Prejudice of Dragons

(Day 36: Sunday Evening)

"Today Her and His Majesty of Auradon visited the Charmington's city library with King Charming and Queen Cinderella to host a fundraiser." Ben stares at the TV screen, as the reporter steps out in front of his parents. "What prompted you to host this fundraiser? What are you hoping to achieve?"

His mother smiles, "As you know, every year we are supplied with a report of how each school of each kingdom is doing in regards to education. Charmington has always held a pretty high standard in learning, so we were very surprised to see how much their average decreased over the last year."

"When they contacted us," King Charming continues, "we were also very surprised. It took us a while to figure out what was wrong, but we eventually figured out that our language classes had poor outcomes. As it turns out, there has been somewhat of a divide in Charmington, where those of a higher standing know English very well but that those of a lower income have maintained their French language."

"How could this have happened?" the reporter inquires. "And how did it remain unnoticed for so long?"

"The divide my husband speaks of," Cinderella explains, "is not only a metaphorical divide. There is also a very physical divide. You see, how much income a family earns determines where they may live. We cannot blame these people for not picking up English as fast as the rest of us, because the community in which they live is a very tight-knit one and the school the children attend there is also very French-based with only the minimum amount of English classes available."

"Our hope," Ben's mother answers, "is to encourage children to read more and for any profits of which will be made here today to be spent on the libraries and education system of those lower income sectors."

Ben hears the small limo pull up, and he looks out the window to see his father exit the black car, outstretching his arm before his mother takes the hand and steps out of the vehicle herself. He walks away from the window and hurries down to the main floor, and it's just as he makes it there that his parents come in through the front door. "Ben."

He hears his father's mild shock before uneasily smiling, "Hey." and he looks at his mom's concerned intrigue. "I saw you on the news. You were great."

"Honey." She takes a step forward, "What's wrong?"

It takes a minute for him to ask, "I don't suppose you had the chance to check your social media yet today?"

She shakes her head, "No. Why?"

He almost laughs through his frown, "Mal had this incident with Audrey, and Chad posted a video of it." He watches his father take out his phone. "Maybe we could sit down first?" His mother nods and takes his father's arm, before they walk over to the alcove sitting area. "Oh. And before you watch it…" His father looks from the phone to him in question as his mother listens intently. Ben sits in the red armchair and holds his hands together, glancing at the floor for a minute before meeting his parents' expressions. "Mal… Apparently she's a hybrid."

"Ben," his mother begins. "Humanoid fairies aren't hybrids. They're just humans who have evolved to be able to harness magic."

"No. I know," Ben looks down before shutting his eyes. "It's not that." He uneasily laughs and unsurely smiles, as he looks back up at them, "Ahh. How do you feel about dragons?"

"Dragons," his father repeats, and Ben notice's how his mother's eyes have widened.

She closes her gaped mouth, before she slowly answers, "Well, dragons. They're… They're very—" She strains a smile, "I've heard a lot about them."

"You see," Ben explains, "the crux of the incident that happened was because Audrey was holding a school-sanctioned event, which apparently caused the hot water to run low."

His mother shakes her head, "I still don't understand. What does that have to do with anything?"

"A lot," he answers, before he gestures. "Mal can't generate her own body heat, and so… when the hot water ran out she got..." He looks between his parents, "Upset."

"Upset," his father repeats.

"Well, yeah," Ben unsurely confirms. "Or desperate— desperate works too."

His father stares at him for a moment, "Let's just take a look at it for ourselves, shall we?" before he lights up the screen again and types in the password.

"She is a very different Mal in the video than we've known her as," Ben warns. His mother glances at him in a moment of worry, before she looks down at the screen. He hears it. He hears Chad oohing at the spectacle, as Fairy Godmother walks towards Mal. Ben sees his mother cover her mouth, "You're not afraid of her, are you?" His father puts up a hand, instructing him to remain quiet; however, soon he asks his own question.

"What is she doing there?"

Ben watches as Mal inches closer to his ex-girlfriend, "I didn't ask." before the video moves from Mal to him and back again. "It's important to know," he notes as he watches Mal embrace him, "that she doesn't really remember any of this."

