Former King Adam hesitated outside his son's office as he watched the young man examine a list with almost crossed eyes. Part of him didn't dare lean against the doorframe. Part of him wanted to walk in like it was still his office and start asking questions. With a swallow, he raised his knuckles and tapped against the door.
It took a while for Ben to look up. When he saw his dad, he pushed his chair up and made a motion to invite him in.
Adam stepped in and swallowed. "It's almost lunch," he whispered. "Are you hungry?"
Ben shook his head. "Not really," he declined.
The back of Adam's throat was burning, but he swallowed and nodded. "Can I bring you anything?" He asked.
Ben looked back down at the list, and then back up at his dad. "I don't need anything," He sighed. "But... I'm a bit confused about these records. Do you know what we're exporting from the Isle?"
Part of Adam wanted to fall down in shock while the other half perked up. "Weapons and war supplies," He nodded. "It's cheaper to have them made over there, and the Isle does good work. They have a small factory set up which is very busy, and they have other things going up." He put his hands into his pockets. "Eliza, Mal and I all coordinated it. Mal wasn't able to have much part in it, but she approved the whole thing.
Ben furrowed his brow. "The Isle... has a factory?" He asked slowly.
"Well, a repurposed building," Adam clarified. "We sent a construction team out there though, and they have their own construction workers in-training. So now they're building a place that Evelyn designed. I think they also have a city hall going up, a library, and a few different schools. Mal put a lot of things into order before you left and things got insane on Auradon's end."
"Wow," Ben hummed. "What are they importing?"
"Raw materials," Adam shrugged. "Metals. Things like wires and what they can't make themselves yet. They put out almost no trash - a very resourceful people."
"They would be," Ben nodded, picking at the paper in front of him. "And no food or anything?"
"Mal still lets them import a few treats, but they have systems that the magical people and Evelyn worked together on. They're okay, sustenance-wise," Adam cleared his throat. "They cut out a farmland outside of the city walls and extended the barrier to bring in more fresh air from the sea and everything. They're going to keep cutting into the rotten part of the Isle and cleaning everything as they go."
Ben nodded solemnly and closed his eyes. "Since Mal put those things through, I'm just not very busy. I didn't realize how much time I spent trying to make people get along."
"Are you doing okay?" Adam asked. He eyed his son's slumped shoulders and defeated demeanor.
Ben clicked a pen twice and then set it down. A lot of his nervous tocks had gone away since he'd become king. Adam remembered teen Ben struggling to get through meetings without tapping his leg or a pen or something. Fidgeting when people fought. It had been a long time since he'd paused to look at his son, not just his legacy.
"I still feel like I'm being attacked," Ben murmured, drawing Adam out of his thoughts. "It's like I never really left Duloc. I'm still just waiting for Helena to finish me off."
"Like you're still stuck in a nightmare?" Adam asked, recalling what it had been like to be free of his own curse for the first few months; always panicking when he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror, trying to prove himself to everyone, avoiding all animals and constantly wanting Belle to be around as some sort of physical proof that he'd changed.
Ben nodded softly and folded his arms. "How did you get over it?" He whispered. "I don't even feel comfortable in my own skin. I can still feel myself dying."
Adam paused. Some days it was easier, other days not so. For a long time, he'd convinced himself he was over it, but lately he wasn't so sure. "Maybe I never did," he whispered. "You shouldn't be expected to get over something so traumatic. It's okay to hurt."
Ben looked up at him with a little sigh. "Thanks, dad," he whispered. Adam had a feeling he was talking about a lot more than just explaining the paper or talking with him.
Adam nodded down at the paper. "Do you have everything under control?" He asked.
Ben nodded. Adam twisted his hands. "What helps?" He asked, tone low.
Ben thought for a second and then gestured to the space in between them. "This does," he whispered. "It's nice to not be alone."
Adam shivered, remembering all those long years of being shut up in his castle and shunning the servants. How cold and empty and numb it had been. "It is," he agreed.
Chad peeked around a metal post and watched the queen as she marched down towards him. She looked like a murderess with skin-tight black armor and thigh-high combat boots. Her purple hair and her horns made her look like an eerie reminiscent of her mother. Behind her were giant warriors made of tree bark with glowing eyes, which held spears and made the ground shake when they walked. Other creatures that looked like flying eels, multi-teethed flying fish, fae and fairies walked behind her.
"We're taking the Easter Tunnels in," Mal was telling them as she opened a door into a storage room. She picked up two swords from a stand beside the door and turned to offer them to some of the fae. "The ground close to the castle isn't mined, so we'll be safe. I want to take the front entrance if at all possible so we don't get lost as easily.
Chad fumed. "Where are you going?" He demanded, stepping forward and leaning against the doorframe.
Mal turned around. Several of her fae companions took up defensive positions around her as they realized he was there. The Fae Queen herself examined him, looking a little tense, and then passed out the swords in her hands. "I have orders to take Syracuse today. We want to knock Eris down a peg and take the castle so we can start moving prisoners into the catacombs."
"Orders from who?" Chad barked.
Mal frowned. "Myself." She scoffed. The Moorish citizens rolled their eyes at Chad and then turned. They had decided he wasn't a threat. Chad felt at his hip for his sword and fumed. Syracuse. His raid. She was leaving to do his raid.
He'd lost his throne, his credibility, his friends and his leadership roles. There was no way he was letting her take this too.
