'd run away? Was the pressure to be not just good, but better than the princes and princesses of Aurodon really gotten to her?

After staring at one another for another long moment (was it only twenty ticks from the clock?) Ben stood abruptly. Uma took a wary step back, but Ben ignored it. "Alright then. Clearly this is a much bigger task than I had realized."

Uma snorted with laughter but was still watching him like he was a wild animal. "You're just now figuring that out, highness?"

"The only way we'll solve these problems is as a team."

Uma stiffened and her jaw went slack. "A what now?"

Ben smiled at her. "A team. I will put together a task force with the specific goal of identifying victims on the Isle, removing them from their situation, and integrating them into Aurodon. We'll have to go slowly if we want to build a solid foundation for the integrated society, but we have to try."

"You keep saying 'we.'"

"Of course." He reached out a hand to her. "I want you to lead the task force."

Uma sank slowly into the small chair sitting by the window. "Me?"

Ben nodded, grinning widely at her.

"I just tried to spell you into making me your queen."

Ben's smile didn't waver.

Finally, Uma laughed. A choking, deep laugh that he'd never heard from her. It was as if her walls had finally come down. "Damn, highness. I don't know what I expected from you, but it wasn't this. Maybe Aurodon wasn't smoking something when they put a teenager on the throne."

"So, you'll do it?" He asked, smiling brightly as she wiped tears from her eyes.

"I don't think I have a choice. Can I pick my own task force?"

Ben laughed. "You can make a proposal."

"Can I exclude Mal?"

"Nope." Ben popped the p in the word.

Uma sighed dramatically. "Fine, but it's my task force."

They smiled. A shuffling sound outside the door reminded Ben of how late they were for the party. "We should head out there. Contrary to your wishes, I will not be introducing you as my fiancé, but I will introduce you as the head of my new VK Rehabilitation Agency."

Uma snorted. Ben found that the sound was growing on him. "Please say I can veto the name?"

Ben only smiled as he offered her his arm. They strode out the door and began to make their way through the ship to the staircase.

"By the way, are you going to tell me how you broke my spell?"

Ben smiled lazily at her as he passed her off to a guard near the formal staircase. A voice announced him on the stairs outside.

He winked at her before turning to the door. "Must have been something in the water, I guess."