Sting of Betrayal
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the canon characters of Disney's Maleficent; they belong to Walt Disney Studios and any other respective owners. Please enjoy the story; further notes will be posted at the end of the piece.
As soon as Maleficent awakens from her deep, unnatural slumber, a sensation of pain slices through her, beginning in her shoulders and then shooting down her back. Maleficent's head pounds like a drum as her beauteous multi-colored eyes feel as clouded as her brain when she tries to move. Within seconds of attempting to move, a thick, ghastly, and searing pain overtakes Maleficent, capturing the young Fae in its vice-like hold. At first, a whimper is the only sound to escape Maleficent's lips as she lies on the bank of the river within the Moors. As Maleficent tries to shift her body once more, she realizes a substantial amount of weight is seemingly missing from her body.
No, no, no.
This is all a nightmare, Maleficent.
They still have to be there, Maleficent.
It is not like anyone could have….
NO! NO! NO! NO!
My wings are gone.
Maleficent collapses onto the ground again, pools of tears collecting in her eyes as a scream of desperation and pain builds in her throat.
The searing pain left by the metal continues to taint Maleficent's body, leaving her writhing in both pain and anguish.
My wings are gone!
With the realization that Stefan tricked her, Maleficent begins to weep.
He stole them from me!
If she had the strength, Maleficent would have cursed Stefan in English, Fae, and the other languages she has learned in the Moors. However, the once all-powerful Maleficent crumples as she tries to move once more. Her back and muscles loudly howl in protest as they press agonizingly against the tissues that used to connect her wings to her spine. Maleficent lets out chokes sobs, turning around to see with her own eyes the absence of her wonderful, wide wings. She feels the absence both physically and mentally, the sting of iron present on her skin and the sting of an unknown sensation in her heart and chest.
Stefan would pay dearly for inflicting this pain upon her and for committing a most grievous error. Stealing Maleficent's wings after gaining her trust was unacceptable. Oh, the ways Maleficent would punish him dearly…
Maleficent's plots and schemes of vengeance are halted as the pain sears through her once more. Unable to hold back her reaction, Maleficent throws her head upwards towards the sky, eliciting a sharp howl of pain as she wails piteously at her loss of wings, at her loss of freedom. Stealing a Fae's wings was horrid and condemning on its own. Stealing Maleficent's wings… Well, the lowest price she is willing to accept is death. No one could talk her down from that particular punishment. Maleficent would not be swayed.
I should never have spared him.
Balthazar was right. Humans cannot be trusted.
Men are beasts.
I shall never trust nor love again.
"Stefan!" Maleficent roars out, doing her best to drag herself into a sitting position.
Summoning nearly all of her strength, Maleficent manages to craft a staff out of a fallen limb she found alongside the river. With every ounce of strength she has left, Maleficent manages to rise from the riverbank, taking staggering steps forward. She feels the bones along her back grate against her spine, no longer having the protective tissue or cartilage to cushion the movement.
I will never be the same.
Balthazar is the first to notice the change in Maleficent. The warrior of bark inquires as to what happened and whom he needed to slay to avenge Maleficent. (He had always been Maleficent's dearest friend.)
"My wings were stolen from me by a cruel, heartless man," Maleficent practically spits, tears welling in her vivid, iridescent eyes. "That is all I wish to say, Balthazar," she reveals, and Balthazar falls silent, happy to be a dutiful friend.
Balthazar then offers to take Maleficent back to her nest, at least for the night. Against her usual personality and self-reliance, Maleficent agrees. She walks beside Balthazar, leaning heavily on the newly-formed staff, wondering how she shall ever walk or move the same way again. Balthazar, ever the understanding enchanted warrior he is, remains quiet and helps correct Maleficent's steps when it appears as if she may fall. Against her desires and known self-reliance, Maleficent leans heavily against Balthazar as they come closer to her tree which serves not only as her nest, but also her home, her place to think, and her safe haven. However, now the nest at the top of a tree in a hidden fork serves as a source of both embarrassment and wrenching pain that spreads from Maleficent's heart to the rest of her body. Balthazar asks for permission to lift Maleficent upwards to her nest, as the enchanted soldier knows it would be nearly impossible for the Fae to get up the tree without either collapsing in anguish or plummeting to her demise. Maleficent, stubborn as she is, does not give a verbal answer; instead, the wounded, weary Maleficent simply nods slightly and accepts aid as Balthazar lifts her towards the nest at the pinnacle of the towering tree that will soon flower with the succulent aroma and presence of fruit and flowers. After Maleficent carefully steps off of Balthazar's gnarled hand, she moves to the edge of the nest and bestows a chaste kiss to her loyal friend's cheek, much in the manner she used as a small child.