The throne room of the Syracuse palace had been transformed into a sweltering golden desert. Eris swirled around and basked beside the window, even though no sunlight shone through the clouds outside. Twenty yards to her left, her daughter lay sulking.
"At least he's dead now." She growled for the fortieth time, trying to catch her mother's attention. Eris didn't even let a sigh escape her lips as she rolled her eyes. All morning, her daughter had been complaining about the short, small, purple-haired queen that had destroyed Duloc. Eris hadn't even believed her ears when she'd first heard what had happened. A stronghold in the middle of the land had been fallen in less than four minutes. Indeed, by the time Jack Frost, Hiccup, and Astrid had appeared, the army had been decimated and Lord Farquaad fled with his people. Four minutes. It took longer than that for Eris to steal the book of peace and frame Sinbad years ago.
Helena kicked a pile of sand aside. "That woman was horrid, mom. I'm so happy she's gone."
Eris opened one eye lazily. "You keep saying that, but what do you expect me to do? Perhaps it was only your lack of experience that made her seem so scary. The least you could have done is gone straight to Tartarus. Then the war tribunal wouldn't have known about you." She sighed and stretched her hands up, above her head. "Oh well." She repeated in a dreamy tone. In her opinion, Helena had more than proved Eris's suspicions. The girl wasn't ready to fight - wasn't ready to be seen. Try though she might, she was tender-hearted and soft. Maybe her powers were strong - as had been planned - but Helena still didn't know how to use what she and Pitch had given her.
"No, Mom. It wasn't that I'm weak." Helena growled as she busied herself making and burying holes in the sand using her powers. "She literally lit the entire town on fire. The flames appeared at her feet. And she could become a dragon." Helena scowled as she let the sand trickle through her fingers.
Truly, it was this information that had troubled Eris. An Auradon queen that could become a dragon? There wasn't anyone she knew with this power. She had assumed the queen would be similar to her king - probably beautiful, as she would have to be someone to look up to and the king himself was not bad eye candy either. Doubtful a woman of power would be trained with a sword as he had been. Nonmagical, a fierce, stubborn spirit, and possibly a little bull-headed. Eris wasn't quite sure what to make of the description Helena had returned with. A talented swordswoman with vibrant hair who spoke in a half-sweet, half-sour tone and could somehow pull her body to the form of a dragon with a wingspan the size of entire buildings and who could use spells and charms to summon things to and from her. And she'd discovered the flammability of Pitch's magic - a secret they'd long since kept with few incidents.
Helena huffed and kicked a wave of sand into the air, where it sprinkled down on top of Eris. Eris made a face at her daughter, who shrank back, and returned to lounging beneath the window. No sooner had she relaxed than the doors to the throne room were pushed open, and a small, bright, colorful creature appeared, swinging above the sands. It landed by Eris's head. Eris flicked open an eye. "Yes?" She asked.
"News from the war tribunal." The troll informed her. "The Queen of Auradon has returned to the land. The King of Auradon is still alive and recovering in Auradon. They say she intends to destroy us all."
Eris sat up and looked over at her daughter, who had grown pale. "You couldn't even kill the man properly?" She sighed.
"I scratched him! He should have died! He was already dying when she stole him back!" Helena defended herself.
"There is more." The troll spoke up. "A squadron has appeared outside the castle. They are heading towards the front doors."
Eris groaned and stood up. "I suppose I have to go and rake them across the coals." She sighed. Her flyaway hair drifted around her face as she stood and walked towards the door. "Come, Helena." She called over her shoulder as she swept the sands away from in front of the door and opened it up.
Helena followed after her mother as they went forward onto a balcony where long ago, Proteus had sent Marina out after Sinbad, the famous pirate who had last defeated Eris through her own promises. They looked down and watched as an army marched up toward the palace. Helena whimpered when she saw a head of purple hair leading them up to the doors of the palace. Eris's eyes narrowed.
"What a strange looking army," Eris muttered as she looked at the warriors. There were giant creatures that looked like they had grown right from the earth, lumbering behind someone shorter than her daughter. They were armed, but with no shields or means of protection anywhere. All unprotected. "This should be easy," She muttered and lifted her hands. The sands in the room they'd vacated rose to attention and rushed out towards the invaders. Eris's pets gathered to attention around the palace, crowing down from the roof in amusement. Roc, in particular, appeared and began to circle the castle. He was a large, festhered bird with talons that could slice through rocks and a beak strong enough to break down trees. Eris laughed manically and unleashed her sands at the group. The warriors continued to walk forward without giving her a glance. A gleam appeared in Eris's eyes.
Before the sands could hit the group, a green barrier flickered into place. The sand hit it and was veered sharply off course. It hit the water down before with a pattering. Eris's smile vanished.
Roc dived from the sky, but as he grew close, three wooden warriors with glowing eyes raised their spears and loosed upon the gigantic eagle. The bird crashed into the beach below and moved no more. Eris's straight-mouthed expression turned into a frown. "Come, Helena." She snapped as she began to head towards the hall again. "We have guests to greet."
"Mom." Helena's voice quivered. "Maybe we ought to simply go to Tartarus? She's so-"
"I will not have a vibrant-haired queen chase me away." Eris cut Helena off. "Come now." She began to descend a large staircase, heading towards the front doors. Somewhere far below, the doors banged open. Helena winced as she heard wood splintering.
Eris dissolved into shadows, and Helena followed. The two women slipped through the dark portions of the palace and found the place where Mal was leading her army up a staircase. Her eyes were bright as she marched without expression. With her confident air at the front of the group, no one noticed the lone Auradonian soldier in the back.
