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[science-fantasy-superheroes]

(Eventually) Good Guardians AU

(Yes, I did choose the title for the acronym.)

Lore

About how the Miraculous, the Guardian Order, the Miracle Boxes, and the kwami rules (this is where the “Eventually” part comes in) came to be. (If anyone else wants to use the same or a similar idea for your rewrite/AU, go for it. I might not have even been the first to think of this anyway.)

*Since canon said the temple was in Tibet and (if I’m understanding correctly) Tibet does not want to be conflated with China, I was going to have my AU call the “Chinese Miracle Box” the “Tibetan Miracle Box.” But, I’ve recently learned that the Miracle Box is organized based on Chinese and not Tibetian beliefs (there may have also been discrepancies with the style of the monks, but I don’t quite remember), so saying it’s from Tibet doesn’t really add up.

*As per the explanation in Fu’s Story [below], I could make why the temple is in Tibet but Fu has the Chinese Miracle Box fit, but it would still have the conflation (and monk?) problem, so I’ve decided to just keep it all from China. (If anyone has more information about which way I should go with this, rant/ramble away.)

Fu’s Backstory

About what happened with Feast (as this GO would not leave children alone and hungry for hours/days as “training”), how the kwamis influenced history, how Fu lost the Peacock and Butterfly, and what happened with Marianne.

Fu’s Story

Fu’s side of what happened during the show (and Marianne’s side of “Backwarder” and Fu’s memory loss) and how his traumas influenced his actions. (Featuring a lot of my “headcanons”* for the show. *Imaginary character motivations that count more as loopholes than canon-compliant.)

“Furious Fu”

My Su-Han was raised right and would never steal an old man’s cane. He would hate canon Su-Han. I want to hug him. (Yes, I am attached. Thank you for noticing.)

[My Prodigious Lore was written as a stand-alone from this AU, but it still fits: Though a lot of the original Guardians were pretty disrespectful towards the kwamis, they weren’t a hive mind, and this particular maker was one of the most compassionate.]

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

PE AU: Sequels

Movie 2:

While he’s busy with Cotillion, Ben enlists Evie to continue his plans for which kids to bring to Auradon next.

During their picnic date, Ben finds Mal’s spellbook while looking for napkins.

Ben: “Mal?” He wants to give her a chance to explain.

Mal: “I actually threw that in there super last-minute in case it rained or… something…” She finds it hard to lie to him.

Ben: “You said you donated this to the museum.” He’s hurt that she hid it from him. Then, a second thought hits him. “Did you use a spell to make all this?”

Mal: “… Not all of it…”

Ben: “Mal!”

Mal: “I’m sorry, Ben! It’s just been so hard!”

Ben: “That’s why we promised to do this together! But we can’t help each other if we’re keeping secrets and lying to each other!”

Mal: “I know that!”

Ben: “Then why didn’t you tell me?”

Mal: “Because…” She struggles to find words she can admit. “I’m not one of those ‘pretty, pink princesses,’ Ben… I’m not one of those ladies from the Court. I’m a big fake, okay? I’m fake.” She gestures to her hair and outfit. “This is fake.” She gestures to the food. She takes her spellbook from Ben and searches for a spell. “Take this feast, this sumptuous meal, return it back to what is real.” All that is left on the table is a partially eaten sandwich. “This is who I really am.”

She storms off, ashamed. Ben reaches out for her, but she brushes him off, so he doesn’t pursue her, but he does search desperately for something to say.

Ben: “Peanut butter and jelly is my favorite!” He immediately regrets speaking at all.

Uma sees them planning festivities on TV, but no news of more VKs in Auradon, and assumes they’ve been forgotten about.

Evie is happy to reunite with Dizzy and says some hinting lines such as, “You never know, coming to Auradon might be more than a dream.”

After Ben arrives at Cotillion with Uma and they’ve “explained” how their “romance” happened, Ben can tell Mal is still upset and feels bad for her.

Ben: “Listen, Mal. I’m really glad it worked out this way. It’s for the best. Perfect even. You’d rather be on the Isle, and I found my queen.” (He subconsciously worries about the stress Auradon’s been putting her under, and thinks back to his pressure to date (Audrey).)

Mal looks like she might try to say something– anything– so Uma interjects.

Uma: “You had to have known you weren’t meant to be together. Or else you would’ve told him you love him, right?”

When Ben fails to calm down “Kraken Uma,” Evie shows her the invitations for the new kids have already been written, but everyone’s just been busy with cotillion (which, yes, she agrees isn’t fair, but no one’s been forgotten). Uma decides to give them a chance to keep their promise, but she also doesn’t want to leave any of her friends behind on The Isle, so she leaves.

[This Ben planned to bring all the VKs to Auradon, and he intends to do it. So, minor changes to fit that.

I changed Ben’s side of the argument in the picnic scene because he’s fully aware of the pressure Mal is under, wouldn’t compare her situation to being king, and feels too guilty about it to bring up The Isle of the Lost.

It bothered me how Ben just went through Mal’s spellbook. For all he knew, she was marking off more things to surprise him with. (It’s fine to do things like that if it gets addressed, or has prior setup to justify it (like, perhaps she usually lets him look through the book, so it’s just habit for him now), but neither is done.)

On the flip side, I definitely couldn’t keep in Mal trying to spell Ben. (He does admonish her in canon, but she was way too comfortable trying to do that. Plus, this Mal has way too much guilt to ever spell Ben again.)

The imaginary book would explain: It’s not “frowned upon” for anyone to not give up magic objects to the museum, but it’s encouraged enough that Mal feels like she’s “supposed to” give up her spellbook and that she’s disappointing Ben for not doing so, so she lies to him. Ben knows the VKs just got magic back (and the spellbook is sentimental to Mal), so he doesn’t mind if she never gives it up, he’s just hurt that she lied to him about it (and concerned that she didn’t feel comfortable telling him the truth).

(Ben not knowing Mal isn’t a natural blonde breaks my suspension of disbelief.)

(The sandwich being partially eaten is a necessary detail to me.)

(I think the way Ben yelled, “PB&J is my favorite!” was funny and would be sad to see it go.)

I believe Mal never said she loves Ben, but she fought her dragon mom for him/his people/his home, so I don’t know what more she’s supposed to do to prove her love. (This isn’t against Ben specifically, it’s just a trope/theme I don’t really like.) “Actions speak louder than words,” except in the face of insecurities, and I don’t see Ben being insecure of Mal’s love for him. Mal, though, is definitely insecure and would think she’s “wrong” for not saying, “I love you,” so I used Uma (who knew because she interrogated Ben about what gets under Mal’s skin after putting him under the spell) to prey on those fears.

To follow along with how I described the love spell, Ben is currently in early stage 2 (so his memories aren’t that hazy). He still remembers being in love with Mal and sees her as a close friend, he just believes he fell out of love with her and has now fallen in love with Uma. (Although, I wouldn’t put it past Uma to use a few extra spells to keep Ben in check.)]

Movie 3:

The movie begins in Ben’s office, where he and Audrey are sitting on opposite sides of his desk.

Ben: “Audrey, thank you for meeting me here today. I… want to apologize for how I ended our relationship.”

Audrey: “It’s okay, Bennybear. After I heard about what happened with Uma, I just knew that horrible girl spelled you—!”

Ben: “She didn’t spell me.”

Audrey: “But… Then… You were cheating on me!”

Ben: “I wasn’t. Evie and I ended up in a chemistry experiment gone wrong and ended up under a love spell.” It’s the lie he’d told everyone else who didn’t have good intentions for the VKs. “By the time I got out of it, I had already broken up with you and you were with Chad.”

Audrey: “You know I would’ve gotten back together just for you.” Her tone is back to sweet and fluttery.

Ben: “Audrey…” He sighs. “You don’t even like me.”

Audrey: “Of course I do—!”

Ben: “You always protested everything I wanted to do, and even with how we treat people… We don’t agree on much. Wouldn’t you rather be with someone else more like you?”

Her mouth gapes until she stands, fuming.

Audrey: “That witch put you up to this! Didn’t she?!”

Ben: “Audrey—”

Audrey: “I don’t want to hear it! You should’ve just let me think you were a jerk cheater! Why even wait until now to talk to me!?”

Ben: “You left school and went no contact.”

Audrey: “I’ve been back for a few days!”

Ben: “… I… needed to figure out how to break the news to you…”

She can tell he doesn’t mean the breakup.

Audrey: “What news…?”

Ben: “I’m… going to propose to Mal.”

Her eyes blaze, but her voice isn’t raised at all when she speaks.

Audrey: “Never speak to me again.” She storms out.

Once she’s a distance away, Mal slips into the room.

Mal: “I take it she isn’t the diplomatic type…”

Ben just groans into his hands and she goes over to rub his back.

Ben: “… Are you sure you’re okay with a public proposal?” He looks up at her.

Mal: “Well, it’s that or having everyone ask about my new, sparkly ring 24/7. Besides, I haven’t seen the ring yet, so I won’t have to entirely act surprised.”

On yet another announcement day, Celia, Squeaky, and Squirmy are invited to Auradon Prep. By then, about half the VKs are free (some have also moved to other kingdoms).

Uma, Harry, and Gil help thwart Hades’s attempt to break free, but it still scares Mal. She knows it’s not fair to the kids still on The Isle, but she worries that their parents escaping will hurt the kids already in Auradon. She doesn’t decisively end the program, but she confides in Ben that she’s leaning towards it.

Mal, Evie, Jay, Carlos, Uma, Harry, Celia, and Ben are chatting while walking away from Fairy Cottage after freeing Chad.

Celia: “Hey, Mal~ I was thinking, after freeing all the VKs, how about freeing some of their parents? Just the good ones, of course. Like my dad~?” She knows it’s a far-fetched hope, but she doesn’t expect Mal to look that guilty.

The way Ben reaches out to Mal, apparently in on her thoughts, doesn’t help anyone’s suspicions.

Uma: “Mal?”

Mal: “I… I don’t know if it’s safe to open the barrier again…”

Celia: “You mean I’ll never see my dad again.” Hurt and anger radiate off her.

Mal: “Celia…” She feels even worse but she knows there’s no sugarcoating her thoughts. “Hades tried to escape, who’s to say someone else won’t? And—”

Celia: “Would you open it if it was the only place safe from Audrey left to go?”

Mal: “What—?”

She swipes Hades’s ember from Mal’s pocket and heads for a nearby birdbath.

Mal: “Celia, no—!”

She tosses it in and storms off, Uma gives Mal a disappointed look then goes after her, and Harry gives Mal a disgusted look before following.

Mal desperately tries to reignite the ember, but she can’t.

Evie: “Mal… Tell me you were about to say you changed your mind.”

Mal: “E, I… Honestly? I don’t know… I guess it doesn’t really matter. I mean, keeping the barrier closed obviously isn’t keeping anyone safe! I just… I have no idea what to do… And now…” She starts crying over the dead ember.

Evie: “Oh, Mal—”

Just then, lightning falls from the sky, turning all her friends to stone.

Elsewhere, Audrey watches the scene through her staff.

Audrey: “Your useless, little ember may have had just enough juice to protect you, Mal, but you won’t survive your fight against me. Especially not once I get my hostage.” She cackles.

After Mal’s song, Uma and Harry find her and tell her Celia was captured.

Uma: “Before we take you to Audrey, just… Why, Mal? Why abandon all the kids on The Isle?”

Mal: “There are Isle kids here too! What if one of their parents escaped and didn’t like how they changed and went after them? Or what if some of the people they met turn on them for what their parent does? Or both! I promised to protect them too, and I… I know it’s not fair. But I really didn’t know what to do.”

Uma quirks up an eyebrow.

Uma: “Sounds like someone’s projecting. But, if you are, you should know that means they’ll be okay. They’ve got friends who have their back and will protect them, just like you have us and we will protect them.”

Mal: “Thank you, Uma. And I know I was wrong now; I’m not leaving anyone behind.”

Harry: “Speaking of, where’s Princey and your crew?”

Mal: “They… They were turned to stone…”

Uma: “Aw, Mal…”

Mal: “It’s okay. Like back at Fairy Cottage, we’re stronger together. We’ll stop Audrey and save them. Now, lead the way.”

After Mal defeats Audrey and knocks her unconscious, Hades is brought from the Isle to save her.

Hades: “When you guys try to destroy the world… it’s an ‘error in judgment.’ But when it’s one of us… ‘lock them up and throw away the key.’” He turns to Adam. “Right, ‘Beast’?”

Mal: “Dad… They’re always willing to forgive. Well– many of them are. But you have to be willing to change. So… are you?”

Hades: “…”

Finally, he raises his hands. The guards hold tighter and Adam flinches.

Hades: “If I’m gonna help, I need my hands.” He rolls his eyes, but smiles a bit when he sees Mal proudly beaming at him.

She turns to look at Ben, who’s happy she gets to have one of her parents back (and considering pushing the extent to which his original plans meant to go), then looks back at the guards as a signal to free her dad.

He still acts macho towards Adam just to be petty (at which, Mal has to call him out), and acts like he’s only doing this because he “has to,” but Mal can tell he’s no longer the villain he was and a part of her wishes he didn’t have to go back to prison. (Then, later combined with seeing her VK friends’ feelings about The Isle, she ends up freeing everyone from the island prison.)

[(I would’ve had Ben talk to Audrey at the beginning of the second movie, but I’m assuming Audrey’s actor was unavailable for that movie, so I wrote around that.)

Ben is used to publicity, but fully aware of how invasive it can be, and after the events of the second movie, he’s even more sensitive to how comfortable Mal is in the public eye. So, he “pre-posed” to find out how she felt about a public proposal. (He didn’t want to spoil the surprise, so he asked Evie first, but she told him Mal would figure it out anyway if she brought it up, so he might as well ask her directly.) And then they later realized they should probably warn Audrey in hopes to avoid a scene in front of everyone. (If Mal didn’t want a public proposal, he would’ve set up some ridiculously grand private evening for them and proposed then (maybe invited their friends for that part).)

More changes in support of “freeing all the VKs was the plan” and keeping consistent with the second movie’s changes. As well as connecting the first movie’s mercy/forgiveness/grace theme with the third movie’s.

I added Audrey reacting to Mal’s friends turning to stone just for a little clarity in why that even happened. (Literally came out of nowhere…)

I like to imagine Hades and Mal have a chat after the movie (perhaps as a mid-credits scene) that goes a little like this:

Hades: “Mal… I know how I acted, but… I missed you every day. I really did think it was for the best, but it wasn’t, at all.”

Mal: “… I understand. Honestly, I almost made a really stupid decision myself… You were really out of line for that song though.”

Hades: “Yeah, yeah.” He huffs, frustrated over his own shame. “… I’m… sorry.” It felt weird to say, but also relieving.

Mal: “… I’m glad to have you back, too.”

(If this were a real script, I wouldn’t write the line to officially make that song diegetic, but that’s the most efficient way of making sure everyone knows specifically what I’m/Mal’s referring to.)]

[So that’s the end of my AU! I think everything else would basically be the same, but if anyone thinks of any inconsistencies, or there are any scenes you’re curious about, feel free to ask me about them.]

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

PE AU: Scene 29.2-30

Scene 29.2:

Back at the castle, everyone backs away from the thief.

Fairy Godmother: “Child, what are you doing?!”

Lonnie: “It’s not fair that ‘pretty people’ get to be popular! It’s time things changed! Bibbidi… bobbidi… boo— Ah!” Too powerful even for untrained magic users, she can’t really get control of the wand, so it just throws her around as it sparks.

Adam: “Take cover!” He warns the crowd.

Mal takes the chance to wrestle the wand from Lonnie, and her friends make their way down to her.

Belle: “Careful, Mal!” She doesn’t want to see either girl get hurt.

Mal manages to take it from Lonnie, scaring her into realizing what she did and, also remembering what happened after Family Day yesterday, she immediately runs out of sight.

Ben: “Thanks, Mal.” He walks up to her, reaching for the wand.

But Mal rears away.

Mal: “Stand back.” She warns.

Ben: “Mal? What?” He tries to get closer, mostly so he can comfort her.

Mal: “Ben, I said stand back!”

He and the rest of the crowd finally realize she really means it.

Audrey: “I told you so!” She tries to confront her.

She just gets the wand pointed at her as she scrambles back into the crowd.

Mal’s friends reach her then.

Carlos: “Let’s go!” He just wants to be anywhere but there in the middle of the room.

Jay: “Revenge time.” He mumbles as a reminder.

Ben: “You really want to do this?”

Mal: “We have no choice, Ben! I…! I felt the magic shift… My mother is coming, and if I don’t give her the wand…”

Ben: “… I put more pressure on you than I thought… I don’t want to put even more on you now, but… you can fight.”

Mal: “Fight how?! The only thing that could stop my mother was true love! And I betrayed you… What kind of love is that?”

