Ben looked himself over in the mirror, brushing his honey-blonde hair out of his hazel green eyes. The suit for his coronation was coming along better than he had expected. He let out a silent sigh. Coronation. In less than a month, he would be crowned king of the United States of Auradon, taking the mantle from his father, the first king.
"Don't move!" The royal tailor hissed for the third time that day. Ben was a fidgety king-to-be. The door to the room they were in walked woman in a yellow sundress, her golden-blonde curls pinned close to her head and her arm interlocked with that of a broad shouldered stately gentleman in glasses.
"I can't believe you're going to be king soon," Adam said to his son.
"He is turning sixteen!" Belle said with delight.
"I know. It's far too young. I didn't make a good decision until I was...42," Adam said with a smile.
Belle scoffed, giving her husband a light shove. "You decided to marry me at 28."
"Well..."
"I know what I want my first royal decree to be!" Ben said quickly, to keep his parents from bickering more.
"Honey, that's great! What is it?" Belle asked.
"I want to give a chance to the children on the Isle of the Lost. Let them live here, in Auradon," Ben said.
"The Isle of the Lost? Ben, those children are-" His father gasped. Seeing the look on the king's face, the royal tailor decided to bow out of the room silently, not wanting to draw attention, or ire, onto himself.
"The children of villains, I know. We start out with just a few, those who most need it. I know who I want to bring."
"Who are their parents?" Belle asked quietly, afraid of what her son might say.
"Cruella De Vil, Jafar, the Evil Queen, Dr. Facilier, and..." Ben paused, "Maleficent."
"Maleficent!" Adam demanded. "She is the most evil of-"
"I know!" Ben sighed. "But they are not their parents."
Belle put her hand on her husband's arm. "I gave you a second chance."
The king sighed, looking between his wife and his son. Both stared at him with resolution, and he could see so much of his wife in his son's face. There would be no dissuading either of them.
"This isn't going to be easy," Adam said with finality. He offered his arm to his wife who took it. Together, they walked from the room, leaving Ben alone. He walked to the window, looking out. Across the bay that surrounded Auradon, he could see the Isle of the Lost, dark storm clouds trapped within the magical barrier that kept the Isle's inhabitants away from the rest of Auradon.
He reached down for his ring. His fingers traced the familiar ridges of his father's beastial face, and Ben let out a sigh. "No, it's not..."
The Isle of the Lost was a dingy slum, cut off from the rest of Auradon, though its inhabitants could look passed the barrier and across the bay at the glittering utopia of Auradon. Those unfortunate enough to be trapped on the Isle had to scrounge what they could, steal what they couldn't, and do whatever it took to survive.
For some, it was easier than others. The sun had just barely reached its peak in the sky when there was a commotion in the business district of the isle.
"Stop him!" A shopkeeper yelled as a long haired youth in a red sleeveless leather vest ran from his stall. A loaf of bread was tucked under the thief's arm. But everyone in the district knew it was useless. Jay and his father, Jafar, were known across the Isle for stealing from you and then selling back your stolen goods at twice what they were really worth.
No one dared challenge Jay, whose muscles and speed made him a force to be reckoned with. No, instead they let him dash through the alleys between the grimy brick buildings. All the better for him, because he really didn't want anyone following him to his hideout.
Jay dropped onto his hip, stretching his legs out as he slid across the dirty street. It was wet from the rain the night before, and carried him directly down a sewer drain. He landed boots first in the muck at the bottom, but the rest of the way through the pipes were clear.
Music filled the air, soft jazz notes coming from deeper in the sewers. Jay smirked softly to himself and made his way to the hideout, the entrance behind a long removed sewer-grate.
Inside, he found his four best friends. Evie was curled up in her arm chair, her nose buried in a book. She absentmindedly twirled a strand of blue hair between her fingers as she read. Next to her sat the stack of books she'd already finished that morning, towering as tall as the arm of her chair.
In the corner sat Mal, her purple hair plastered to her forehead with sweat. She was concentrating on her latest sketch, one pencil in her fingers and another clenched between her plump lips. Jay had never seen inside the sketchbook she carried, the cover embossed with the same entwined dragon design Evie had stitched to her favorite purple leather jacket.
Carlos sat at the table in the center of the room, various bits and bobbles to his latest gizmo scattered around him. His white hair stuck out in every direction, contrasting with the black half of his outfit, but matching with the white half.
