Chapter Text
Ben didn’t know what to expect when they got to the Isle, but it wasn’t this. He understood why Evie made him promise that she wouldn’t get stuck here. The smell made him gag as he stepped out of the limo. It was rotten and thick as if the air was infected with the stench. The other didn’t seem bothered. They quickly covered the limo and started looking for Mal.
Right away Evie snapped at him about being too nice. “Drop the ‘excuse me’ the ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ too. No one says that here.” He nodded and did his best just to keep quiet. He couldn’t help but stare at all the garbage everywhere. People sleeping on piles of it instead of a bed. He nearly fainted at the sight of a kid covered in bruises and greedily eating a half-rotted fish. He tried to greet someone and Carlos grabbed his hand. “You draw attention when you act like that.” Evie’s tone was the harshest the king had ever heard.
It was terrifying how quickly the three of them reverted to their Isle selves. Jay growled at anyone who wandered too close. Evie walked behind Ben pushing off anyone who approached them, knives flashing in a silent threat. Carlos walked alongside him ready to fight anyone who approached. Once the boy actually bit someone who tried to grab at Ben. Ben also noticed that once people noticed who was coming toward them they would cower into the shadows. Who were his friends when they lived here? What did they have to do in order to survive?
He continued to watch as people drank a sludge that came out of a faucet. The smell of rot and feces only got stronger the further they went. “Lean back.” He was glad he listened right away when a massive fan blade shot at his head. He could never imagine what it must’ve been like to grow up in a place like this. Every time he thought he saw the worst thing possible, something else came along. People missing fingers, toes, and whole limbs. How the magic of ‘not dying’ worked he wasn’t sure, but clearly you could still lose body parts.
He had stopped twice to throw up, and the Isle kids closed ranks each time. Only one person made the mistake of approaching and Jay lifted him off the ground. Something was spoken in a language the king couldn’t understand and then there was a thud indicating Jay tossed the guy. After Ben recovered they continued their way through the Isle.
They made it to the hideout after a brief encounter with the son of Gaston. Mal was talking to the others as Ben wandered to a window, he looked over the Isle and realized all the kids who grew up here were his responsibility too. Eventually, he was called into the conversation. Mal asked him why he was there. Why was he here? He wanted to bring Mal back, but she was struggling to adapt to Auradon. And after seeing the Isle in person he’s surprised any of them can adapt. People are killing over scraps and committing violence over nothing more than a cup of dirty water. He feels himself tear up and he is frustrated by it. How can he cry when they are the ones who lived this experience? He suddenly feels unworthy of the friendship they’ve chosen to have with him.
“I’m sorry.” He looks up at the others. They look confused, and Mal tilts her head.
“Why are you sorry?”
Ben scoffed. He gestured to the outside and gave a defeated laugh. “I wanted to convince you to come back to Auradon and now I don’t think I can. Not when this is what you are used to! No wonder you hate it in Auradon, everything here is dark, violent, and cruel. How could we expect you to be a perfect rule follower if you’ve had to fight for everything you’ve ever had?” He looked to the floor. “I’m sorry for my part in this and for making you feel like you needed to change.” Evie put a hand on his arm and gave him a kind smile.
“You didn’t know.” She smiled at him but her eyes betrayed her fear. She was afraid to be here. She was shaking and he wasn’t sure she even knew. They continued to talk and Mal agreed to come back after she took care of something. Evie gave a look that said they should let her do what she needed to do.
They left the hideout and moved through the square. Ben couldn’t help but notice the way everything was dirty. Even the dirt was dirty. His chest squeezed at the realization of just how overwhelming Auradon must’ve been for the four people he’s grown to care for. He looked into an alley as they walked and he was sure the person leaning against the wall wasn’t breathing. One step towards the body and Jay pulled him away. The thief held his gaze and shook his head as he pushed the king to catch up with Evie and Carlos.
People died on the island all the time. Tears burned behind his eyes again as he walked, but he refused to let them fall. He had to be strong, he had to be bad, he needed to act like a villain. But how could he when kids were starving and the ones who didn’t ate garbage? A crash startled him out of his thoughts. The group all turned towards the noise and the isle kids relaxed when they realized it was a haggle gone wrong. Ben gaped bewildered. Carlos shoved him forward with a “You need to not stare.”
