Chapter 1: The Senior Year Assignment
All her life, Mal had been surrounded by one thing and one thing only; magic.
The moment she was born and declared a Holder of Magic, she was marked as a prodigy, a one in a million discovery. Birthed by Mortals, her magic was considered a miracle, an incredible discovery at the time. She began casting small spells just as quickly as she'd begun walking, and over the years, she became a phenomenal Holder. Able to perform complicated spells with just a flick of her wrist.
Over the centuries, magic had become part of everyone's daily lives. Some were born with it, and some were cursed without it, but the world lived in relative harmony. There were rules and regulations on what Holders were able to do, and also on what Mortals could do, but in Mal's life, nothing was that simple.
At the young age of ten, Mal saw her once normal suburban life slip away.
The Program was designed for gifted Holders, the ones with special talents. Her parents had always known the day would come where she'd be snatched away to begin her training, yet they never thought the day would come so soon.
The Program trained gifted Holders into becoming secret members of society, 'Protectors of Peace' as some referred them as. They were trained with the best education from the best trainers all over the world, tasked with important missions to keep the balance of the world intact. Over the years, it was notorious for Protectors to become hard shells, to detach from society completely to complete the tasks at hand.
For Mal, it became harsh reality.
She'd now spent seven years behind the walls of the Auradon Protector Academy, a secret institution housed behind tall stone walls and inside an ancient building. No one dared to cross the gilded gates of the property, leaving her hidden away from the world, allowing her to become one of the finest Protectors the Academy had ever produced.
Behind her short silken purple locks lay fiery green eyes that could peer into your soul, framed by beautiful long lashes and chiseled by a set of pointed eyebrows. Her skin was ghostly pale, decorated by delicate freckles, softening her features. Her lips were plump and round, leaving room for a dainty thin nose to complete her face.
She was unequivocally beautiful, blessed in both looks and smarts. She was the perfect student, and soon, the perfect Protector.
The halls of Auradon's Protector Academy came alive that September morning, crowds of teenagers re-entering the institution to greet their friends, officially beginning the new school term. Mal, however, had arrived days prior, her summer having come to an early end due to her parents busy schedule. She'd spent the last few days re-exploring the academy, making sure nothing had changed in the old castle building. She travelled through the hidden passageways and relaxed in the ample library, ready to begin another term in her life at the academy.
It was her final school year before her early admission to the Protector Programme, which allowed her to become a full-time Protector under the government's supervision. It had been her dream ever since she'd arrived at the academy all those years ago, and soon, that dream would become reality. She would be able to travel the world through the tasks assigned to her, as well as gaining access to the full potential of her powers.
She slipped into her uniform as numerous teenagers arrived through the doors of the institution, already clad in their black blazers and blue ties. Her own uniform was identical, with a matching black skirt falling just above her knees. She adjusted her blue tie and smoothed out the lapels of the blazer, piped in golden thread and embezzled with the academy logo on the chest. The golden crest was what she'd hidden behind for years, granting her protection and a home. It was refreshing being able to wear it once again, like being back at home.
She stepped out of her dorm room gracefully, her roommates yet to return from their extravagant holidays. She closed the door behind her before ascending down a large set of oak stairs, the low heels of her black patent shoes clicking against the wood. The smooth banister felt familiar as her hand slid over the wood, and soon, she found herself on the ground floor of the institution, which buzzed with life.
Students of all ages and nationalities roamed the corridors of the ground floor. The large foyer was filled with teenagers holding their luggage, gleefully greeting their friends and roommates and showing off new magical tricks they'd learnt. A couple of kids stood by, nervously waiting for their allocated teachers to begin their academy tours. Mal smirked at the sight, remembering her own first few weeks at the academy.
Without a doubt, she knew this year was going to be her year.
Mal slipped into the bleak white classroom silently, taking her usual seat near the back of the room. Although it was only their first day back, all senior students were expected to attend their introductory classes for their final year in the academy. The classroom slowly filled in, a sea of blacks and blues contrasting against the stark white of the walls and desks. There were no posters or windows in the room, preventing any and every distraction from the days lecture.
Mal watched as both familiar and unfamiliar faces entered the room. The Hook twins were taking their seats at the front of the classroom, both greeting their respective friends. The familiar face of Freddie Facilier soon followed, her gaze settling on Mal before she began making her way to her purple-haired friend.
"Looking good M," Freddie greeted as she took the empty seat next to Mal, swinging her feet onto the table, "Pasty and pale as usual."
"I heard about your mishaps with the freshmen this morning," Mal retorted, "Wouldn't expect anything less from you, after all."
"You shrink one guy's head, and suddenly you're the 'bad guy'," Freddie complained, "I was building his character."
"Like you were building Uma's character last year when you turned her hair green?" Mal smirked, "I think she's still mad about that, by the way. Something about reporting you to your dad."
