Yo Ho Yo Ho

Confrontation

Kittys POV
I kneeled in the grass and picked at the blades as I watched the barrier came down and drove Harry away.
I heard the crunching of leaves from behind me and felt a hand on my shoulder. Ben knelt down next to me and I said to him, "How'd you know?"
He held out the message in the bottle. "Mal told me. She thought that if you went face to face with him, you could let it go. You could let him go."

I felt betrayed. They knew. They all knew that that wouldn't have been the case. That being face to face with Harry I would forget the infidelity and I would forget how sad I felt because he just made that all melt. He made me melt. Mal knew what Harry meant to me, what he still means to me. And now I sit here plucking blades of grass and and torn between the two worlds which I feel as if I don't belong in either.

"I can see that didn't work." Ben sighed as he shifted his legs and sat cross crossed. And I shook my head.
"What happened to you back there?" He asked moving his hand to brush a stray tear, that I thought I kept in and I flinched.
"Why do you flinch so hard?"
I felt interrogated and I started to panick. Nothing looked familiar and my ears were ringing but I couldn't move.

"Because maybe there was a time someone wasn't kidding when they swung at me." I said leaving him sitting there.

"Wait Kitty!" He said from behind me and approaching the chaos was the rest of the VKs. "As your King I'm asking you to come back!" Ben roared.

"As my King!" I said as my features began to change. My eyes became purple and my nails grew into claws. My hair became purple flames and burnt the hair tie and engulfed behind me. "I don't take orders from men anymore. I don't need men to tell me what to say, how to act, what to wear, or when to respond." I said walking back towards him.

I was face to face with Ben and he looked like he was scared.
"You wanna know what happened on the Isle? You wanna know why I flinch so hard? You wanna know why I panic when I hear loud noises." I asked devilishly. I lifted my shirt with three cat scratch scars across my side.
"Because this is what happens when you say no to men."

"Kitty.." Evie said from behind me. "Careful. The world watches now."
"Sorry kids. You don't get to see my party trick after all." I said backing up but keeping eye contact with Ben.
As I passed Mal she grabbed my arm and looked at me with pursed lips.
"Any other surprises you have for me?" I asked her and her face dropped.
"I thought it would
help. Ben wanted you two to have peace."
"No one wearing a crown comes in the name of peace." I whispered in her ear and yanked my arm from her grip and she gasped.

I walked the primeter of Auradon alone. The bell chimed for dinner and I just kept walking. I reached woodys parts and tried hard to get lost.
"Get lost." I said as my ears perked up from the sound of a twig snapping.
"No." Carlos said. "How'd you even..?"
"You're heavy on your feet, and I could smell you a mile away." I said never turning around.
"You want to talk? Or do you want to just walk?"
"Walk. Alone." I spat.
"No you don't." He said and I stopped finally and turned to him. "You can fool them but not me." He said. And I knew he was right. But Id eat a poison apple before I admitted it.
"You really shocked them all. With the hair and everything." He said giggling.

"I remember the night we found out you could do that. I ate your last black and white cookie."
"No." I said correcting him. "It was when you told Evies mom I cut her bangs when it was you and Jay!"
"Is that a smile?" He said wrapping his arm around my shoulders and squeezing me in.

I covered my face and I couldn't help but start crying. I crouched down and Carlos just rubbed my back in small circles. I knew he knew this was coming.
"I know sissy." He said and I couldn't talk. I would inhale and it I would shake. My hands were shaking my knees were shaking.

"I didn't mean to-" I said.
"I know sis. It's okay. You gotta breathe though okay? For me."
I still didn't take my hands over my eyes and Is started seeing colors from pressing my hands over my eyes so hard.
"Let's do 5,4,3,2,1s okay?" He said sitting in front of me. "Okay. 5 things you can see." I took my hands off eyes and looked around.
"Um. The Isle. Trees. The moon. Uh, castles and you."
"4 things you can hear."
"Um the wind. Leaves crunching under your big butt." I said and we both laughed. "Your laugh."
"Doesn't count." Carlos said and I rolled my eyes. "Yes it does. And uhhh the clock ticking."
"3 things you can touch."
"Grass. Tree bark. Your hand."
"Two things you can smell." He said rubbing my hand.

I inhaled deeply and all it did was cause me to shudder again. But I tried to concentrate hard and put my senses to work.
"Um the sea and air?"
"Air? Really?" He said laughing.
"Like I don't know. You know like the smell of outside."
"I guess. Now give me one thing you can taste."
"Salt." I said licking my lips.

"Alright. Good. Now, what's going on in that mad head of yours." He said rubbing my hair.
"I don't feel like I belong here, or back on the Isle. Everything hurts. Everywhere is painful to be. And everyone tells me that time heals everything but the scars are still here and I can't forget what happened and I can't forget how I felt!"
"I understand. But did you know that your skin cells shed?"
"What?" I asked confused and annoyed.
"One day, you'll have all new skin. Skin that has never been scarred or burnt."

"I just hate it. That I'll always have this soft spot for Harry. I can't ignore the fact that he had been there for me, the same as you and the others. I can't ignore that he protected me just like you and Jay. Did you know Mal told Ben to have Harry over here? Don't you dare lie to me." I said pointing at him.
"She mentioned it sure. But I didn't think it would actually happen. I knew that she knew that when you saw Harry again, it would be like nothing bad had ever happened."

He was right. That's exactly what happens, every time. They never want to discuss what triggered you, just how you reacted.
"Ben means well Kit. They don't understand us, but he's trying."
"We were children Carlos. Weapons? Monsters? No! Children. We meet evil when we were children! They grew up with homes, and family dinners and holidays! We grew up fearing what was sleeping in the next room! We had to survive on scraps! We weren't fed love on a sliver spoons so we licked it off knives. No matter how much we tell them, they'll never understand."

"But they'll listen." He said calmly. "They'll listen to us, so that those kids.." he said pointing to the Isle, voice cracking. "those kids, don't need to go through what we did. But we have to be the example. We have to be the phoenix that rises out of the ashes."

"We grew up in a hating world spiraling into darkness and death. And dying was never our biggest fear, watching the world burn around us was expected. But we need to be fully prepared to repair the damage our parents put on our names. And we need you, we want you here with us. If you don't do it for anyone else, do it for the lives of those kids still stuck on that Isle."

"You're right." I said letting it all soak in.
"I-I'm what? I'm sorry did I psh did I misunderstand you?"
"Don't make me take it back."
"Nu uh. No takesies backsies." And I rolled my eyes as he hugged my shoulders.

We got up to head back to the center of Auradon. This is why I knew I needed Carlos here. It's like there was this book on me and how to be the best person in the world for me and he memorized it cover to cover.

"I love you sis."
"I love you, bruddie." I said teasing him.
"Shhhh!" He said covering my mouth with his hand. "Someone could hear you!"
"Oh so you didn't want me to tell people the pet names your mom gave you?"
"Oh no. You didn't."
"Not yet."
"You brat!" He said as we began to play fight. "I beat you up before I'll do it again." I said pinning him. He put his hands up in defense and sat up.

"Just one last question." Carlos said looking more serious.
"Mm?" I said turning to him.
"Why did you choose to bargain me over Harry?"