On one of the beds was Jay's last friend, Drake. The Cajun sat on the bed, slowly blowing notes out of his trumpet, adding to the ambiance of the room. He looked up at Jay, the brim of his hat covering his violet eyes. He grinned his toothy grin. "You're back."
Jay held up the loaf of bread. "And I brought a snack."
Everyone looked up and smiled at Jay. He set the bread on the table, accidentally knocking some crumbs onto Carlos's gears. "Hey, watch it!" He yelled.
Jay ignored him, tearing the bread into pieces and passing them around to his gathered friends.
"Maaaaaaaal!" A nasally voice rang out through the sewers, and probably over the whole Isle. Everyone looked to their purple haired friend. She sighed and put the bread down. Mal walked out of the hideout, her friends in tow. At the manhole cover they used to get out, waited a woman in a black robe. Her purple sleeves flared to the ground and her head was adorned with a horned headdress.
"Hello, Mother," Mal sighed. Maleficent clicked her tongue.
"Mal, darling. I'm disappointed in you. Skulking about? When I was your age, I was cursing-"
"Entire kingdoms. I know. You've told me," Mal said. She rolled her eyes when her mother looked away.
"The evil is in the details, girl. You need to start thinking bigger! Like world domination!"
"World domination?" Mal asked.
"Yes! Oh! There's news. I was getting to that. You five," Maleficent gestured to her daughter and her four friends, "are going to Auradon!" She strode off.
"What?!" They demanded in unison, following her.
"There's no way we're going to a boarding school full of pretty pink princesses," Mal said, disdain coloring her tone.
"And perfect princes!" Evie interjected.
"Not helping!" Mal snapped.
"Look, I'm sorry but I don't do uniforms," Jay said, flexing his muscles.
Carlos looked nervous. "I heard there are dogs in Auradon. I don't do dogs."
"I'm with them," Drake sighed, "this sounds like a terrible idea."
The group came to a dingy high rise, one of the largest buildings on the Isle. Of course, Maleficent would settle for no less. She was the Mistress of All Evil, after all. Through the large windows on the upper floor, Mal's friends could see their own parents, shadows of their former villainous selves.
Maleficent lead them up through the building to the apartment she and Mal lived in. The most dominating thing in the space was Maleficent's throne, set before a window made of various panes of green glass. She swept herself into the seat. "You're going, and that's that. You know why? Fairy Godmother is there, and where she is, her wand is. You steal the wand, you break us free, we take over."
Mal gave her mother a sidelong glance. "And what's in it for us?"
"Matching thrones, matching crowns, all the power you could-"
"I meant, us." She gestured to her friends, the few she had on the Isle. In a world populated entirely by the world's most unsavory, it was hard to find people you could trust.
"Well, if you don't, you're grounded for life," Maleficent cackled gleefully. Mal's green eyes stared into her own, and for a moment a hush settled over the apartment. Finally, Mal's gaze broke.
"Okay, we'll go."
"Evie, come here!" A woman in a blue robe snapped, trying to adjust the crown on her head in a small handheld mirror. "Help Mommy."
Evie walked over to her mother with a sigh and fixed the crown on her head. The Evil Queen motioned for her daughter to sit in the chair across from her. She checked Evie's face thoroughly, brushing a lock of blue hair back behind her ear.
"You just focus on getting yourself a prince with a big castle and lots of money." The Evil Queen wiggled a finger in her daughter's face. She picked up a blush brush and touched up her daughter's cheeks.
Evie nodded. A chance to regain her mother's former glory, and live in a castle like a princess of her standing was supposed to...that's what this trip to Auradon really meant. Maleficent could blather on about the wand all she wanted, but wealth and power were what really mattered.
"Well, Carlos isn't going," A woman with hair half black, half white declared. Her clothes looked top of the line, white and black designs all over them. They had gone out of style in Auradon proper, but here on the Isle, where people wore whatever scraps they could, she was queen of fashion. "I need someone to try on my designs and fetch my cigarettes. Plus, there's dogs."
Carlos gulped. His mother had told him about dogs, vicious creatures that were ready to turn on you at a moment's notice. He'd seen pictures in some of Evie's books, and they looked like the sort of thing he'd want to avoid.