Ben: “You haven’t betrayed me yet. It’s not too late to do the right thing. To fight for what you love. And, long before me, you loved your friends, and you’ve always had their back. So…” he looks at the other VKs, “is this what you all want?”

Carlos: “No.” He surprises himself by speaking up, but it empowers him to say more. “I want to fight for what I love. And I love Dude. And having wifi. And being able to do things other than what my mom says.” He looks at the girl who thought she was hidden in the crowd. “And I love having Jane as my friend.”

Evie: “I love Doug.” She blurts, then faces him from where she spotted him on the balcony (yes, she searched). “I love you a lot. You make me feel like I can do anything and you saved me from getting expelled and it doesn’t feel right to repay you by destroying your home.”

They look at Jay, who can remain stubborn for all of two seconds.

Jay: “Ugh! Fine! ‘Love’ is a bit much in my opinion, but, yeah, Taylor, Akiho, Amir…” He turns to them (a good thief is observant!). “I really appreciate you guys being there yesterday. And…” He doesn’t look at anyone in particular. “I don’t like hurting people. Not innocent people.” He turns to Mal. “So, Mal, can you stop being stubborn too and admit you want to save this place from our parents?”

Mal laughs through her tears.

Mal: “I can! I do!” She steps forward and pulls them all into a hug.

Just then, the ground shakes as green smoke drifts around the room. It disbands with a twist on the center of the floor, between the VKs and the dais, revealing Maleficent.

Maleficent: “I’m back~!”

Mal: “Go away, Mother.” Mal is not amused by her theatrics.

Maleficent breaks into an obnoxious laugh.

Maleficent: “She’s funny.” She loudly snorts. “Oh! I’m so– You’re very funny.” She swaps to seriousness. “Here.” She points to in front of her, but Mal doesn’t move. “Wand me. Chop, chop.”

Mal acts like she’s going to hand it to her, but instead tosses it to Fairy Godmother.

Fairy Godmother: “Bibbidi-bobbidi—”

Maleficent: “‘Boo.’” She mocks, then casts a spell that freezes everyone. “Sike.” She laughs, then toys around, messing with the frozen Adam and Fairy Godmother, before taking Ben’s ring from Mal. Then, she goes up to Ben.

Maleficent: “Aw… You really thought you could overthrow me with true love? Ambitious. But it’s not for you. You’re a villain! Villains don’t fall in love.”

Mal: “I’m not a villain, Mom! I’m not you!”

Maleficent: “Oh, obviously. I’ve had years and years and years and… years of practice being evil. You’ll get there.”

Mal: “No, I will not. And I really wish that you had never gotten there yourself.”

Maleficent realizes she’s lost her usual means of manipulating Mal, and resorts to threats.

Maleficent: “I know one thing, young lady. You have no room for love in your life!”

Mal is done being controlled by her.

Mal: “And now I command, wand to my hand!” She holds out her hand and, after a struggle against Maleficent, the wand flies into it. “It worked!” She cheers, honestly in disbelief.

Maleficent: “I hardly think so. Frankly, this is tedious and very immature.” She tries another tactic to no avail and this time gets too fed up and lashes out. “Give me the wand. Give me the wand!”

Sensing a threat, Dude runs up and attacks her (though he doesn’t do much damage).

Maleficent: “Oh, the breath! The breath! Get off me!” She throws Dude off her.

He lands unharmed and runs to Carlos, who protectively picks him up.

Jay grabs Maleficent’s staff, she insincerely compliments his strength, then flings him back with a flick.

Maleficent: “Enough!” Green smoke rises as she casts another spell. “You all will regret this!”

She transforms into a dragon. The VKs back away towards the doors, but Jay, slowed down by having to get off the ground, gains her attention so she chases him around, trying to burn him to a crisp. Fortunately, he’s able to dodge her attacks and make it back to his friends just as Evie comes up with her attack.

Evie: “Magic mirror, show your bright light!” She temporarily blinds Maleficent and sends her crashing to the ground.

Mal: “Behind me, E!” Mal pulls her out of the way before Maleficent can recover and try to attack her like Jay. “Leave my friends alone!” The dragon recovers enough to look at her and Mal continues. “This is between you and me, Mother.”

Maleficent roars at her as her eyes glow green. Mal’s do the same as she begins chanting.

Mal: “The strength of evil is good as none, when stands before four hearts as one.” Her friends realize what she’s doing and get closer to support her and her spell. “The strength of evil is good as none, when stands before four hearts as one. The strength of evil is good as none, when stands before four hearts as one!”

A tense staring contest ensues, which Mal wins for the first time, and, in a big puff of green, Maleficent shrinks into a lizard. The VKs run up to it as Fairy Godmother’s freeze spell is broken.

Evie: “What just happened?”

Mal: “I have no idea.”

Evie: “Did you do it?”

Mal: “I don’t know.”

Fairy Godmother meets them at the lizard.

Fairy Godmother: “No, no, no, no. Your mother did. She shrank to the size of the love in her heart.”

Mal: “Is she gonna be like that forever?” Even Mal doesn’t know if it was hope or hopelessness.

Fairy Godmother: “Well, forever is a long time. You learned to love. So can she.”

They share a smile and then Mal remembers the wand she has.

Mal: “I believe this belongs to you.” She gives it back.

Fairy Godmother: “And I believe this…” She picks the ring up off the ground. “Belongs to you.” She addresses the other VKs too. “You all have earned yourselves an ‘A’ in Goodness class.” They all laugh (kind of hoping so after all that).

Fairy Godmother: “Bibbidi, bobbidi, boo!” She releases everyone from the freeze spell.

Ben and Adam lash out in “beast mode.” Belle is quick to calm Adam down, but Ben roars until he’s run all the way to Mal and she catches him.

Mal: “Okay! Okay. O— We kinda got this all wrapped up here.”

Realizing everyone is safe and the danger is gone, he spins her in a hug, so, so proud of her and really, really glad she’s alright.

Ben: “Next time, I rescue you, okay?” He still hasn’t let go.

Mal: “Yeah. Let’s not let there be a next time, okay?” She hasn’t either.

Fairy Godmother: (off-screen) “Lonnie, dear. I understand your frustrations, but that was not the way to go about ‘fixing’ it!”

Mal looks over Ben’s shoulder and spots where the voice is coming from before pulling away.

Mal: “I will be right back.” She heads over to Lonnie and Fairy Godmother.

Mal: “Um… Fairy Godmother? Please, don’t be too hard on Lonnie. I said all kinds of crazy stuff about how Jane could ‘become’ pretty if she used your wand– I was lying to her though, she’s beautiful now, outside and in– but Lonnie must’ve overheard what I said—”

Lonnie: “What? Mal, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was just tired of people listening to Audrey and Chad like they know better.” She rolls her eyes, then winces with regret. “But I got lost in being petty and, uh… tried to do something that wouldn’t solve the problem at all.” She looks at Fairy Godmother again. “I’m sorry.”

Fairy Godmother: “Well… Today has been a day of second chances, and you’ve shown you understand what’s right now, so I won’t give you detention. But you will be helping clean the school through the rest of the school year.”

Lonnie: “That’s fair.” (She knows full well she got off very easy.)

Mal smiles, glad she didn’t get Lonnie in (too much) trouble, then notices Audrey in the distance. Against her better judgment, she approaches her.

Mal: “Audrey, I—”

Audrey: “Save your apology. I won’t accept it.”

Mal: “… Fine then. I’ll tell you a hard truth.”

Audrey smirks, thinking she’s goaded Mal into “revealing her true colors.”

Mal: “You need to get your act together and be a good leader. But you don’t need Chad. And you don’t need Ben. You don’t need to put up with anyone who doesn’t make you happy or you don’t enjoy being around. After all, I’m sure you’d agree you deserve ‘the best,’ right?” She can’t help adding a bit of a jab.

Audrey stares at her pensively. Finally, she looks away with a huff.

Audrey: “I should’ve told you to save your pity too.”

Mal looks at her with a small headshake, but figures her words are at least in her mind and leaves her be to finally head back to her friends, who now have all their new friends with them.

She beams as she joins their group hug.

Jay: “Well? Let’s get this party started!”

All: “Oh-ay, oh-ay, hey!”

[This Jane just wouldn’t steal the wand. But that gave me the perfect opportunity to give Lonnie something to do! (And set up for her trying to make a difference in the 2nd movie.)

(A lot of the final confrontation is the same (biggest difference is the themes of the speeches), but, like with the Queen Leah scene, I kept it in for context.)

Ben does not treat Mal like a wild animal once the wand is in her hands.

Audrey’s “I told you so!” is a little more warranted after Mal makes her intentions known. (Tying back into everyone not assuming Mal wasn’t helping.)

I wanted the VKs’ “I choose good,” moment to be about standing up to their parents, since that’s what’s mostly holding them back at this point, so I had Mal know her mother was free. (Feeling “a shift in the magic” is either something all powerful magic users can feel, or she’s feeling the pull of her powerful mother and powerful father’s magic within her.)

(Ben was trying really hard not to focus on Mal admitting she loves him with her true love comment.)

I wanted each of the VKs to be able to say what they love for themselves.

(Carlos and Jane are best friends for now since quite a bit of the 2nd movie hinges on Carlos trying to ask Jane to Cotillion.)

I don’t have a problem with Mal’s “love is not weak” speech, she just hadn’t learned that yet. Unless she was referring to canon Ben’s tunnel vision. Plus, I like the idea of Maleficent being insistent that love is freakishly powerful since she was tangentially defeated by “true love’s kiss.”

There was no reason for Audrey and Mal to give each other “a look of respect” at the canon end, so I had them actually talk (and set up Audrey’s arc in the 3rd movie).]

Scene 30 (Set It Off! and “You didn’t think this was the end of the story?”) is all the same.

[Perhaps Chad & Audrey and Jay & Lonnie dance together instead, but that’s all up to the choreographer.]

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

PE AU: Scene 29.1

Scene 29.1:

The camera switches between shots at the castle, and the villains watching on a TV.

Snow White: “At last, here we are, broadcasting live from the coronation where Prince Benjamin will soon be crowned king! I’m Snow White, bringing you up-to-the-second coverage of who’s the fairest of them all.”

Evil Queen: “‘I’m Snow White.’ Who are you kidding? She’s definitely had work done.”

Fairy Godmother walks up to the dais.

Snow White: “Oh! Fairy Godmother is looking radiant.” Fairy Godmother removes the cloth over the spell jar. “And there is Fairy Godmother’s wand!”

Maleficent: “I want that wand!”

Cruella: “Do you? Hadn’t heard.”

The camera switches to Ben and Evie alone in the room from Scene 1, waiting for their escorts to get there. They’re standing by the doors, far apart enough to not touch.

Ben clears his throat and Evie tenses up, clearly not wanting to talk right now.

Ben: “Um, Evie—?”

Evie shoves a little blue box into his hands, then turns away from him with her arms crossed.

Evie: “Here. If you don’t talk to me until the coronation ends, you can eat it.”

Ben opens the box to see a tiny chocolate cupcake. He raises an eyebrow at her, then eventually smirks and pulls the cupcake out.

Ben: “Looks delicious!”

Evie whips around to fully face him.

Evie: “No!”

But he’s already bitten off half the thing, humming a little, “Mm…” as he chews (it is good).

She stares in shock and horror, but he just contently eats the other half.

Evie: “Ben…?”

Ben: “Yes?” He smiles like everything’s normal.

Evie: “Um… Do you… remember what’s been going on the past… uh… while…?”

Ben: “You mean putting me under a love spell? Yes.”

Evie: “You knew?! When?!”

Ben: “Well, when I showed Mal the date I had planned at The Enchanted Lake, I went for a swim. And the lake ‘washes off’ magic spells.”

Evie: “Oh…” She cringes. “I’m really, really sorry.” She eyes him curiously. “But why didn’t you say anything?”

Ben: “I don’t know… I guess, since I put you guys in this situation that stressed you out enough to resort to making me fall in love so I wouldn’t kick you out, and I could tell you regretted it by then, I thought I could give you the chance to make things right.”

Evie: “You really didn’t have to.” Guilt weighs on her again. “Um… Since you’re free of the spell… Why did you kiss me?”

Ben: “We were dating.” He shrugs.

Evie: “I know, but… didn’t it feel… wrong?”

He gives her a confused and worried look, then smiles as if he realized something.

Ben: “Not at all. Actually, it wasn’t much different than kissing Audrey.” He adds with a shrug.

Evie was about to be a bit relieved, but is now only horrified.

Evie: “Ben… Mal told me about your lack of feelings for Audrey, but… tell me you know that’s not good or reassuring.”

Ben: “I… I just meant it wasn’t that bad…” He doesn’t understand why she’s so distressed.

She just… stares at him, like she wants to hug and throw him at the same time, until she eventually shakes her head.

Evie: “We’ll unpack that later. But, now I’m even more concerned: Were you really just going to let this go on until I ‘learned my lesson’?”

Ben: “Uh, well, no… I was also looking for the right moment to admit it… Which I guess ended up being now anyway.”

Evie: “‘Anyway’?”

Ben: “Um, yeah, I was going to ask… Do you want to switch places with Mal?” A blush fills his cheeks. “If Mal would be okay with it too!”

All the bad thoughts leave her brain (at least, they go somewhere easy to ignore) as she grins ear-to-ear and skips over to the door.

Evie: “She’ll be right in~!”

The camera shows Snow White again.

Snow White: “Oh! And here comes Ben now! With his girlfriend—” The camera changes to a shot of Ben’s carriage pulling past the gates. “Oh. Uh… That’s not who I expected…”

The camera focuses on Ben and Mal in the carriage.

Mal: “So… if you knew we spelled you by then, why’d you ask about Evie being in love with you?”

Ben: “I was trying to gauge if she was actually in love with me and that’s why she spelled me. And your answer to my second question is how I guessed you guys just didn’t want to leave.”

Mal: “Huh. You’re pretty sneaky for a ‘perfect prince.’”

Ben: “In the diplomatic sphere, we call it ‘strategy.’” He gets a snicker out of her.

He watches her for a moment and notices her nervously fidgeting with her dress skirt.

Ben: “Mal?” He waits for her to look at him. “Would you wear my ring?”

Mal: “Um… Better not. I mean, I’d hate for it to fall off and I lose it.”

Ben knows her insecurities are getting the best of her (though he doesn’t know the real reason why), so he decides to simply offer his hand to hold.

Against all her better judgment, she takes it. And it makes her smile despite everything.

They pull up to the castle and the camera switches back to the villains.

Evil Queen: “Well, if it isn’t…”

Maleficent: “My daughter… Looking like some kind of…”

Show White: “— princess! Now, let’s see who this beauty is wearing.” She checks her information card. “Oh! It’s Evie!”

Evil Queen: “Evie! That’s my dau– Evie!”

Snow White: “That must be how I got mixed up… Anyway, the up-and-coming Evie designed her gown.”

Evil Queen: “That’s my daughter!”

Maleficent: “Oh, wow, she sewed a dress. Meanwhile, my girl duped a prince and she’s this close to grabbing the magic wand.”

Evil Queen: “Bitter, party of one. Bitter, party of one.”

Maleficent: “It’s happening, people! It’s happening! I say, gird your loins! Gird your loins! Villains, our revenge begins today.”

They all laugh maniacally, and the camera cuts back to Mal and Ben coming up the castle steps to where Adam and Belle wait at the top. When Mal reaches them, after curtseying, she feels the need to say something.

Mal: “I… guess you weren’t expecting to see me here…”

Belle: “I will say, it was quite a surprise when Ben announced his new girlfriend to us this morning.”

Ben: “Sorry, Mom.” He sheepishly smiles.

A tiny smile pokes out of Mal as she looks at Ben, but she makes herself focus.

Mal: “And about the other day, I just—”

Adam: “I told Ben this wasn’t going to be easy. I’m sorry it had to be so hard on you kids– uh– growing teens.”

Ben: “It would’ve been a lot harder to believe in myself without your support.” Ben reassures him. “Or to trust myself as Auradon’s ruler.”

Adam knows he “coulda, shoulda, woulda” done more, but hearing that gives him some relief.

Adam: “You’ll make a fine king.”

Belle gives them a moment before stepping forward.

Belle: “Ben, we are very proud of you. You keep listening to your heart.”

Ben: “Thanks, mom.”

They know they have to move things along, so Belle and Adam exit to the right.

Ben takes Mal’s hand one last time to slip her his ring.

Ben: “Wish me luck.”

She looks between their hands and back to him, mouth agape.

He gives her one last encouraging smile before letting go and she’s escorted to the left.

Ben travels up the highest portion of the steps and down a long hallway, giving Mal and his parents time to reach their spots in the main hall.

Maleficent: “Don’t blow it, kiddo.” She whispers to the TV.

