Ben
Those screams...tortuous…gut wrenching...Never in his life had he ever once heard screams of that magnitude. He felt as if his heart was beating from his chest from the moment he first connected that sound to Mal...his Mal. These cars needed to go faster, why were they going so slow? Were they going slow? He wasn't sure; even if they were driving at the speed of light it wouldn't be fast enough. There were several cars from his guard all speeding across the palace and towards the Isle of the Lost. Mal just needed to hang on just a bit longer; but the question still remained...what happened?
Word was sent to his parents, though he didn't speak with them himself. He knew things were still immensely tense after sending Maleficent and the VK's back to the Isle, but he just had to get to Mal. They would understand in the end...they had to, right? And Evie, poor Evie had thought… He hated himself for ever giving her the impression that he had hesitated at sending help. God, did they all think that? That was furthest from the truth. He still felt for Mal; he felt for all of them and he did trust them. Although some of that trust had vanished, it was nowhere near the level at thinking that this whole thing was some trap. They wouldn't do that. Mal, wouldn't do that. Come on, drive faster!
Isle of the Lost
The group was finally at the barrier, but Ben wasn't there just yet. They stuck to the shadows, and the quiet of the square threatened to turn them all deaf. The immense lack of sound just screamed danger if any one of them made movement, and even the tiniest shift and crinkle of fabric stopped their hearts in fear. They all crossed their fingers that no one bumped Mal, or she had another attack. Her ragged breathing was already too loud in the quietness. Maleficent was still out there, somewhere in the dark. They only hoped she didn't think to look towards the bridge. After another 10 minutes of waiting, more sounds began to resonate around the Isle as their people began to stir and start their day. Now, the tiny noises they made blended in and some of the tension began to leave their bodies.
Evie had awoken about half way there while they stopped for Uma to re-pack the gash on her back. Gil stopped them all when he realized that it just wouldn't stop bleeding. After the temporary fix was in place, she protested when Gil picked her up once again, but he threatened her to keep quiet and that he didn't mind carrying her for the time being. She knew that he thought it was his fault at leaving her to scout ahead before Maleficent found her. She even told him once they were close to Ursulas that if he had been there, he would have been killed. He knew that too, but it didn't make him feel any less guilty. He had given her his coat once again, and told her to keep it this time.
Finally feeling safe enough to talk from their positions in an alley, Evie voiced what they all were thinking. "Uma...you know..."
"I know," the teal haired pirate interrupted. "We aren't coming. Who wants a bunch of villains running around the palace, right?" she scoffed, making Evie look away in shame just before the magical bridge started its extension to the Isle. The sun hadn't lit up the world yet; sunrise was still a little less than an hour away, but if it was shining, the anger in Uma's eyes would have made Evie run for the hills. King Ben hadn't thought twice about coming to recuse his precious VK's. Where was Auradon when their pitiful excuse for a hospital was seized by Shan Yu and his Huns, now controlling the meager medicines of the Isle? If not for her and her pirate crew risking their lives and stealing what they could, there would be far more death littering the shores. Where was Auradon each time a starving kid collapsed on the street, not able to steal the scarce scraps that were sent over each month as 'donations'. And where was Auradon each time a child came to her and her mother, calling Sanctum because they were dying.
Speaking of Sanctum, Evie and her crew began backing away from her now that help had finally arrived; the truce had ended. Jay now had Mal, and Carlos was between them and Evie, ready to catch her because they all saw it; she was on the verge of collapsing. They knew their Sanctum had ended the moment the golden bridge touched the shores of the Isle, and they were now rivals once again. Evie touched her hand to her heart and bowed her head to Uma in thanks. Uma's eyes flashed to the ugly scar peeking out from beneath Evie's hand and tattered shirt, sparking her anger even deeper. Where was Auradon when they almost lost Evie after her mother had tried to carve out her daughters own heart?
"They can't know," Jay ordered as they left Uma and her crew behind and shuffled to the barrier at the gate, waiting for it to open and let them through. "They can't know about our parents."
"We know," Carlos muttered in an angered sadness as he was now supporting a very rough looking Evie. "It would make things so much worse when they end up sending us back, because let's be honest, they will eventually."