Eris materialized at the top of the steps before Mal could reach the last stair. The two stared each other down at a maximum of five feet apart. After a few second's hesitance, Helena rematerialized beside her mom. Mal's eyes locked on her with a chilling glare.
Eris put her hands on her hips. "So, you grace my home by ripping down the doors? How courteous. I'm pleased to see Auradon has manners."
"I'm only returning the favor." Mal smiled. "For my husband's treatment, you see." Her gaze settled on Helena, who bowed her head but did not show any other fear.
"Ah, yes." Eris smiled. "How is Ben? Cold and stone yet?"
"No," Mal answered. "He's well on the road to recovery. It took me being awake for two days, but we managed." She stepped up the last few steps and drew a sword that hung at her hip. It was Ben's, with his name written in at the grip. Mal had finally located it in the items that she and Stewart had brought up. Helena's eyes flickered over it, and she looked up at her mom.
"Why." Eris chuckled. "I took that sword as a trophy. Your husband handed it right to me. What a beauty it is." Mal readied her grip on the sword and continued her death glare. Eris tilted her head at Mal. "Perhaps your head will make a nice companion to it." She offered.
"Attack," Mal commanded her companions.
The room exploded into action. Several fae women dropped to the ground and began to chant. Grass, shrubs, and vines popped out of the floor stone and began growing a path to Eris and Helena. Helena screamed as all of the stone warriors readied their spears. Pixies fizzed into balls of fire that flew towards them, burning their skin wherever they touched. Eris's eyes grew red as she summoned all the sands at her disposal, siphoning everything she could reach out of Tartarus and pulling it into the room. Two long swords appeared in her hands as she rushed at Mal. She raised a sword and tried to bring it down on the queen's head, but her sword slid right off as if Mal was encased in a sphere. The young queen smiled widely.
As Eris continued to try to stab holes in Mal's shield, the sands swirled around Mal's allies and began to overtake them. The Pixies were extinguished, and the sands began to drag the wooden warriors down. But there was one thing Eris hadn't accounted for her sands.
The Fae would decide this battle.
One Fae man who was dressed in blacks and whites rose up and began to chant. Wind whipped through the hall, scattering the golden sand everywhere. Storms gathered in the hall, and rain began to fall. As the sands moistened, they became harder and harder for Eris to control, until suddenly she had nothing at her disposal except for her two swords and her whimpering daughter.
Pitch's sand couldn't get wet, but Eris's could. And once they were wet, they had the consistency of thick mud. Useless.
Mal lunged forward and swiped at Eris's legs. Eris jumped back just in time to avoid a nasty cut and dissolved as Mal tried to stab her. She tried to appear inside Mal's sphere of protection, but no matter how hard she pushed, found she couldn't. No amount of pushing, hacking, or sheer will could help Eris force her way into the angry girl's protection circle. She re-materialized and screamed in frustration.
Mal swung towards her side and Eris nearly lost her balance and tripped. It had been a long time since she'd fought with nothing but a sword. She snarled and threw her hands against the shield, which splintered a little though it quickly began to heal itself. Before the cracks could completely disappear, Eris hammered her fists against the shield again and her fists broke through, closing around Mal's neck. The young queen might have been strong, but she was no goddess.
Mal could feel chaos magic seeping into her throat as Eris squeezed. She grew light-headed - was it the magic or the lack of oxygen? Pixies were bouncing off Eris's skin, trying to burn her, but to no avail. Mal grabbed Eris's hand and twisted down, under her arm under she'd gone around the goddess and Eris was forced to release her.
Chaos magic was still spinning inside of her head. It felt like she'd been awake for days... running for hours... fleeing for her life. She lashed out with a frantic hand and Eris caught her wrist and sent more magic into her skin. Goosebumps rose up on Mal's arms. Chaos. Chaos just like the Isle of the Lost with her mother in a deranged state and everything out to kill her. Chaos just like being brought to Auradon and the lights were too loud and the sounds too bright. Chaos just like her life was and would always be.
Mal lit herself on fire, and Eris jumped back with a scream. Her sands might not be affected by flame, but she was. Angry burns stretched across her grey skin. Mal lifted Ben's sword to deal a lethal cut and then something seized her arm and pushed her away from Eris, past her forces, and down the stairs in a heap. She skidded off the steps, knocking her chin against ne and her hip against another. She dropped the sword to keep from cutting herself and someone else snatched it up.
It was a man in a messy Auradonian outfit.
"Chad?" Mal gasped in surprise as she struggled off the stairs. "What are you doing here? Give me that back!"
Chad raised Ben's sword high above his head like he was in an action movie. "No! I am a hero!" He declared. "Everyone thinks I'm not because of you,but I am! I deserve to be king; to be remembered for my accomplishments! I can do what Ben couldn't; I can kill Eris!"
"You're going to kill yourself!" Mal protested, raising her hand. the sword flew from Chad's grip with barely a protest, but he only unsheathed his own blade with a determined look. He swung the sword at Eris's neck, and she shattered it with a wave of her hand. Chad looked shocked. It reminded Eris of Sinbad's executioner when she'd done the same thing before Syracuse had tried to execute Sinbad. She vaporized and reappeared inches from his face.
"A hero?" She sneered. "Someone obviously forgot to teach you the golden rules."
"No!" Mal yelled as Eris flung her hand out. Chad flew off the staircase, with sandy rain sticking to his hair, and hit the wall across the room with his neck. A sick crack echoed around the room. Chad fell to the floor with blood flowing softly out of his head. He did not move again.