"Jay isn't going either. I need him to stock my shop," Jafar said, readjusting his turban. He looked at his son, who could see his reflection in the polished ruby that always sat in the forefront of his father's headwear. Jay started to remove the various items he had stolen all around the Isle, piling them in front of his father's widening eyes. Jafar whooped with glee.
Only Drake's father, Dr. Facilier had not objected. The shadow man stepped into the light, showing off his half skeletal form, from years spent in the voodoo underworld paying his debt to shadow spirits. He grinned in his twisted way and pulled his son close. A flesh hand rested on Drake's right shoulder, a skeletal hand on his left. "I think it's a wonderful idea," he drawled in his Cajun tone.
Drake turned to look at his father, staring from his empty eye socket to the skeleton on his top hat. "You do?"
"Absolutely. A chance to break out of here. Horn-head isn't totally barking mad."
"Barking! Ha!" Cruella squealed.
"Shut up! Skeleton-man has a point. This is our chance! We can finally take revenge!" Maleficent looked at each villain in turn. "Revenge on those stupid mutts, or Aladdin and his genie, or Snow White and her seven munchkins, or Tiana and that frog freak of hers." Every villain nodded their agreement, seeing the light of Maleficent's plans. Plans which rested on a quintet of teenagers.
"Give her the mirror." Maleficent nudged the Evil Queen, gesturing towards Evie. The queen reached into her trumpet sleeve and produced a small, cracked mirror. She handed it to Evie, who turned it over in her hands. The back was gilded and ornate, a face carved into it.
"This is your magic mirror?" She asked skeptically.
"It's not what it used to be, but it'll show you things. All you have to do is ask. It won't work here of course, but there..."
"Like the wand!" Maleficent cackled. Both Evie and the Evil Queen rolled their eyes. Dr. Facilier reached into his vest, his fingers drumming around in his skeletal ribcage. He pulled out a small mask-like amulet, passing it to Drake. He turned it over, seeing nothing spectacular about it.
"It's a charm, boy. It'll grant the wearer good luck when filled with someone's blood, but be careful. Magic comes at a price." He curled Drake's fingers around it, who fought a shiver against his father's cold bones. He looked up and nodded to Dr. Facilier.
"Mal, you'll need this." Maleficent, not to be outdone, pulled a painting from the wall, revealing a hole in the plaster. She reached in, pulling out a small leather bound book, a golden dragon on the front. "It's gonna have everything you need to get the wand."
Mal took the book with pursed lips. A horn downstairs sounded, letting all ten people in the apartment know that the ride to Auradon was here.
Down in the streets, the sleek black limo, shinier than anything on the Isle, had brought a crowd of onlookers. What was a car carrying the symbol of King Adam, a golden beast face on a blue field, doing in a place like the Isle. They had all been but forgotten by the people of Auradon.
Two men, totally identical down to their slate grey suits, stepped out of the front seat. Having packed their things in various carpet bags, steamer trunks, and a trash bag or two, the five villain kids loaded their entire lives into the spacious trunk of the limo.
One of the suited men opened the back door, allowing them into the spacious back seat that wrapped around the side of the middle of the limo. The other side was dominated by a minibar covered in every kind of sweet and treat the kids could imagine, and several they couldn't.
As the limo pulled away, parting the crowd like the sea, Mal caught eyes with her mother, who gave her nothing but a knowing wink. She sighed and settled back into the seat, looking at her four compatriots.
"Mal, you're frowning. Stop, it'll give you wrinkles." Evie said, pulling out a makeup kit. She started to touch up her friend's looks before Mal waved a hand in front of her face.
"I'm scheming."
"Aren't you always?" Drake arched an eyebrow, sliding away from a quarrelling Jay and Carlos, who were fighting over a chocolate peanut butter cup, despite the pile of them on the minibar. On the Isle, if someone else had it, that meant you didn't, and so the first response was to steal.
Evie glanced out in front of the downed divider between their seat and the front seat where the goons are. They had made it to the outer reaches of the Isle, the blown out bridge mere feet in front of them. "Look!" She screamed.
All four kids began to panic. It was a trap. The people in Auradon had sent the car to kill them, to start eradicating the stain that was the Isle of the Lost. But instead of diving head first into the bay, a golden, glittering bridge formed in front of the car. They crossed the bay with ease, more sun flooding into the car.
"Welcome to Auradon..." Mal sighed, looking out the window. This was going to be a long day.