A/N: Hey...guess who's back :) I'm so very happy to be back with a new chapter. I'm sorry it's been a long time since my last update but real life commitments got in the way. But it wasn't only that. I'm happy to announce that I've embarked on a new story...a future collaboration between myself and my beta Wanderlustandfreedom. As I was writing this chapter, a plot bunny for a new story got into my head and I just couldn't put it aside so I ended up dropping everything else to get working on it. It's still at it's initial stages but look out for our exciting new project coming out in the weeks/months.
As always a big thank you goes to my beta Wanderlustandfreedom for her precious help with this chapter. And I'd also like to thank my reviewers Carvie16, fresh-BLOOD-was-drawn-2night, AmethystDragon14, Harry Potter Fan 1994, SparkyGurly 227 and Marie19 for having left a review for the last chapter. Any feedback (big or small) is always appreciated and is a great motivational boost for me to continue writing so don't be afraid to leave me a message with your thoughts.
AmethystDragon14: You think Ben is coming for Mal...there might be a little more drama and angst until that happens but well you'll have to read to find out what happens :) But there'll be some great Bal in the future and I'm really excited for it :D
Marie19: Thank you for your review and your excitement squeal :) Mal is so far completely unaware of Ben's actions but you're wondering if Uma is going to meddle with them...mmmmm...you might be on to something ;)
fresh-BLOOD-was-drawn-2night: Well I didn't really get into the physical descriptions of Lonnie & Carlos but I took the creative liberty of turning them into siblings so in my head Carlos is the one who's got similar physical features to Lonnie since he's the younger one here. Chad has a lot to atone for so all I'll tell you is to watch out for him. Audrey is an dissowned granddaughter at this stage and she doesn't know anything of Stefan's sins yet but yes it will be interesting to see how Audrey's story will conclude.
SparkyGurly 227: I'm so happy that you've enjoyed last chapter and that is gave you a tonne of feels :) Jay's and Lonnie's marriage is definitely a ray of sunshine in the story's current doom and gloom.
Carvie16: I'd say you should be glad that Chad is back - Ben is going to get all the help he can get to get the upper hand against Gaston, Stefan & Uma. There's still a long way to go till the end and so much more to happen. And I hope to manage to surprise you with some other plot twists along the way.
Harry Potter Fan 1994: The end of this chapter is all on you - in the spirit of our little game of guess the plot :D. The fact that I've managed to surprise you with at least 1 plot twist is such a proud achievement for me...you have no idea lol !
Anyways, going back to the story. Last chapter, Mal met King Stefan and in a surprising turn of events, discovered that he's her parent's killer through a heart breaking flashback. Elsewhere, Ben traveled back to Auradon and found an unexpected ally in Jay who took him to where Lonnie and Carlos are hiding. Lonnie and Ben had a long overdue talk and fixed their friendship and Ben discovered that Jay and Lonnie are in love and planning to get married and that Friar Tuck and Godmother have survived Gaston's attack on the Black Arrow. Chad also made his comeback and after some convincing from Friar Tuck, Ben welcomed him back into the fold to help him save Mal who, in the meantime, has been imprisoned in the Dwarf Mines by King Stefan. What is going to happen now to our favorite Descendants couple? Let's find out...
Chapter 32
"I want Ben!" Gaston spat, staring at Uma, who was standing across from him, with a pointed look. His obsession with finding his adopted son had only intensified as the days went by. Ben was the last obstacle left to his rise to power. The Dwarf mines didn't earn their epithet as the hell of the living souls from just anywhere, and it was only a matter of time before Mal would buckle. She'd marry King Stefan, making him the high king of the entire fairy tale land and Gaston his second in command. The lord inwardly smirked. King Stefan was getting older, and Gaston knew that if he played his cards well, it wouldn't be long before he'd find a way to get rid of both him and Mal and take his place. He'd ridden himself of Adam all those years ago, and nothing would stop him now. But the news of Mal's imprisonment in the mines wouldn't remain a secret for long. He'd have to find and kill Ben before the rogue prince could attempt to free her somehow. Ben's death would be the ultimate weapon to crumble Mal's defiant resolve.