Freddie rolled her eyes, unable to reply as their teacher walked in. She quickly put her feet back onto the ground as the classroom quieted down, everyone ready and waiting for the professor to begin.
"Good morning students," Professor Merlin began, "And welcome back to our illustrious academy. As you all know, this is one of the most crucial years of your education as a Protector, and after a long debate with the school board, the faculty has decided that this year will be a little... Different, to put it simply."
Instantly, the classroom burst into a frenzy of whispers, soon quietened by the Professor raising his hand. Mal raised her eyebrow at the news, interested in this sudden new development.
"This year," Professor Merlin began, lowering his arm, "Rather than learning through academic practice like we have for the past few years, we have decided you will all be partaking in both field work and academic work. For the first part of your course, you will be receiving an assignment you will complete either alone, in pairs, or in groups.
"You will receive your assignment packs shortly, which have been designed specifically for each and every individual students," Professor Merlin continued, ignoring the shocked look on his students faces, "However, before I distribute the packs, Headmaster Facilier would like to see the following students..."
"Did you know about this?" Mal whispered to Freddie, who simply shook her head. Although Freddie's dad may run the Academy, she was kept in the dark about a lot of things.
"Miss Maleficent, you and Miss Facilier are to report to the Headmaster's office immediately for debriefing," Professor Merlin announced, opening the door to the classroom as he motioned for the two unmoving students, "Come on, off you go."
Mal nervously tapped her foot against the wooden floor of the office as she awaited for the headmaster to arrive. On her left sat Freddie, who was just as nervous if not more so than Mal was. Both girls sat in silence, both clueless as to why they'd been selected out of the whole student body. They were too nervous to speak, unable to meet each other's gaze until the sound of the creaking office door opening broke their trails of thought, Headmaster Facilier entering the office.
"Ah! I see you two received my message," Headmaster Facilier smiled deviously yet kindly to his daughter, his walking cane in one hand and an old book in the other, "I imagine this must all be happening very quickly for you two, but I assure you that the school board is convinced without a doubt that you two ladies are the prime candidates for our... Special project."
"You see," Headmaster Facilier continued, "We have recently picked up an influx of magical activity in Auradon itself, and although this in itself isn't a bad thing, the kind of magical activity is what's concerning us. We have reason to believe someone is extracting the magic out of Auradon, and we believe that if you two are willing to team up for this assignment, you can gather enough intel to stop this from happening."
"Why us?" Mal immediately asked, "Why not graduated Protectors, or even seniors?"
"Because you two scored the highest registered marks in your exams last year, and the year before, as well as the perfect marks you have received in practice fieldwork," Headmaster Facilier explained, finally taking a seat at his desk in front of the two girls, "We believe that with your combined set of skills, you two can prevent this issue from escalating to global proportions. We need both of you to accomplish this assignment."
"What does the assignment actually require us to do?" Freddie pressed, crossing her arms.
"The winter term in Auradon Prep High School begins next monday," Headmaster Facilier began, "We would like for both of you to attend the school for a brief few terms to gather information from the students, but also to seamlessly blend into the Auradon community. Freddie, you will be monitoring any statistical information whilst Mal, you will be concentrating on on-the-field action."
"And what do we do when we've located whatever it is that's sucking the magic away from Auradon?" Freddie asked, "Do you want us to stop it or-"
"That would be far too dangerous," Headmaster Facilier waved her off, "We'd like for you to gather intel and find out what exactly is causing the disruption in the magical activity. However, once you believe you have gathered and learnt all that you can, we'll hand the case off to trained professional Protectors who will stop these events."
"So, you want us to infiltrate a high school which houses Mortals and secretly investigate a potentially devastating threat?" Mal asked in disbelief, yet with undeniable excitement in her eyes.
"Precisely," Headmaster Facilier confirmed, "But only if you accept the assignment. If not, you will be placed on a training programme like the rest of your classmates, and we will select different students."
"I'm in," Freddie concluded, "But just to confirm, we will be able to miss all of our classes right?"
"Indeed, but you'll be attending classes in the high school instead," Headmaster Facilier explained to his daughter, "We intend for you to seamlessly blend into the high school as new students. However, this will be discussed further in your debriefing session later on today."
"I'm in too," Mal confirmed, unable to keep her excitement for long, "When do we start?"
"We'll have you enrolled by the end of today," Headmaster Facilier answered with a smile, "Ladies, welcome to the beginning of your final year."
A/N: So... New story.
This story is an AU inspired by the Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter. I basically grew up reading them, and I feel like I should be giving such a wonderful series credit through work of my own.
This story will eventually filter in other characters from the movies, with an eventual introduction of Ben. I plan to write this story in in-depth detail, therefore uploads may be somewhat slow. Thank you for your patience, and I hope you enjoy x