Second in Line - Descendants (?Mal) ~Slow Updates~

Chapter 04

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●°●Three and a half months before the Coronation●°●

Three months and two weeks. That was the time Emma had before she would be crowned Queen of Auradon. Ben had followed his sister's progress as close as possible. As emotional support, one might say. The closer the Coronation came, the more tired and anxious Emma seemed to become. At the start, Emma had thought it would get easier when time went by. She had been mistaken. School became more and more work; more tests and exams and homework. While at the same time, her training became more intense. Their parents tried to help, but even Ben could see they were only making things worse. Putting more and more pressure on her, telling her what to do, unintentional both saying different things which somehow still were the opposite of what she actually wanted.
     Today had been one of those days. After a full day of school and training, Emma had gone to their parents for advice, and it backfired. She had listened to their words, knowing they only meant well and not wanting to offend them and risking getting another lecture about how a Queen can not act that way. Ben hadn't been in the room where the conversation had taken place, but he had waited outside of the door. Knowing not everything concerned him. But when she walked out, her frustration basically radiated off her. And even if one couldn't, they could tell that much by the way she walked, determined with big steps and clenched fists. A slight frown on her face. She made her way to her dorm, walked in, and slammed the door behind her. Ben peaked his head through the wood, being able to see the redhead laying on her bed, balancing a protractor on her nose. She didn't even glance at Emma as the future Queen walked to her bed and let herself fall on it face first. 
     "The bear option's starting to sound a wee bit more appealing now, doesn't it?" Emma didn't turn on her back, she didn't even look up, she only let out a long, tired grown. Making Aggie laugh, the protractor fell off her nose before she got up, sat down beside her friend and stroked her hair. "Yeah, I know, I know." 

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●°●Two Months before the Coronation: ●°●