Ben reaches the dais, and Fairy Godmother takes the crown from Adam and crowns Ben.

Sickly butterflies fill Mal’s stomach as Adam lifts the spell jar off the wand. She looks at her friends looking right back at her. She knows they don’t want to go through with this, but she can’t let their parents down.

Belle picks up the wand and carefully hands it to Fairy Godmother, who faces Ben with it.

Fairy Godmother: “Do you solemnly swear to govern the peoples of Auradon with justice and mercy as long as you shall reign?”

Maleficent: “Grab the thing already!”

Ben: “I do solemnly swear.”

Fairy Godmother: “Then it is my honor and my joy to bless our new king.” She taps the wand on both his shoulders.

But once she pulls back the wand, it’s snatched out of her hands.

The villains cheer at the thievery.

A powerful blast shatters a hole in the barrier, shaking the whole island.

Evil Queen: “The barrier is broken! We’re free!”

Maleficent stands in front of the balcony.

Maleficent: “Scepter! Now!” She commands.

The scepter flies into her hand and she cackles as she teleports from the balcony to the castle.

[I removed Snow White’s line, “But what is happening with Jane’s hair?” because it added to my “Kids, just overthrow Auradon. They’re as bad as the villains and don’t deserve to pretend otherwise.” But, also, Snow White would never??? (I’m perfectly fine with the adults being flawed in their distrust of the VKs, but they should all be able to handle basic human decency.)

Ben’s “big reveal” had to happen with Evie, but I made sure to still have a carriage scene between him and Mal. I had it be in the privacy of a room because I said I would only use the same settings and I didn’t want the kids to have to deal with the public scandal of Ben and Evie not being a thing/Evie and Mal suddenly switching places during the carriage ride.

I understand that many people want more conflict from Ben finding out about the love spell, but I just don’t see him being anything other than forgiving. Between not believing he has much say in his love life and rationalizing her actions in his head, Evie apologizing and being so clearly bothered by it is more than enough for him to not have any harsh feelings. And (“spoilers”??) finding out it was a plot by all the VKs to appease their parents just adds to his sympathy.

EDIT: Originally, I had Ben compare being under the spell to acting [which is still how I imagine the spell worked for him, as described at the end of this post], but having him compare it to being with Audrey really emphasized why it was so easy (too easy) for him to forgive Evie (and Mal by extension). (Also, it’s sooo much funnier. *laughs in malicious writer* (Don’t worry. I let him get therapy before the 2nd movie happens.))

(Everything below is not part of the edit:)

Of course the tabloids caught wind of the school’s hot gossip (though they had yet to get their hands on/reveal any proof), hence Snow White expected to see Evie with Ben.

So, yes, I had Ben ask Mal those questions at the lake as his attempt to try to understand why they did what they did. (Of course, he’s about to find out the truth pretty soon…)

Snow White knows Evie is the Evil Queen’s daughter, so she isn’t just “someone named Evie” to her. But she views her and all the VKs as “a person just like anyone else,” so she’s fine with supporting and complimenting them.

Since I took out Ben introducing his “girlfriend” during Family Day (partly because Mal’s “sudden” appearance here would’ve been a red flag to his parents), I had to address why his parents aren’t freaking out on national TV. I also wanted to focus more on Adam being proud of Ben than Ben helping Adam feel like a good parent during their interaction.]

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

PE AU: Scene 28

Scene 28:

The VKs sit at a lunch table, Doug sits next to Evie, and all of them are in a bad mood.

Taylor, Akiho, and Amir see them and head over.

Taylor: “Hey, Jay, we’re sorry about what happened. Chad was totally in the wrong.”

Akiho and Amir nod in agreement.

Jay’s eyes never leave the table.

Jay: “You guys should go before you get hurt.” He mumbles.

They glance at Mal– her cold glare boring into them the whole time– back at Jay– still refusing to look at them– then, with great reluctance, they walk away.

Ben takes his chance to approach.

Ben: “I’m so sorry, you all. I…” He shakes his head, changing his mind against what he was going to say. “I don’t have any excuses for what happened. It was terrible and nothing less. But I will do everything I can to make it up to you.”

Mal: “Then you can start by leaving us alone.” She growls.

Evie: “Mal…” Evie half-heartedly scolds.

Mal: “Just be glad I haven’t made Doug leave. And that’s only because he’s quiet.”

Though hurt that she was implying threatening Doug, Evie gives her a piteous look.

Jane: “Ah! Chad!”

In the near distance, Chad is holding Jane’s hat over her head, revealing the sliced-up mess on her head.

Chad: “Ew!” He laughs.

Audrey: “Aw, Jane, what happened to your precious haircut from your precious Mal? Did it fall apart after you chose to side with evil?” She mocks her.

Jane shrinks into herself, but making eye contact with Carlos instills a bit of confidence in her.

Jane: “They’re not evil! You’re evil for doing this to me!”

Audrey: “Spreading lies, too?” Her eyes flare. “It’s your own fault your looks match your actions.”

Mal glowers until she’s had enough and searches for a spell.

Mal: “Beware, forswear, undo Jane’s hair.”

Carlos looks to Mal with horror, but, fortunately, the spell only returns Jane to her original haircut. (It still makes Lonnie touch her long hair in fear of losing it next.) It’s not the one she wanted, but it looks nice.

Mal stands up to face the group, a warning gleam in her eyes.

Mal: “There’s a lot more where that came from.”

Audrey: “Excuse me, who do you think you are?”

Mal: “Do I look like I’m kidding?”

Lonnie starts slowly backing away, but Audrey– and thus her entourage– remains defiantly in place. So, Mal starts flipping through her spellbook, scaring them into running off.

Jane glances at Carlos, who nods, signaling for her to go too. Taylor, Akiho, and Amir come up beside her in support so she feels safe and not alone.

Evie: “Maybe it’s best you and Ben go.”

Doug gives her an “Are you sure?” look and she nods. He hesitates, but he gets up and takes Ben, who tries to protest a bit but ultimately concedes, with him.

With them gone, Mal turns back to her friends with a malicious smile.

Mal: “I’m really looking forward to tomorrow.” But she can’t even make that smile last. “Let’s grab that wand and blow this popsicle stand.” She says darkly as she walks away.

Her friends follow, not really having an appetite for lunch.

[I understand that this and the previous scene were meant to set up why the VKs didn’t give up on their plan, but it sure didn’t leave any reasons for them ultimately not to. It basically turned the conflict from “Can the VKs be good?” to “The Auradonians don’t seem to be good, so do they deserve to be overthrown?” And with how canon went down, I’m inclined to say yes.

Especially with Mal’s speech to her friends at the end not really countering my point. If the villains overthrew Auradon: Evie would still be smart, Jay could make a team, play sports, and have victory pizza with The Isle teens (after they settled into not living in scarcity), and Carlos could potentially keep Dude if he hid him or convinced Cruella that Dude was “his”. Even Mal could still go to school (after everyone settled into not living in scarcity), and potentially keep Ben alive by claiming he’s under a love spell (and with the way he acts, he’d probably still be in love with her, so she’d also get that).

My solution for this AU was to make the themes about second chances (to tie in with the 3rd movie too) and “What does it mean to be good?”. For the first theme, the VKs need to believe the Auradonians aren’t going to waste it (which includes freeing the other VKs), and for the second theme, they need to have more examples than Ben and Remedial Goodness 101. So, I gave them Ben, Doug, Jane, Taylor, Akiho, and Amir. (Taylor is named and has a one-word voice clip during the tourney tryouts; Akiho and Amir [mistakenly referred to as, “Come here!” in the Wiki transcript] are named during the tourney game.)

(Carlos cares about Dude as much as he cares about all his friends, but Dude can’t argue with him about bringing the villains to Auradon, nor can he back him up if he argues with his best friends, so his mind finds it easier to convince him that he can keep Dude safe and not let his best friends down. But Jane would argue with him, and she could back him up… if he could tell her… His mind is all too aware of the danger she’ll be in if he goes through with the plan.)

(Ideally, Taylor’s line would go to whoever of Taylor, Akiho, and Amir is the best actor, but Taylor already had a line– technically– so he gets to be the placeholder.)

Mal doesn’t restore Jane’s long hair because she knows Jane would likely get attacked again.]

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

PE AU: Scene 25-27

Scene 25:

Mal: “Okay, we all know what this looks like.” She refers to a picture of Fairy Godmother’s wand. “So it’ll be up on the dais under the beast’s spell jar, and we’ll be coming in from here.” She gestures to other papers with diagrams on them. “Evie will be in the very front. The rest of us will be up in the balcony. Okay?” She can tell they’d rather not be talking about this, but she needs to know they’ve got the plan down. “Carlos?”

Carlos: “Okay, so I’ll find our limo, so we can break the barrier, and, uh, get back on the island with the wand.” He remembers his part.

Mal: “Perfect. Jay?”

Jay: “I’ll use this on the driver.” He lazily lifts a spray bottle with light blue liquid off the table. “‘Two sprays and he’ll be out like a light.’”

Mal: “Exactly. Evie?”

Evie: “I’ll grab the wand and use it to teleport myself to you, then you’ll use it to get us to Carlos and Jay.”

Mal: “Right.” She slowly sits down, her cue that they can stop talking about this since they obviously want to.

Jay takes the chance to go to bed, and then so does Carlos. Evie is about to leave too, but notices the “How to Break a Love Spell” page Mal is reading.

Evie: “M?” She sits down so they can talk. “You want to break Ben’s love spell?” She’s not against it, just… didn’t know it was part of the plan.

Mal: “Uh… I… thought you’d want me to… I mean, you know, when the villains finally do invade Auradon, and begin to loot, and kick everyone out of their castles, and imprison their leaders, and destroy all that is good and beautiful… Do you still want Ben to be in love with you?”

Evie: “No.” She’s quick to say.

Mal: “Right. So, I’ll work on this now.”

Evie: “M?” She stops her from getting up yet. “… Would the spell work on me?” She whispers.

Mal: “‘You’…? You’re in love with Ben now—?” After everything they talked about, that doesn’t really make sense.

Evie: “No.” She corrects her. “Not Ben.” She can’t make eye contact with Mal, but Mal finally knows exactly who she’s referring to.

Mal: “… I’ll see what I can find.”

[Jay deserves something to do, okay? Plus, Evie won’t be knocking out the driver anymore, so it’s a sensible change. (And, as a sticky-fingered thief, Jay is a master of discreetly hiding objects in his clothes. Including bulky spray bottles in stiff leather.)

In my defense, the end wasn’t supposed to be that heartbreaking. But then I thought of it…]

Scene 26 (“If Only” reprise) is all the same.

Scene 27:

The introduction to Family Day is all the same. The cameraman stuff is still happening.

Ben: “Oh, by the way, I was wondering if my friends can join us for lunch.”

Adam: “You’ve never asked if Audrey and Chad could join us before.” He’s teasing, but also curious if Ben is up to something.

Ben: “Not them.” He says too quickly. “I mean, they’re new friends.”

Adam: “Did something happen to Chad and Audrey?”

Belle: “It’s okay. You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.” She gives him an out from what she assumes is a loaded question.

Ben: “No, I wanted to tell you anyway, just… haven’t had the time. Um… I broke up with Audrey. And now she and Chad are together.”

Belle and Adam share a look.

Belle: “We’re sorry, dear. I know you three have been friends since you were just babies, but, um… There’s nothing wrong with finding new friends as you grow up. And we’d love to meet the ones you’ve found.”

Adam: “Right.” He smiles encouragingly. “And do we already know them?” He’s just curious.

Ben: “Um… Kinda. I’ll go grab them.” He starts to turn around.

Adam: “Oh, wait! How about a game of croquet before lunch?” He smiles playfully, competitiveness flashing in his eyes, and Ben responds the same.

Ben: “Game on.” He reaches out to fist bump him, their little pre-game ritual.

Adam: “Game on.”

Ben snaps out of it long enough to nervously look between his parents.

Ben: “You promise you’ll be okay with them?”

Belle: “Ben, if they’re not royalty, that’s okay. I wasn’t either.”

Ben: “… Alright, then. Be right back.”

Belle and Adam watch as he walks up to… the VKs…

Belle: “He might just be talking to them.”

Adam: “They’re walking over here… Do we tell him he’s insane?”

Belle: “No. No.” She says to herself as much as to him. “We’ll just… observe first, and then, based on what we see, we’ll tell him our… informed opinion.”

Ben approaches with the VKs behind him.

Ben: “Mom, Dad? This is Mal, Carlos, Jay, and Evie.”

Mal and Evie curtsey (Mal being a bit wobbly) and Jay and Carlos bow (Jay being extra).

Adam and Belle: “Hi.” They awkwardly greet (Adam sounding slightly suspicious).

Ben: “Uh… So, have you all played croquet before?”

Carlos shakes his head confusedly and Mal and Jay eye him like they think he’s making it up.

Evie: “Um… We’re willing to learn.”

Ben: “Great.” He looks to his parents, who nod as a sign they can go.

Ben leads them away and his parents let themselves fall behind out of earshot.

Adam: “Why are we humoring this?”

Belle: “He’s going to be king soon, we should be supportive. Besides, they haven’t done anything wrong. They seem nice.”

Adam: “… I can admit they’re better behaved than I was. There would’ve been a lot more huffing and yelling.”

Belle: “Exactly.” She chuckles, a little more certain of her own advice.

They begin their game of croquet and everyone’s having fun when Leah curiously approaches Mal.

Leah: “Hello there.”

Mal: “Hi.”

Leah: “Now, have we met?”

Mal: “No, I don’t think so. I’m new. I’m sort of like a… transfer student.”

Leah: “Oh, yes.”

Audrey comes over then.

Audrey: “Grammy.” She greets her.

Leah: “Oh, Audrey! Give Grammy a kiss, dear.”

Mal: “‘Grammy’?” Mal starts to realize who she’s talking to.

Audrey: “Sleeping Beauty’s mother.” Just as Mal hoped not. “Grammy, I don’t think you want to be talking to this girl. Unless you feel like taking another hundred-year nap.”

Leah: “What?” She takes another look at Mal and realizes why she thought she recognized her. “You!” She panics, drawing the attention of everyone around. “How are you here? And how have you stayed so young?”

Ben hurries to mitigate the situation.

Ben: “Queen Leah, it’s okay. Maleficent is still on the island. This is her daughter, Mal. Don’t you remember my proclamation to give the new generation a chance?”

Leah: “A chance to what, Ben? Destroy us?” She turns to the people who have gathered, focusing on Fairy Godmother right behind her. “Come on, you remember, don’t you? The poison apples.” Fairy Godmother steps forward, attempting to reassure her, but then she turns back to Ben. “And the spells.” She looks at Mal, repeating herself in a whisper. “Spells.” Her volume raises again. “My daughter… was raised by fairies because of your mother’s curse. So her first words, her first steps, I missed it all!” Getting too emotional, she turns back to Fairy Godmother. “You mustn’t trust her.” She pleads.

Mal knew what her mother did, but seeing its effect firsthand makes her aware of the damage that evil does.

Mal: “I’m so sor…” She reaches out.

Chad: “Go away!” Chad blocks her. “Stay away from her.”

Ben: “Don’t do this, Chad.” He warns.

Chad: “What? They were raised by their parents, Ben. What do you think villains teach their kids? Huh? Kindness? Fair play?” He turns back to address the people around them. “No way, okay?” He turns back to Ben. “Uh-uh.” He turns to Mal. “You’re a vandal and manipulate people with magic.” Mal lets out a dry laugh, pretty sure he’s making up the second accusation, but cuts it short when she remembers it is what she did to Ben (and Evie by extension). But Chad wouldn’t know that, so she masks her emotions with an angry glare.

Ben: “Hey– Hey!” Ben aggressively steps toward him, but Chad just steps aside to point at Jay.

Chad: “You enjoy hurting people.” Jay is genuinely bothered by that and Evie takes notice. “And you,” he scoffs at Evie (she’s only distracted from her concern for Jay out of worry that “you” is directed at Carlos), “you stole another girl’s boyfriend. You’re nothing but a gold digger and a cheater.”

He smugly looks at Doug, who’s scowling.

Doug: “She is not.” He’s not yelling, but his voice is just as firm and clear.

Chad starts to turn towards Doug and Evie steps in to prevent another one of her friends from getting hurt.

Evie: “Mirror, mirror, in my hand, who’s the biggest jerk in the land?” She steps forward as it shows Chad’s face. And not as a reflection.

Insulted, he shouts at her and slaps her hand, knocking her off balance. Doug runs forward to catch her while Jay shoves Chad back and yells at him, but Ben steps in between them. Jay backs off, but Chad is still trying to fight past Ben, so Evie asks Jay for the spray bottle and sprays Chad to knock him out, the sight triggering Leah’s memories of her sleeping daughter, making her faint too.

