Descendants 2 [H.S. & C.S.]

Chapter 25

Cole does love me! His gift proves it.
And crazy as it sounds, I love him, too.
—————
The stained glass panel depicted a sunrise with Cole and Harry.

On the right, Cole wore his royal-blue suit with gold epaulets and crown. He reached for Harry's hand. On the left, Harry with long purple hair and a gold crown, wore a purple suit and cape that swept around him.

It wasn't the perfect Man of the Court Harry. Not at all. It depicted the real Harry, in all his purple-haired, green-eyed glory. The party guests applauded. Harry couldn't take his eyes off it. He knew Cole must have been planning and designing the stained glass panel for months. He couldn't believe his eyes.

Harry spoke to Calum. "Cole did that?"

"Yeah, he did," said Calum.

"Calum," Harry took his hand. "Cole has known who I was all along."

"And he loves the real you, H." Calum looked at him.

"A true love," said Harry, gazing at the portrait in awe.

"Yeah," Calum smiled.

"Told you," said Justin.

Harry laughed.

Cole stared up at the stained glass, his vacant expression changing to one of contemplation.

Sabrina marched to the stairs. "Cover that thing back up!" she snarled.

"I will not!" proclaimed Lumiere.

Sabrina smiled and turned to face Cole. "Why don't you tell everyone the present you have for me, Cole?"

Cole approached the stairs. "I have an announcement!" he declared.

Luke removed his glasses and started to walk down the steps toward Cole.

"Sabrina will be joining the court tonight as my lady." He took Sabrina's hand.

Harry stared, speechless. After all that?

Sabrina beamed and chuckled.

Luke stepped onto the deck. "Son!" he boomed.

"Not now, Dad!" roared Cole in his most beast-like voice.

The crowd froze, scared.

Cole addressed his subjects. "So as my gift to her, I am bringing down the barrier once and for all!" He looked into Sabrina's eyes, and she beamed at him.

Harry and Calum gasped and looked at each other.
—————
On the Isle of the Lost, Sabrina's pirate posse had the live feed of the Cotillion on the old television in the fish and chips shop. They watched as Lumiere announced Sabrina.

"Mateys," said Louis, standing at the counter. "We ride with the tide!"

The pirates cheered and whooped. They drummed on the table and kicked their legs up in the air and clapped their gloved hands and high-fived. Louis locked lips with Ross. The pirates danced, twirling triumphantly as if they were on the yacht.

Their time had come.
—————
"Becca, bring down the barrier!" Cole bellowed.

Becca's mouth was a perfect circle. "I most certainly will not!" She gripped her wand tighter.

"I am your king," said Cole.

"Obey him," demanded Sabrina.

"Bring down the barrier!" Cole boomed.

Harry's eyes lit up. "You guys!" he whispered to his friends on the steps as they huddled up. "You guys! He's been spelled!"

"Sabrina found your spell book!" whispered Calum.

They turned and watched Cole take Sabrina's hand and gaze into her eyes.

Harry looked around. His eyes caught the image on the stained glass. Suddenly, he knew what to do. He stepped forward.

Harry faced Cole.

"Cole!" Harry smiled and stepped in front of him.

Everyone waited to see what would happen next.

"Cole! Look at me," Harry pleaded.

Cole turned toward him.

"No! Eyes over here!" Sabrina said, standing beside Harry. "You love me, remember?"

"No, you don't," Harry told him.

"Yes, you do!" Sabrina shouted.

"Cole, look at me," said Harry.

Sabrina turned toward Becca. "Bring down the barrier!"

"I do not take orders from you," said Becca.

"Cole!" Sabrina commanded.

Cole continued looking at Harry, transfixed now.

Harry took step after step, closing the space between them. "Cole, I never told you. I loved you because I didn't believe that I was good enough, and I thought that it was only a matter of time before you saw that yourself—"

"Oh, please." Sabrina rolled her eyes.

Harry pointed at the stained glass. "But, Cole, that's me! I'm part Isle and I'm part Auradon—"

"Cole, eyes over here." Sabrina smiled.

Harry's eyes filled with tears. "And you saw us for who we were and who we can be—"

"You love me," Sabrina interjected.

"And, Cole . . . I know what love feels like now," said Harry.

"Don't listen to him, Cole. Don't listen to him," said Sabrina.

"But, Cole, of course I love you. Of course I love you. I've always loved you." Harry kissed him.

Sabrina stepped back and looked on.

Then Harry pulled away and gazed up into Cole's eyes, which suddenly seemed clear.

Cole smiled at Harry. "My Harry."

"True Love's Kiss," said Calum to himself, grinning. "Works every time."

The crowd cheered.

Sabrina lunged at Becca. "Give me that wand!"

Becca yanked it out of reach. "Ah-ah-ah!" She called out for the guards. "Seize her!"

The crowd swarmed Sabrina, but she quickly ran to the railing.

Harry held up his arms to block the guards. "No! No! No! Stop!" As much as he wasn't fond of Sabrina, Harry felt in his heart that jailing her was not the answer.

Sabrina backed against the rail and faced Harry and the rest of his onlookers.

"Sabrina, I know you. You are so much more than a villain," said Harry. "And you have to believe me, because I have been there. Do not let your pride get in the way of something that you really want." Harry took a step toward Sabrina, then another. "Yeah?"

Sabrina looked at Harry and touched her shell necklace, which had started to glow. Then she turned, put her hand on the rail, and stepped up onto the banister.

Harry ran forward to stop her.

Everyone behind her screamed and rushed forward as well.

But it was too late.

Sabrina leaped off the yacht.

Everyone raced to the railing, including Harry, whose mouth was agape. Cole's eyes bugged. Justin, Michael, Camila, Jade, the guards, and the rest of the party guests looked at each other, murmuring. All of a sudden, they were a slight bubbling in the sea below that turned into a roiling boil, and then . . . and then . . .

Out of the waves, Sabrina rose as an enormous tentacled sea witch.