"How could she not remember this?" his mother asks, but she fails to peel her eyes from the treacherous event.

"She was running on instinct," Ben accepts. "Evie said that she can get this way when she's cold sometimes."

His father looks up at him in seriousness, "And how is that supposed to make this okay?"

Ben tries to smile, "Evie also said that so long as warm and shiny things are kept nearby that it shouldn't be an issue."

When the video ends his mother glances at his father, "And we thought Audrey was high maintenance." before she looks at him in sincerity. "I don't want to sound specist or anything," she begins, and it takes her a minute to continue. "But a dragon hybrid girlfriend. Are you sure you can handle that?"

Ben slightly furrows his eyebrows at her, "You didn't ask me if I was sure that I'd be able to handle a fairy girlfriend, even back when she was doing magic on a daily basis."

His mother opens her mouth before saying, "This is different."

"Because she's a dragon hybrid," Ben concludes. "She's not a merperson or an angel. She's part dragon. That's what bothers you."

"Come on, Son," his father tries to reason. "You've seen the news reports, how those creatures have burned Camelot to the ground time and time again, making it nearly impossible for them to make it out of their medieval infrastructure and economy." He gestures, "Those things have pillaged farms for livestock, have killed people—"

"And we've killed plenty of them," Ben reasons back, which causes his parents to silence in shock as though this is new news to them. "Don't you think I did any amount of research on this once I found out?" He shakes his head, "Why do you think Camelot has the most problems with dragons? I'd say it's because of the way they treat them." Ben glances down at the dark rug for a moment, "It's like a war. There's been plenty of killings on both sides, but the humans are just too scared and ignorantly stupid to know when to quit."

"What are they supposed to do?" his father angers. "Just let themselves be killed?"

"Don't you get it?" Ben argues. "The dragons are only fighting back, because it doesn't matter whether they're on the offensive or defensive. They're still being hunted down."

"A dragon's armor is impenetrable. Only their wings can be damaged without some magical weapon." He attempts a calming breath, "No one is hunting dragons anymore."

"No," Ben calms himself down as well. "Now they're just starving them to death. Why do you think they eat livestock in the first place? Why would they take such a big risk for something so relatively small in size, if they had any other options?"

"So. You're saying that you think Camelot's livestock gets taken because they have cut the dragons off from their own food supply, and you also think that the dragons have been destroying Camelot out of some kind of revenge?" Ben doesn't speak, waiting for his father to say what he thinks. "You make it sound like those monsters have some sort of rational thought."

Ben huffs a laugh, "Monsters." before he shakes his head. "They're not monsters. They are just a species on the edge of extinction trying to survive." He glances down for a moment, "A lot like how Mal was focused on her own survival when she went after Audrey."

"You recognize," his mother comments, "that if it's just in her nature to be vengeful and self-focused, then more incidents like this will happen again."

Ben shakes his head, "I can't believe this." before he stands from the chair. "I should have never even told you."

As he starts to walk away, Ben hears his father ask, "Then why did you?"

Ben turns back around and raises his eyebrows in disbelief, "Why did I? How about because Mal tried to drown herself, that's why?" He feels tears sting his eyes, "When she found out what she had done to Audrey, she felt so guilty. If I hadn't found her when I did, then she'd be dead right now." and then the tears fall. "All I wanted to do was tell you, to let you know what happened, so that I could ask you for advice— so that we could figure out the right course of action to help her…" He takes a few steps back, "But if all she is is a monster, then what's the point?" before he starts into a run. As he goes up the staircase, he can hear his parents call after him, but he doesn't care. Mostly, because, he's almost eighty percent certain that they're just going to focus on him, tell him what to think and how to feel, but that wouldn't help anything.