Though her hurt is emotional, it still sends Jay reeling into thoughts about Chad’s accusation and Mal is stuck staring in horror at the sudden understanding of the power her mother wants to gain back.

Chad and Leah are each caught by one of the guards who approached when the commotion first started. Evie panics now that she’s noticing the guards and pulls Mal away with her. She gestures for Carlos (who’d already started backing away from them) to follow her and calls to Jay to snap him out of his daze, and they all run off.

Doug watches sadly, knowing it’s probably best they get a break from all this, but it’s not fair they had to leave.

Ben: “Guys!” He calls after them, but he knows getting them to stay is futile.

Once Chad wakes up and they know he’ll be okay, Adam finally speaks.

Adam: “I feared something like this would happen.”

Ben: “This isn’t their fault!” He protests.

Adam: “No, son. It’s not.”

Doug watches the way Ben’s shoulders slump and the way Adam won’t look at his son.

Doug: “You can’t seriously be blaming him! Chad instigated this whole mess!”

Belle: “No!” She insists. “He’s not—! Are you…?”

Adam: “No! Of course not! I just… I don’t think the kingdom was ready for this…” He walks away and Belle goes with him.

As everyone else around watches with a mix of pity and secondhand awkwardness, Doug puts a supportive hand on Ben’s shoulder and Ben offers him a strained smile in gratitude.

[With Ben being free from the love spell, he doesn’t introduce his “girlfriend”, but he does still want to hang out with a certain VK and for his parents to meet her.

The Queen Leah scene is basically the same, but it’s an important scene, so I kept it all in so no one would have to rewatch the movie to remember how one scene got to the next.

Chad’s accusations had to be changed since Mal is no longer the one to “steal another girl’s boyfriend.” Honestly, I like how it worked out that it shows Ben caring most about Mal (not that he only cares about Mal; just, from Auradon Prep’s perspective, you would think he would come to his girlfriend’s side).

Of course I had Doug support Evie here; he should’ve done so in canon!

(I was going to have Chad accuse Carlos of planning to turn Dude into a coat, but then I realized that, in Chad’s mind, Carlos hasn’t personally slighted him, and Chad is the type to thus view Carlos as irrelevant. And with that realization, I almost took out Mal’s accusations too, but I think Audrey talking in his ear influenced him to bring up her locker graffiti and stretch the truth about the nature of her hair spells.)

Adam did Ben so dirty in this scene. Like, Ben made so many mistakes before and after this moment, but this was 100% Chad’s fault (sure, Leah “started it”, but he was the escalator).

This is where the “idyllic” use of “romantic” comes into play: The VKs are finding a better (an ideal) life in Auradon and learning about being good (the ideal way people should treat each other) from the Auradonians. How the Auradonians act should reflect that, and a place with people that blame Ben (and the VKs) for what Chad did, is not better (except in stuff) or good. (But this explanation section is getting long, so I’ll get more into this after the next scene.)]

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

PE AU: Scene 23-24

Scene 23:

Mal restlessly paces around the room, trying not to psych herself out. A knock on the door startles her, but she takes a deep breath to prepare herself before opening the door.

Ben: “Hey, Mal. Is Evie here?”

Mal: “Nope! She’s studying!” She really wants to leave it at that, but she promised not to avoid talking to him, so she forces herself to continue with the rest of her plan. “And I need to make sure you planned a good date for her first— What’s with the helmets?” On The Isle, helmets are for really dangerous stunts.

Ben: “Uh…” The emotional whiplash of her expression makes him have to take a moment to process what she was saying. “Where I set up our date is a bit too far to walk, but I guess she’s not going… But, yeah, you can come make sure she’d like it.”

She gives him a thumbs-up with a strained smile and leaves the room before she convinces herself to lock herself in.

On the back of his moped, she’s enjoying the scenery, completely unaware she has her arms comfortably wrapped around him.

They reach a rope bridge, and Ben, seeing Mal teetering from side to side, appearing to be in a playful mood, takes the chance to make conversation.

Ben: “So, uh… Tell me something about yourself that you’ve never told anyone.”

Mal: “That’s pretty invasive.” Her defenses immediately go up.

Ben: “It doesn’t have to be something serious.” He laughs.

Mal: “Then what’s something ‘not serious’ you’ve never told anyone?” She challenges, not believing him.

Ben: “Hm… My middle name is Florian.”

Mal: “Florian?”

Ben: “Yeah.”

Mal: “How princely.” She laughs.

She stops, admiring the river below, and Ben does too.

Mal: “Oh, that’s almost worse than mine.” She says absentmindedly.

Ben: “You know you have to tell me now.” He teases when she doesn’t say anything else.

She turns to him, though it takes her a moment to realize what she said.

Mal: “… Bertha.” She begrudgingly mumbles.

Ben: “Bertha?” He doesn’t stifle his laugh very well.

Mal: “Yeah, Bertha!” She huffs. “Just my mom doing what she does best. Being really, really evil.”

Ben: “Hm…” He pretends to be in deep thought. “Yeah, you’re right, Florian is better.”

He laughs as she gasps in offense and starts walking off.

Mal: “Maybe. But Mal Bertha has a much better ring to it than Ben Florian.”

Ben: “You have me beat there. I guess we’re even.”

The camera cuts to when they’re farther in the forest.

Mal: “How much farther is this place?”

Ben: “Literally just around this tree.”

He helps her down off a rock and she stops as soon as she sees the ~pavilion picnic by the lake~ in front of her. It’s so beautiful, it seems to glow with sparkles. It leaves her speechless.

Ben: “Well, this food’s going to go to waste otherwise, so you’re welcome to eat some if you like.”

Mal: “Don’t mind if I do.” She doesn’t hesitate to make her way down to the blanket and bites into the first thing she picks up.

Mal: “Mm…”

Ben smiles in amusement as he sits across from her.

Ben: “First time?”

Mal: “Huh?”

Ben: “Eating a jelly donut?”

Mal: “Is that bad?” She gets a bit insecure about her upbringing.

Ben: “Not at all. But, you got…” He gestures to his lips, but she just stares at him confused. “Crumbs… All over your lips.” She starts trying to wipe at them, but he stops her. “Wait! No! They’ll stick all over your hand. Just, uh… Do this.” He licks his lips.

Mal: “Oh.” She copies his little blep. “Gone?” He snorts as he nods. “You can’t take me anywhere, I guess.” Her insecurities return.

He has a hunch she won’t want to talk about it, so he tries to distract her.

Ben: “You know… I really don’t know that much about you. Tell me something about yourself. That’s not a ‘deepest, darkest secret.’” He teases and makes her snort.

Mal: “Well… I’m 16. I’m an only child. And… I’ve only ever lived in one place.”

Ben: “Me, too. That…” He tries not to ruin the moment by focusing on her reference to The Isle. “We have so much in common already.”

She scoffs in annoyance.

Mal: “Says the ‘gonna be king.’”

Ben: “… Sorry.”

She raises an eyebrow, but chooses to let herself stay mad.

Mal: “Do you even know what you’re apologizing for?”

Ben: “I upset you. That’s bad enough… But I do want to know why. Especially if I can fix it.”

Mal: “… I guess this is your attempt to fix it.”

Ben: “What?”

Mal: “It was your parents who trapped us on The Isle, but you’re the one who got us off.”

Ben: “There are so many others still trapped though.”

Mal: “Do you plan to get them off too?”

Ben: “Of course!”

Mal: “Then you’re doing all you can.”

Ben: “… Thanks, Mal.”

She doesn’t smile with him, knowing what she plans to do.

Mal: “… I guess we are alike in having the weight of the world on our shoulders. But don’t go comparing us like you haven’t been living your cushy life while I’ve been living in a literal prison.”

His eyes widen, as he realizes exactly what was bothering her.

Ben: “I’m sorry, again. I…” he stops himself from making excuses, “won’t do that anymore… And I’m sorry for the position I put you in.”

Mal: “What do you mean?”

Ben: “Having the weight of the world on your shoulders. I mean, I figured if the kids of the ‘worst villains’ could peacefully live in Auradon, then the kingdom would be more open to letting others in, but I wasn’t thinking about how much stress that would put on you. Or how Chad and… Audrey… would react.”

Mal: “What was even up with you and Audrey anyway? I mean, I know you love Evie now, but you didn’t seem to love Audrey before.”

Ben: “I… I don’t think I did. I’m not even sure she loved me. I mean, I know she loved being with me, but she doesn’t like anything I like, or the way I am, we just… We’ve known each other since we were kids, she’s next in line to a powerful throne; it felt like everyone expected us to get together. And then she did too… I thought I had to…” His face contorts with anger. “But the way she talked about you guys, I couldn’t–! I was going to break up with her, but I let her distract me again… Anyway, then I fell in love with Evie and I just… stopped caring… I really should’ve used more diplomacy though.” He winces.

Mal: “Something tells me she’s not the diplomatic type.” She uses a joking tone in hopes to make him feel better, but in her head, she’s serious.

She makes him chuckle, which sort of snaps him out of his funk.

Ben: “Ah, sorry. I didn’t mean to dump all that on you. Uh… Why don’t we go for a swim? That always helps me clear my head.”

Mal: “Eh, you go.” She picks up a fruit and twirls it between her fingers. “I’ll stay here and try a… This is a strawberry, right?” He nods and she takes a bite. “Mm! Mm…” She immediately falls in love with the taste.

Ben: “Don’t eat all of them.” He chuckles as he heads to the top of the lake’s cliffside.

Mal: “No promises!” She calls after him as she bites into another one.

She watches him reach the edge of the cliff.

Mal: “Are those little crowns on your shorts?” She teases.

Ben: “Maybe.” He teases back, then whoops as he cannonballs in.

Mal’s smile turns fond as she watches him play around in the water, but then she starts to wonder what could be If Only. Once her attention goes back to him, she realizes he has yet to come out of the water.

Mal: “Ben?” She looks around, but can’t see him. “Ben? Ben!” Her call echoes back to her and she panics and jumps in.

She nearly drowns in the process, but, after he saves her, she gets back at him by smacking him in the shoulder.

Mal: “You scared me!”

Ben: “You… You can’t swim.” He realizes.

Mal: “No!”

Ben: “And you still tried to save me.” He fondly smiles at her.

Mal: “Well, yeah…” She turns away with her arms crossed before she does something sappy. “It’d look pretty bad if I let the future King drown.”

Ben: “Well, as thanks, I give you this fancy rock.” She eyes him curiously about why it’s glowing. “Make a wish and throw it back in the lake.”

She rolls her eyes, not believing in it, but pauses to make a wish and throw it in anyway.

Mal: “By the way, I wished you’d stop being so annoying.” She sticks her tongue out at him.

Ben: “Now that you’ve told me, it won’t come true.” He smirks as he pulls himself back onto the pavilion.

Mal: “Clearly.” She rolls her eyes, but her smile betrays her sarcastic tone.

Ben: “Mal… What does Evie love about me?” He’s staring down at the water.

Mal: “Uh… I don’t know… She thought you were cute and tolerable, I guess.” Her eyes look away just before his peek at her. “And she’s right. You’re pretty decent. Genuine…” She smiles softly.

Ben smiles too, looking back at the water.

Ben: “… So, you guys like it here?”

Her smile drops.

Mal: “We do… A lot… It’s… nice here.”

A deep sadness overtakes her until Ben shifts to lay down, staring at the sky.

Ben: “… Can I tell you what I would’ve wished for?”

Mal: “What?” His soft tone makes her curious.

Ben: “I would’ve wished that I didn’t fall in love with Evie.”

Mal: “And stay stuck with Audrey?” She scoffs, offended on behalf of her bestie.

Ben: “No.” He stares at her with a soft expression.

Mal stares back, her eyes slowly widening as she realizes what he means. Finally, she tears her eyes away from him and abruptly stands up.

Mal: “Well, it’s getting late! We should get back to the dorms before curfew!” She barely gives Ben time to gather up the picnic stuff and catch up to her speed-walking away.

[(I’m pretty sure this is getting too long to fit the runtime. But I’m just a writer, that’s an editor’s problem. /teasing)

The all-important “What about your girlfriend?” question is answered! (As much as canon needed this scene, maybe it’s best they skipped what they probably would’ve written as Ben telling Mal he’s “totally justified, I swear.”)

“Tell me something that you’ve never told anyone,” was just the worst phrasing Ben could’ve used, and I don’t believe Mal (who would sensibly have trust issues) would realize he was referring to a non-serious secret.

This original Ben line was a literal lie: “You know, I’ve done all the talking. Your turn. I really don’t know that much about you. Tell me something.” The last two lines are true, so I kept them, but they’d been having a two-way conversation the whole time. She even answered his questions about herself; hence him knowing her middle name. (I suppose, in their small defense, they added the Bertha scene during editing and forgot to edit these lines to match. But still.)

The worst offender (which is why I cut it) was hands down: “Maybe I can teach you [what love feels like].” It makes me feel icky, so good riddance. Anyway, it didn’t flow with the setup for hinting revealing that Ben’s love spell had worn off, and how Mal is handling her feelings. (It’s all the more important in my AU that the audience is aware/can rewatch and see that the love spell wore off here.)

“Do you love me?” might’ve been the writers’ way of having Ben try to figure out why Mal used a love spell on him. And since he was so into her, his only concern was that she didn’t do so for nefarious purposes. And, yes, he should have had more concerns, but he was a smitten teenager and dumb.

… Is what I would’ve said if he didn’t start the line with, “I told you that I loved you.” He was under a love spell! Those literally compel you to declare your love!

Anyway, I’m fully aware of the irony of Ben wishing he “didn’t fall in love with Evie.” As they say, “Be careful what you wish for.”

I imagine Ben’s “gathering up the picnic stuff” would just be wrapping everything up in the blanket. (Which may require a smaller assortment of food or a bigger blanket. The set would contain all fake food (aside from one jelly donut and two strawberries) for the sake of reshoots.)]

Scene 24 (VKs’ video call with parents) is all the same.

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

PE AU: Scene 20-22

Scene 20:

On test day, Evie fishes through her purse, but becomes frantic as she can’t find what she’s looking for.

Mr. Deley: “Looking for something?”

Evie reflexively shuts her purse, and looks up to see him holding her mirror. Her mouth gapes, but she knows there’s not much she can say.

Mr. Deley: “Thank you, Chad.” He puts a hand on his back. “It’s gratifying to see someone still respects the honor code.” He addresses Evie again. “It will be my recommendation that you are expelled.”

Evie: “Mr. Deley, I…!” She flounders for a way to save herself.

Doug: “But that isn’t fair! Obviously, she wasn’t cheating since she didn’t have that… whatever it is.”

Evie: “It’s a mirror.” She hints that he’s playing too clueless.

Doug: “Maybe she needed another pencil.” 

Evie: “My pencil’s fine.” It’s already on her desk in plain view. “I was looking for my eraser.”

Doug: “Right. So, you can’t expel her for looking for her own property!”

Evie: “Please.” She’s not even trying to be manipulative with her desperation; getting expelled would ruin everything.

Mr. Deley: “… Well, if you can pass this test, I’ll return your property and let the matter drop.”

They both breathe a sigh of relief, and Evie gives Doug a look of gratitude. She then shoots Chad a death glare, one determined to pass this test.

[I’m glad Doug stood up for Evie in canon, but he also told her to “stop talking; you’re not helping”, so it was giving mixed messages. (That’s not even getting into how this leads into the next scene that’s supposed to show how smart she is.) But it also didn’t make sense for Evie, who grew up learning street smarts, to almost call herself out. (Even per my headcanon, there’s a difference between struggling to lie, and snitching on yourself.) Anyway, I changed things so she and Doug work together and build off each other.]

Scene 21:

Evie runs up behind Doug, waving around a packet of paper.

Evie: “Doug! Doug!” He turns around just as she reaches him and she holds out her test for him to see, barely able to contain her excitement.

The camera shows the “B+” marked at the top.

Doug: “You passed?” He gasps.

Evie: “I passed!” She confirms, waiting to see his reaction before letting out all her energy.

Doug: “You passed!” He stands up and holds his arms out around her in a “Well, look at you!” gesture.

Evie: “I passed!” She leaps up and throws her arms around his neck. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”

He smiles and hugs her back.

Doug: “Unless you cheated off me,” he teases her, “you did do it without me. This is all you.”

Evie lets go to look back at her test, grinning ear to ear, still in a bit of disbelief, but very much proud of herself.

Evie: “For the first time, it’s like I’m more than just a pretty face.” Her smile turns a bit shy. “… Do you think I could get an A, next time?”

Doug’s smile turns a bit sad.

Doug: “Evie.” He waits for her to look at him. “You were always more than just a pretty face.”

All she can do is stare at him as a blush crosses her cheeks.

Just then, Mal runs up.

Mal: “Evie! Is everything okay? I heard you screaming!”