Gaston watched a brief flash of anger in Uma's eyes before she turned away from him to look at the ground. "Ben's no longer in Camelot," she replied. The lord arched a brow as he took in her unusual subdued demeanor. She'd tried to hide it, but he'd caught the way her voice shook at the mention of Ben's name. Had something happened during his stay in Camelot?
"So, where is he?" Gaston asked.
"I don't know," she paused, still looking away from Gaston. "He left."
Gaston walked up to Uma and spun her around to face him. His eyes locked on hers with an understanding gaze as he pieced everything together. "Something happened between you and Ben. Am I right?" he asked.
Several seconds of silence were exchanged between them before Uma took a deep breath. "More than something," she confessed, trying to keep her voice steady but once again unable to conceal a betraying tremor.
"But he left you, didn't he?" Gaston pushed on as Uma's calm façade crumbled, and a tear rolled its way down her cheek. "You must have been heartbroken," he commented, straightening himself.
The room faded into silence again as Uma tried to re-compose herself. "Why are you asking me about this? Are you jealous, Gaston?"
Gaston clenched his jaw as he tried to keep in the growl that threatened to escape his throat at the question. Of course, he wasn't jealous of Ben. He pushed the scorching heat in his chest away for another time and focused his thoughts back to his plan. His face almost broke into a smirk as an idea formed. Maybe there was an easier way to break Mal's resolve without the need to kill Ben. "I'll need proof that you and Ben were lovers," he stated.
"And why should I?" she countered.
"Because Mal is imprisoned in the Dwarf mines, and by giving me that proof, you'll be able to get your revenge against her," Gaston replied. He walked across the dining room in their secret cabin and reached out for his outer coat. "Think about it," Gaston repeated, putting the garment on. He gave her one last look and walked out of the cabin.
Hours later, Gaston made his way through Auradon's castle's long corridors towards Claudette's bedroom. The lord was a few meters away when he stopped, startled, as his wife's soft voice began to echo off the stone walls over the deafening silence. Gaston ran a jerky hand through his hair before walking up to the door and peering inside. Why was his wife singing a lullaby? His stomach twisted as he stared at a pale Claudette sitting up in bed, rocking a wrapped-up blanket in her arms. He shuddered, taking in her vacant look and held his breath. Gaston continued to gape at the scene in front of him.
"Hush-a-bye, don't you cry. Go to sleepy little baby," Claudette sang in a soothing voice, "When you wake, you will have all the pretty little horses. Black and bays, dapples, and grays. Coach and six-a-little horses. Hush-a-bye, don't you cry. Go to sleep, little baby." Gaston stepped inside the room, and Claudette froze, looking up with a sudden panicked expression. "The little one is hungry. She needs her mother," she declared while scanning the room, almost frantic.
Gaston's felt the color leave his face, and he squeezed his eyes closed. Over the last few weeks, he'd focused his thoughts on Mal's upcoming marriage to King Stefan and finding Ben, burying his guilt over his affair with Uma and Claudette's degenerating health condition. He'd convinced himself that his wife would get over Ben's loss. After all, Ben had turned from his adopted son and heir to his archenemy almost overnight, and the Lord was fine. He'd find Ben and kill him without blinking an eye as he did with Adam. And Claudette would get better soon. She only needed a little more time. "What little one, Claudette?" he asked. "There's no baby here."
"Mal! Ben!" she exclaimed. Her unfocused gaze darted around the room. "The little one is hungry. Where are you?" A brief, tense silence stretched between them. "I have to go find them," Claudette declared, reaching out to remove her bed covers. The movement caused the sheet in her arms to drop and unwrap itself at her feet.
Claudette's eyes widened like a startled owls' while fear froze its way into Gaston's spine, and a cold weight settled into his stomach. He walked up to the bed and sat down, reaching for the abandoned bed sheet with shaking hands. "It's only a sheet, Claudette," Gaston murmured, eyes bright as a pained look crossed his face. "Claudette, tell me what I have to do," he pleaded, his throat going dry and turning into a croak, "to see you smile again."