"Does Mal agree with this?" Evie panted as she watched the headlights grow closer, her anxiety building as the goodness of Auradon headed toward the less than perfect group.
"It doesn't matter," Jay snapped, baring his teeth in warning, "she's down for the time being, and I say that they don't know." Seeing the instant and fearful submission in Evie and Carlos, he faltered in regret, but he kind of liked the power. Was this how Mal felt each time she gave an order? Did she ever feel bad about what she thought was best for the group? Him and Mal had both fought for control of their crew a few times, but it was Mal who always won. He ended up with most of the battle wounds when they had it out, but he got her real good with a broken collar bone once. Even then, he still lost when she pinned him down with a knife to his throat. Leading came so much easier to her than it did to him, and he mostly always submitted. "Im sorry," he apologized, "but I know Mal would say the same thing if she were awake."
They met his eyes now, and Evie agreed with him. "We know Jay, we just don't like it."
"And neither do I. Once Mal is back with us," he started, "we will figure something out. Things can't go on like this. I mean, Mal is...she…"
Evie didn't want to say it, but she did anyway just as Ben exploded from the first car, right outside of the shield. "She's dying, Jay. She's dying."
"Oh shit," Carlos said as if remembering, "Mal's enchantment she cast on us is gone!"
They all froze, but had to deal with it anyway as the barrier started to open. They were all used to seeing each other's scars here on the Isle; the scars from years of abuse and turf wars. Mal had spelled them in their limo ride over to Auradon for the first time, not wanting to risk questions from prying prissy princes and princesses. Now that Mal was down, her spell was broken.
"Mal!" Ben called as he attempted to walk passed the shield. Two of his guards stopped him, not wanting him to risk any unnecessary danger. Instead, the VK's met him and stepped past the barrier, Jay protectively keeping Mal away from Ben and diving into the waiting limo. Evie and Carlos followed him just as the shield was closing back, and then Ben closed them all inside with a confused look behind his shoulder. The barrier had faltered for a moment before finally closing, but he brushed off the unusual flicker as his concern for the VK's pulled at him. A collective sigh resonated around the small space as the limo started moving, and finally headed back towards the safety of Auradon.
Ben could tell that something had shifted within the group. The only way he could describe them would be wild; sort of how a wolf pack defends itself. Jay held Mal, and Carlos with a very pale Evie both sat protectively on either side of him. Evie was wearing a leather coat, which did not at all go with her usual sense of style, but it did little to cover the injuries she was also wearing. Her body was positioned in a slight turn towards Jay and Mal, as if using her own body as a shield to keep them safe. Carlos also sported an array of wounds, and his body was coiled as if he expected an attack to come at any second. As for Jay and Mal...he couldn't really see Mal. Jay had her turned into him, and Evie shielded her face as she whispered something soothingly to her, all the while cutting her eyes over to him in a warning to stay back. He did not know these kids, and they certainly had lost their trust in him.
"Guys, what happened?" he asked as he swallowed the lump in his throat. "Is Mal okay?"
"She will be," Jay snapped, arms gripping the purple haired girl just a bit tighter. "Just get us to the Enchanted Lake."
"Can I see her?" Ben asked as he went forward too quickly, wanting to see for himself how she was fairing. He was met with a feral warning snarl from Carlos, and Evie's breath hitched in anticipation of pain, even though she leaned over Mal, covering her while Jay shifted his body a little straighter. He looked as if he were trying to push Mal behind him, but they were backed into a corner with nowhere to go. The strange scene broke when all of the commotion caused a pained whimper from Mal, who was jostled in the sudden movements of her crew. Everyone froze, and the wild, panicked looks on the VK's faces started to fade. What happened to them?
His concern remained, but he decided to remain seated, trying to keep the VK's calm. He wanted more than ever to be the one holding Mal right now, but he knew that the terrified and defensive group across from him would not allow him that luxury. He couldn't even see any injuries Mal had from the way they were all shielding her, but the sounds she made at every jostle shot right through his heart.
"Fine, I'm sorry. You all look like you went through something horrible, and I won't push," he promised. "We are going to get you all to the lake as quickly as possible; but what will the lake do?"