Evie: “I passed!” She shows off her test. “Without my mirror.” She whispers.

Mal: “Ah! Evie, I’m so proud of you!” She squeezes her in a hug.

Ben: “Evie! Are you alright? I heard you were almost expelled!” Ben runs up then, much to Mal’s displeasure.

Evie: “You sound like Mal.” She giggles. “But, nope. I passed my chemistry test!”

Ben: “You’re amazing, Evie!” He hugs her and she giggles again. “I think this calls for our first date.”

Evie’s heart stops, but she doesn’t mind.

Evie: “Seriously?”

Ben: “I thought it’d be a good way to celebrate.” He gets a bit sheepish.

Finally, her heart restarts and she squeals.

Evie: “Yes! I mean, it is! I’d love to! Do you know where we should go?” She barely waits for Ben to nod. “Let’s go now!” She tugs on his arm. “Oh, wait.” She stops as soon as she starts. “Should I go change?”

Ben smirks in amusement.

Ben: “You’re perfect the way you are.”

She perks up all over again.

Evie: “Then, let’s go!” They leave arm in arm.

Doug holds a bittersweet smile, but Mal is entirely displeased.

Doug: “They seem good together.”

Mal: “Yeah… seem…” She mumbles.

She eventually notices Doug eyeing her with concern.

Mal: “I’m not worried about Ben. I’m just… I don’t know if she’s falling too fast.” She realizes she’s– gag– opening up to someone and waves a hand to clear her mind. “Eh. She can take care of herself.” She walks away.

[Evie sneaking up behind Doug was cute and all, but she also deserved a moment to happily scream, okay?

Doug isn’t flirting here (even though his non-love-potion-influenced genuine compliment did make Evie’s heart flutter). (Even if a part of him is falling in love again, but he’s channeling that into his platonic love.)]

Scene 22:

[CW: Discussion about a love spell-influenced kiss from the perspective of the one NOT under the love spell]

Mal is rummaging through her spellbook when Evie suddenly comes in, shutting the door behind her with her back pressed against it. Her face is flushed, but not from positive feelings. She takes a long breath before sinking to the floor with her head in her hands. Mal raises an eyebrow in concern and immediately gets up to check on her.

Mal: “E? What’s wrong?” She sits next to her.

She uncovers her face and looks up at her on the verge of tears.

Evie: “I can’t do this to Ben anymore.”

Mal: “What happened?” She starts to feel uneasy.

Evie hugs her knees to her chest and the unease gets worse.

Evie: “He… He kissed me… And I knew it wouldn’t feel like true love’s kiss, but the spell’s not supposed to make him do things he doesn’t want to, and I didn’t even ask him to, so why would he choose to kiss me if he’s not in love with me?”

Mal switches between disgust and confusion.

Mal: “Do you think he’s in love with you or not…?”

Evie: “I don’t. I mean, it didn’t feel like a kiss given in love, but that’s what made it so… freaky!” She lets out a huff of air and her shoulders slump. “I don’t know what to do… I mean, except set him free, and get us kicked out of Auradon, and fail our parents, and ruin everything. But I won’t do that to you guys.”

Mal: “… Are you sure he didn’t fall in love with you? I mean, how do you even ‘feel’ that a kiss isn’t given in love? You can only feel your own feelings. Well, without an empathy spell.”

She was trying to lighten the mood, but Evie only closes up more.

Evie: “But that just makes it worse then. I put a spell on him to notice me enough to actually fall in love, and I don’t even like him back…” She buries her face in her knees.

Mal just stares at her for a while, unsure of what to say.

Mal: “… I’ll keep him occupied. That way, I can figure out what’s up with him, too.”

Evie: “I know you don’t want to.” She doesn’t want to make her do anything. (Nor does she want the Crown Prince to go “missing” because Mal got too annoyed.)

Mal grins mischievously.

Mal: “Of course I do. I like being a villain. If you had refused to be the target of Ben’s love spell before, I would’ve done it myself. And if Ben’s just into bad girls and falls in love with me, then it’ll be of his own volition and I won’t feel bad about rejecting him.”

The corner of Evie’s lips quirks up.

Evie: “I guess that’s true…” She falls back into a frown. “And we can’t defy our parents anyway… Alright. Thanks, M.” Her smile isn’t entirely happy, but it is very grateful. Suddenly, her eyes go wide and she gets sheepish. “Um… I kind of already agreed to go on a date with him tomorrow… Before the kiss. Do you want me to cancel?”

Mal: “… Better not. Honestly, I’d keep avoiding making plans to see him otherwise. I’ll… tell him you and Doug have a test to study for.”

Evie’s not even entirely sure why, but she feels compelled to pull her in for a hug.

Evie: “You’re the best friend I could ever ask for.”

Mal: “Aw, don’t get all mushy on me.” She acts annoyed and doesn’t hug her back, but she doesn’t push her away either.

Mal lets her stay until she’s ready to let go, then gets up and helps her up too.

Mal: “All good?”

Evie nods and smiles a bit.

Mal: “Great. I have to get back to finding all the spells we’ll need.” She retreats back to her bed.

The mention of the spells for Ben’s coronation reminds Evie to get back to sewing their outfits (plus, it’s a nice way to busy herself).

Right after opening the spellbook, Mal pauses, realizing something.

Mal: “I’m supposed to hang out with Jane tomorrow!” She scolds herself, quietly enough that Evie doesn’t hear.

Thinking for a minute, she then picks up her phone and taps away at the screen.

Mal: “Hopefully, Carlos won’t mind taking my place.” She mumbles.

[And so I set up bonding time for the three VK ships~ (Sorry, Jay, canon didn’t give you one, but that’s why I’m giving you bonding time with your tourney teammates~ Off-screen, for the reasons as stated in the challenge, sorry.)

As per the challenge, this takes the place of the makeup scene (I don’t have any problems with the scene– aside from Ben’s “For the first time, I understand the difference between pretty and beautiful.”– it just doesn’t fit in the AU).

Also as per the challenge, unfortunately, Evie & Doug and Carlos & Jane’s hangouts have been relegated to off-screen. Carlos and Jane would talk about their problems and bond over feeling overshadowed and cowardly. To be honest, I don’t know what Evie and Doug would do.

EDIT: I don’t know if anyone saw the previous version, but it needed this overhaul. Still not sure if this one captures the vision in my head (kind of wanted to add something about how Evie feels about her mom’s influence, but maybe that would be a passage exclusive to the imaginary book for this version of the movie), but I don’t plan on changing it anytime soon.

(Also, yes, the prior comments were made for the previous version, hence the weird tonal shift (I told you it needed an overhaul!), but the points still stand and they offer a sort of mental break from the heaviness, so I’m leaving them be.)]

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

PE AU: Scene 18-19

Scene 18:

Background stuff in this scene is all the same.

Audrey: “Do you think they actually paid for those?” She eyes the girls thanking Mal for their new hair. “She did it to Jane’s hair too, and Fairy Godmother’s not happy about it.”

Ben: “What’s the harm?” He thinks it’s good that Mal’s learning to give back.

Audrey: “It’s gateway magic! Sure, it starts with the hair. Next thing you know, it’s the lips and the legs and the clothes–” He starts to see her point about how it could be a problem, and looks to Mal as he chews on his lip in concern– “and then everybody looks good and then… where will I be?” He looks back at Audrey, all his prior concern shifting to her.

He stares at her with furrowed brows until he lets out a sigh and seems to steel himself for an important confession, his expression turning into disappointment, as if he can’t tolerate her anymore.

Ben: “Listen… Audrey—”

Her expression shifts with fear and anger before settling back on her cutesy look.

Audrey: “I will see you at the game after my dress-fitting for the coronation, okay?”

He’d really rather talk, but– as they are in a public area– he relents.

Ben: “… Okay.”

Audrey: “Bye, Bennyboo.”

Ben: “Bye.” He doesn’t smile or wave or even look at her.

With Audrey gone, Mal and Evie make their move.

Mal: “Hey, Bennyboo!” She teases him as she pops up from behind.

He jumps, but manages a polite smile when he realizes it’s her. “Hey.”

Mal pulls Evie forward with the bag of cookies.

Mal: “Evie just made a batch of cookies. Double chocolate chip. Do you want one?”

She elbows her, and Evie holds the bag out with a shy, but eager smile.

He kind of winces, clearly feeling bad.

Ben: “Oh… I– Uh… I’ve got a big game.” He almost leaves it at that, but then realizes that doesn’t explain anything to them. “I don’t eat before a big game. But thank you so, so much. Thank you. Next time? Or I could eat one if there’s any left later?”

Evie lets the bag drop to her chest, unable to hide her disappointment. Mal uses Evie’s pitifulness to her advantage.

Mal: “It’s okay. We completely understand. ‘Be careful of treats offered by kids of villains.’”

His eyes go wide, guilt overtaking his expression.

Ben: “No, no, no—”

Mal: “I’m sure every kid in Auradon knows that.”

Ben: “No, that’s not it. I really do want one. I just—”

Mal: “I get it. You’re cautious. That’s smart. Oh, well… More for me, I guess…”

She starts to lead Evie away, making Evie look from her with shock and back to Ben pleadingly.

Ben: “Wait!”

They stop and wait to let him continue.

Ben: “One bite wouldn’t hurt. Right?”

Evie beams and holds out the cookie and Mal slips behind him as he takes a bite. She waits for him to chew a bit.

Evie: “How are they?” She presses to get his attention on her.

Ben: “They’re good– They’re great! They’re amazing! They’re, uh… I mean, they’re chewy and… and you know, they…” He blinks, looking back at the cookie, trying to refocus his mind. “Is that walnuts? I love walnuts.” He looks back at her and forgets the topic all over again. “I mean, uh, you know, the… The chocolate… The… the chocolate… The chocolate chips are…” He gets lost in her eyes for a moment, but tries to shake it off. “I’m sorry. Um… Uh, they’re… They’re warm and soft. And they’re sweet…” He finally caves, unable to care about whatever he was talking about anymore. “Evie, have you always had those little golden flecks in your eyes?”

Evie practically glows at the compliment.

Jay approaches, throwing an arm around his shoulders.

Jay: “How you feeling, bro?”

Ben: “I feel… I feel… I feel like…” Finally, his mind settles into place and a goofy grin spreads across his face. “Like singing your name! Evie~! Evie—!”

Mal clamps a hand over his mouth.

Evie’s heart is over the moon.

[I figured here would be a good enough place to mention my headcanons for the VK’s manipulation skills (as it pertains to this AU):

Obviously, Mal is the master manipulator of the group (unless she accidentally gets emotionally involved), as she’s canonically meant to be.

Jay’s skills are in being unnoticed. He can handle deception he’s prepared for (like lying about what he hasn’t stolen), but, otherwise, he’s usually too brash.

Cruella didn’t want Carlos to know how to manipulate because then he could use it on her. He’s smart enough to have picked up some stuff, but mostly to know when Jay’s messing with him. (He’s the good boy of the group; he wouldn’t use that knowledge.)

The Evil Queen taught Evie “male manipulation”, but she didn’t take to the meaner stuff as it clashed with the “do what they want” part (and she doesn’t like the way it makes her feel), so she tends to trip on her words. It usually comes off as “cute,” so they don’t get mad, but it added to her lack of confidence in everything outside of her looks.]

Scene 19:

After the winning tourney game, Ben has an announcement.

Ben: “Excuse me. Excuse me, can I have your attention, please? There’s something I’d like to say…” It’s quite awkward until he yells, “Give me an ‘E’!”

Crowd: “‘E’!”

Ben: “Give me a ‘V’!”

Crowd: “‘V’!”

Ben: “Give me an ‘I’!”

Crowd: “‘I’!”

Ben: “Give me another ‘E’!”

Crowd: “‘E’!”

Ben: “What does that spell?”

Crowd: “Evie–?” the crowd breaks off in confusion.

Ben: “Come on! I can’t hear you!”

They decide to humor their soon-to-be king.

Crowd: “Evie!”

Ben: “I love you, Evie! Did I mention that?”

Audrey: “Huh…?” She runs off the field in embarrassment as she realizes this is really happening and he isn’t just messing with Evie.

Ben: “Give me a beat! Whoo!”

Doug is just glad this means she’s not falling for freaking Chad, so he’s honestly a bit giddy himself when leading the band.

Doug: “Uno, dos, tres, quatro!”

Evie: “Oh my—!” She breaks out in laughter, flattered, but also quite embarrassed and overwhelmed. “Cookie!”

Mal: “What was in that cookie?” She’s kind of genuinely concerned, but seeing Evie having fun makes her smile anyway.

He sings the most R-I-D-I-C-U-L-O-U-S song any of them had ever heard. (During which, he throws his gross, sweaty jersey at Evie, but at least she’s excited by it. (← Mal’s feelings.))

He makes his way up the bleachers to Evie and tries to kiss her, but Mal pushes him back. She does let Evie through to tightly hug him though.

Ben: “I love you, Evie! Did I mention that?”

Audrey drags Chad up to where they are and snatches the microphone to make her own announcement.

Audrey: “Chad’s my boyfriend now!” The crowd goes silent; this is just embarrassing. “And I’m going to the coronation with him. So I don’t need your pity date.”

She kisses Chad, at which point Ben takes the microphone back.

Ben: “Evie! Will you go to the coronation with me?”

She excitedly grabs the microphone to cheer her response.

Evie: “Yes!”

Ben: “She said yes!” He announces to the crowd (who cheers to fill the silence), then hugs her again.

Jay: “Let’s go, Ben!” Jay runs up the bleachers next. “The whole team’s waiting for you!”

Ben: “Yeah.” He gives Evie one last blazing smile before following him.

Evie: “Bye!” She waves after him, and Ben waves back as he heads back to the field to celebrate.

Announcer: “What a victory. What a day for the Auradon Knights. Finally winning back the trophy after so many years.”

Mal is focused on Audrey fuming as she drags Chad off the field.

Mal: “I feel really sorry for Audrey.” She hears herself say before she really had time to think about it.

Evie: “You do?” She’s surprised.

Mal: “Yeah…” She watches Audrey until she’s out of sight, then immediately faces Evie, a genuineness Evie had never seen before blazing in her eyes. It’s… hopeful… in an almost desperate way. “I feel like, if she were talented like you, and she knew how to sew and knew beauty tips, that she wouldn’t need a prince to make her feel better about herself.”

Evie stares at her with wide eyes, seeming to understand her point, but then chooses to just focus on the compliment instead and switches to a bright smile.

Evie: “I guess I am kind of talented.”

Mal: “You are definitely gifted.” She insists further.

The smile leaves her eyes a bit, but it’s also softer and more genuine.

Evie: “Thanks, M.”

[The crowd should’ve been way more confused and surprised by Ben suddenly declaring his love for another girl. But, if I had to argue in their defense: they didn’t like Audrey, Mal was giving everyone cool hair, you could claim they noticed Ben going out of his way to talk to her a lot, and it’s not like they were going to oppose their soon-to-be king (to his face, publicly, at that moment). So, in the case of Evie, it’s for the first and last reason that they went along with it.

Mal seems like the kind of character who wouldn’t trust love spells/potions.

If they thought about it, I suspect the writers’ excuse for why Evie didn’t romance Ben (other than “it’s supposed to be Mal”) is because she was (hoping to be) dating Chad. But, aside from them not being together, she was raised by a villain and is literally chasing after men in power; I don’t believe she has any qualms with “moving onto better prospects.” But them “dating” does add an interesting perspective to Chad’s spite in the next scene…]

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

PE AU: Scene 9-17

Scene 9:

Chad: “Those kids are trouble.”

In the distance, they see Evie and Mal.

Evie: “Bye, Mal.”

Mal: “Bye.”

Ben shifts uncomfortably. All they’re doing is waving goodbye to each other; they can’t have that?

Ben: “Come on, Chad. Give them a chance.” He’s almost pleading.

Audrey: “Oh. No offense, Bennybear, but you’re just too trusting.” His eyebrows furrow as his frown deepens, not looking at either of them. “Look, I know your mom fell in love with a big, nasty beast–” she doesn’t notice him getting further bothered by her description of his dad– “who turned out to be a prince. But with my mom, the evil fairy was just the evil fairy. That girl’s mother.”

Ben knows how they were raised, but he also knows they shouldn’t have been left on The Isle to be raised that way to begin with. And it’s not fair to push them out now by treating them like they’re horrible until they lash out.

Ben: “I think you’re wrong about them. I’ll see you later.”

He hurries away before they can stop him, but now he’s also worried people have been pushing them around and decides to see how they’re doing.

Ben: “Hey!”

Mal: “Hey.”

Ben: “How was your first day?”

Mal: “Super.”

That’s a relief for him, but that takes his mind off his worries enough to notice the blatant vandalism.

Ben: “You should really think about taking this talent off the locker and into art class. I could, uh, sign you up. What do you think?”