“What was that?!” Ben tried to keep his voice down but was struggling. The three didn’t even look at him. They all shrugged and continued to scan the crowd around them.
“If you can’t take it, break it.” The unison of their answer shut Ben up for a while. They crept around for gods knows how long before they got to their destination. The king had no idea where they were, but the boys seemed to as they both relaxed as much as he’d seen them allow since returning to the Isle.
They approached a small clearing hidden in the woods, it was clear that someone had once used the area for some kind of garden, but it was long out of use. The boys parted and took guard nearby. Carlos clambered up a tree and disappeared from view. Ben watched as Evie slowly made her way through the garden.
Occasionally she’d reach down and pick a few leaves off a dead plant and shove it into her pocket. Eventually, she hovered by a rock. Before Ben could ask what they were doing here, the princess effortlessly flipped the rock over and opened a hidden chest. Silently she grabbed a few bags and other items, finally, she pulled out a book and held it to her chest as she signaled to the others that she was ready to leave. Carlos dropped from his spot in the tree and tucked his arm into Evie’s.
“Is that everything?” She nodded and leaned into the smaller boy’s touch. Ben gave her a confused look and she offered a small smile.
“This is my herbal journal.” She handed him the book. He looked at her for permission and only opened the book after receiving a nod. He flipped through the pages and was confused at first. It was a normal novel like he would find in any library, but as he flipped further into the book he realized that there were words written in the margins.
Over top of the words of the novel there were drawings (He could tell Mal had done them) of different plants and he assumed the margins held information about the uses of the plant. He couldn’t read the descriptions, He assumed it was Ilsen (The Isle language) since he couldn’t even vaguely recognize it. After the book was safely back in the arms of Evie the crew reorganized themselves and headed to a new location.
“I wrote down all the knowledge I had on different plants and what we could use them for.” Evie’s gaze was firmly set ahead of them, but Ben appreciated her explaining it to him. “You don’t see medicine on the barges very often and possess it even less. I needed to learn how to make do with what I could.”
They continued on the outskirts of town and slipped into a building through a crack in the wall. Clearly, this was not a safe place because the villain kids were on edge. Jay shot him a look that said if he messed up they were all dead. (Not that it mattered here) Still, he did his best to not make a sound. Unfortunately, his best was not good enough because he tripped over a dilapidated board and fell into a wall. Thankfully the wall didn’t break from his weight, but all the isle kids stood stock still and wide-eyed. He didn’t even think they were breathing. When enough time had passed without a noise they started to slowly move forward. Jay’s face was red when he glared at the king. Evie held her hand up and they all froze in place. She stuck her head through a small hole and scoped out the room.
They crept into an open room and Ben froze as his eyes landed on the fur coats lining the room. Empty alcohol bottles filled any open space on the floor. They couldn’t be where he thought they were. Evie and Carlos had a silent conversation and disappeared. Jay stood next to the king and was listening for danger. The others returned and they all quickly fled the building. Hell Hall. Ben had just stood inside of HELL HALL.
Waves of nausea washed over him as reality sunk in. What was he doing here? He didn’t belong here, he was from Auradon. He was a king and the son of the man (beast?) that created this horrible place. A rough shove snapped him out of his internal spiral. He could see Carlos holding a small box and peeking inside discovered it was full of improvised medical supplies. Rags for bandages, tape with a fluffy middle for bandaids. Needle and thread for… well Ben didn’t want to think about what that was for.
Carlos seemed to be in another world, but he held the box close to his chest and followed after Jay. They walked towards the hideout where Evie said they’d wait for Mal. Ben didn’t think he would make it off the island with how much his body physically hurt from the things he saw. Countless ‘dead’ bodies. Not a single drop of clean water in sight. Kids killing each other over nothing more than a rusted can of beans. (Worth more than most lives on the isle according to Jay) Bartering with broken and discarded items.
