Chapter Twelve

A/N: I do not own anything other than my OCs when they come out to play. Everything else belongs to either Disney or the Greek Myths.

*Sheepish chuckle* Is it obvious I've been avoiding this chapter? As painful as it was to write, though, I'm glad I got it done. I mean, it needed to be written but at the same time, if I could handle what I put Audrey through over in Into the Depths, I should be able to put on my big girl pants and handle this.

Lauriverfanboy1: LOL that is definitely a possibility, if not for the fact that I doubt Hades wants to risk angering his wife.

Katt Kiki: It's coming up, I want to say eight more chapters before Ben's first trip to the Isle!

Guest: I mean…no one wants to risk angering Hades…other than Gaston but that's just because he has no brain.

AmethystDragon14: Yay! Yeah Hades is definitely one of my favorites of the Greek Gods, and trust me I loved writing young Harry and Uma! They weren't originally going to be in the chapter but they snuck in, just like they did the conversation lol! And yeah, that part came to me as I was writing it, that Belle would get a taste of what Steph had gone through for the past eight or so years.

CrystalKaouri: I'm so glad you liked the chapter! In all honesty, Beast getting put on the Isle is a long held belief of mine—for the human rights violations of the Isle at the very least. As for Uma being snarky or sarcastic…I mean she was asked to watch out for the son of the man who was the reason they were all on the Isle in the first place. I think that warrants a bit of snark. Still though, glad you enjoyed the chapter!

danifan3000: Oh Gods, that's a little terrifying to think about—Audrey trying to force Ben to date her to prove he's still with Auradon.

twilightgirl587: Oh right Flamey's friend! I'll need to include him/her since there's no way Ben would forget them!

JudiAndTheFandoms: You're welcome! Glad you enjoyed it!

OceanBlueSeaEyes: I'm hoping I can avoid having Ben lose his innocence but unfortunately I think that'll be par for the course living on the Isle part time…

AvatarUzumaki: Well…we're going to find out Ben's reaction right now…

jedblack1997: Always a possibility!

Hufflepuff24: That just means Ben has more brains than his parents, but then I think we already knew that.

SaikoGoyangi: An investigation probably would have been better but Beast is still the High King. He's the guy who created Auradon in the first place, created the Isle. It could be argued that the buck stops with him.

Hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Or at least don't hate me for it! Let me know what you think! :D

Belle sighed as she and Beast made their way to Ben's room. Normally they'd would have tried the guest room where young Mal was situated, however since Lady Persephone had stated that she'd gone down for a nap back during the council meeting, they figured it might be best if they tried Ben's room first.

Plus, it would afford them some privacy that wasn't often provided royals of their stature.

However, she couldn't help but smile as she saw her son playing with Chip. The older boy was a lifesaver at times, and Belle would forever be grateful to him.

"Hiya Maman! Hiya Papa!" Ben said with a grin as he saw them in the doorway.

"Hi Ben," Belle smiled as Ben ran over to them and Beast lifted their son up into his arms. She fought to not bite her lip at the sight but rather focused on giving Chip a smile as well. "Hello Chip."

"Hey Belle," Chip said, returning the smile. "Do you want mom to bring Abby to you? Is the council meeting done?"

"Not at the moment Chip honey, but thank you. I…I hate to ask but can we have a moment alone with Ben please?"

"Sure Belle," Chip nodded as he got up. "Ben…I'll be in the library if you want to play later okay?"

"Okay Chip," Ben said with his usual grin as Belle tried to give Chip another smile as he left. It was clear that the older boy was clearly sensing that something was wrong judging by how slowly he actually left the room.

Beast sighed as the door shut and he sat Ben down on his bed. "Okay Ben, there's…there's something papa has to tell you," he said, moving Ben's beloved stuffed dragon so that he could sit next to his son.

"What is it?" Ben asked, tilting his head.

"There's…there's no easy way for me to tell you this. You know how we have the Isle of the Lost?"

Ben nodded. "Uh huh. That's where Mal's from!"

"Well…papa has to go to the Isle."

I guess we're not delaying giving him the news, Belle thought with a sad smile as Ben tilted his head once more in slight confusion.

"…Why?" Ben asked. "You and Maman always say that the Isle's for people who did bad things…and I know Mal hasn't done anything bad but she's there too. Are you going to just say hi and then come back, like you do when you go visit Emir's papa or Akiho's?"

Beast sighed. "No Ben…Papa…you know how Papa's been very busy being King and making sure everyone is safe and happy here in Auradon? Well…I didn't realize there were kids on the Isle…kids your age like Mal…they slipped through the cracks. Some very, very bad things happened to them because of that and papa should have never let them happen…so because of that…papa now has to live on the Isle himself."