When Ben gets to his room he sits down on the edge of his bed and wipes the tears away with his sleeve, but when he places his hand to his cheek and forehead he finds them to be overly warm. It's no surprise; it's something that often happens when he cries, but this time when he tries to calm his breathing and keep the crying from continuing he finds it hard to. His breaths seem to have calmed, but then about every forth is shaken as some sort of sob. The tears are also hard to keep at bay, though he has been able to keep them from falling to his cheeks. He lays his back on the soft pillows, as he fully lies on the bed and brings his legs closer to his chest. The TV is still on, and Ben finds his breathing steady further as he focuses on the video of Audrey and her grandmother. "I'm not blaming Ben for this. He's always seen the best in people— even those who have betrayed him or given him absolutely no reason to trust them— and sadly I'm afraid that even once he comes to grips of what his girlfriend did to me that he probably still won't break up with her."

There's a knock on his door, "Hey. Honey. I just wanted to see how you're doing." but he doesn't look at his mother.

Queen Leah grimly comments to the camera, "We will be suing, of course."

"And who do you plan to sue?" asks the reporter.

"Why, Maleficent's daughter. Who else? You know, it's bad enough that my and my daughter's lives were ruined by the claws of that monster, but now her daughter has actively sought out my granddaughter to hurt her."

When the grandmother places her hands on Audrey's shoulders she attempts to smile, "I'm not completely sure if hurt is the right word, but when she used her magic on me I was absolutely terrified. I couldn't move— I was too scared to even speak— and even her supposed best friend was unable to tame her enough to get her off of me." She looks straight into the camera, "Mal needs to be punished for her wrongdoing, because if she isn't… then, well, what's stopping her from doing this exact thing— or something even worse— to someone again?"

When the TV turns to black Ben looks at his mother, whom sets the remote down on the bedside table. "How are you doing?"

"I don't know," he mumbles.

"You look warm," his mother comments, before she takes a few steps closer to him and places a hand to his forehead. "Have you taken any medicine?"

Ben stares at the blank screen, "I just took two Tylenol three hours ago. What am I supposed to do, just take a couple more now and then some more garbage before I go to sleep?"

She's quiet for a minute, "If you feel like you've already taken too much today, then maybe we could try an ice pack? I know you've complained before about how it seems to just melt on contact, but while we're in the kitchen we could also get you some nice ice cream."

Ben remembers the hard ice packs and how as they grew softer a horrible stench could be smelled, which would soon after be followed by the sticky liquid sliding down his skin, "I hate ice packs."

"What about the ice cream?"

"I don't want ice cream," he grumbles.

"We have to do something to lower your temperature," his mother insists. "If you don't want ice cream, then what do you want?"

Ben takes the pillow next to him and holds it, "Mal." as he imagines her cold lips caressing his. "If she were here, she'd make me feel better."

It takes a moment for her to ask, "And where is she now?"

"With Evie. Back at the school. In their dorm."

"Maybe," his mother starts but then trails off, before she takes another breath and offers, "Would you like me to have the driver get her?"

Ben slowly shakes his head, "No. I shouldn't be using her like that when she's feeling the way she's been… I'll just take the stupid pills." before he takes the new tic-tac container from his pocket.

"About Mal—" She watches her son take two of the white tablets out, downing them with the bottled water on the table, before she sits on the end of his bed. "I know I may have seemed insensitive before—" When she meets Ben's eyes his expression shows a certain disbelief, but he waits calmly for her to get past the excuses. "Are you sure she tried to drown herself?"

He stares blankly at her, "I'm very sure." before he glances down at the blue bed coverings. "If I didn't know better, which I probably couldn't with all of the classes I've already taken…" He looks back up at his mother, "I'm pretty sure she's depressed." She doesn't speak. "Her exact words were 'empty' and 'tired'." She nods in thought. "That along with the suicide attempt… do you think she should be put on antidepressants or something?"

"Honestly?" his mother questions, as she places a hand to the back of her neck for a second. "I'm not sure if those would work on her."

"Why," Ben asks, "because she's a hybrid?"

"No," she lets out in an uneasy breath. "Usually all that's required for a hybrid is an adjustment in dosage." Ben gives an inquiring look, and she turns her eyes to the bedding. "No. Putting that entire variable aside…" She looks back up at him and informs, "Antidepressants are meant for people who have chemical misfirings in their brain. Mal… she's just been through a lot, and putting her on medication wouldn't make any of her problems go away. It would be like someone getting shot and trying to put a Band-Aid over it. It won't work."