"You are welcome," Balthazar warmly rumbles in his deep voice as he speaks his native language.
For, even though Maleficent did not directly say such words, Balthazar knows his dear Fae friend is thankful in ways beyond verbal recognition and expression. And so, Balthazar vows then and there to keep a silent, protect watch over Maleficent until her strength returned. (He would even withstand the protests from Maleficent- and there would be many- because Balthazar has helped care for Maleficent since her parents died when Maleficent was quite young.)
When Maleficent meets Diaval the fast-talking, loudmouth, opinionated and stunning raven, she feels more like herself. Over the months, the wounds on her back had healed substantially, but Maleficent's center of gravity was still vastly askew and disrupted. Slowly, her magic had returned, though she didn't call upon it, fearing she would deplete her reserves and not be able to replenish the magic before an attack. (Maleficent knew an attack was imminent.) However, upon seeing a sleek raven caught in a net, surrounded by two ferocious dogs and a farmer preparing to beat the poor bird to death, Maleficent cannot control her urge to help. Summoning all of her magic to her fingertips, Maleficent's hands glow golden before she begins to whisper a spell under her breath.
"Into a man," Maleficent commands, shooting the golden energy at the raven before she intently watches the raven stretch to human height, losing his feathers and wings as they practically melt away, though he ends up keeping a pointed nose even as a man.
"What have you done to my beautiful self?" the once-raven named Diaval inquires, studying his human form with quite a bit of disdain and confusion.
"How lovely," Maleficent muses in her own head. "Here's a raven-turned-man who shall tell me his opinion on the entire cosmos, regardless if I ask him or not."
Diaval becomes her wings.
Diaval becomes a vicarious way to fly, to swoop, to soar.
Diaval becomes a loyal friend.
Amongst the months of using Diaval to find information, Maleficent's cruelest information is revealed one summer afternoon.
"Anything else?" Maleficent demands in an irked tone of voice, though she manages to assure Diaval her irked mood is not directed towards him.
"No, Mistress," Diaval assures, bowing forward before working to unrumple wrinkles in his black shirt. "I always report everything I learn to you," he insists, and were he a raven, Maleficent would have run her fingers over Diaval's head before praising him for dutiful work.
However, as a human, Maleficent wouldn't dare to get close to Diaval in that respect, not yet. Slow steps would allow her to be comfortable with Diaval as a man in such close proximity.
"He did this to me so that he would be King?" Maleficent inquires aloud, malice contained in every word, venom present in her stare and tone of voice.
Diaval solemnly shakes his head, hating to see his Mistress in any type of pain.
Maleficent now has thought of the word for what the crippling, fresh sting in her heart must be: betrayal.
Author's Note: And there it is! My first Maleficent story! I am quite pleased with how this turned out; after all, it began as a minor plot bunny I wanted to tackle after re-watching the movie for the first time in about two years. I fell in love with the movie all over again, particularly the subtleness of how much Diaval seems to love Maleficent and the platonic love Maleficent and Diaval share for their hatchling Aurora. (Because no one can tell me that Diaval wouldn't call Aurora his hatchling since he practically raised her on his own.) Anyway, I want to go ahead and post this, so I'm going to cut this note short. I would like to thank each and every one of you for reading, and I hope you all enjoyed this story! Please let me know what you liked about this particular fic and what you may think I need to improve upon in further Maleficent stories. I plan to contribute a lot of Diaval X Maleficent stories as well as ones that focus on Aurora and her "Godmother" Maleficent and "Godfather" Diaval. Their dynamic has captured my heart once more. Have an amazing day, afternoon, or night, dear readers!
P.S. Feel free to drop any K, K plus, or T rated prompts in either a review or PM, as I will write virtually any type prompt except M-rated subjects! Thanks!