Mal: “Way to take all the fun out of it.”

Ben: “Huh.” He realizes, though they may not be dangerous, that doesn’t mean they’ll exactly get along. His plan’s going to be a lot more complicated than he imagined…

[He doesn’t lean against the lockers like a Cool Kid™ because he would’ve been taught it’s impolite and bad manners to lean against strangers’ lockers.]

Scene 10 (Mal talks to Jane in the bathroom) is all the same.

Scene 11:

Evie: “Any chance he’s in line for a throne? Anywhere in line?”

Doug raises an eyebrow, then realizes what she means and looks dejected. Until he looks to see who she’s talking about and immediately gets annoyed.

Doug: “Chad. Prince Charming Jr., Cinderella’s son. Chad inherited the charm, but not a lot of there there. Know what I mean?”

Evie: “Looks like there there to me.”

He gives her a look of pity before shaking his head and going back to his notes.

Mr. Deley: “Evie.” He startles her and Doug, and the rest of the scene plays out the same. Except, when Chad notices Evie and they swoon over each other, Doug just disgustedly rolls his eyes.

[The dialogue is the same, but the reactions are slightly different. Why will be further explained after the next scene.]

Scene 12 (Carlos meets Dude) is all the same.

Scene 13:

Chad meets Evie behind the bleachers and gets her to do his homework. Doug watches him leave with a glare before his attention goes to Evie.

Doug: “I couldn’t help but overhear—”

Evie: “Are you stalking me?”

Doug: “Technically, yes. I… Chad is… not the most trustworthy… So, if you have questions about Fairy Godmother’s wand, I can answer them. The answer to your first question being: yes, they always leave it at the museum. … Oh! Except for during Ben’s coronation.”

Evie: “Are you saying they use it in the coronation?”

Doug: “Yes—”

Evie: “Can we– me and my friends– go?”

Doug: “Yes. I think. Anyway, no need to hang out with Chad anymore, right?”

But she didn’t hear his question, already running off to he has no idea where.

[Doug had (past tense) a crush on Evie, but liking Chad is a red flag to him. So– though he doesn’t dislike her now, nor does he want Chad to take advantage of her– he (currently) no longer has romantic feelings for her.]

Scene 14 (Lonnie asks Mal to do her hair like Jane’s) and 15 (Jay learns about teamwork) are all the same.

Scene 16:

The VKs discuss what to do, Evie reveals the wand will be used at Ben’s coronation and everyone’s invited, then they hear a knock at the door and Mal goes to answer it.

Ben: “Hey, Mal. I didn’t see you guys today. I was just wondering if you had any questions or anything that you needed.” His smile and expression are noticeably stressed.

Mal: “Not that I know of.”

Ben: “Okay. Alright.” He has that same relief as before. “Well, uh, if you need anything, just, uh…” He cuts himself off when she starts closing the door. Taking the hint, he turns to walk away.

Mal: “Oh, wait!” She pulls it back open. “Um, is it true that we all get to go to your coronation?”

Ben: “Yeah, the whole school goes.”

Mal: “Wow, that is beyond exciting. Do you think that it’s a possibility that the four of us could stand in the front row next to the Fairy Godmother? Just so we could soak up all that goodness.

Ben: “I wish you could. Up front it’s just me, my folks,” his smile fades, “and my girlfriend.”

Mal: “And your girlfriend?”

Ben: “Yeah.” He shakes his head and focuses back on her. “I’m sorry.”

Mal: “Okay. Thanks, bye.”

Ben: “Oh, but, no, there’s plenty of—” He tries to offer another solution, but she closes the door on him.

Mal: “I think it’s time that ‘Bennyboo’ got himself a new girlfriend.” She smirks at Evie, who lights up with joy. “And I need a love spell,” she sighs, going back to flipping through her spellbook.

[Again, same dialogue, different reactions, but in reference to what I already said about Ben and Mal being platonic for now.

The change to the reactions with Mal’s last line isn’t wholly necessary, but I wanted to make it clear to the imaginary young audience that Mal is not the one intended to be Ben’s new girlfriend, and this is the most natural place to bring it up.]

Scene 17 (the love cookie) is all the same.

[This is pretty long, but the part before the first Content Warning is relevant to the AU, and there's a summary at the end:

There’s a reason Mal says the love spell she chose, “gets the best ratings.” Partly because the only ways to break it are the antidote, death, and the target declaring that they don’t want the victim to be in love with them anymore (and maybe pre-established true love’s kiss). But also because the spell is as evil as the target (which is usually the person who used it on the victim).

Initially, the spell gives the victim a crush on the first person they see (heightens their positive feelings of them, and makes them appear prettier; not like a glamour, like how we’re inclined to see kind people as more attractive, but intensified). The spell is a bit extra potent the first day or so to “set the romance in motion” (hence Ben’s R-I-D-I-C-U-L-O-U-S song). They still have their mind, will, and desires intact and can communicate them, so the victim can refuse things if they want to. If the spell broke, their feelings may change, but they wouldn’t feel like they were out of control.

That, of course, is the stage Ben stays in. [Disclaimer: This isn’t to say that makes it “okay” for the VKs to use the love spell, I just didn’t want to traumatize Ben. This choice was for his sake, so he can sleep easy at night, not the other way around.]

[CW: everything past this involves increasing levels of depersonalization/dehumanization]

But if the target pushes them to do what they want anyway and the victim starts to fall out of love with them because of it, the spell will make the victim ignore the target’s faults and believe they’re right. They would still have their mind and be able to have other relationships, but they wouldn’t have personal desires anymore. If the spell broke, they would remember everything, perhaps some of it in a haze, but they’d feel like they were acting under extreme duress.

Escalating past that stage depends on the person, as some people stay in a state just before the final stage where they’re not exactly a mindless slave, but they’re not themselves either. Breaking the spell then would leave all their memories in a haze, but they would remember all their hurt feelings by the target.

[CW: complete loss of self and obsession on the victim’s part]

And, finally, if the target is downright cruel to them and makes themselves entirely unlovable, the spell will completely take over the victim’s mind. They’ll live to serve the target and think of nothing else. But this is also when the target begins experiencing drawbacks as, considering the victim is functionally no longer a person, they take all their commands literally. And as they can literally do nothing without them, they become obsessed with being around them and refuse to be away from them. If the spell breaks, they wouldn’t remember anything, but they would know they were under a love spell and who the target was.

Memories are affected by how long a person is in each stage. A victim may jump to the final stage if forced to fall in love with their worst enemy and have literally no memories of what happened. Another victim may have already had a crush on the target and it takes a while for them to realize how awful they are to reach stage 3, so they’ll remember stage 1 and parts of stage 2 with a new perspective.

A victim can return to previous stages if they’re able to forgive the target, but that doesn’t mean the relationship goes back to normal. The exception possibly being if a victim gets to stage 2 and the target later assures them they don’t have to do whatever they want, so they return to stage 1. (The exception is most likely in the case of a victim falling in love with a target who doesn’t know they’re under a spell.)

To summarize the effects on the victim:

Stage 1: lowered guard and would remember everything

Stage 2: low/no boundaries and would have a vague memory

Stage 3: complete loss of self and would have no memory]

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

Descendants Redesign

That's all of them! Yippee! Wahoo!!

All the relevant characters for the "movie" + Jay and Carlos who would be introduced in the follow up "series"

Hopefully these descriptions will give you a good idea of the plot of said movie when you put them all together, and I hope you guys get a good general idea of everyone and what their deals are

And wow I truly wrote fuck all for Charles. Sorry, lad, better luck next time

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

PE AU: Scene 1-8

Scene 1:

Ben is being fitted for his coronation outfit.

Adam: “How is it possible that you’re going to be crowned king next month? You’re just a baby!”

Belle: “He’s turning sixteen, dear.”

Ben: “Hey, pops?”

His parents are too caught up in their side conversation to hear him.

Adam: “Sixteen? That’s far too young to be crowned king. I didn’t make a good decision until I was at least forty-two.”

Belle: “Uh, you decided to marry me at twenty-eight.”

Adam: “Yes. And that was a great decision.”

She eyes him, but her smile betrays whatever annoyance she’s trying to convey. Adam’s coy smile turns fond as they hold eye contact and start to lean towards each other.

Ben: “Mom, Dad…” He’s glad they have a happy marriage, but he still doesn’t want to see them kiss.

They finally notice him, and the rest of the scene plays out the same as he tells them about his first official proclamation to bring the VKs to Auradon.

[(Belle and Adam’s romance counts as part of the romance!) I would allow Adam’s original response, “It was you or the teapot,” if the writers went the “trouble in paradise” route. But they didn’t, so I got rid of it.]

Scene 2 (on the Isle of the Lost) is all the same.

Scene 3:

The VKs get out of the limo and meet Fairy Godmother before Ben steps forward.

Ben: “It’s so good to finally meet you all. I’m Ben.”

Audrey steps up beside him, hanging off his arm.

Audrey: “Prince Benjamin. Soon to be king.”

He looks a bit displeased that she mentioned that, but doesn’t say anything.

Evie: “You had me at ‘prince.’ My mom’s a queen, which makes me a princess.”

Audrey: “The Evil Queen has no royal status here. And neither do you.”

Evie glares at her, a silent grudge forming between them.

Ben nervously looks between them before attempting to distract them.

Ben: “This is Audrey.”

Audrey: “Princess Audrey. His girlfriend. Right, Bennyboo?”

He balks when she puts the attention on him, knowing there’s no good answer that will help the situation. Fortunately, Fairy Godmother steps in to save him.

Fairy Godmother: “Ben and Audrey are going to show you all around, and I’ll see you tomorrow. ‘The doors of wisdom are never shut,’ but the library hours are from eight to eleven. And as you may have heard, I have a little thing about curfews.”

After she leaves, Ben realizes he still hasn’t properly greeted them and steps forward to shake their hands.

Ben: “It is so, so, so good to finally mee— Oof…” Jay greets him with a rough punch to the shoulder. “… meet you all.” Mal looks him over judgmentally when he shakes her hand. “This is a momentous occasion, and one that I hope will go down in history–” He gets something on his hand from Carlos. “Is that chocolate?– as the day our two peoples began to heal.”

The camera focuses on Evie being very pleased to shake his hand as she holds onto it (being in the prime position as the last to get her handshake).

Mal: “Or the day that you showed four peoples where the bathrooms are.”

The camera shows Evie being a little put-out when his attention goes to Mal and he steps away.

Ben: “A little bit over the top?”

Mal: “A little more than a little bit.”

Ben: “Well, so much for my first impression.”

The camera cuts to a wider shot to see Audrey catching Evie giving her a smug look in the background, which infuriates her all the more.

Audrey: “Hey! You’re Maleficent’s daughter, aren’t you? Yeah, you know what? I totally do not blame you for your mother trying to kill my parents and stuff. Oh, my mom’s Aurora. Sleeping—

Mal: “Beauty! Yeah, I’ve heard the name. You know, and I totally do not blame your grandparents for inviting everyone in the whole world but my mother to their stupid christening.”

Audrey: “Water under the bridge.”

Mal: “Totes!”

They end with a fake laugh, the whole display only making things all the more tense, so Ben tries a bigger distraction.

Ben: “Okay! So, how about a tour? Yeah?” He leads them through the front gardens. “Auradon Prep, originally built over three hundred years ago and converted into a high school by my father when he became king.”

He stops in front of a statue and claps. The statue transforms into a depiction of “The Beast,” spooking Carlos.

Ben: “Carlos, it’s okay. My father wanted his statue to morph from beast to man to remind us that anything is possible.”

Mal: “Does he shed much?”

Ben: “Yeah, Mom won’t let him on the couch.”

Mal snorts, but immediately silences herself. When Ben and Audrey turn around, she makes a face, mentally scolding herself.

Once they get inside, she’s recovered from her “blunder” and refocused on her goal of why she’s there.

Mal: “So, you guys have a lot of magic here in Auradon? Like wands and things like that?”

Ben: “Yeah, it exists of course, but it’s pretty much retired. Most of us here are just ordinary mortals.”

Mal: “Who happened to be kings and queens.” There’s a bit of a bite to her tone.

Audrey: “That’s true! Our royal blood goes back hundreds of years.” She smugly smiles at Evie as she lifts Ben’s arm around her shoulders.

Evie gives Audrey a hard glare, and Ben can practically see the fight about to break out. Fortunately, Doug finally arrives and he finds a new opportunity to avoid conflict.

Ben: “Doug! Doug, come down.” He meets him at the bottom of the stairs. “This is Doug. He’s going to help you with your class schedules and show you the rest of the dorms. I’ll see you later, okay? And If there is anything you need, feel free to—”

Audrey: “Ask Doug.”

After another fake laugh between Mal and Audrey, Ben doesn’t even mind Audrey dragging him away, he’s just glad it’s over.

Doug decides it’s best to not ask about that and just do what he’s there for.

Doug: “Hi, guys. I’m Dopey’s son. As in Dopey, Doc, Bashful, Happy, Grumpy, Sleepy, and…” Finally getting a good look at the VKs, he loses his train of thought when he sees Evie. “Heigh-ho…”

He shakes his head, ashamed of himself for acting like that, but Evie is completely unbothered. Staring in awe is one of the ways she’s flattered to have her beauty appreciated.

Evie: “Evie. Evil Queen’s daughter.” She smiles politely.

He awkwardly smiles, hoping that means no hard feelings, before focusing back on his clipboard.

Doug: “Okay. So, about your classes, I, uh, put in the requirements already… History of Woodsmen and Pirates, Safety Rules for the Internet, and, uh, Remedial Goodness 101.”

Mal: “Let me guess. New class? Come on, guys, let’s go find our dorms.”

He’s caught off guard by her immediately catching onto the school’s intentions and so abruptly ending their meeting.

Doug: “Oh, uh, yeah. Your dorms are that way, guys.”

Evie: “By the way, you forgot Sneezy.” She says as she passes.

Doug: “Oh.” He is smitten.

[Ben doesn’t linger on Mal when he shakes her hand; it’s just a (the only, compared to the others) normal handshake. They make each other laugh, but there’s no “lovey-dovey” staring between them. Ben is loyal, and Mal isn’t looking to make friends (much less get a boyfriend).

Evie’s “how to get a man” lessons may have included doing what they want, like acting dumb and helpless, but The Evil Queen wouldn’t skip out on teaching her “tear down the competition.” (I just want Evie to have a little more beef with Audrey for dissing her royal status. It also gives Audrey an excuse for stepping in when she does, since she no longer has to worry about her boyfriend cheating.)

Doug’s not a Pick Me™ Nice Guy™, and Evie doesn’t flirt with him because he’s not a prince.

This is an unnecessary change, but Doug should know all his uncles’ names. But then I also thought it would be cute if Evie had studied the Snow White story back to front (not expressly known to her mother) and is one of the few people who knows all his uncles’ names. And since I did say the goal was to make the romance romantic, this does count.]

Scene 4 and 5 (in their dorms), 6 (at the museum), 7 (Remedial Goodness 101), and 8 (at tourney tryouts) are all the same.

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

Princess Evie AU

I’ve had this AU in my head for a very long time, but then @/teawinx posted her Descendants rewrite and it made my brain really want to finally write this all out.

The prompt: Since Mal is all, “Ew, boyfriends,” and Evie is all, “Ooh! Princes!”, let Evie be the target of Ben’s love spell. (Mal and Ben are still endgame; it just plays out differently.)

The goal (A.K.A. my excuse for changing things that aren’t directly related to Ben being “in love” with Evie, while also limiting myself so this doesn’t turn into my rewrite): Make the Auradon relationships more romantic. (“Romantic” is double-defined. Of course, for the benefit of the romance. But I’m also using the “idealized view of reality” definition for the benefit of the platonic relationships, because what do friends do but help you see the best in things? I specify “Auradon” so I don’t tinker with the VKs’ dynamics (too much).)

The challenge: Try to change as little as possible. (Hence, all the canon ships are the same, and I keep the same number of scenes/settings.) (Did I succeed…? In my defense, the goal prioritizes the challenge.) [Please note: This does mean a lot of the dialogue is the same; usually for context, but sometimes I changed the character’s reactions to it. For comparison, I used the script from the Wiki.]

[Disclaimer: I haven’t read any of the books, so this was made with zero influence from them.]

Story:

Scene 1-8 (2 scenes changed)

Scene 9-17 (4 scenes changed + love spell explanation)

Scene 18-19

Scene 20-22

Scene 23-24 (1 scene changed)

Scene 25-27 (2 scenes changed)

Scene 28

Scene 29.1

Scene 29.2-30 (1 scene changed)

Sequels (bonus ideas)

Some notes:

I broke up the scenes according to the Wiki transcript.

Each scene is followed by a little explanation for some of the changes I made.

