Chapter Text
How hard could it be? Was his initial, very naive thought. Then, succeeding it: Very, very, hard. His gray-blue gaze sidled over to one of the two floor to ceiling windows in his spacious - but cluttered- room, and he let out a muffled sigh as he caught sight of a patrol of soldiers marching stoically and steadily around the titanium glass dome encircling the entrance to Penumbra, a labyrinthine mess of caves that made up a prison for the Villains of the Wrath, as well as their children. The young prince let his eyes graze over the whole of his kingdom, which was still struggling to make a comeback after the Wrath.
He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists harshly. The Wrath. Eighteen years of war after war, demolished city after demolished city, and death upon death upon death.
A sharp turn of his head by the tailor- or more precisely the tailor's Oversoul, Velvet Scar, a faerie that had a gruesome scar upon her tiny face and a shocking pair of beautiful butterfly wings- made him turn forward once more. How the bumbling, stick-like man could possibly be a Steel Soul befuddled him. It took all of his willpower not to return his glance to his window as his thoughts trailed once more to the almost-proclamation that was stuck in his head like an annoying song. Desperate to keep his eyes trained on something other than the Penumbra Portal- the official name for it- he blinked at the tiny fairy that had flitted onto his shoulder and was perched atop it, swinging her legs. "Prince Ben, please stay still, so my Master can finish his measurements," she chirped, and Ben nodded.
Steel Souls. The boy thought. People like us, but not. Humans who are not human and can summon mythical and legendary creatures called Oversouls.
"How is it possible that you're going to be crowned King next week?" Ben's meandering gaze turned towards his broad-shouldered father, King Beast, and his petite mother, Queen Belle. His trademark, blinding bright white smile bloomed across his face. "You're a just a baby."
"He's turning sixteen soon, dear," Ben's mother chimed in, and although her voice was much gentler and serene than his father's booming timbre, it was still as authoritative.
"Hey, pops," Ben greeted his father and tugged uncomfortably at the sleeves of his jacket, which caused the tailor to click his tongue in a disapproving way, and Belle picked up a coat from the foosball table and brushed off the inconceivable layer of dust on it.
"Sixteen? That's far too young to be crowned king. I didn't make a good decision until I was at least forty-two." Belle rolled her eyes and her husband, initiating a chuckle from their son.
"You decided to marry me at twenty eight."
"Well, it was either you or the teapot." Ben laughed loudly when his father shot him a wink, and he recalled the kind face of the stoutly woman who taught a cooking elective at another one of Lumania's prestigious schools, Kepsiam High. Belle shook her head, feigning annoyance. As silence fell upon the room, Ben drew his shoulders up, trying to push down the anxiety that had settled in the pit of his stomach, and he took a breath, preparing himself.
"Mom, Dad," Ben began guardedly and took a step forward, but the tailor stopped him, tugging on the hem of his pants leg, beckoning him to stay on the pedestal. "I've chosen my first official proclamation." Belle drew in a sharp breath, and exchanged a proud glance with Adam. Here goes nothing.
"I've decided that the children in Penumbra should be given a chance to come and live with us, here in Lumania." The coat that Belle had been holding was discarded onto the cluttered floor as she let out a slight whimper, and Adam was paralyzed, mouth open in shock. Stepping forward quickly, too abruptly for the tailor to hold him back, Ben folded his hands behind his back, trying his best to look as official as possible. "Every time I look out at that dome, I feel like they're being abandoned."
Adam pulled his hand out of his pocket slowly, dropping his fatherly demeanor and pointing out the window, a strange combination of placidity and fury creasing his forehead. "Ben, listen to me now, and listen well. I know you hadn't been born yet, but haven't you learned enough about the Wrath to reali-"
"I know that, Dad! I've heard the stories, seen the aftermath, felt the people's sorrow." He drew in another deep breath. "But the villains' children are innocent! And besides," Ben paused, feeling a bit sheepish. "I've already chosen and researched their parents.
"Have you now?" King Adam growled, voice alarmingly low, and Ben flinched back, away from his father's commanding aura of power.
Queen Belle rested a comforting hand on Adam's arm. "I gave you a second chance," she murmured, and blinked at Ben. "Who are their parents?" Ben couldn't ignore the hint of disappointment in his mother's voice, and he had to fight back the urge to give up, to make another proclamation, one less life threatening than the one he had just suggested.
"Cruella di Vil, Jafar, Evil Queen..." Ben steadied himself, for he knew how his parents would react to the last name. "And Maleficent." Velvet Scar, which had flown up atop Ben's head, immediately stumbled back and would have fallen, if not the sudden flap of her wings.
"Son," King Adam began. "What has gotten into you?" Ben bowed his head. I knew this wouldn't work.
"Two-thirds of our population perished in the Wrath, Ben. Who's to say the villain's kids won't take out the one third of us still here?"
"I'm sorry-"
"Apologizing won't make things right!" Rage boiled through Ben's veins. He was going to be crowned king soon, just like his father had said mere minutes before the argument had begun. He deserved to make his own choices now.
"The children are innocent! And, by the way, I say that they won't kill the rest of us!" The people in the room grew silent, and Ben realized that the tailor and his Oversoul had left. King Adam grunted wordlessly, and Queen Belle grimaced, smiling pitifully at Ben.
"We'll think about it," she said.