"…No!" Ben said, launching himself at Beast once the news seemed to have a chance to sink in. "No I don't want you to go Papa! Why not just say sorry? Maman says that makes things better and then Abby and I keep our Papa!"

Belle pressed a hand to her mouth to muffle a sob that was threatening to escape, the tears she'd managed to suppress earlier were coming back in full force as Ben continued to hold onto his father, as if letting go would mean that Beast would leave.

"I…I never get to see you again?"

"No, no, you'll still see me," Beast said. While he might have disliked the idea when it was first proposed, he had never been more grateful for Lady Persephone's suggestion than he was at that moment. Because of her, he had something to reassure his son with, even if it only marginally eased his heartbreak at Ben's tears."Lady Persephone's offered to help take you and your sister once she's old enough to see me and you'll stay with me for a while. Six months with me, six months with your Maman."

"…Really? I…I would go to the Isle? Even though I didn't do anything bad?" Ben asked as he looked up at Beast with his tear filled eyes. "But…but why can't you just say sorry and stay here with Maman, Abby, and me? Why do you have to go to the Isle? Why don't the people who are taking my Papa have to go to the Isle?! They're doing a bad thing too!"

Beast sighed and gently rubbed Ben's back as he looked down at him. "Because, Ben, as King it was my responsibility to check on the Isle. And since I didn't do that, I can't just blame someone else…every bad thing has consequences and every ruler, especially someone who wants to be a fair King, has to face them even if they don't particularly like them."

"But…but it was an accident! It's not like you set out to hurt the kids, to hurt Mal!" Ben said, tightening his grip on Beast. "Why does everyone else in Auradon get to keep their Papa but I don't get to keep you? Chip says sorry fixes everything! Are you sure you can't just say sorry and stay home with us?"

Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry, Beast found himself thinking as he felt tears begin to pool in the corners of his eyes at Ben's innocent reasoning and pleading. You'll just upset Ben more, you need to be strong.

"Papa…please," Ben begged, looking up at Beast with eyes so wide they almost looked like they took up half of his face. "It's not fair. You have a…a…what's the word Maman?"

"Council, sweetheart," Belle said, her voice soft as she worked to suppress her tears.

Ben nodded as he looked back at Beast. "Right! And they help you! So why aren't they getting sent to the Isle too? Wouldn't they not know about the kids of the Isle too?"

Belle watched as her son whipped his head over to her, as if she would have the answers his father didn't. "Maman?! Why can't Papa just say sorry? Why aren't the rest of the…the council getting in trouble as well? Why can't you fix it?"

Ben's eyes grew even wider and his tears began flowing faster at the sight of Belle's tears, which had finally begun to stream down her face. However, he didn't want to let go of Beast even to comfort her.

Beast sighed as Belle tried to stem the flow of tears as to not upset Ben anymore. "As…as High King, Papa is held to a higher form of responsibility than the rest of the council is, Ben," she said. "I…I know its might not seem fair, but the law doesn't carer about fairness. It only cares about right and wrong."

I'm angry too Ben, she thought. I'm angry and sad but…a part of me understands. We should have checked on the Isle more. They were still our people…even if they were all in prison.

"You'll still see me Ben…and I'm not going right away. We still have two weeks," Beast said, trying to give Ben the best cold comfort he could.

"…But you're still leaving," Ben said, his voice muffled as he burrowed into Beast as if the close contact would prevent him from ever leaving.

Beast sighed. "I'm as upset about this as you are Ben," he said softly as he gently rubbed his son's back.

"Then why not fight it?"

That was a good question, Beast thought. Unfortunately it's not one I can answer.

"…Does Chip know? Was that why you asked him to leave?" Ben asked after a few minutes of silence.

"Not yet. We wanted to tell you first."

"What…what about Abby? Does she know?"

Belle sighed and shook her head. "She…she wouldn't understand Ben. She'll…she'll just be told that papa has to go away. When…when she's older and she goes to the Isle with you…we can explain it to her then."

Ben bit his lip as he looked up at Beast. "…Do…if you hafta go papa…do you want Flamey to help protect you?"

"No, no, Ben. Thank you but I'd feel better if Flamey stays and protects you," Beast said, shaking his head even as he couldn't help but smile slightly despite his son's sniffles. That was his Ben, always thinking of someone else.

"But…but I'll have Maman…and Chip…how will I know you'll be safe if you don't have Flamey?"

"Because Lady Persephone has said she'll make sure I'm safe remember?"

"Oh…but…if you have Flamey you…you won't be as lonely there papa. So…take him? Please?"

"And what if you want Flamey later Ben?"

Ben bit his lip again, he loved Flamey and would miss him but he knew his papa needed him more.