There are a lot of things I wrote that wouldn’t be explicitly conveyed in the movie, but we can say those are tidbits that would be in the imaginary book for this version of the movie.

I slip in and out of my “Disney Channel voice” while writing.

To reiterate, this is not my rewrite, and as per the rules of my challenge and goal, the Disney lore inconsistencies (and Ben being crowned king at SIXTEEN T_T) remain. (I'm so sorry. /exaggerating)

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

Big Brother AU

Inexplicably, I had a dream about Pixar’s Brave and now I have a new OC: Hogus, Merida’s older brother. (Thank my dream for the name.) As much as Merida is like Fergus, Hogus is like Elinor. He and Merida get along pretty well, but their parents are kind of the extremes of each other, so it’s a lot harder to connect with them. But Fergus usually lets Hogus slip out of rough-housing when Merida leaps onto his back with a battle cry. And Elinor lets Merida run off and be rowdy more often when Hogus is there and genuinely enjoying her tapestry lessons. Merida still learns proper etiquette, and Hogus still learns how to use a sword, but it’s a lot more bearable and less tense for everyone. Anyway, directly inspired by what I saw in my dream, I wrote a few scenes from when Hogus is 12 and Merida is 8 (about two years before the triplets are born).

[Content Warning: tween death]

As a battle between the clans rages on, Hogus, Merida, and some other kids come riding on horses to spectate from the top of the hill. Merida and the other kids are ensnared by the sight of valiance, but Hogus better understands the gravity of war and death, and though genuinely curious about the battle, his excitement quickly falls into something only meant to mirror the others’.

In the valley, Fergus rides his own horse, slaying down everyone who comes near him. Someone gets in a lucky hit that sends his sword flying out of his hand. His surrounding enemies think they’ve finally got an advantage on him until that same man is stabbed in the gut by a throwing knife, Fergus now wild with the delight of bloodlust. Still, they’re sure he has to run out of throwing knives eventually and close in on him.

The sword landed halfway down the hill, the hilt sticking up in the air as if to summon someone to pick it up. Hogus knows it’s dangerous, but he can’t let his dad get slaughtered. Before he can convince himself otherwise, he charges forward and grabs the sword.

The kids are shocked and start to move closer themselves, but even they are aware that some people don’t come back from the battlefield, and stop before they get too close to danger.

“Dad!” Hogus calls out, waving the sword in the air to get his attention. “Dad!”

But all Fergus sees is someone running at him with a sword. And with an admittedly expert throw, he stabs his own son in the shoulder.

His arm goes limp and he drops the sword.

“Hogus!” Merida screams, immediately snapping Fergus out of it.

The rest of the warriors back off, knowing not to interfere, and the rest of the battlefield gradually comes to a stop.

“Hogus…”

Hogus meets his dad’s eyes, and breaks into tears. He’s not mad or disappointed, he just wants his dad.

Fergus rushes forward, just in time to catch Hogus as he goes limp.

“Dad… I’m sorry…”

“No, no… I’m sorry…” He finally breaks and cries too. “I’m so sorry…”

Back at the castle, Elinor is startled by the front doors slamming open.

“Fergus! What—?” Her breath catches in her throat at the sight of her son. “Hogus…” her eyes fill with tears. She can only watch as he runs past her, yelling for a doctor.

“Mama!” Merida clings to her dress.

“Merida…” She picks her up and hugs her. “What happened? How did…? None of you kids ran into the battlefield, did you?” She wasn’t trying to be accusatory, but she needed to know what happened.

“Only Hogus! But he was just trying to give Dad his sword! And…” She sniffs as more tears start to fall again. “And Dad was throwing knives at his enemies… But then he missed…” She can’t continue and sobs into Elinor’s neck.

She just holds her closer as the horror of what really happened dawns on her and she cries harder too.

Several hours later, Merida nervously waits outside a room.

“Hey, Merida,” her dad finally pokes his head out. He’s exhausted, but smiling. “You can come in now.”

His smile makes her hopeful, so she runs in. “Hogus?” she calls out.

“Hi, Merida,” he waves, smile bright as ever.

“Hogus!” she jumps onto the bed to tightly hug him.

“Ow!” he winces, and Elinor pulls her into her lap.

“Careful,” she gently scolds. “He’s still healing; his shoulder’s a bit sensitive.”

“Oh! Sorry…” she sheepishly apologizes.

“It’s okay,” he smiles. “I’m happy to see you too,” he opens up his good arm.

She beams and carefully crawls around to his other side to hug him.

Days pass, and Hogus hasn’t gotten any better. He’s only gotten much worse.

“Mum…” his voice is weak as he struggles to breathe and his eyes are watery. “I… I think…”

“No… No…” she gently runs a hand through his hair, not able to handle hearing what she already knows.

“… Can Dad come see me now?”

She brushes her thumb over his cheek, “Running the kingdom is not more important than you.”

“It kind of is…”

Her hand falls to his good shoulder. “Not this time.”

She looks to Maudie, who dutifully nods as soon as they make eye contact, then exits the room.

“… I’m sorry to leave you guys like this… I don’t know why the will-o’-the-wisps decided this–” he gestures to his shoulder– “for me, but… I don’t regret saving Dad. I just… I wish he didn’t have to feel guilty about it.”

“He’ll be okay.” She squeezes his hand. “I promise.”

“And you, too?”

“…” She glances at Merida sleeping next to him. “We’ll all be okay.”

Just then, Fergus runs in, a bit out of breath. He relaxes at the sight of his son alive and awake, but the panic in his face, the fear, thinking that he was too late…

Elinor can’t take it anymore and lets her emotions spill down her cheeks.

It makes Hogus lose control, and then Fergus can’t hold himself together either and lifts his family into his arms, waking Merida up.

“Hm… Hogus?” she murmurs blearily. She sees the tear streaks on his face and jolts up, looking around at her parents. “Why’s everyone crying? You’re going to be okay, right? You just got sick like when I did! You’re just going to cough for a bit and then you’ll be okay! You’re not…!” She gives up trying to convince herself, and Hogus hugs her as best he can.

Fergus cries all the more. “I’m so, so sorry…”

“It wasn’t your fault; you’re a really good warrior.” He looks up at him. “And a good dad.”

Fergus holds them as close as he can. “I love you, Hogus. I love you so much…”

“I love you too, Dad…”

After a moment, he feels his lung shut down.

“Mum… Merida… I love you, too…”

Merida can only bury herself in her brother’s chest, but Elinor speaks for both of them.

“Oh, my darling, we love you too… We love you, too…”

He squeezes his mom’s hand, presses close to his dad, and hugs Merida tight as best he can. His clothes end up bunched in Merida’s fists, and his parents bury their faces in his hair. They stay together– they stay with him– even after he takes his last breath.

Their grieving period is long– it doesn’t feel long enough– but Fergus finally finds the strength to summon the clan leaders. The meeting is a somber occasion, out of respect. Elinor is present, with Merida nestled in her arms.

“The warring has to stop or our children will be fighting next. And they—” his voice breaks, and he glances at Merida watching him while her head rests on her mom. “They don’t deserve to deal with our issues… So, men, what are your terms of peace?”

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

(E)GG AU: “Furious Fu”

Su-Han awakens to old friends and unfamiliar Guardians. Guardians who claim it’s been thousands of years since the temple was destroyed. They’d been tasked with protecting what was left of the temple and containing the sentimonster, but explorers arrived, and though they hid everything else, the explorers managed to find and dig up the Petrified sentimonster. The modern Guardians had tracked the sentimonster’s whereabouts to a museum in “Paris”, and were in the middle of making plans to travel there when the Ladybug’s power swept through. Unfortunately, Paris is a big city and the Ladybug and its box could be anywhere. Fortunately, Su-Han has his magic compass (that specifically tracks the box he was guarding), so he quickly leaves to recover it for them. (Thus he misses out on having anything about the modern world explained to him… At least, upon reaching the first city, he remembered to eat a language candy (Guardians keep a package stashed beneath the compass in their staffs (staffs are a good compass container that can double as a weapon)).)

Su-Han gets side-tracked by all the new things in the world until he finally reaches Paris, realizes it’s been dealing with monsters during all his lollygagging, and quickly (guiltily) forgets his curiosity to speed the rest of the way to the box (Guardian graduates are trained (with the use of a little magic) to be as agile and speedy as Miraculous users, just for instances like this). He soon reaches what appears to be a bedroom, though unexpectedly pink and cozy for a rogue “Guardian”.

[For timing and to not stray too far from the main character, this part would probably get cut from the episode. But this would be the information I’d post online if someone asked about the temple and Su-Han’s journey. (Same goes for the other contextual stuff I say.)

Aside from that, the beginning would play out similarly to the original except: While Daizzi distracts Wayzz, the other kwamis ask Marinette to let Wayzz go with her to meet Fu, and of course she accepts. When she tells him he can come with her, he’s so grateful, he promises not to make a sound (and he doesn’t). While talking to Fu, she glances at her purse a few times, thinking of Wayzz restlessly watching with Tikki. Eventually, Fu is distracted (orchestrated by her or not), and she takes the chance to peek into her purse and suggest to Wayzz that she show Fu “a toy she made.” He catches on to her idea and readily agrees (Tikki gestures for her to let this be just Wayzz’s moment). Once Fu’s attention is back on her, she shows him Wayzz, and Fu adores “the little turtle toy.” After they leave, Wayzz gets teary-eyed, “Thank you, Marinette.” “Aw, you’re welcome,” she pats him as the shot pans out to show she’s near her house. And that Su-Han’s on her roof.]

The kwamis hide as soon as they hear footsteps on the roof, and only hope whatever akuma or sentimonster that’s attacking doesn’t find them before Marinette gets back.

Just as she’s in sight of her home, Marinette witnesses some guy enter her room from her balcony. How did he get up there? Doesn’t matter, he needs to be out.

“Su-Han?” Tikki breaks Marinette’s thoughts.

“Huh?” she, already in an alleyway, looks at her.

“He was our Guardian before Fu,” she explains.

The background turns gray and everything freezes on Marinette’s look of horror as her thoughts are heard by the audience.

“She means the guy who made Fu think he’s a good guy despite taking him from his home and pressuring him into using the Peacock before he was ready?! One of the Guardians who kept the kwami in boxes!?! (Not to mention, I could lose my memories!)”

[I like to imagine (my version of) Marinette is the type of person to be hyper-aware of other people’s (potential) mistreatment, but not her own (bless her heart).]

The scene returns to normal as Marinette angrily transforms into Ladybug (Wayzz, still in her purse– poor guy looking like he’s going to faint– is shown reappearing in the Guardian Ball), and launches herself to her room.

Perched on her bed, she observes him glancing at a staff as he looks around her room. As his attention goes to her yarn box, she realizes it’s a tracking device, snatches it, and runs.

Elsewhere, Adrien witnesses some guy chasing Ladybug and quickly hurries to join the fight as Cat Noir.

Cat Noir’s appearance puts Su-Han on edge. Monsters can be dangerous, but they can also be helpful, especially against a terror like the Cat can be. And if the Ladybug is working with him, that’s a recipe for disaster.

Cat Noir takes Su-Han’s moment of shock as an opportunity, goes in for the attack, and promptly gets his butt kicked, scaring Ladybug even more. Knowing Cat Noir will keep him distracted long enough to safely get away, she keeps running. When she thinks she’s far enough, she flings her yo-yo back at them, grabs Cat Noir, and pulls him to her before dropping into an alley, looping back, and ducking out of sight.

Unfamiliar with the way the streets of Paris work, Su-Han immediately loses track of them, and aimlessly hops around until he’s drawn to an impossibly familiar laugh. He follows the sound to a park, and lo and behold, there is Fu. He nearly runs at him full speed yelling his name, but forces himself to use a less eye-catching method and just walk. A good thing too, because it dawns on him, if Fu doesn’t have the box, he probably doesn’t have his memories.

“Hello…” Su-Han awkwardly begins once he’s close.

Fu doesn’t recognize him at all, and Su-Han is nearly brought to tears, the only thing stopping him is not wanting to disrupt Fu’s nice day.

“Um… Sorry to bother you,” he forces a smile, “but… do you happen to own a compass?”

He thinks for a moment. “As a matter of fact, I do!”

“Would you mind if I see it?” he can’t help being sheepish, knowing how weird he must seem.

But Fu just smiles at him like he’d trust him with the world as he holds out his compass, “Not at all!” and it breaks Su-Han’s heart all the more.

“Th… Thank you,” it comes out quiet.

Being connected to the same box, Fu’s compass can also find Su-Han’s, so he figures out what direction the rogues went and then hands it back (maybe he wouldn’t have minded having to come back if he needed more precise directions). His guilt suddenly overwhelms him, compelling him to apologize to Fu for causing him to lose his memory (without saying how, but the implications prove it wasn’t a boating accident), relieving his guilt, but making Fu upset that Marianne lied. Before either of them can say anything, Fu gets akumatized. Su-Han realizes the true problem (and that it was his own emotions that led the akuma to them), grabs Marianne, and gets out of sight before Fu fully transforms and attacks.

“I’m so sorry, Miss,” he puts her down.

She places a comforting hand on his arm. “You must be his mentor,” she smiles.

He freezes. “… How much did he tell you?”

“Enough that I know the new Guardian too.”

He relaxes a bit. Then shrinks, “So she’s not a rogue?”

“Ladybug? Not at all! She’s the sweetest girl I’ve ever met! So I’m sure she’ll forgive whatever terrible first impression you made after we explain you meant no harm.”

“Well, that’s… good, at least,” his embarrassment is palpable, and it makes her chuckle.

“By the way, I’m Marianne.”

“Oh? Ah. Su-Han,” he introduces himself in turn.

“Nice to meet you, Su-Han,” she smiles. “Now,” she keeps them on track, “did you figure out Ladybug’s location?”

“Oh! Yes, I believe so.”

“Good. I’ll approach first to explain the situation, and then you can come out after I address you.”

“Okay.”

He carries her for faster travel, but she still has enough time to catch him up on the heroes and villains of Paris. Eventually, they find poor Ladybug panicking in an alleyway while poor Cat Noir struggles to calm her down.

Su-Han sets Marianne on the ground around the corner so she can approach the heroes at a more comfortable pace than suddenly appearing near them.

“Ms. Marianne!” Ladybug gasps. “Are you okay? What are you doing here? Where is Fu? His ex-mentor broke into my house and now he’s after me and the Miracle Ball!”

“I’m okay, Ladybug. Now, breathe…” She waits for Ladybug to relax before continuing. “You don’t need to worry about Su-Han. He meant no harm, he just wasn’t aware of the situation in Paris and thought you were rogues. If you don’t mind, he would like to speak with you to explain himself.”

She wiggles, a bit antsy that he’ll be upset with her now, but she trusts Marianne’s judgment. “Okay.”

Su-Han awkwardly steps into view. “Hi, again. I deeply apologize for the breaking and entering. Marianne is right, I was concerned you two were rogues and that you had stolen the Miracle… I’m sorry, did you call it a ‘ball’?”

“It, um, changed shape when it was passed to me,” she feels a bit sheepish.

“Interesting… Well, we can discuss that later. I apologize, but my ignorance has caused Fu to get akumatized. I assure you I will help in any way I can though.”

“Fu’s an akuma?!” the panic returns, but it’s focused into drive. “Where is he? And what happened?” she bites back her “What did you do?”

“I attracted the akuma and accidentally upset him.”

“Seeing Fu all grown up was a lot for him,” Marianne interjects, “and, even though it wasn’t his fault, he apologized to Fu for causing him to lose his memories. He had no way of knowing I told Fu he’d lost his memories to a boating accident, but Fu was understandably upset that I lied.”

All of Ladybug’s bad feelings melt away, fully sympathetic to him now. “I’m sorry I panicked. Oh! Here’s your staff!”

“It’s really my fault for trespassing, but thank you.”

Elsewhere, “Furious Fu” is leaping around in search of Marianne or the heroes. “This is fruitless! I’ll have to get their attention.”

Back with the heroes, crashing thuds bring their attention to the park’s trees unnaturally toppling over, and Ladybug and Cat Noir hurry over. (Su-Han stays behind to discuss with Marianne what to tell Fu after he’s saved.)

Outmatched alone, the two lead Furious Fu to the stadium to keep him away from people until Su-Han arrives.

As Su-Han is a much superior fighter to the heroes, Furious Fu sticks a “statue” paper to his forehead, freezing him in place.

Ladybug tries, but can’t pull it off due to magic holding it in place, so she calls on her Lucky Charm.

Furious Fu grabs her before she can catch it, and also captures Cat Noir. He nearly gets their Miraculous, but then Marianne reveals herself.

They have a bit of back and forth (Hawkmoth wants him to ignore her, but she is his true target) until he sticks an “honesty” paper to her forehead.