As if asking permission, Evie looked to Jay, who only rolled his eyes before she responded to him. "She…" she started in a whisper and grimaced in pain before clearing her throat, and trying again. "She was stabbed, and the dagger was cursed."
What the hell? Magic did not exist on the Isle…
"She keeps having these attacks; her last one was when we were on the phone, which means her next one is due any minute now. We have to hurry Ben…" she pleaded as a blank expression crossed her face. Her world had spun for a moment.
"Attacks?" he asked, shuddering at the memory of the phone call. He didn't notice the frailty Evie was exhibiting, or the way she was trying to blink back the dark spots that had been invading her vision.
"It's hard to explain," Carlos said this time when he noticed Evie's dizziness, "but it's like the dagger keeps...doing what daggers do. New wounds keep opening, and then closing right up. She's lost a lot of blood, Ben. She can't take much more. Jay gave what he could to her, but it's not enough."
The rest of the ride was in a tense silence. All Ben could do was run scenarios through his head at what had happened. They didn't want to talk about it, clearly, so his mind was making things up. Were the rest of the Villain Kids that upset at not being chosen? Were Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos attacked out of jealousy? He had heard of gangs on the Isle; had these four gotten caught up in that? It was then that he realized that he should have taken a full history the moment they had arrived after his proclamation. He had failed them, and then him sending them back shattered their trust.
Not even 15 minutes after being back on Auradon, they made it as far to the Enchanted Lake as the car could go, and the limo they were in pulled to a stop. Ben got out first, while the VK's took their time in moving. Once the shouting started though, they all paused and tried to figure out what was going on.
"You will not touch them, am I making myself clear?" they heard in Ben's voice once Carlos made it out first. Jay hung back with Mal still in his arms, and Evie right behind him. Carlos stood protectively outside of the door; they were surrounded by more guards than they could count; and for some reason, they were barring their way.
"Ben?" Carlos asked while he blocked the door, fear flashing into his features as Ben cursed his parents.
"It's fine Carlos…" he said before getting serious and facing the Royal Guard once again. "I'm King, my parents have no say in this matter whatsoever. Am I making myself clear?"
Carlos watched the uncertainty pass between the Guards, but eventually they stood down, and opened up a path towards the lake. Ben headed back towards them with an apologetic look on his face.
"You guys okay?" Ben asked as he looked at Carlos and the other three behind him.
"Peachy," Jay said, still not moving because he didn't know what the hell all that was about. "What the hell is all of this, Ben?"
Ben sighed, but offered a hand towards them, ignoring the flinch Carlos exhibited. "My parents...don't trust any of this. The Guard told them what was happening, and they are waiting by the lake. They are MY GUARDS," he shouted behind him, "and they follow my orders. They won't touch you, I swear it." Ben watched as Carlos looked back into the limo at Jay, and then Jay looked back at Evie. It looked like they were all silently communicating, and they were. He knew they decided to trust him when Jay nodded for Carlos to move, and he crawled out with Mal still gripped in his arms. Her red shirt looked so dark against her skin in the pale light, and he was a bit relieved when the darkness hid the injuries that would have been exposed to him at Jay's movements.
"Carlos, help Evie out, would you?" Jay ordered once he was out, and leaned against the limo. Ben saw how shaky he was, and was about to offer to carry Mal when he remembered the last time he got close to her, when they all tried to bite his head off. Instead, he respectfully kept his distance, and then realized that Evie was injured far worse than he had first thought when she gritted her teeth in a pained cry, and leaned heavily against Carlos. Knowing that he wouldn't be allowed near Mal, he stepped forward towards Carlos and Evie to help, but again, Carlos flashed his teeth at him in warning. He kept up his approach, but slowed his movements until he was right before them.
"Let me help?" he pleaded, not knowing how else to help the damaged group. It was more as if he were asking permission. Again he thought that this was not the group he had come to know. When only Carlos looked back at Jay, since Evie had no strength left, he realized that there was some sort of hierarchy here. This time, he looked to Jay, and asked again. "Let me help, please?" The shifting of Jay's eyes as he wrestled with his emotions made Ben wonder when exactly they had lost trust in him.
