A Crack in the Mask

Bonds and Bets

Notes:

Hey Descendants,

Sorry for the late update. Bringing this to you on location out in the boonies. Lol, I love my family.

Anyway, we hope you're ready for more feels. Ben and the other HKs are all starting to come to realizations and affirmations. And Don't worry Hiro is still around causing mischief.

Enjoy :)

(See the end of the chapter for questions.)

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Ben smiles as he looks in the rearview mirror to find Doug and Roy pouting. He couldn't even blame them, he would have been disappointed to be pulled back to the school so soon as well. They were staring out the window like defeated children.

It didn't help that all their parents had shown up for the school's quarterly family weekend.

"Well, that was fun while it lasted." Lonnie sighs, "Knew our parents were going to step in and ruin this. My dad's probably so pissed."

"My dad's gonna think it was lit when I tell him what happened." Roy responds with a half-grin, "Mom though, she's probably the reason I have to go back."

"My dad's just going to laugh too." Doug shrugs, "He never takes anything seriously. And really, my mom probably doesn't care either. Honestly, this has Uncle Grumpy written all over it."

Ben frowns when all three let out sighs and fall silent. "Everything okay?" He furrows his brow when he catches Lonnie looking up into the mirror, and sees Doug and Roy both look to meet her gaze. When he's met with silence his stomach twists.

He was missing something. "Did something happen?"

Doug sighs before he looks back out the window.

Roy furrows his brow as he stares at his lap, "I think we're just worried about them."

"Thank god, someone said it." Doug sighs in relief.

"Me too." Lonnie grimaces, "I've never heard someone so-" she shakes her head, clearly unable to continue.

"Haunted?" Doug finishes for her at the same time as Roy says, "Tormented?"

Lonnie nods, "Both."

What the hell had he missed? "So..." He looks around the car.

"Carlos had a really awful nightmare," Lonnie explains without looking at him, her voice soft as she stared straight ahead.

"That was a night terror." Doug states, "Nightmares occur most often during REM sleep, are vividly recalled, and typically the person experiencing a nightmare will awaken immediately with a pretty clear recall of the bad dream. Night terrors, to the converse, can happen before or after REM sleep. And someone experiencing a night terror may shout, sleepwalk, or appear scared, or terrified, for several minutes before eventually relaxing back into sleep again. Usually, the person will only have a vague recollection of the experience or the dream that caused the distress. Although it can be difficult to witness, night terrors aren't harmful and chances are the sleeper won't even remember it in the morning." He takes a deep breath, but before he can continue Roy cups a hand over his mouth.

"Sorry, he gets like a walking Wand-o-pedia when he's uncomfortable," Roy explains as he catches Ben's eye in the rearview mirror "But he ain't wrong, one oh one was fighting Jay an' David for all he was worth. All the while screaming bloody murder and begging to not be sent back to his mother. It was so much more than just difficult, bro. I felt traumatized for the kid. I felt fucking foul even being there, but man, I could just hear the panic in Jay's voice and-"