There was the sound of a sword being sheathed. Eris turned and watched Mal crack her knuckles. Ben's sword had returned to the sheath at her side. She crossed her eyes, and her irises lit up with a green so fierce it looked like she had a forest growing behind her pupils. Eris raised her swords and prepared to attack, but a force unlike any she'd ever felt before stopped her. It felt like iron was being clad to her body, and she couldn't move.
"What?" She gasped and stared at Mal. Eris's body began to float upwards. She still had no motility in her arms or legs. Mal was controlling the magic inside of Eris's body. "Helena!" Eris cried. "Stop her!"
Mal smirked. She redrew her sword, keeping focused on Eris. Helena desperately pulled a sword from the wet sands on the floor and rushed at Mal with a "Hei-ya!" At the last second, Mal turned and parried Helena, and Eris vanished into sand. Immediately, she was gone. She had left.
"I have a bone to pick with you," Mal growled as she pushed Helena back onto the floor, seized her wrists and used her still-functioning vision of the second realm to seize Helena's magic. Her head throbbed as she did - she wasn't sure this was good for her - but she kept at it. Helena struggled and squirmed but could not get free. She yelled and cried, but Eris did not reappear.
"You almost killed my husband." Mal hissed. "He almost died because of you."
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Helena cried. "Please, let me go!" She writhed and thrashed.
"I'm through with you." Mal hissed. "I don't have time to deal with villains-in-the-making, and you've already hurt too many people."
"No!" Helena writhed. "No, no! It's not my fault! I didn't do it!"
"I am Queen of the Moorlands," Mal declared. "Your magic belongs to me. You don't deserve it." A sudden burn scorched up Mal's arm. She dropped Helena with a gasp, but there was no need for the girl to be restrained anymore. She screamed and fell to the ground, shaking and writhing. The warriors of the moorlands gathered around and watched as black sand leaked out of Helena's skin like it was being sucked straight out of her and dissolved into the air. Helena's black eyes lightened to blue, and her hair became an auburn shade. Her skin was a tan brown and there wasn't a hint of magic underneath her skin.
Mal stared in shock and then pulled her sleeve up slowly. While she was sure she'd been burned, there wasn't a mark on her arm. Underneath her skin, the magic was still spinning as if nothing had happened.
When Helena finally came to herself, the first thing she did was try to sink away into the shadows. She found she couldn't, and stared in horror at Mal. Her mouth started moving in panicked, pleading motions, but Mal couldn't hear a thing. Helena couldn't speak anymore.
A fae put a hand on Mal's shoulder. "That was a fitting punishment." She commended.
Mal pulled Helena to her feet and handed her off to the person behind her. Helena's mouth was moving, but no sounds were coming out. "Why can't she speak anymore?" She asked. "What was that?"
"Her magic must come from our place in Auradon, somewhere down the line," The fae thought aloud as she passed Helena to two guards. "As queen, you are able to decide who gets to use the land's magic. Just don't overuse the power, or you'll hurt your magic and the land."
"And her voice?" Mal asked softly. She didn't plan on doing it again. She could still feel the scorching heat on her skin and her head was throbbing as she pictured all the color draining out of Helena's frame.
"We say spells out loud for a reason. Language is a type of magic," The fae explained with a hint of sorrow coming into her tone. "And conversation is a spell."
Helena covered her new face in her hands and sobbed silently. Mal began to usher them down the steps. "I will take her to the tribunal, and I will see her banished to the Greater, no, Lower part of the Isle."
Mal glared at the young girl. "The part where villains live." She told her. "Maybe in a few years, you may petition for life on the Greater district of the Isle."
Mal looked over at Chad. His body was still slumped at the base of the wall. "Someone please fetch him." She whispered. "His body will need to be returned to his parents."
Two strong Fae nodded and walked over. They hoisted Chad's body at an angle, and his head lolled impossibly. The hit against the wall had shattered his entire neck and back. They carefully balanced his weight between them and began to leave the palace. Mal turned to those still around here. "Search everywhere." She commanded. "Find the Book of Peace and restore it. If you see any living thing, capture it. I'm told Eris has small, colorful creatures called trolls that she uses to do her spying. Her pets should have vanished with her, but if not, kill them."
Mal focused on the Fae with control of waters and storms. "Eris's sand doesn't react kindly to water." She thought out loud. "We should experiment with that and see how far we can press that weakness."
He nodded and grunted in reply to her. Mal turned and lead a small procession of a battalion plus one body out of the palace. From the shadows, Eris growled as she watched the Auradonian queen lead her discolored daughter away from the palace. Helena had been right; Eris had never known a person with as much power as this young child.
Did her power come from the place she called the moors? Had she inherited the power from her parents?
Eris slammed her fist into a brick and it cracked underneath her knuckles. Her first real loss in this war, and her daughter with it. She didn't know who this queen thought she was, but Eris made a promise unto herself to see her death.
"Chad is dead," Mal announced, pausing inside the door to the war tribunal. Everyone looked up, stunned to see her so soon. Then her words sunk in and an awkward, regretful tone settled over the room.
"I did not know you were taking him?" North asked. "What happened?"
"He must have snuck into the tunnels behind us," Mal shrugged. "He wanted to kill Eris. I think he was hoping it would redeem himself."