"Fine," Jay said finally. He stood up straighter and nodded to Carlos, who then shifted a heavily leaning Evie towards Ben. "Take her jacket off, Carlos, she's burning up."
Ben felt the heat coming off of her skin as he helped Carlos, but she was turned away from him before he could even see the blood drenched gauze taking up most of her back. "Shit," he heard Jay whisper as he looked at Evie's back, but before he could even see what Jay was seeing, the blue haired VK faltered before him, and then collapsed into his arms. "I was wondering when that was going to happen," Jay voiced once more, and Carlos seemed to dance worriedly between them.
Carlos knew it was going to happen as well. Ben had caught Evie just in time, and now held her in his arms, uncertain at what he was supposed to do. Anxiety clawed its way up Carlos' throat when he now realized that he was the only one who would be able to protect the group if it came down to it...he was never good at that. He eyed the Royal Guard around him warily.
"I got her," Ben said, panic beginning to set in. His panic turned to surprise when his arms started to feel wet and warm; an odd metallic smell hitting his nose that he just could not place.
"We need to move, now!" Jay yelled, suddenly sounding very worried. Ben tore his eyes away from Evie in his arms, and tried to see what Jay was panicking about, and then he realized. Mal was starting to wake up.
"Let's go!" Ben ordered, and they started their march into the woods. When his Guard attempted to take a collected step behind them, he shot back a warning glance with a, "I don't think so. Stay here." He then tried to focus on anything else but the sounds he was hearing from Mal behind him, but that was until they made it to the bridge that he realized what that metallic smell was that just wasn't seeming to leave his nose; it was blood. The wet and sticky feeling coating his arms beneath Evie's back...was blood. He thought he was traveling fast, but somehow, his pace picked up and before he knew it, the sounds of the Enchanted Lake echoed in his ears.
Ben expected to see his parents there, but he was surprised to see Fairy Godmother there as well.
"Benjamin!" his mother shouted worriedly when they burst into the clearing, morning just starting to take hold with its pale light. He knew what she was looking at; her son, carrying a bleeding out unconscious villain girl in his arms with Jay behind him with Mal in a similar state. Carlos seemed to be helping support Jay now, and they were all such a mess.
"Mom, dad! They are hurt," he explained as their feet touched the stone platform before the lake. Expecting to be able to just walk down the steps on the other side into the water, he was surprised to see himself blocked by his father. "What…?"
"Put that villain down now son, and explain what is going on!" former King Adam demanded with a fearsome growl.
Not sure what else to do, he lowered Evie to the ground, and Jay dropped heavily onto his knees next to him and did the same for Mal right on the edge of the water, just before collapsing to the ground in exhaustion and glaring up at the rulers above him. Carlos swung himself in front of them all, and warily watched the exchange as he did his best to cover them.
"Dad…." he started, freezing when he noticed how drenched in blood his shirt and arms had become. His eyes shot down to Evie in horror, just as Jay ripped his shirt off and rolled her over, ripping the now useless, blood soaked bandages aside and momentarily revealing the major laceration going across the entirety of her back.
To say that his mother and Fairy Godmother screamed in horror would be an understatement. Their distress escalated when next to Evie and Carlos, Mal jerked suddenly. Their eyes had been on Ben and Evie mostly, but now they noticed how...mutilated, the purple haired girl was. Blood coated her face from cuts on her temple, nose, cheek, and lip. That same blood ran down her face and down her neck...were those finger shaped bruises? The scarlet stream continued and mixed into the long gash across her chest, before finally soaking into the red tank top she was wearing. Her shoulder was bruised and punctured, her leg also had a similar mark. It would take too long to catalog all of the other injuries they were seeing, and frankly, they didn't want to.
"Mal!" Jay yelled, pulling Carlos to Evie, and then collecting Mal back into his arms when she jerked again, blood splattering from her mouth onto Jay's scarred chest as she coughed in an effort to clear her lungs from the fluid. At this movement, the non-VK's saw a faint spot of purple fabric on her back...her shirt wasn't originally red. A scream tore from Mal's lips then, and they all watched as the side of her shirt was split apart along with the skin beneath it, blood chasing away the remaining of the purple, and spilling onto the white stone and mixing with Evie's, right before the gash sealed itself and another opened along her back.