Claudette turned her gaze towards her husband as if realizing he was in the room with her. She reached out for his arms. "Bring Ben home," she whispered. "I beg you, Gaston. Let me see him one last time before it's too late." She paused, paling even further. "What are you hiding from me, Gaston? What did you do to Ben?"
"Nothing," Gaston replied. "I haven't done anything to him, Claudette."
"Don't hate Ben. Don't hate your son." Claudette replied.
And it was only at that moment that he finally felt the guilt as waves of memories flooded him. Ben's adoring look of love and admiration towards him whenever he comforted him at night after a bad dream or trained him to sword fight. Claudette's and a young Ben's laughter warming his soul as they ran after each other across the castle's courtyard. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to convince himself once again that it didn't matter. Ben was never his son. He'd only been a pawn in his ultimate revenge against Adam, and now he'd kill him, and all the Fairy-tale land would be his. The last man standing is always right, and it would be him at all costs.
- ̴- ̴- ̴- ̴- ̴- ̴- ̴-THE BLACK ARROW ̴- ̴- ̴- ̴- ̴- ̴- ̴- ̴-
Mal had spent a night locked in Auroria's dungeons before King Stefan himself had come to the prison to tell her that he'd decided to imprison her in the dwarf mines until she'd come to her senses and decide to marry him. The mines' trip had been long and uncomfortable, and her wrists were raw from the tight marks left by the ropes that had bound her to the wooden cage she'd been taken in, but Mal didn't care. Her mind was only able to focus on one thought. She'd find a way to escape and avenge her parent's death. Stefan would pay for what he'd done.
Mal kept a straight face, eyes shining with defiance as she followed the guard who was leading her through the mines' narrow passageways. She was still wearing the blue tunic, which was now caked with dirt and mud despite her best efforts not to trip in its long skirts as she walked over the rough rock. The air around her became more stale and heavy, and the echo of the metal pickaxes against the hard rock walls around her only intensified the further in they walked.
Mal's eyes spotted a young girl walking in front of them. The princess couldn't make out much because of the dim lighting inside the passageway, but the girl couldn't be much older than her, and the chest she was carrying seemed to be filled to the brim with rocks. The girl suddenly lost her balance and swayed to the side. She dropped the chest before collapsing to the side, managing to grab onto one of the support wooden beams before falling down a mineshaft. Mal's guard stopped and strode to the girl, grasping her arm in a vice grip. He lifted her back up to her feet and began to drag her along the corridor. Mal's eyes darkened as she followed the pair.
"Why did you stop? Why aren't you working?" the guard shouted. "Come on, move." The girl screamed in pain, and the guard continued to drag her along. They turned around a corner, and Mal watched, horrified, as the guard tossed the girl to the ground, who landed in a mud pool. "Now that's your place of work," the guard smirked.
Mal bolted past the guard and dropped beside the girl, helping her to her feet. "Are you hurt?" she asked, her voice laced with concern. The girl shook her head.
The guard's laughter boomed across the passageway as the two girls stood up. "Don't feel too sorry for the people here, princess. That's the way things go around here," the guard smirked, walking up to Mal.
"I'll get used to it," Mal retorted, staring at the guard with blazing eyes.
"You'd better. My orders are clear," the guard replied. "You'll be allowed to stop for one hour to eat and five hours to sleep. You'll have to carry the bags with iron for six hours and dig in the mud for another seven hours while the remaining five hours you'll spend them cleaning the guard's quarters." He picked a discharged pickaxe from the ground and gave it to her. "You know what you have to do to get out of it. You're very important to King Stefan, but no one will give you any preferential treatment. So get to work now." He laughed before turning around and walking away to check on the other prisoners.
"What's your name?" Mal asked the girl once the guard was out of sight.
"Dizzy," she replied, "And yours?"
