Descendant's Consequences

Death

          "No," I whisper. My knees buckle and I fall to the ground. Mom is instantly there, pulling me into her. "No, no, no- she- she can't be gone! She- she can't!" Tears fall down my cheeks. "Mal is gonna be okay- she's strong; she'll make it."

"Ben," Mom starts.

"No!" I shout. "She can't-"

"If you'd like to say goodbye," the nurse starts. "You may see her, but I'll need to take her away."

"Ben, you should go first," Jay says.

"She's not dead," I insist. "She's not! She can't be!"

Dad runs a hand through my hair. "You all go ahead. We'll be in last." Jay nods and turns they all walk in, leaving my parents and I outside the room. "I'm so sorry, Ben," Dad starts.

"Wh-what about our life? Our relationship? We were gonna- gonna have a life together," Ben says. Dad nods. "You said that- that we could be m-married."

"I did say that," Dad says. "But sometimes we don't get what we want."

"She would've said yes," I claim.

Dad nods. "I have no doubt in my mind. She was a fine young lady and she didn't deserve this."

I sit there, crying into my mother's shoulder as it finally sinks in. "The love of my life is dead," I whisper. "And I can't get her back!"

Slowly everyone files out of the room, Jay being the last. "Make it count," he says. I stand up and walk in, my parents waiting outside.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~❶Jay❶~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We walk in, leaving Ben outside as he tries to grip what happened. The Auradon kids go fist, paying their respects quickly and stepping back. Only Doug and Audrey remain, the fairies, Lonnie and Jane leaving. Carlos steps forward first. "Hey, Mal," he starts. "I'm really going to miss you. You were always there to protect me, protect all of us. When it really mattered, there you were to keep us all safe- help us survive. You were like the older protective sister I always wanted but never had. I hope that wherever you are, you're happy and you can watch over us like you always have." He holds Dude up and he licks her hand a few times, whimpering. "Dude says goodbye, too."

Carlos steps back, standing by my side. I throw my arm over Carlos's shoulder. Evie steps up next. "Hey M," she says. "I-I gonna miss you. You're the one person who understood what it was like. You were an older sister that I always wanted and I didn't realize it until just now. You didn't deserve what your mother did to you and I'm so sorry we took so long to help you. It's our fault you're here right now."

Evie sobs and I step forward. "It wasn't our fault. All of this is Maleficent's fault. We did all we could to help her."

Evie nods and Doug pulls her over to a chair, trying to comfort her. I step forward next. "Hey Dragon," I say. "I'm so sorry. I told you I'd always protect you and I couldn't this time. I should have known this was coming. Maybe if I'd told the others sooner. I'll do better with the others; we'll always stick together. I'll protect them. You were the little sister I always wanted. We've been through so much together and I'll remember every moment. You'll always be the strongest of us all, Mal. We'll never forget all that we've been through. I'll- um- I'll make sure that they hear what you have to say."

Audrey wipes away my tears and I place a gently kiss on the back of her hand. We slowly walk out. I walk over to Ben as everyone leaves. "Make it count."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~❶Ben❶~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Mom and Dad help me up, letting me see Mal on my own. I walk up to her and take her hand in mine. "Hey Sweetie. I-I can't- I can't believe you're gone," I start. "Everything was so- so great be-between us. I was going to asks you to marry me and we would have had a family and- and- and a- a life together." I sit on the bed beside her and run a hand through her hair. "I- I love you so, so, so much. I'd trade places with you in a heartbeat. I miss you already. You are the love of my life and no one will ever take your place." I look down at her hand and spin the beast ring on her finger. "I'll never forget you, Sweetie. I'll love you 'til the day I die. I'll never love anyone more."

There's a knock at the door and I turn to see the nurse standing there. "I'm sorry, your majesty, but I need to take her now."

"One more minute?" I ask. The nurse nods and steps out. "I hope you are happy wherever you are now. I'll make sure that your legacy lives on- your art, your family, your thoughts. I'll bring over more kids and give them the chance you cherished so much- to live in Auradon. I love you so much, Mal." The nurse walks in again as I lean down, pressing a kiss to Mal's forehead. "G-goodbye, Mal." I stand up and step back. I place her arms over her stomach and take the sheets, pulling it up over her head.

I stagger out and look at my parents. "Ben?" Mom asks.

"Where is she?" I ask. Mom looks confused while Dad looks hesitant. "Tell me where she is."

"Ben-"

"The basement of the west wing in the castle," Dad says. Mom looks at him, surprised. "Ben, don't do something stupid."

I storm off in the direction of our castle, blowing past all the guards. I find the dark room in the castle basement and slam the doors open. I reach into the terrarium and grab Maleficent's lizard body in my hands. She squirms and screams in my hand. I hold her a little tighter. "Are you happy, your evilness? Are you happy?" I demand. "You and your stupid pride just killed your daughter!"

She looks surprised for a moment. "Yeah, that's right. You remember that stupid curse you put on Mal? Well, it came to pass. She was going strong for a while- fought it off. We even managed to find a counter for the thing but it was too late. By the time we gave it to her, she wasn't strong enough for it to do any good." I squeeze a little harder and she yelps. "She was so close to being home free; to bouncing back from that curse but no, you just have to win. Are you freaking happy, Maleficent? You just killed your daughter. She died scared and in pain because of your stupid curse. You can't take that back. I'd think even you would show mercy and love your daughter- your own flesh and blood- enough to feel bad about making her suffer!"

Maleficent looks at me and I see a small tear slide down her face. "You'll never see your daughter again because of that stupid curse that you cast on her. Surely even you, you cold hearted monster, can feel that that is wrong."

I drop her back in her Terrarium and slam the lid closed. "You stay here and remember all that you've ever done to Mal."

I leave the room, the guards returning to their posts. Moving upstairs, I step into my room and look around. Before I sit down, I walk over to my closet and find one of Mal's shirts. She'd stored a few articles of clothing in my room for any night we were studying and she stayed over. I lie down on my bed, holding the shirt to my chest and let the tears fall.

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