Astrid exhaled and pressed her fingers to her forehead. Hiccup shook his head and dropped an arm around her shoulders. Mal watched everyone steady themselves. They'd known death before, and Chad's death wasn't rocking them too badly. She'd seen death too, and she had no reason to be regretful, but she couldn't believe she'd been so stupid to let him sneak in after her.
"I need someone to take his body to Auradon to his parents," She announced. "Immediately, if possible. His mother and I have spoken and I don't want to leave her waiting for information." She glanced to Bunnymund, who exhaled and straightened up. "I can do it," he announced. "Just give me a moment."
Mal nodded and then walked away. Chad had been temporarily put in the sitting room. She hesitated at the door and then crossed her arms and stepped inside.
What did blood smell like? Mal couldn't exactly place the scent. She peered over the edge of the coffin and examined the way Chad's neck had swelled up and was tilting his head to the side. It was unsettling to see the way his chest lay still when his back was completely shattered. Slowly, she set a hand on the edge of the coffin and examined the dead man. All she could picture was the hot-headed mean spirit who had announced he'd bed her and grabbed her butt.
When she'd first seen him in Ben's old photos from school, she hadn't imagined they'd ever have anything to do with each other. Hadn't imagined the ways he'd hurt her and hadn't anticipated his reaction to her. Hadn't imagined she'd be a witness to the death of one of Ben's old friends. Poor Cinderella... to hear everything her son had done before he left and returned a corpse.
'I did everything I could," she told herself. "No one blames me. He knew what he signed up for." He had gotten what was coming. A fool's death.
Mal twisted her hands and examined Chad's magic, glancing into the second realm. Like Ben, he was almost invisible. What was scary to Mal was how alike he seemed to his surroundings. It was as if he were an object instead of a former person. The only thing that remotely signified it had once been a young king was the smallest traces of Chad's spirit here and there. Mal reached out for the threads and then pushed her own to her fingertips before willing Chad's to grow stronger. Chad's body wracked violently and the dead man's mouth opened and he screamed in utter agony. Mal's skin went icy. Chad's corpse was screaming. The green flames underneath her skin turned a violent shade of red and nausea twisted her stomach.
"Mal!" Someone shouted from the door. Strong hands seized her shoulders and wrenched her frame back, away from Chad. She momentarily glimpsed the strong, white, swirling ice underneath Jack's skin before she was staring into his deep, intense stare as her vision returned to normal. "Are you crazy?" He demanded. "You can't resurrect the dead!" His breathing was heavy, and his heart rate panicked.
"Leave me alone, Jack," Mal demanded, pushing him back.
People appeared in the doorway - Auradon soldiers, Astrid and North and Tooth, even Lonnie. "His time is past, Mal," Jack demanded her attention with a voice that cut her up like knives. "It's not right to mess with that balance. You could hurt yourself beyond repair."
Mal shook her head, twisting her hands as the images of her magic going red flashed before her eyes. Beyond repair. She could have contracted magical poisoning. She gave a hard, sharp laugh. "Thanks for the warning," She snapped and then waved her hand at the coffin. "Just take him away, then. Now I can really say I tried everything." She turned and strode away. the crowd outside parted as she came through, but Lonnie grabbed her hand before she could move too far and gestured to her eyes.
"Your eyes are bleeding," She whispered. Mal lifted a hand to her cheek, found it wet, and nodded without emotion before she continued on. She only allowed herself to stop when the shadows around her became dark and she was alone. When the air was still and when she couldn't hear the whispers and when everything was... okay.
Ella was enchanted with Dizzy from the moment she saw her. The little girl had the brightest, most bubbly personality Ella had ever seen. And she was talented and hard-working. While Anastasia and Ella spoke quickly to each other, Dizzy worked on three different customers at once. Dizzy was exactly the kind of little girl Ella would have liked to have had if she could've.
They'd found Rob Paulsen, and Ella, after speaking to him, had decided it would be best to give him permission to live on the Isle instead of in Auradon, where he lived underneath a bridge, having been chased there by the people of Cinderellasburg for having married a villainess. Anastasia cried for joy when she was told that her husband had remained faithful to her all these years, always believing they would one day have their happily-ever-after.
Ella's heart was full of joy when she returned alone to Auradon that night. Audrey had sheepishly admitted plans to stay overnight. Ella had boarded the ship back and watched Audrey's mouth break into a smile while she waved excitedly at a young man who blushed when he saw her. She took her car back to Charming Castle and smiled brightly all the way up to the family room, where she knew she'd find her husband.
She pushed open the door with jangling keys and the scent of blood hit her nose. Her smile dropped off her face as she saw her husband standing in the room, looking down into a coffin. A large pooka stood beside him, patting his shoulders. A moorland creature?
They both turned and looked at her when she shut the door and moved so she could approach the coffin. An awful feeling told her she already knew who was inside.
Poor Chad laid in between the two wooden walls. He'd been cleaned as best they could clean him and put in a new outfit. Her son's head laid at a bad angle. Ella could immediately see that her only son's cause of death had been his crushed spinal column.
"M'sorry." The pooka croaked. "Queen Mal said she gave him orders ter stay behind and he went anyway. Tried to creep up on Eris and cut her head off, and she flung him into the wall across the room without hesitation. Died on impact. Last words: 'I can kill Eris.' I'll give you the full statement if you want."
"I'd like it," Henry whispered as he rested his palms on the side of the coffin.
"I am a hero!" Bunny whispered. "I deserve to be king; to be remembered for my own accomplishments! I can do what Ben couldn't; I can kill Eris!"