Some things were impressive to the king. Like the fashion abilities of those living on the Isle. Piecing together literal garbage into something even Auradon kids would be envious of. There was an unspoken culture of trade when it came to items that weren’t necessary for life. (Unless you were in a gang and then you just take it)
But there was something about the way the children were still proud of their parentage and fiercely defended the honor of the person who would abuse them. Ben could feel the nausea returning but swallowed it down the best he could. It was obvious. Brands burned into some, scars, the way they dressed, the way they walked, stood, eyes never still constantly looking for danger. The fact that his friends hadn’t killed anyone on accident was a miracle in Ben’s eyes, and he suddenly felt horrible for the way he got frustrated with them for not “assimilating” quickly enough. He was lucky they still wanted to be his friend at all. As they approached the hideout a massive group of people pushed through a narrow road. Suddenly surrounded by people, Ben lost track of where the crew went.
Carlos looked around, realized Ben was missing, and swore. From the shadows crept Harry Hook as he explained that Mal needed to speak to Uma if they wanted the boy king back. They quickly found Mal and explained everything to her and she immediately left to see Uma. Soon they found themselves separated as Evie refused to leave Mal and the boys needed to get a copy of the wand. With Lonnie and Dude in tow, they returned to the Isle and went to retrieve Ben.
Ben heard chatter as he was led to the deck of the ship. The bag covering his head was swiftly removed and in front of him was ‘the plank’. If he wasn’t about to die he might’ve laughed at the ridiculousness of it all. But his friends were here to rescue him and they looked furious. Murderous even. Uma gave her demands and in true isle fashion, Mal haggled and threatened.
Suddenly remembering the “can’t take it, break it” ideology he got increasingly nervous as Mal continued to push Uma. Harry went on a tangent about how he could end his life with a single swing and the king could feel his heart try to escape his chest. Mal looked as if she was going to insult Uma again, he interjected begging them to take a peaceful route, but of course, that didn’t work.
The gangs made their trade and Ben was shoved to the back of the group and his ties were cut. He heard a shriek of rage and suddenly a sword was shoved into his hands and he was fighting for his life. He knew he was skilled in sword fighting, but the pirates fought with power that felt unnatural from their thinner frames. A gasp left his mouth as a piercing pain shot through his arm. He fought with the strength of his inner beast and managed to toss his opponent into the water below. He groaned and his arm got heavier as it lost blood. (He figured it would feel lighter, but he had much to learn.) Jay pulled his sword out of the gut of his assailant and rushed to the king's side. He called out to the gang and they closed ranks. Blood sprayed as the crew protected Ben and made their way to the limo. All of them were a bit scraped up from what he could tell, but the real concern was how much of the blood was theirs or others. Ben fell unconscious as they passed through the barrier.
The cotillion proceeded as planned as everyone only had minor wounds, and Ben didn’t want to put it off for another second. He just had to celebrate the love of his life as soon as possible. He grinned as Uma took his hand and walked beside him down the stairs. He couldn’t remember the moment he had fallen for her, but it had to be true love with the way she looked tonight. His head throbbed when Mal rushed forward and growled at Uma claiming the sea witch spelled him.
That didn’t make any sense; he loved Uma, and he had hoped Mal would be happy for him. Uma thought the same and said as much. Audrey silently cried behind the half-fae and something inside him felt bad, but he couldn’t bring himself to do anything. Soon Audrey was claiming to be his queen and that she was in love with him. Suddenly her soft lips met his and his headache was gone.
The warmth and love in the kiss made him sad when they had to part. Beside him, Uma screamed as she ran to the edge of the boat. He called out to her and begged her not to jump and she grinned as she fell over the edge. Soon the sea witch appeared and tormented those aboard the boat. He felt completely helpless as the ship rocked in the waves. A groan escaped Mal’s lips as she lost control of her magic and then a dragon appeared in her place. The sea witch and dragon battled and Ben feared for their safety.
They were going to hurt each other and he didn’t want anyone else to get hurt because of his father’s mistakes. He shed his jacket and jumped into the water convincing them to both stand down and while he was sad Uma disappeared (and a little scared too) he was glad they didn’t hurt each other. Sweeping Audrey into his arms and ensuring everyone else was okay. He announced that the festivities would continue as they headed to shore.
That night he sat with Audrey and told her everything he saw on the Isle and she agreed to help him push the restructuring bill that would give the people of the Isle proper supplies. He needed to speed up the process as much as possible. Politics be damned people in his kingdom were suffering for the sins of their parents and something about that felt wrong. Especially when Ben did nothing but benefit from the sins of his parents. It was that night the king began to wonder who the real villains were.