Emma had managed to escape her Connections Beyond Boarders lessons from Miss Bianca and her partner Bernard, two mice that worked for the Rescue Aid Society that often worked international. The two were most famous for their work in Louisiana and Australia. I remember meeting them once when dad took me with him on one of his social affairs trips. They were pleasant creatures with interesting stories to tell, but after months of lessons I understood why Kat wanted to get away from it all. She had been wanting to get away from most of her classes lately, she hadn't talked to a lot of people either, especially not to our parents. Something was clearly bothering her, so, just like many times before when she was struggling, Emma had made her way to the Royal Graveyard. Normally she never talked out loud when she came here, she would just sit on one of the benches, not always necessarily by my grave, but always close. And I would be with her without fail. Standing by her, keeping her silent company.
     This time though she didn't stay quiet. She made her way to my gravestone without hesitation, sitting down on her knees in front of it. Spring had just started and the little blades of grass tickling the skin on her legs, making her reposition so her skirt got between them and the ground with a little annoyed growl. She stared at the stone for some time, before she let out a deep sigh and started to sing. 
     "Hey Ben, Dear Ben, 
      I need a little help here." She didn't sound sad, her voice held a more desperate tone. 
     "I'm probably talking to myself here,
      But Dear Ben I gotta ask.
      Are you really in the ground?
      Cause I feel you all around me.
      Are you here?
      Dear Ben, Dear Ben." 
     My heart jumped hearing her words and I soon followed to get in front of my sister, kneeling sown. "Yes! Yes, I'm here!" The big smile on my face didn't falter as she got up. Instead I turned to Ray who sat on my gravestone, "did you hear that? She feels my presence!" 
     Ray returned the smile, "Yeah I sure did!" He flew up, following Emma as he knew I would do too. 
     Emma's arms hugged her body as she walked passed the edge of the forest. "Dear Ben,
      I'm tired of trying to iron out my creases,
      I'm a bunch of broken pieces." The smile on my face faltered. I knew the burden she was feeling, how training to become Queen included learning to hide parts of yourself. To become what everyone needed you to be. I never managed....
     "It was you who made me whole." My head snapped back up, eyes widened. What? But... That's not... She shouldn't feel like that...
     "Everyday Dad's staring at me,
      Like all: Hurry up, get happy!" 
      Move along....
      Become the Queen of Auradon." 
     "You know," Ray spoke up, buzzing behind my head, "that's not great parenting." 
     I swatted at him, missing intentional, "just... don't comment, please." I responded, not feeling like having him rubbing everything in as well. 
     The moment Emma reached the shore that lay behind the forest she turned to the water, the wind blowing the hair out of her face and making her skirt sway behind her. Singing with a little more force.
     "Cause daddy's in denial,
      And mommy doesn't wanne feel!
      They want me to smile and clap
      Like a performing seal."
     She reached for the tiara in her hair and ripped it off, pulling her hand through her hair. "Ignored it for a while,
      But God, they lost their minds for real!
      You won't believe the mess that we've become." Sighing though her last words, she tossed the tiara into the water and watched as it got devoured by the waves. A sharp pain shot through my chest. Dad had given her that tiara when she had turned nine... She had loved it so much, didn't take it off for a week.
     Once back in the castle, Emma walked though the entrance hall into the main living room. It was quiet in the house, it always was lately. Her eyes fell on the pictures that stood neatly arranged upon the mantle of the fireplace. They were pictures of our family with in the middle a picture of the two of us from less than two years ago. We looked so alike in that picture, our smiles, our eyes... My hair lighter than hers and way shorter, but still... 
     Emma continued singing in a softer voice this time, I could see the glistening of tears in her eyes. "You were my home, my destination.
     And I, your shadow, your strange reflection." She took the picture from the fireplace and held it in her hand, stroking the glass.
     "You held my hand and life came easy.
      Now Jokes don't land
      And no one sees the real me." She placed the picture face down back onto the mantle, making her way up the many stairs and I followed.
     "Nothing seems to fit,
      Benjamin, is this really it?
      Are you receiving? 
      I want something to believe in,
      Or I'm done!"
     I wanted to answer, but what good would that do? She couldn't hear me anyway. Still I answered in my mind, 'yes! Yes I'm here! I can hear you, you're not alone.' But of course it did nothing. 
     "Take me where my soul can run!" She pushed herself, trailing out the last word while running up the stairs until she could slam her bedroom door behind her.
     "Or I'll be in my bedroom,
      Wake me when this joke is done!" 
     Angry, Kathy threw the curtains that hung before her little balcony away so she could look out over the kingdom. "Everyone's moving forward,
      Everyone's forgetting your name!" 
     She clenched her hands around the in Ivy covered railing. "Benny, won't you send a sign?
      I'm running out of hope and time." 
     I took place on her right, trying to get in her field of vision, but she turned to her left. "A plague of mice," I turned around her, getting to her left, only for Kat to turn to her right, "a lightning strike." Desperate, I danced around her again to her right side but of course she turned to the railing. "Just one word would be enough!" I threw up my hands in frustration, turning back inside. My eyes falling on her desk, which was now filled with official papers, envelops and letters.  
     "No more playing Daddy's game,
      I'll go insane if things don't change."
     In the background I could still hear Emma singing out her emotions, while at the same time, I marched to her desk. She wants a sign? She'll get one. I closed my eyes and concentrated, sending all of my energy into my right hand. 
     "Whatever is takes
      To make them remember your name.
      Dear Ben!" 
     With all the force I had I slammed against the picture frame on the desk, the one of me. "It worked!" I exclaimed with pride, Ray's ghosting lessons actually started to pay off. Unfortunately the frame hit the pile of papers, sending them flying around the room. Startled by the noise Emma turned around, her face fell when she saw the mess. "How's that for a sign?" I asked proudly, stepping over the papers, closer to my sister. "It's not a plague of mice, but-" 
     "Ow, no. Ow, no, no!" She mumbled as she rushed to gather the files and papers. "Stupid wind..." 
     My shoulders slumped, "are you kidding me?" I watched as Kat started sorting through the files, pilling them into new stacks per subject. "You ask for a sign, in song form. And when I give you one, it's the wind?" 
     Ray, who had been quiet up until now, sat down on my shoulder. "The living are weird like that, my friend." 
     I opened my mouth to respond, only to see Emma freezing in place as she looked at the picture frame on the ground. For a moment I thought I had broken the glass, but then I noticed the back had sprung open and the sliver of paper sticking out from beneath it. I froze too, recognizing the piece of paper. Quickly Emma pushed the paper back and closed the frame, putting it back on her desk and returning to the files. 
     Finally she had reached the last envelop, it had been hard to fish it out from underneath her bed, but she did it. She looked at the back to identify it and frowned. The file was still closed, so she had never officially opened it. On the back it had my handwriting. It said: The Villain Kids Project.
     Immediately I remembered the thing's content. I know I had mentioned it before to Katy and she had listened attentively, although I knew she got a little scared by the idea. But this time, as I saw her curiously reading the papers on the inside, which contained most of my research, I saw her eyes lit up with excitement. Forgetting all about the piles of papers that lay on the ground she sat down on her desk and pulled out everything from the envelop, her eyes scanning every word on every paper, the gears in her brain turning until an idea took form. 
     

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