"We have to get her into the water!" Jay yelled, annoyed and almost frantic at how still everyone was. They were all staring at them as if they were part of some freak show. In reality, every VK they looked at, they saw more damage. The sounds of agony ripping itself from Mal's throat kept their eyes flying back to her as she struggled on the smooth stone, her bare feet slipping in the blood as she tried to crawl away from the pain.
It was King Adam who snapped out of it the quickest and somehow forced Jay and Carlos back onto the dirt, away from the girls, and pushed Ben behind him. "What kind of game are you all playing at!?" he demanded, thinking that this whole thing was an act. His eyes seemed to glow yellow as the stars finally lost the battle against the night; the sun peeking over the trees and igniting his gaze with fury.
"It's not an act!" Ben pleaded in horror, spinning in front of his father with his hand holding him back in an effort to protect Jay and Carlos from his anger. This only served to make the former King angrier, and he pushed his son away and into the arms of Belle. "Dad! Please? Look at them!"
"Why do they need the lake, son?" He shouted over his shoulder. The shout had come out more as a roar, but Ben roared back.
"Someone cursed Mal! Can't you see that something is attacking her?" Ben forced himself to look back at her, and regretted it instantly. Her green eyes were open, and they looked at him in betrayal before snapping back shut as another wave hit her. It hurt him so much to see her like that. "The lake can break the curse, father."
Mal still writhed in pain, effectively waking Evie who was now clutching her friends hand in desperation. Not being able to help it, Belle and Fairy Godmother rushed to the girls' side, causing Jay and Carlos to attempt to charge past Adam to shield the girls. The furious roar King Adam released instead froze them in their tracks.
As the standoff continued, Belle and Fairy Godmother each took a girl, knowing in their hearts that this was not some sort of trick. For a child to scream like Mal was… and the VK's were not attacking them. Jay and Carlos were trying to get back to the girls to protect them from King Adam. When Ben saw that his mother and Fairy Godmother were trying to help, he charged past his father and stood protectively between him and the boys.
Fairy Godmother made it to Evie first, and picked up Jay's shirt, pressing into Evie's back in an effort to staunch the bleeding. "Get the hell away from me!" Evie growled back as she gripped Mal's hand even tighter. She turned her head to see who it was touching her, and instead of anger, it was fear that Fairy Godmother saw reflecting back at her. Evie tried shifting away, closer to Mal, but every movement sparked fire under her skin. The pressure began to build in her chest until it felt like she couldn't breathe. She's coughing now, and her lungs shriek, her brain telling her to push it away and hide it; she was showing too much weakness. When Evie's hand slipped out of Mal's she turned her attention back to her friend, and yelled a hoarse "No!" Belle had somehow wedged her way between them, and Evie became terrified that she would hurt Mal.
It was only when Mal started choking, drowning in her own blood, too weak to roll over, did Evie realize that the two women were trying to help them. The air finally filled her chest again and she heaved a sigh of relief as some of the panic was chased away. Belle had no idea what to do, but she gripped the hand that had slipped from Evie's and used her other to brush through Mal's hair in an effort to calm her. She didnt care if her yellow dress was turning a ruby red.
"Turn…" Evie gasped, as air didn't seem to want to become useful anymore at the sight of Mal, "turn her over." She managed the order weakly, and smiled when Belle seemed to do as she had instructed. They were helping… Belle turned the injured VK onto her side, and Mal let out what little blood she had left. It was then that she chose that moment to open her eyes, and look directly into Evie's.
Let me go… they said, and Evie's world stopped. The Earth seemed to slow down, and every noise around her paused in the background. The words in Mal's eyes threatened to tear her skin apart and crack her bones. She felt no more pain as Mal's gaze held her in their own little world, blocking out all that threatened to trespass into this moment. She wanted to recoil in fear; she knew what Mal was trying to say, but she forced herself to freeze and sink into the stone under the weight of what was being asked of her. "I can't…" she sobbed, tears instantly carving their way down her face and mixing with the red coated rock beneath her cheek. A red line then split the skin across Mal's once unmarred, porcelain face, and she didn't even flinch. It soon vanished, but the look in her eyes did not.