She admits the real reason he lost his memories, which does cause a bit of a breakdown, but it’s what allows Marianne to get his paintbrush and free the heroes with the Lucky Charm.

With everything restored, they get Marianne and Fu back to the park, and Ladybug and Cat Noir go home.

“I’m sorry about my akumatization. I’m really not that mad, the akuma just came so fast! But I am really… confused. Why did you lie about a boating accident?”

“Well… the truth involves things as crazy as superheroes. Even if you did believe me, it’d mostly leave you with questions, and I wouldn’t have the answers. I should’ve admitted this before, but I convinced myself I didn’t need to. I’m sorry.”

“No, you’re right. I’m sure I wouldn’t have taken it well, but…” he glances at Su-Han and lowers his voice to ask her, “if he is responsible, why do I feel like I can trust him?”

“Because he’s not responsible, but like all the silly, lovable people in my life, he’s blaming himself. Though… I guess I can tell you Hawkmoth is responsible.”

“… I knew I really hated that guy.”

Fu turns to properly acknowledge Su-Han, “I’m sorry I don’t remember you, but I know you were a good friend of mine, and I’m glad to have seen you again.”

Su-Han thinks his heart might burst. “Likewise. … But I’m afraid this may be the last time we meet. Even without the threat of Hawkmoth, I wouldn’t be able to stay.”

Though disappointed, Fu smiles, “I understand. You take care of yourself.”

“You, too,” Su-Han bows before leaving to find Marinette.

The kwamis are very joyful to see him again, and Marinette is happy for them, but also clearly bothered by something.

“Is there at least a way for me to keep my memories?”

“What?”

“You came to take back the Miracle Ball, didn’t you?”

His eyes widen with realization, then his expression settles into a smile, “There is a way to keep your memories if you need to pass Guardianship on– though I didn’t have the chance to teach it to Fu– but, no, I did not come to take it from you.”

“Huh? Really?”

“I trust Fu’s decision, and you’ve shown excellent skills as both Ladybug and Guardian.”

She frowns, finding it hard to believe, “But I almost lost today.”

“Against someone who’d been trained to take down rogue holders,” he shrugs it off. “I assure you, you’re doing a magnificent job. I can tell the kwamis adore you, and they wouldn’t if you were doing something wrong.”

“He’s right, Marinette! You’re amazing!" Tikki hugs her, and the other kwamis follow suit.

“Aww! Thanks, you guys!”

After the moment passes, Sass addresses Su-Han, “You won’t be staying in Paris though, will you?”

“I have to help the other Guardians at the moment, but I’ll be around if you need me.”

“Oh. Then, you should get back to them right away!” Marinette insists.

Over his years of teaching, he’s picked up on the meanings behind certain behaviors. “Marinette… is there something you want to ask me?”

“Well…” She dismissively shakes her head, “It’s a lot of stuff and you need to go.”

“I can stay for a day or two. Ask away.”

“It’s not going to take two days! But… For starters, how did you find me? Both times!?”

He grinned and opened his staff to show her, “Guardian compass.”

The episode ends with a still frame of Marinette excitedly looking over the compass as Su-Han explains how it works.

[Marinette giving shoes to (my version of) Su-Han is so sweet, but I know she would custom make them, tailored specifically to his needs, and that would take too long. Plus, Su-Han is light on his feet (and my Guardian Order takes care of people), so there’s no reason his shoes would look that bad. He’ll make it home fine, and get a nice foot massage.]

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

(E)GG AU: Fu’s Story

One day, Wayzz sensed the Peacock cracking. He couldn’t tell exactly where it was (a precaution to protect against bad Guardians), just that it was in Paris. Fu transformed, intending to handle it himself, but quickly realized he was too old to wield the Miraculous.

(As kids lack maturity and the elderly have lived long enough to reach insanity, the Miraculous are designed so that holders outside of their “prime” can only use a power once per recharge (without the use of spells). Due to the effects of aging, elderly holders typically also experience loss of agility.)

Knowing he’d have to trust another holder again, he traveled to Paris to start seeking out new heroes.

(His experiences during The Great War influenced him to only release the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous, be adamant about not revealing their identities to anyone, and (partly influenced by his upbringing in the GO) seek out teen heroes: old enough to handle the power (though limited if he needed to relinquish it), but also too young to easily pack up and go (unlike the couple of adults who’d tried that). (Furthermore, though he had an understanding of modern revelations about youth, thus also being against teen marriage, it was still through an ancient lens. So, though he was aware of how stressful and demanding heroism and a double life would be, if they proved to be “mature”, he viewed placing the responsibility and high expectations on teens just the same as he would with a young adult.))

By the time the Butterfly was activated with nefarious intentions, he was prepared to give his top picks a final test just to double-check. (He’d admit he was more than a bit biased in picking Adrien, but how could he deny someone who only wished for freedom? Besides, as the boy was beloved by all, it would spare Plagg from having to once again deal with his power being used to tear down all his holder’s enemies. (Even still, the (subconscious) influence of The Great War made him hesitant to reveal his existence to the Cat holder (and the Ladybug holder by extension).))

Marinette and Adrien did even better than he expected, despite the first-time hiccup. He surely thought Marinette would quit after forgetting to purify the akuma, but she got back out there (which is far more than he could expect from himself) and exceeded all his expectations. He felt terrible for just throwing them into the fire, but he couldn’t risk connecting them to him. It wasn’t like he would be a good guide anyway, especially not above ancient beings.

But fate had other plans (yes, eventually meeting Adrien, but that would be later): Marinette brought the Grimoire to him, and gave him hope. Perhaps false, but hope nonetheless. The Grimoire had been left back at the temple, and if it survived, maybe some of the Guardians survived too. Much better suited for passing on the legacy than he was. Even still, Marinette certainly had the kwamis’ favor and the skill for it, maybe it was time to pass his knowledge on before time caught up with him. Passing on the Turtle (however temporary) must’ve been his first hint.

(He refers to his box as the “Chinese Miracle Box” because it’s the last box from the Chinese temple. With all the cross-culture influences, box trading, and even some Miraculous swaps between boxes, most of the boxes only represented awkward mash-ups of cultures.)

Getting sick was a stark reminder of his mortality. He wasn’t all that sick, he knew he wasn’t. He would recover just fine, probably in a few days and the medicine would quell his symptoms in the meantime. But… thinking about if he was that sick, the possibility of him later becoming that sick… It left him in the kind of mental anguish that hurt him physically. He was glad the doctor brushed it off as him being dramatic– he was! And neither she nor Marinette deserved to put up with his problems. But… still… He wanted to see Marianne again. He wanted to be with her again. And he completely understood if she didn’t want to after he left her behind for so long, but she deserved closure for why; that she did nothing wrong. And his anxiety pressured him to tell her now, so he asked Marinette to pass on his letter to her.

Marianne knew Fu’s letter was off. She knew reading to the end would clear everything up. It was just… all the talk of being “too late”… it sounded like the words of someone… No. No! It had to be something more bearable! It had to be… He didn’t love her anymore! Yes! Something she could get over. After all, they hadn’t seen each other in years. It would be pretty messed up that he sent Ladybug to deliver his message instead of coming in person to say so, but that’s a much better option than he physically couldn’t. Because he could! He’s fine! He’s alive! He’s not…! He’s not… He just doesn’t love her anymore because they haven’t seen each other in so long…

“Backwarder… You want to go back and make up for lost time.”

Oh, how she did. Maybe… Maybe they would’ve had more time before… before… Just become akumatized and you won’t have to think about it.

…

Why did she act so rashly? Now she and Fu were going to lose even more time together because she couldn’t just read to the end… That’s okay. He’s okay. That’s what’s important to her. She missed Fu, but if Ladybug was with him, that means he’s not alone. And she has Mr. Ramier, so she isn’t either. They’re okay.

It hurt Fu to lose Marianne again, but he should’ve known he was asking too much. He was supposed to be focused on helping Marinette become a Guardian, not his late-life romance. Though it was nice to know Marianne was okay.

[In this version of the Butterfly, Hawkmoth’s empathy is so bad, he constantly misreads feelings/doesn’t bother to look deeper into buried feelings (often just makes stuff up when he can’t tell at all). (There are many akuma I apply this idea to, but that’s a discussion for another post.)]

When he heard of the new exhibit from China, he was curious about what was dug up in his first home, and decided to tune in to the news broadcast. He never knew whether or not that had been a good thing.

He couldn’t leave her to fix his mistakes again. Not this one. He knew Marinette. He knew she would do everything she could to stop it. But she couldn���t. And she would die trying. After Adrien sacrificed himself first. No. He would handle this himself. He’d take their Miraculous to keep them out of danger and lead that beast away from everyone. He’d lead it all the way back to China and drown with it in a volcano if he had to. He would not– could not– let it destroy innocent people all over again. Perhaps Hawkmoth and Mayura would leave Paris to avoid getting their Miraculous eaten, or simply because he took the Ladybug and Cat with him. Maybe he could take them down with that beast. If he couldn’t, maybe the other heroes Marinette and Adrien met could. He just had to get that beast away from Paris. Away from Marinette and Adrien and Marianne. He had to.

…

He really shouldn’t have underestimated Marinette. She was an incredible Ladybug, and once again, she proved she’d earned her spot among the legendary heroes. He hoped he wasn’t too insulting in his doubt. The restoration of the temple, the Guardians, Su-Han, the news brought him to tears. But he knew he had to remain in Paris. Hawkmoth and Mayura were his responsibility. Besides, he was surely exiled now that Su-Han was back to explain what Fu had done. Someone would certainly come for the box, and he would give it up, but he would still stay to deal with the consequences of the attacking akumatized victims and sentimonsters.

(He even got his magic compass, and other assorted treats, back from the staff. His staff which was now at the Louvre. He allowed Ladybug to give it to them, as it was beautiful and well-designed and a piece of his history that should be shared with the world. Though he had mixed feelings about giving it to the same people who literally dug up his trauma.)

He never wanted to make Marinette the Guardian like this. If she didn’t need the magic he was passing onto her, he wouldn’t have put the burden on her at all. She didn’t need the stress. She was going through so much already. But someone would come for the box, and they could help her. He just hoped she’d be okay in the meantime.

…

It was strange not having memory. He didn’t even have enough to miss it. A courtesy of fate, he supposed. He felt bad not recognizing the people who apparently knew him, but they were so kind, he could hardly be upset by the idea of getting to know them again. Especially Marianne. He didn’t know why, but he felt so safe with her, like he could tell her anything. Maybe he used to.

Marianne thought she would’ve been more upset seeing Fu without his memories, but he looked so… relaxed. It was the first time she saw him without the weight of the world in his eyes. It was in an admittedly tragic way, but he was at peace. And she found herself just happy to be with him again. That they could be in peace.

Fu was different, of course. Sort of in the way that she felt like she was making a new friend (which she believed was only fair, as Fu was experiencing the same but to an even higher degree). Yet, he wasn’t as much of a “blank slate” as she had initially worried, and still retained many of his old habits and sense of morals. Just more relaxed, and less nervous. She supposed that made sense; the memories weren’t gone, even if he couldn’t access them. It would take some getting used to, he really wasn’t her old friend anymore, but she had no complaints, she liked her new friend too.

Masterlist

[science-fantasy-superheroes]

(E)GG AU: Fu’s Backstory

During a time when the Chinese temple had positive relations with the nearby village, Wang Fu’s family received a letter. It said the Guardian Order had seen great potential in Fu, and were inviting him to study with them. He didn’t want to go: he and his little sister would miss each other, he had no idea what the GO expected of him, he might not be able to return home, and then his baby brother would never know him. But his family knew how great an honor this was, and he felt like he couldn’t turn it down. So, after everything was packed, he went to the temple.

Fortunately, the GO wasn’t so bad, and being a Guardian sounded a little cool. (He’d still rather be home, but he would never say that.) Training consisted of being assigned a box, learning to read the journal that comes with it, getting to know the kwami within, and learning to use the Miraculous.

(The journals aren’t written in code nor do they have a spell on them, they’re written in a language, obscure even to Fu, that the modern day doesn’t know ever existed.)

Although he was an expert at befriending the kwami, he didn’t feel as adept at using the Miraculous as he thought he should be. But Su-Han, his mentor, was really encouraging and helped him master most of the Miraculous, especially Turtle. Unfortunately, despite getting along with Nooroo and Duusu best, it was hardest for him to get used to their powers. He finally managed to successfully use all of Nooroo’s powers, and finally, it was time to try out Duusu’s.

Fu tried to create a trash-eating creature to help clean, but his homesickness and bitter feelings about having to leave arose, causing the monster to essentially see the GO as trash. Its first act was eating Su-Han, causing Fu to panic and draw the monster’s attention to him. He held the amok (a staff) up as a futile shield, and the monster simply pulled it from his hands with its tongue. It started to go after the box, but Fu had just enough awareness to grab the box and run. Still transformed with the Peacock, he was able to easily outrun the monster, but he didn’t stop until the transformation dropped and he collapsed. By then, the temple was out of sight, but the thick, inky smoke rising from its ashes was not.

“Fu?” a small voice called out to him.

Seeing Duusu startled Fu into tearing off the Miraculous and throwing it away from him, but the act only led to more guilt eating away at him.

Eventually, the sky cleared of smoke, and Fu finally got up. He carefully returned the Peacock to its spot in the box and started walking. Although beautiful, forests are dangerous too, so he eventually resorted to wearing the Turtle as a precaution. Though he assured himself he didn’t deserve it, he appreciated Wayzz’s company, especially since he didn’t bring anything up and just let the quiet pass between them. He felt terrible keeping the other kwami in the box, but he couldn’t bring himself to face them.

Still, the kwamis (especially Plagg and Tikki) were naturally drawn to conflict, and they found even more lures as Fu wandered through the world, so there was a bit of solace in that they’d be free when they needed to. Yet, the kwamis couldn’t help but worry as Fu continued to pack up and go as soon as they weren’t needed. Humans need companions, they need friends– Wayzz is only so much to mitigate insanity, as kwamis aren’t meant to fulfill those needs, but it was even worse with Fu distancing himself from all the kwamis– and with the Turtle’s passive ability drastically slowing down his aging, he’d be suffering loneliness all the longer.

(Guardians unlock a Miraculous’s passive power when wearing it.)

One day, The Great War began, and most of the kwamis yearned to be freed and spread all across Europe. Some of the Miraculous holders trusted the others with their identity, and others trusted their friends. But as the war carried on, paranoia brought about betrayal, and all but the Cat and Ladybug Miraculous were compromised by the war’s end. Fortunately, Fu was able to retrieve them all.

(Cracked/broken Miraculous and kwami of a compromised Miraculous can send out signals to their Miracle Box, and the kwami of Miraculous with active passive powers can sense those signals (otherwise, the Guardian will find out when they notice the box glowing).)

On the other hand, the information spread by the betrayers led to people seeking out “The Gifter”, many with ill intentions. Thus, Fu had to collect the final Miraculous in the dark of night, but shortly after collecting the Cat in France, he ended up being chased. Sure he was going to get caught, he threw the Butterfly and Peacock into the Seine in a desperate bid to avoid their misuse. But, just in time, he was saved by Marianne. As soon as his pursuants were gone, he thanked her and tried to leave, but she refused to let her guest leave while injured. At which point, he realized he was shot in the leg (luckily, the blood dripped into his thick boots and not all over the path leading to her house).

Being helped by Marianne gave him the opportunity to reach out to someone, and she already figured out he was “The Gifter” (and had the genius idea to disguise the Miracle Box in a gramophone), so after several years, he finally confided in her. They lived a happy life for the next decade. Near the end of which, she and Fu realized the Turtle’s passive power was affecting her.

(The power works like an aura, and the more a person has been in the presence of the Miraculous, the more they will be affected by it. But, the more people sharing the power, the less potent it is. The Guardian can choose to focus the power on themselves/off of other people, but it can be difficult to maintain without the use of spells/potions.)

Their happiness was interrupted by World War II. Again, all the kwami were itching to help, but Fu refused with all those hunting him since The Great War surely on the lookout for him and the Miraculous. Marianne understood and helped him escape to England, but stayed in France to help how she could. Fu supported her in turn, gifting her his pin (he bought it years ago as a birthday present to himself; it reminded him of his home) as a sign of their bond.

Once the horrors of the war were revealed, Fu felt incredibly guilty for hoarding the Miraculous, and punished himself by staying in solitude. Decades passed, and he realized he was getting noticeably older. At which point, Wayzz revealed Marianne was still connected to the Turtle Miraculous. Fu wasn’t fully sure how he felt about that, but he assured Wayzz he wasn’t upset.

(Kwamis are able to grant non-Guardians a connection to their Miraculous’s passive power. The farther they are, the more “stretched” the power is, the weaker it is. If the Guardian deactivates the power (such as by taking off the Miraculous long enough), they’ll be cut off too.)

Masterlist