Tale As Old As Time (Descendants)

Chapter 1

Twenty years since the creation of the now titled Isle of the Lost, and each day seemed like the sun would never stop shining. As Prince Ben looked out of his bedroom window while the Royal Tailor took his measurements he silently corrected himself, that the sun did not reach everywhere, reminded by the constant overhanging storm clouds above the Isle. As the tailor turned his head forwards, Ben was deep in thought, once again turning towards the reason for his disquiet.

"How is it possible that you're going to be crowned king next month?" As if hearing his thoughts, Ben faced forwards once again to see his parents, King Adam and Queen Belle, walk into his room. "You're just a baby!" Adam quipped, leading his wife into the room.

"He's turning sixteen, dear." Belle playfully admonished, touching her husband's arm. Breaking away from him, she began to tidy her son's misplaced clothing around the room.

"Hey, Pops." Ben greeted his father, smiling lightly at his parent's playful banter.

"Sixteen?!" Adam jokingly removed his glasses and widened his eyes, as if only hearing this for the first time. "That's far too young to be crowned king. I didn't make a good decision until I was at least forty-two," he stated, causing his wife to scoff and turn towards him as they stopped close to their son.

"Uh, you decided to marry me at twenty-eight" Belle pointedly told her husband. "Well, it was either you or a teapot" Adam winked at Ben, causing him to chuckle. "Kidding" He promised, seeing his wife glare at him.

"Mom, Dad-" Ben moved forward, deciding that now was the time to talk to his parents, but was halted by the tailor who was adjusting the hem of his pants. "I've chosen my first official proclamation," he announced. Noticing that his parents were smiling and waiting for him to continue, "I've decided that the children on the Isle of the lost be given a chance to live here in Auradon." The smiles on both of his parents vanish as they freeze, with Belle dropping the blazer she was holding in shock. He stepped off the platform, motioning towards the window. "Every time I look towards the Isle, I feel like they've been abandoned."

"The children of our sworn enemies living among us?" Adam asked incredulously, and Ben rushed to placate him. "We start out with a few at first, only the ones that need our help the most." Noticing his mother silently nodding her head, he continued, "I've already chosen five of them."

"Have you?" Adam rhetorically asked him, but his wife was quick to come to her son's aid, "I gave you a second chance" she reminded him, causing him to look down in thought. "Who are their parents?" Belle inquired softly.

Ben drew in a deep breath and began stating the names, "Cruella De Vil... Jafar... Evil Queen... Maleficent-" and at once he was interrupted by the tailor dropping his notepad with a gasp, his father looking at him like he had lost his mind exclaiming "Maleficent?! She is the worst villain in the land!"

"Dad, just hear me out here-" Ben sought to persuade his father, but he only raised a finger stopping his son, "I won't hear of it." Noticing that the conversation had turned into a more private matter, the tailor quickly bowed and retreated out of the room, the two attendants at the doors quickly closing them.

"Those villains are guilty of unspeakable crimes" Adam seethed, but his son carried forward, "Dad, their children are innocent, don't you think they deserve a shot at a normal life?" Looking at his father pleadingly, "Dad?"

After a moment of silence with both his wife and son awaiting his response, he looked between the two of them and signed. "You had said you chose five of them, who's the last?" at this, Belle looked to her son silently, wondering the same.

Ben, more relaxed than before seeing as his father let go of the issue, smiled at them. "The last one is the daughter of Hades and Persephone."

At this, both of his parent's faces seemed to soften with remorse, and he knew why; For eight years Persephone has consistently petitioned to have her daughter released from the Isle to join her, ever since she was forced to leave her husband and child's side. The issue was that Persephone had her daughter on the Isle, not realizing that with the barrier draining her powers would cause her child to be born mortal; When she petitioned to Zeus to requisition her daughter from the Isle, he had stated that as she was a mortal, she fell under mortal jurisdiction. Whenever Persephone would petition to the council and his parents themselves, they had to reject it saying that as she was born on the Isle, it made her a citizen like every other villain's child, and until now they had never allowed a villain or their children out of the Isle.

After his parents silently absorbed the knowledge of the last child chosen, his father looked over towards him and nodded his head, "I suppose their children should be given a chance." As his father wandered over to the door they had come from, his mother had exhaled in relief and moved in front of him, fixing his suit and giving him a soft "well done", smiling at him one last time to which he returned. A moment later Belle and Adam left their sons' room, and Ben moved back to the window.

As he looked over to the perpetually clouded Isle and signed to himself, he glanced at his signet ring, and once more towards the Isle. Whatever may happen from this point he knew, things would change... he just hoped it was for the better.

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Author's Note

This chapter didn't really veer from the scene in the movie, other than the information about Korie; I had kept it this way since the scene itself was short but important as it sets the events of the series forward. Chapter lengths will typically fluctuate depending on how long the scene is, and my publishing rate will vary when I can work on the series as I have college and internship to balance.