"Evie…" Mal whispered, her very breath sending ripples across the red, so loud in their silent world that Evie jerked in surprise. "I love you."
The way she said it, green eyes looking into her soul, and then searching for both Jay and Carlos, told Evie that she was saying goodbye to her family.
She wouldn't allow it. It wasn't going to end this way; villain kid's did not give up. The world then slammed back into focus when green eyes closed, and Mal's chest stopped rising with a shudder. Determination flooded Evie's body, and she reached out once more and grabbed Mal's shoulder, and started pushing.
"What?" Belle asked at the odd exchange, and then she realized. "The lake…" With a shove, Belle continued for Evie, and gently guided the now very still Mal into the lake at last. Shuffling behind her jerked her gaze back for a moment, and she saw the horrifying scene of Jay, Carlos...and Ben, still trying to get past Adam. "Adam!" she yelled in a voice more furious than the Beast's had ever been. The former king immediately froze, and the boys all finally rushed past him. As Adam turned slowly towards her, she stood, allowing her son to dive into the water behind her, and Jay with Carlos to grab Evie and drag her back behind Belle and Fairy Godmother, away from Adam. "Who are you?" she yelled to her husband, the question causing him to stagger back in surprise.
"What...?" he asked in more surprise rather than anger.
Belle didn't answer him, instead, she turned her back on him for the first time since he had first locked her in his castle all those years ago. The shock of it all made his mind snap back into focus, and he finally saw what he should have seen the moment Ben ran into the clearing. The villain kids looked terrified; they were hurt, and they were pleading for help. They were not attacking them. Belle, his wife, was coated in their blood, and his son had dove into the water after the one he loved. Who am I? He was at a total loss for words. Panic flashed into the younger one, Carlos' eyes, when he took a step forward to apologize, so he stopped. Instead, he turned around, and disappeared into the woods. He needed time to clear his head about what he had just done.
Without hesitation, Ben dove into the lake after Mal. Confusion flooded his senses when he opened his eyes in the usually crystal clear waters. It was too dark...and cloudy; blood. Relying on instinct alone, his arms searched and searched until they collided with soft flesh...his Mal. He pulled her into his arms and fought through to the surface, pulling Mal back to the steps. Someone landed next to him then, Jay, he thought, and helped pull her back onto the gruesome stone.
"Mal…" the name echoed.
"Maaalll", it called again, a faint scream barely existing in the darkness that surrounded her on all sides. Somehow, she began to float towards those calling that name, but as she floated towards the voices, the pain began to seize every cell of her body. If she fought to slip back the way she came, nothing hurt. "Mal please!" Those voices called again, and she felt her heart jump in response to the familiar voice before she forced it to stop so she could slip back down into the pain free void that the darkness promised. "Don't you dare do this to me!" she heard even more faintly, and smiled as the darkness was so far keeping its promise. "Mal," a sob broke through, louder and attached to a name...Evie. Evie? For a moment, she fought against the darkness and floated towards that voice named Evie. It sounded so safe, and sad. She didn't want it to be sad. "Mal please!" Ben's voice now called. No, Ben sent her back into the pain, it was all his fault she was sent back into her own hell, right when she was beginning to finally feel safe… "Come on Mal, rotten...remember?" the familiar voices begged, and her heart squeezed again until it began to flutter. The pain built, but this time she didn't mind it, She embraced it, and used it to chase away the darkness that was now twisting and clawing its way into her bones. The darkness had lied, it always lied. "Mal come on," another voice echoed, Jay, and she realized that it was her that the name belonged to. She was Mal, and these people, her family, were begging her to come back. The Evie voice then shone through, and some of the darkness shrieked, recoiling away from the light just as it threatened to stop the fluttering within her chest. "Rotten," Evie's voice had said, as if prompting her to finish. Her heart began thundering at the familiar phrase, scaring away the rest of the darkness that had almost claimed her. Her own voice then collected in her chest and drifted passed her aching vocal chords.
"To the core."