"Mal," the princess replied. "I'm sorry for the way he treated you. It's not fair."
"After treating us like animals for so long, they become beasts themselves too," Dizzy said before turning to look away.
"I'm not afraid," Mal stated.
"You should be. Women are continuously mistreated," Dizzy said as her voice began to shake. She snaked an arm around her waist. "But I'll kill them before I allow them to touch me in any way," she paused. "I'm carrying a child."
Mal's heart skipped a beat. "You're pregnant?"
Dizzy nodded, looking up at Mal. "It's the last thing I've left of my husband, Aziz. I'm afraid. Please don't tell anyone. They'd beat me until I lost it – even unto death."
Mal closed the space between them so that she could squeeze her arm in comfort. "You can trust me. I'll help you hide it in any way I can."
"Let's go," Dizzy whispered as she eyed another guard approach them from the other side of the tunnel.
̴- ̴- ̴- ̴- ̴
Mal had lost all track of time as she scrubbed away at the floor of one of the guards' cabins and jumped when the door slammed shut. She stopped, looking up as a guard walked to her before hauling her up to her feet. He dragged her to a water basin across the room and stuffed a clean, white piece of cloth in her hand. "Clean yourself up and make yourself presentable," he ordered.
Mal scowled at the guard but dipped the cloth in the basin. She cleaned her face and hands from all the dirt and mud. She'd never admit it to anyone, but she felt refreshed for the first time in days since she'd arrived at the mines. But that feeling of happiness didn't last long. The guard grabbed her by the arm again and led her to another room in the soldier's quarters. Mal scanned her surroundings, taking in the two armed soldiers by the door frame. Her expression turned stony as soon as she spotted Stefan at the far end of the room. The king had a wide smirk all over his face as his eyes flitted over her.
Stefan left the shadows and made his way towards her. "Mal," he whispered as the princess's green eyes lit up with intense hatred, and her cheeks began to turn red with anger. "I've missed you, my love. I had to see you," he continued until he stopped in front of her. "I had to see for myself the effect of your new life here at the mines." He reached out for her hands, but Mal smacked his hand away. "You're even more beautiful than the last time I saw you, Mal."
Mal kept a straight face, staring ahead as she tried to control the anger boiling in her veins. "Maleficent is watching over us, Mal, and she'd want you to be mine," Stefan murmured, lifting his hand to caress her cheek, but Mal caught it mid-air and smacked it away a second time.
Stefan's expression darkened. "So, this is the way you want it, you foolish girl. Have it your way," Stefan retorted with a smirk. "Let's see how you fend off two days without food. You won't be able to hold up much longer, and then you'll have no choice but to give in to my will. You will be mine! Take her away," he ordered.
Mal glared at the king as the two guards led her away. They released her in another room of the soldier's quarters, one she'd never seen before. The apartment was well furnished compared to the living places. There was a wooden desk and a dining table and a long silk curtain that hid the right-hand corner. Mal presumed it was meant to separate the sleeping quarter. She walked up to the cover and yanked it aside, and her mouth formed a perfect 'O' when she came face to face with the last person she'd expected to find in the mines.
A/N: Oh look what I've done...I left a cliffhanger...how evil of me lol XD. Harrypotterfan1994 this is all on you and our spontaneous little game of Guess the plot. Who is the person Mal came face to face with at the mines? It's not a difficult guess so the only hint I'm going to give is that it's not a new character.
So what do you think? As I've always said, this story is primarily a Bal but all characters have their own development subplot hence the diving into Gaston's side of the story in this chapter - how will he deal with the guilt for his actions. Will he push aside Claudette's pleas and let his lust for power ultimately overpower him? I just love giving these villains these grey areas.
I've also introduced my version of Dizzy, which will be the last new Descendants character to make an appearance in the story. She might have a small part in the overall plot and it will be an important role during Mal's time in the mines. You'll see ;)
I can happily say that I'm already half way through the next chapter so I really hope that it doesn't get too sidetracked by mine and Wanderlustandfreedom's personal commitments. Till next time :)