Henry turned away, shaking his head with bitter tears welling up in his eyes. "Stupid boy." He mourned in a hollow tone. "Oh, son."
Ella kissed her son's head and whispered: "Thank you for bringing him back," before she turned and fled out of the room.
The news that Chad Charming was dead dealt a heavy blow to the kingdom. For years, everyone had felt bad that Cinderella had had only one son when she'd wanted so many children, but the idea that that one son had been taken from her hurt everyone's souls greatly. For years afterward, it would be said that on the day of Chad's funeral, that everything from the worms to the king came to mourn the prince's death.
On the day of the funeral, Mal called Ben early. "Good morning," He said. Like when he had been gone, the sink was kept filled. Ben had let Mal borrow the stone basin, so she could call at leisure.
"Good morning," Mal waved. "Ben, I need you to do something."
"Yes?" Ben asked, leaning on the countertop in the bathroom.
"I need you to go to Chad's funeral," Mal told him.
Ben's heart immediately fell. "Mal…" He groaned, covering his dark eyes with his hands. He hadn't even gone outside on the balcony since coming home, so afraid was he of someone seeing him. When he'd gone to the Isle, it had been covered and in a country where people didn't usually know him right off the bat and no one had expected him.
"Ben, she lost her son. You need to go down to her. You can't hide in the palace forever. Today's a better day than any. Go and comfort her for me." Mal stared Ben down as he squirmed. The last few days, she had been performing so much magic and using her double vision to track Eris and Pitch withersoever they went on the land that her eyes seemed to have a permanent light in them, and she could not withdraw her horns very far. Mal assured him they wouldn't last long, but they still made for a stern look while they were there.
Ben laid his chin on his hand. "I don't want the people to see me. I don't want to… slip up and reveal myself."
"That sounds like a selfish reason not to go comfort a mother at her son's funeral." Mal frowned. "If you had died instead of being changed, who would you have wanted to comfort Belle?"
Ben collapsed into guilty groans. But Mal still hadn't played her strongest card. "Ben." She called for his attention from down below. "I need you to tell her that I would have saved him if I could have. If you love me, you'll take that message to her."
Ben slumped over and banged his head onto the granite. "Okay." He sighed. "Okay, fine."
"Thank you." Mal smiled at him. "I owe you."
"Lots," Ben confirmed with his head still down on the countertop. "Can I bribe you to stay here after the baby is born?"
Mal's face twisted. "For how long?" She asked.
"Not in the palace; just in Auradon," Ben responded. "I'll go north. I just want you within an hour's fight distance, please."
Mal drummed her fingers on her side of the connection. "I don't know," she whispered. "What if I want to visit?"
"Mal. Please?" He picked his head up off the desk and gave her a long stare through the water. He watched the fight behind her eyes and then she caved a little.
"If the Moorlands aren't needed anymore," she decided softly. "Okay?"
"Okay," Ben agreed. He figured that was the best he would get for now. Later he'd talk to her about Agathe, but not now. Not while she was so far, not while he was struggling as much as he was, not for a while.
"Thanks for not making me stay," Mal whispered. "Now and back when I first came to the palace. All that time driving and taking me places... Thank you. I got used to the palace, but the time outside really helped me learn to like it. It was always nice to just leave life and politics and everything behind."
"I know." Ben nodded. "You like the adventure feature of life."
"I mean, don't get me wrong!" Mal exclaimed. "I love you. To bits and pieces. It's just you want to stay in a little more than I want to. I'll still hang around and I know you want that family thing, so I'll walk that road with you. But I have a calling in life that I don't see changing anytime soon."
"I know." Ben smiled. "And I love that part of you."
Mal blushed a little. "I'm going to head out soon. End this war. I'm getting sick of being attacked. Heck, I'm getting sick."
Ben raised an eyebrow. "Sick? Do you have some sort of illness?"
"No, Ben." Mal rolled her eyes. "Your kid is making me sick. I'm exhausted and I'm sick, but I'm also still really pissed at Pitch and Eris. Extreme rage is literally the only thing fueling me right now."
Ben laughed. "I think you're the only thing keeping me going. I wake up in the morning and I think: Mal is up and leading battles in the Overland, I can get up and be King for a day. Otherwise, I'd just be hanging out and feeling sorry for myself."
"Glad I'm good for something." Mal chuckled. "I'm going to go now. You're going to that funeral?"
"Yeah." Ben sighed, slumping forward. "I'll go. I promise."
Mal blew him a kiss. "Bye, sweetie." She whispered.
"Bye Mal." Ben sighed. The connection fizzed out and Mal's image disappeared. Ben rubbed his eyes and looked at the clock that sat on the counter. He had about four hours, and he knew he would need every second to get ready.
Ben started the shower as hot as it would go and took a long shower, letting the hot water scorch his skin. After thirty minutes of doing nothing but standing under the hot stream and letting the water burn him red, he got back out and wiped the mirror down.
He looked like he'd had a minor sunburn or gotten tanned. As the air gradually cleared, he watched his skin grow lighter. For almost a minute, he looked like he had before he'd come back from the Overland. He looked strong, and tan, and happy. And then slowly, that color too faded out of his skin, and he was once more pale with dark eyes and sunken cheeks.
Ben picked a lighter colored suit out of his closet and dried his hair in such a way that it hung forward on his head. He found a tie and a tie pin in the shape of the Auradonian crest, and then went down to the library for his mother's approval.
