Go the Distance

08

The group snuck through the forest to get to Fairy Cottage. Silence and stealth was necessary, as they didn't know if Audrey was still there or not.

They entered the cottage and it was silent. From a first look around, it seemed to be empty.

Jay and Elias ran upstairs and returned a moment later and said, "She's not upstairs."

The sound of banging from behind a door caught their attention. Maia whipped around at the sound.

Ben opened the door to reveal a wide-eyed Chad sitting in a fetal position and called, "Chad?"

Chad looked up at him, pure terror in his eyes. "I want my mommy."

Ben reached for Chad and he flinched away. "No!"

"It's okay," Ben said softly. "What happened buddy? Hmm?"

Chad looked around and stood up before staring at Ben. "Ben. Ben! Your face." He touched Ben's facial hair. "She's gone? Huh?" They nodded and noticed the door. "The door is open. I'm free. Freedom!" He ran out of the cottage. "Oh! Freedom!"

They continued searching the cottage for any sign of Audrey, but she was gone.

They walked out of the cottage and Uma said, "Ooh. All right. Let's get this Audrey chick taken care of already. What do you say, girls? Time to wrap things up?"

Ben smiled at Maia. "You know, someday, you're gonna have to tell me how you guys all teamed up."

Maia chuckled softly. "One day we will."

Evie spoke up. "Actually, Mal promised to let all the kids off the Isle once this is over."

Ben looked at her. "Mal?"

Mal looked between the others. "I have to tell you guys something." She turned to face her friends, seeing the confused looks on their faces. "Um, I lied to you. The kids won't be coming off the Isle."

Jay frowned. "What do you mean?"

She sighed. "The program is shut down. And the barrier... will be closed for good."

"For Auradon's safety," Ben added.

"It's only temporary," Maia added hastily. "Mal wanted permanent, but I offered temporary until we get this sorted."

Uma walked up to Mal. "Hold up. So, we're saving your precious people and your behinds for a lie. I knew it was a mistake to trust you. You're always out for yourself."

Harry glared at Ben. "And you, King Benny... you're probably just gonna throw us all back inside." His gaze turned to Maia. "At least you tried."

Celia narrowed her eyes. "You know what? I actually thought you were brave. You're nothing but a chicken. Too scared to tell me I was never gonna see my dad again."

"Celia. Celia," Mal called as she nabbed the ember from my hand. She dropped the ember into the water. "Celia, no! Celia! No! No." I picked up the ember and tried to relight it. "Regain your might and ignite! No... regain your might and ignite!"

Uma held up her shell to see that it was no longer glowing. "Bummer." She turned to Harry. "Let's go find Gil and leave them all to rot."

The two of them walked off and Mal called out behind them, "No. Uh... Uma!" She turned back to her friends. "Evie... Maia... I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, I just... I thought that you... I was afraid to tell you two. I thought I was gonna lose my best friends. But I had to do something. I had to protect Auradon."

Evie's eyes narrowed. "Closing the barrier was your idea?"

Maia's glare deepened. "Mal, how could you? I would have never. That's why I suggested a temporary closing."

"I did it for us," Mal told them. "I did it for the life that we have here now."

Evie scoffed. "For our life? What about the kids that we left behind on that island? The kids that we promised? We were their only hope. I thought you were gonna stand up for the VKs. But instead, you lied to them. And you lied to Jay. And you lied to Carlos. And you lied to Maia. And you lied to Elias. And you lied to me."

Her eyes began watering. "Evie. Maia." The two of them walked away and she said, "Evie, come on. Maia, please. I had no choice." They were silent, and suddenly, her friends were turned to stone. "No," she cried.

"Here you are alone and you deserve it.
Your friends have turned to stone and that's on you.

You had a cause to serve, but did you serve it?
Or did you see yourself in a way that wasn't true?

This is not your father's fairytale.
And no, it's not your mother's fault you fail.
So when your story comes to light,
Make sure the story that they write,

Goes once upon a time, a girl tried harder.
Once upon a time she tried again.
Once upon a braver choice,
She took a risk and used her voice.
And that will be my once upon a time,
This time.

Why tell all those lies, you feel unworthy.
Like there isn't solid ground for you to stand.
But a stack of lies is not a firm foundation.
You cannot build a castle on a mountain made of sand.

This is not your mother's dark desire.
And no, it's not your mother's hair on fire.
Turns out it's you who's not awake,
So if there's change you wanna make,

Take once upon a time, she fought a dragon.
One upon a time, that beast was me.
Once upon a misspent youth,
She faced herself,
She spoke the truth.
That's how I see my once upon a time,
This time."

Mal ran up to Harry and Uma. "Uma! Stop! Please, stop! I need your help. We have a chance if we do this together."

Uma frowned. "Your friends kick you to the curb?" The look on my face said everything. "Good."

She moved closer to her. "Ben and Elias saw something in you. And today, Uma, I saw it too. You care. Uma, you care about everybody. And Auradon is worth saving. Help us! Please."

Harry looked at her in anger, and she didn't blame him. "You talk pretty, but... she's already made up her mind."

Uma pursed her lips. "You brought this upon yourself, Mal. You figure out how to fix it. Let's go." She and Harry walked off and Mal was left with the sadness and guilt to plague her once again.

"Life is not a storybook, but life unfolds in chapters.

Turn the page and start to make amends.
There's no pre-written guarantee of 'happy ever after'.

Step into your greatness before your story ends.

So when your story ends,

They'll say, once upon a time, a girl flew higher.

Once upon a time, she made things right.
Once upon a tie that binds,
She changed her heart
To change their minds.
That's got to be my once upon a time.

This once upon a time,
I'll finally see my once upon a time,
This time."