Papa…I'll miss you, Ben thought. I'll miss you so much…this isn't fair! Why? Why do you have to leave? I…I don't understand…

He burrowed into Beast's chest, trying to stay as close to his dad as he could as Beast gently rubbed hiss back again.

"I don't want you to go," Ben whined softly. "Don't go…we could all go and live with Granddad!"

Belle couldn't stop the small sobs from escaping her lips. Oh Ben…oh my precious, innocent boy. We can't all go and hide, no matter how much we want to. Believe me…if we could…we would in a heartbeat.

Beast sighed. "Ben…we can't do that," he said softly.

"Why not? He'd be happy to have us! He's always saying we should visit more!" Ben said, looking up at Beast with wide, pleading eyes.

"We…we just can't Ben," Beast said with a small sigh. "When you're older…it'll make sense."

"…I don't like it though," Ben said, pouting slightly.

"I know. I don't either."

Ben didn't say anything but clung to his dad. Maybe this is just a really scary dream, he thought. Any minute I'll wake up with Maman and papa beside me in my bed and they'll tell me that they're there and that I'm safe and that this isn't real.

Beast held his son close, wishing that there was something he could say to comfort him but he knew there wasn't anything. This was their life now.

After a while, Ben's cries died down as he fell asleep; his head on Beast's shoulder.

"Well…that went as well as I thought it would," Beast whispered as he gently laid Ben on his bed; making sure to tuck his son's beloved stuffed dragon under his arm as to make sure Ben knew it was there.

"…I don't know what I'm going to do when you do have to leave," Belle whispered. "It's going to break him."

Beast sighed. "You'll have the staff…and Chip'll be good for distracting him. Plus…if I know Chip, he'll be around a lot more once he hears…not to mention Ben's friends. I have a feeling they'll be over more once the news breaks."

Belle sighed and Beast went over and held her close. Everything they knew was going to change, and there was nothing they could do about it.

"I…I should call Mrs. Potts," Belle whispered. "We need to tell the staff…and you should see Abby."

"I know…" Beast sighed.

"Adam?"

"I just…what's going to happen when he wakes up?" Beast whispered as he looked over at Ben. "After everything we told him?"

Belle sighed and rested her head on Beast's chest. "I know Adam, I know. But…Abby'll be wanting us. And we need to tell the staff. Better…better they hear it from us than from gossip. If…if I lose the election, they lose their jobs after all…"

"You won't lose," Beast said shaking his head.

"You don't know that Adam." Belle said and then sighed. "Let's…let's not do this. Please. Not when…in two weeks you'll be leaving for the Isle."

"Deal," Beast said. "Is it wrong that I don't want to call the staff? As much as I want to hold Abby and make the most of…of the time I've got left with her for the next few years, I…I don't want to make it even more real than it already is."

"I understand," Belle nodded. "I'm just hoping the press doesn't find out before we're able to tell people."

"The only person who's likely to spill to the press is Leah…and she'd do it too. If she thought it'd give Aurora a leg up in the election. I have to wonder what card Leah will try to play for the election."

Belle shook her head. "Probably the fact that Aurora will have Phillip and can dedicate more time to the kingdom. Whereas I'll have to split my time between ruler and mother…"

"…I have never been more thankful for Lady Persephone's suggestion," Beast said after a minute.

"Adam?"

"Belle, you won't have to 'split' your time!" Beast said, making sure to lower his voice as Ben turned over. "At least, not all of your time. Yes, you'll need to give Abby attention but for half of the year, where will Ben be?"

"…On the Isle!" Belle gasped.

"Exactly."

Belle smiled before sighing softly and shaking her head. "Adam, you and I know perfectly well that this isn't the thing to take the wind from Leah's sails. In fact, she might use the fact that you're on the Isle as a reason why I shouldn't be ruler. It's a conflict of interest or something to that affect."

"But you've got the experience ruling," Beast said. "Not to mention you've got more smarts than anyone I've ever met. You absolutely can handle this election."

"…I wish it wasn't necessary though," Belle said softly as she looked over at her sleeping son. Yes, their stability would have been threatened anyway with Adam possibly losing the election but now? Now that so much had already been taken from them, Belle didn't want one more thing to be snatched from her children's lives.

Not that they wouldn't adjust—Ben was the nicest person Belle had ever met and Abby was too young to even know she was a Princess. It wasn't as if they were like some of the other young royals in Auradon.

Still though…as a mother, the last thing Belle wanted to do was hurt her kids.

Which was why she was going to win. No matter what.

"We…we should go tell the staff," Beast whispered.

"Yeah…I guess we should," Belle nodded, taking one last look at her sleeping son before the two of them slipped out of the room to make the necessary calls so that the staff could be all in one room…and so they wouldn't have to repeat the news.

Once was bad enough.