"I don't understand." Ben almost laughs, "How can you be so sure? I mean, if there's even a remote possibility of it preventing her from trying to hurt herself again, then shouldn't we at least try it?"

His mother places a hand on his leg, and there's a long moment of serious silence until she stresses, "Trust me. I know it won't work." She shakes her head, "And no, it isn't worth the risk. If someone isn't truly depressed, antidepressants can have severe adverse effects, which include the possibility of increased depression, agitation, and irritability."

"All things that Mal is already prone to," Ben frowns.

"If it doesn't work on her," she states, "then there's a good possibility that we wouldn't even know. If we were to tell her that it's going to make her better and it doesn't, then she may feel the need to hide it from us or she may somehow think that with time it's something that will just kick in."

"She has been very quiet," Ben admits as he glances down for a moment. "But if medication can't help her, then what are we supposed to do?"

"We take the bullet out, and then we manage and clean the wound until it properly heals."

"Meaning what?" he asks.

"Meaning that we figure out why she's so depressed— you said she felt guilty about what happened with Audrey— and we address it..." She nods, "We tell her it was a mistake— an accident— and we help her earn the forgiveness of the people she's hurt and later the forgiveness of herself."

"That's all?" he unsurely questions.

"It will be hard," his mother admits, "but it is necessary." She nods her head to the side, "And, of course, I'm sure Mal has more than one bullet wound with where she grew up, but if we keep pulling the roots out, then one day there shouldn't be any left."

Ben nods, "I understand."

She smiles, "I hope you didn't cancel dinner. We're going to need her over here to talk everything over… which, now, unfortunately includes Audrey's lawsuit."

"I didn't cancel anything," he evenly responds.

"Good," his mother unsurely comments, before she folds her hands together and tenses a smile. "What do dragons eat, exactly?"

"Mom," Ben voices.

"What?" she defenses. "I'm just…"

"You're just losing it," Ben finishes. "You find out Mal is part dragon and all of a sudden all of your years of study goes out the window."

"To be fair, I didn't exactly study dragons."

"I know," he nods. "And any of the information you did get came from a news network run by biased humans who are probably too scared to even pick up a book on dragons." She stays quiet. "Mal has been here for dinner many times, and if memory serves she actually complemented it once." He smiles at his worrying mother, "I think things will be fine."

"Right," she nods, but then she tilts her head to the side. "Just for reference—"

"Dragons eat meat," Ben informs with tension, before he partly laughs. "And we're not exactly very good vegetarians ourselves. Even if that is something she has inherited, I'm still fairly certain she won't have a single problem eating what we eat."

"Right," his mother uneasily laughs before smiling. "I'm sorry. I know I must sound like one of those crazy news clippings back from when your father first became human."

"Now that you mention it…" Ben agrees.

"I'm sorry," she apologizes again.

"It's fine," he accepts, but then he glances down in thought. "However." He looks back up at her, "Mal's self-esteem has never been very good in the first place. If you could continue to treat her the way you started to during out first dinner together, then that would be very much appreciated." He stresses, "Okay? She's not a dragon, she's not a fairy, and she's not Maleficent's daughter. She's just my girlfriend. Can you please treat her as such?"

She frowns with a nod, "Yes. I can do that."

He nods back, "Thank you."

- Yeah. I was surprised to learn that Cinderella took place in France too. The way the characters and buildings looked gave me a very English vibe growing up. I always thought French people had darker hair colors. Is that not usually the case? If not, then I'm sorry for the assumption. I don't know where I would have picked that false fact up from, then.

- Also, apparently there's a certain kind of discrimination going on here. What do you guys think of his parents' reactions? Any comments you have at all about this chapter would be appreciated... even if it's someone saying that they've taken antidepressants before and that there's no reason why it shouldn't work. On the other hand, if you'd like to vent about the horrible experience you've had with them then that's also acceptable. Seriously. I love reading comments and a lot happened in this chapter (probably because it was 7 pgs long), so I expect at least one of you to respond.