Go the Distance

01

Mal woke up from a dream about being wicked at school.

One reporter said, "Mal, please, over here! Mal!"

Mal looked to the reporter and smiled. Another reporter said, "Only three days to the Royal Cotillion. Ever think a girl like you would be best friends to the Lady of the Court?"

"How does it feel to be one of the the most envied girls in Auradon?" a third reporter asked.

A fourth reporter inquired, "Well, do you like being blonde?"

The fifth reporter asked the perhaps rudest question of all. "Is your mother still a lizard?"

Elias appeared and wrapped an arm around Mal's shoulders. "Okay. All right. Excuse me. Uh, we will let you know if and when that particular situation changes."

Reporter two asked, "Did you ever think you'd be with a Villain Kid?"

Elias pursed his lips. "We're done here."

Fairy Godmother stepped in. "Okay. Shush, shush. Shoosh, shoosh. Shoosh, shoosh. This is still a school, so if you're here, you're either skipping or trespassing."

"Just one quick question," reporter three said.

"Shush. Shush."

"Fairy Godmother!"

"Shhh. Shhh. Shhh."

Elias smiled. "Thank you, guys."

Mal nodded at the two of them. "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you."

Fairy Godmother smiled. "Mal. Elias."

Elias and I said at the same time, "Fairy Godmother."

Mal let out a relieved sigh. "Whew."

Ben walked up with Maia and said, "Don't pay any attention to them."

Mal frowned. "Well, that's a lot easier said than done, right?"

Ben nodded. "I know. I know. You know, maybe we should do something. We should go somewhere. Get away. Maia and Elias too."

"Yeah."

"You know, what do -- I have a council meeting. I'm so late!"

Maia smiled at him. "That's okay."

"We'll -- We'll do it sometime. Uh..."

Evie walked up to them and turned to Maia and Mal. "If we don't do a fitting for your gowns right this minute, you'll both be dancing in your bathrobes, okay? Hi. Let's go. Let's go."

Mal and Maia waved to their boyfriends.

"Bye, Ben," Maia said.

"Bye, Elias," Mal stated.

"Bye," Ben and Elias replied.

Mal and Maia kissed them goodbye and walked off with their friends as reporters called Ben's name.

---

Mal and Maia sat on Mal's bed while Evie pulled the sash tightly around Mal's waist. "Oh! Okay, Evie, I cannot breathe."

"Well, you can breathe after Cotillion," Evie told her.

Maia stood and perused the clothes. She noticed a long purple chiffon dress. "Evie?"

She smiled. "That's the dress I chose for you."

Mal sighed. "It's a pretty dress. Well, I sincerely doubt that. I have at least 20 more events directly behind it, and I can't even remember what a single one of them is."

"Impeccable," Evie said, looking at the yellow and blue dress Mal was wearing.

Maia frowned. "Mal, blue and yellow... just isn't you. Sorry, Evie."

"Evie?" Mal asked.

Evie looked at her. "Hmm?"

"Do you ever think about what we'd be doing if we were back on the Isle right now?"

Evie smiled softly. "That's funny. Ah! Look who's on TV."

A news anchor on the TV said, "As the royal couple continues their tour of the kingdom, they dined with Aladdin and Jasmine. Six months ago..."

"Yeah," Mal said simply.

"No one thought King Ben and his girlfriend and the son of a demigod and his girlfriend from the wrong side of the bridge would last."

Mal scoffed. "Yeah. No kidding."

"Mal and Maia must be counting the days until the Royal Cotillion... when Maia will officially become a Lady of the Court."

Mal picked up her spell book. "'Read it fast at lightning speed. Remember everything I need.'"

Evie frowned. "I know Mal's secret to fitting in, and Elias wouldn't like it one bit. Haven't you guys had enough secrets between the two of you already?"

Mal turned to her. "Evie, you remember what I was like before I started using my spell book. I mean, I was a complete disaster."

Maia nodded slowly. "I've seen you use it a few times, and I don't think you should continue."

Evie pursed her lips. "Well, personally, as one of your best friends, I strongly believe that this spell book-" She picked up the book.

"Ah!" Mal cried.

Evie sighed. "It belongs in the museum, along with my mirror." Mal pouted. "Don't give me the face. Put the pout away. Mm-hmm. You know I'm right."

Mal looked at her. "You don't ever miss running wild and just breaking all the rules?"

"Like stealing and lying and fighting?" Evie questioned.

Mal nodded. "Yeah!"

"No!"

Maia shook her head. "Oh, I can't imagine being that bad."

Mal rolled her eyes and looked back at Evie. "What?"

Evie frowned. "Why would we? M, come here. Look at where we are. We're in Auradon! And we're Auradon girls now. Just like Maia."

"Since Mal revealed her love of strawberries, she has received hundreds of cartons from her admirers. Here she is enjoying a cozy bite..."

Evie smiled. "See, this is the land of opportunity. We can be whatever we want to be here. So, please, let's just leave the past in the past, okay? Besides, I mean, look at the shoes." She picked up a pair of yellow and blue heels that matched Mal's dress. "Look at them."

"Mm. Severe," Mal mumbled with a small smile.

Maia traced her fingers over the purple chiffon dress. "Oh my gods! It's so soft!" She pressed it against my cheek and smiled.