She was sitting on a couch facing away from him when he entered. He walked up, put his hands on her shoulders, and rubbed them for a few seconds while she tucked a bookmark into her book and set it in her lap. She looked up and smiled to see him. "Why, don't you look handsome." She said. "That's a bright suit."
Ben nodded. "I don't want people to notice my eyes." He whispered.
Belle frowned. "Your eyes look lovely, dear. They're mysterious."
"They're dark." Ben sighed. "I just… I feel different."
"You act differently." Belle swung her legs over the couch. "You're sad all the time."
"Mom, look at me." Ben shook his arms. "I'm pale, my hair and eyes are different, I have snakeskin on my face, and I look like I've lost twenty pounds."
"You might have." Belle pursed her lips. "You haven't been eating, you've been staying inside all day, moving slowly." Belle stood up and took her son's hands. She pulled his chin up with a stern look. "Now, look at me." She directed his eyes to hers. Ben sighed and shifted uneasily. "You go upstairs, and you pick out one of your best suits, no matter how dark blue. And you bring a comb down because I am going to fix that hair of yours. You are reportedly sick, no one will expect you to be as you were. Don't take any thought of your eyes, brush your teeth, and hurry your butt because you've only got an hour until you have to leave to be on time." Belle turned him around and gave him a push.
Ben didn't argue. He went back upstairs, changed, brushed his teeth, and brought a comb down within ten minutes. Belle combed his hair back off of his forehead and patted his cheeks to bring a bit of color back into them. She showed him what he looked like on her phone. Ben wasn't exactly comfortable with his reflection – he was still pale, and his eyes were still dark. But he looked kingly, not like a drunken rock star.
Ben handed his mom's phone back and took several deep breaths.
"You can do this," Belle assured him.
"I hope so." He said. He gave her a big hug. "Thank you." He whispered into her hair.
Belle smiled and swatted his arm. "Go on, now. Send Ella my regards."
"Are you not coming?" Ben asked.
Belle's expression grew sad. "I doubt she'd want to see the mother of a son who lived just now."
Ben stared at her in surprise. A heavy weight fell on his shoulders. That was exactly how the kingdom would see this. Two people had returned, both kings and only one had lived. He suddenly understood the soft importance of Mal's message. 'I would have saved him if I could've.'
Ben nodded and left the palace. The car had been returned from Kuzko's palace after Lumiere and Sophia had gone to get it. Inside, an empty basket sat in the passenger seat and the seats were set to Mal's size. Ben squeezed inside, reset the seat, and began the trip to Charmington alone.
He parked inside the palace circle behind Ariel, Aurora, and Snow White. He locked the car and headed to the back. Chad's funeral was being held in the backyard, and he was going to be buried under a beautiful tree near the east of the grounds.
Dozens of rows of white chairs had been set across the lawn for people to sit on. The weather was weary, and the grass crunched with frost as Ben walked. The trees on the grounds may have protected from the winds, but cast dark shades across the area.
Hundreds of people were there, but no one recognized Ben as he walked up. He felt the urge to keep his head down, but a thought struck him. This was not about him, or his new look. It was about the Charming family, who had lost their son in a war he had started.
Ben went straight to Queen Ella, who was in the front, by the casket. A line had formed to shake her hand and give her a hug. Ben fell in line behind a small girl with a pretty bouquet and a shiny butterfly hairpiece. The line moved slowly, but eventually he made it to Queen Ella, who looked miserable. She hid behind a veil with her hair curled. She wore no makeup, not even waterproof makeup, and clutched a blue handkerchief as she stared numbly at the coffin.
"Your Highness?" Ben asked softly.
"Thank you for coming," Ella said distractedly, with a quiver in her voice. King Charming, who sat beside her, took her arm.
"Dear." He murmured in her ear.
"Can I sit beside you this day?" Ben asked Ella as she looked up at him and focused on his face.
"King Ben." She sniffled. "Yes, please." She released his hand as he took a chair to her left and shook the hand of the next person in line.
"Queen Ella, I have brought you a message from my wife," Ben said softly. Ella turned her weak smile towards him, and Ben saw King Charming fall quiet as he listened in on what Ben had to say. Ben took Ella's hand and rubbed the cold that was started to set in them. "She asked me to tell you, with great emotion, that she would have saved Chad if there had been any possible way. It is my belief, even if everyone had told her there wasn't a way, she would have tried until it was finally beyond her powers."
Queen Ella's eyes filled with more tears, which she dabbed at frantically. "She's a wonderful girl," Ella muttered as she cried. "Just wonderful."
King Henry leaned forward to examine Ben. Ben stiffened under his gaze, but Henry only raised his eyebrows and sat back. Ben tried to relax, but Queen Ella pulled her hand out of Ben's in confusion. She held her hand up to the light and dark blue sand filtered through her fingers. Ben's heart nearly stopped.
"That's odd," Ella muttered. "Sorry about that Ben, I must have put my hand down on something."
"Oh, think nothing of it, Queen Ella," Ben said hurriedly. "If I may, how did Chad die?"
"His own pride killed him." Henry sighed sadly. "I always knew it would get him into trouble."
"A pooka, which is a large bunny, if you don't know, came by to explain what had happened." Queen Ella sniffled. "He was told to stay behind while the Moorish people marched in on a castle but followed anyways. They found out he had followed when he jumped out of nowhere and tried to cut Eris's head off."
"Bunnymund is his last name," Ben said carefully. "E. Aster Bunnymund. I worked with him on the war tribunal."
"What happened to you?" King Henry asked softly. "Why did you come back?"
