Son of Fire

Chapter Twenty Five

Back in Auradon...

Ben had become enveloped into his work, to distract himself from his fight with Mal. Which was still replaying in his mind. Maybe he did over react, She is under alot of stress becoming a Lady of the Court. Maybe he should of let her off. Its not like she was using magic to cause trouble. Quite the opposite actually.

Before Ben could think about it anymore, Evie storms into the room with a note, Audrey not far behind her.

"Hey, what's up?" He asks as he puts his pen down,  Evie and Audrey share a look. They both look worried.

"Mal and Josh have gone back to the Isle." Evie tells him, and Ben's eyes widen in shock and fear.

"What?" He asks, not able to believe it. But Evie passes him the note.

Evie, pass this note to Ben.

Dear Ben,
  I know what you said was right. We were meant to do this together. But, I'm not who you need me to be. You need someone who can be a Lady of the Court. Not someone who is trying to be that. So I'm going to the place where I know who I am. The Isle. I'm sorry, I belong on the Isle. Its where I fit in.
-Mal x

P.S. Josh has come with me. I tried to talk him out of it, but he wouldn't have it. Make sure you tell Audrey.

Ben runs his hand through his hair as he puts it down, his eyes sparkling with unshed tears.

"This is all my fault." He says.

"I know the feeling" Audrey says gloomily as she looks at her feet

"I blew it. She's been under so much pressure, but instead of being understanding. I went all beast on her." He says as he stands up and looks out of the Window.

"And instead of listening to Josh, I got too caught up in the past. Like it should of mattered" Audrey throws her hands in the air in frustration. Evie goes to say something but both Audrey and Ben speak at the same time.

"We need to go get them back" The two share a look of surprise.

"Oh no, it's way too dangerous there. You get recognised, you will be a target. And trust me, they will kill you" Evie tells them.

"Josh's been training me" Audrey says as reaches into her jacket and pulls out a small knife. It was a gift from Josh, which he had custom made for her. The handle had pink leatger wrapped around it, and the hilt had small roses in either side. The blade itself had a unique shape.

"And I've been taught how to fight, I am a king remember. There will be threats to my life." He points out and Evie studies them for a second, reaching into her own jacket and pulling out one of her knives and passing it Ben before walking into the middle of the room.

"Okay, both of you try to take me down. And don't be afraid to use them knives. I can take a cut." Evie tells them and Ben and Audrey share a look and shrug. Ben climbs into the desk and summersalts off and lands a few feet away from Evie, who was stood ready for an attack. Audrey strikes forward, bringing her knife into a perfect arc, which Evie ducks under and grabs her wrist. But Josh had taught Audrey how to counter it. She brings her knee into Evies stomach, causing her to let go as the wind is knocked out of her. She quickly covers however as Audrey makes another attack, bringing her foot up to strike her stomach again, and Evie is able to easy catch her foot and brings her own foot under Audrey's other leg, swiping her down to the floor. Ben took this chance to try attack, bringing the knife into an arc, which Evie narrowly dodges and goes to grab his wrist, but Ben quickly chucks the knife into his other hand and pulls that hand away and brings the knife to Evie's neck.

"Not bad" Evie says, but a mischievous look sparked as she quickly forces her own knee into Ben's, which causes him to pull back just enough for her to grab his wrist and flip him over her.

"But I'm better" Evie smirks as she rubs her own knee. It was a very painful move, but it works for getting them away if they are stood in front. "Okay, But if you're going to the Isle, I'm coming with you. And we'll bring Carlos and Jay as we need people we can trust and know how to fight." Evie says as he paces around the room.

"Yes!... Um are you sure?" Ben asks, and Evie nods.

"They're both my best friends. I'm not leaving them there." Evie says and Ben nods, then turns to Audrey.

"You don't have to come. We will bring Josh back" Ben tries to talk her out of it but she shakes her head and stands her ground.

"I'm not leaving Josh. I told him I never would. And I intend not to break that promise" She tells Ben who nods.

"I'll go get Jay and Carlos then" Evie says and she walks out ofthe room, leaving Ben and Audrey alone.

"It's nice to see you change, by the way" Ben says and Audrey looks at him with an eyebrow raised.

"What's that mean?" She asks.

"Well... Before Josh came, when you was with me, you had this sort of act going on. Very perfect princess. And I could always tell that wasn't you. But with Josh, you never seemed to put that act on. And it makes me happy to see you have ditched it all together" Ben says with a smile, one that Audrey returns.

"It... It was just so easy with him, you know? It's like he didn't expect me to be what everyone thought I should be. He wanted the real me, and he liked it. He liked seeing the real me, and it just made me realise I'm hiding behind a mask for no reason. I shouldn't let what others think say who I should be. And Josh taught me that." She says, smiling fondly as she talks about Josh.

" I know you might not want to hear this, but I knew Mal was the one from when I first met. She never treated me any different for being a king. She just treated me... As me. And she challenges me in ways I never thought possible. And every day, I fall for her more." Ben says and Audrey shakes her head, placing her hand on his shoulder.

"Ben, all I want for you is to be happy." She says sincerely, and Ben places his hand on hers and smiles.

"And I want the same for you" He tells her.

"I've got the boys" Evie says as she enters the room. "But, we gotta change your looks. Audrey, you need a less stand out colour. And Ben, you just need a total makeover" She sighs as she leads them out of the room to make their new outfits.

So, Ben and Audrey learn about Mal and Josh leaving. But it does lead to them bonding, which I really enjoyed writing. And Evie kicking their asses. There's a reason Mal and the VK's ran the Island :3 anyway, I hoped you enjoyed the chapter! More Isle stuff next!