Ben swallowed and clasped his hands together. He could feel sand appearing in between his fingers. "A lot of it is still being kept on the down-low while I'm recovering." He whispered. "But… I was supposed to meet with another leader, so we could lead a small, decisive battle on a castle on the Overland. Eris, who is a villain we're fighting against, is a shapeshifter. She took the form of the person I was supposed to be meeting, led me away from the group, and got us all. Hook, line, and sinker. I was held for two or three days, and… they poisoned me."
Ben swallowed. "And the rest is as told. Mal left the palace in the dead of night, flew all the way to the war council, basically told them she was going to attack the place I was being held captive all on her own, she fought a battle against a villainess we didn't know we were fighting and brought me back."
Ella took her husband's hand. "Poisoning." She whispered. Ben got the distinct feeling they were finishing a conversation they'd started hours ago with that one word.
"She really would have done everything for Chad," Ben whispered. "She would have saved him if there was any way."
Ella smiled sadly. "She has no death power." She whispered. "He was gone too fast for her to bring him back."
Ben nodded sadly. "She's… going to get the person who did it, if that gives you any consolation."
"It does, though it shouldn't." Ella hummed. A pink-gloved hand appeared in Ben's vision as someone offered their hand to Queen Ella to shake. It was Audrey, who dipped to the ground and kissed Queen Ella's hand with tears in her eyes as she smiled sadly at the Queen. "Audrey." Ella smiled. "How are you? Did you have a nice time with that boy on the Isle?"
Ben jumped back as if he'd been electrocuted. "Boy on the Isle?" He asked Audrey.
Audrey blushed. "What, did you think I wouldn't ever get over you?" She teased, kicking his ankles lightly with her toes. "Yes, I did. I was so sorry when I heard what had happened to Chad, though." Audrey's eyes filled with tears that she hastily tried to wipe away. "I feel really bad." She whispered.
"Don't be, dear." Ella squeezed her hand. "Everyone knew you were the best of friends, no matter where you ended up going with your life."
Ben wasn't certain, but it sounded an awful lot like everyone was implying Audrey had permanent residence on the Isle. Boy? Where she was going? Audrey continued to kneel on the frozen ground in front of Ella. Ben moved a seat over so she could sit down. "Dizzy loved meeting you." Audrey swallowed. "She made you a present when she heard. I have it here." Audrey reached into her pink winter coat and withdrew a white box with finely tapered edges and presented it to the queen. Ben couldn't resist leaning over Audrey's shoulder to watch as Queen Ella lifted the top and pulled out a beautiful gold cuff bracelet with multiple layers and colorful beads strung to and fro across the sections.
"Oh, how sweet." Queen Ella sniffled as she lifted the accessory and showed it to her husband. "She is such a talented, beautiful girl. I would bring her to Auradon if I could." Queen Ella's eyes widened as she realized what she had said, and she abruptly looked up at Ben. "Pardon me. I misspoke."
Queen Ella might have been concerned about dropping political hints around Ben, but Audrey wasn't. She turned to Ben. "Does the Isle and Auradon have any joint policies on who can come and go?" She asked curiously.
"Ah-uh." Ben stammered, completely caught off guard. "Well, I would assume that anyone who was originally banished there in the first place would have to stay, but outside of that…" He shrugged. "I'd have to ask Mal what she's doing."
"The queen offered to sanction Anastasia's husband," Ella said with a furrowed brow.
Ben stuttered. Audrey nodded in agreement. "Yeah, and she's kind of been throwing the idea of me staying on the Isle if I want."
"It couldn't be that she's okay with people coming to the Isle but not people leaving." Ella reasoned softly.
"She's probably going to handle it on a case-by-case thing for a while longer," Ben said quickly. "But I'll definitely ask her if you're… are you interested in bringing people over?" He blinked in surprise.
Audrey flushed. "Well, I don't know. It probably wouldn't just be us. Like, Evie has a brother too. I'm just… curious."
"You want to bring that boy you like to Auradon?" Ben asked. Audrey's face exploded into a deep shade of red. "It's okay!" Ben exclaimed, holding up his hands. He couldn't really explain why it shocked him so much that Audrey had met someone new - he'd been expecting it for so long that he should have been surprised it hadn't already happened. "Just curious… Queen Ella, why are you interested?" He quickly averted his eyes from Audrey as she covered her face.
Ella bit her lip. "I'm just curious… whether we can bring children from the Isle? Dizzy, for example, I would be interested in adopting my step-sister's daughter if she'd let me."
Adopting… children from the Isle…. Ben's head was spinning. He sat back in his seat and brushed sand off his hands. "I'll definitely ask her what she thinks." He promised. Ella nodded and turned to the front as a pastor came up, shook her hand, and started the ceremony.
Ben tuned out most of the ceremony as he brushed the dark blue sand off his hands and bit his cheek to remain calm. During the retelling of Chad's life, Audrey reached over and took Ben's hand to squeeze it quickly. She tried to be discreet about how she brushed the sand off on her skirt, but Ben got the feeling King Charming had noticed something.
Ben didn't stick around to shake anyone else's hand after the funeral. He bid Queen Ella goodbye with a promise to ask Mal about her terms for Auradon-Isle migrations and headed outside. He knew people had probably already taken dozens of discrete images and was tired and ready to go home already. As he got into the car, his phone buzzed. He glanced briefly at the headline. It read: "Is that dragon-skin on King Ben's face?" He groaned and shut down his phone.