Forgiving does not erase the bitter past. A healed memory is not a deleted memory. Instead, forgiving what we cannot forget creates a new way to remember. We change the memory of our past into a hope for our future.
-Lewis B. Smeade
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Chapter One
Jane walked through the hallways of Auradon Prep, bee-lining to her dorm room. Most Friday evenings she liked to hang out with Lonnie and her roommate and watch movies. But this Friday she'd asked for a raincheck. She had a paper for English due Monday and she had no idea where to begin. She was supposed to analyze the rhetorical devices used in Queen Belle's speech during the first annual celebration of the union of Auradon. Honestly, if she never had to hear the words 'Pathos, Logos, and Ethos' again, she would personally serenade her English teacher. On top of that, she needed to study for the Trig quiz that she had right after English class. She was tired of solving proofs and triangles and stupid trig functions. She huffed the loose strands of hair, attempting to blow them away from her eyes.
She finally reached her door and pulled out her key. After fidgeting with the lock she discovered that the door wasn't unlocking because it was already open. She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. She knew she'd locked the door earlier that morning and her roommate normally attended the Yearbook club meetings after school.
She pushed the door open slowly, suspicion coiling in her stomach.
"Jane! Thank goodness, you're finally here! Took you long enough," Audrey scolded and flipped her hair over her shoulder.
"Audrey?" Jane quirked her head. "What are you doing in my room?"
Her surprise at Audrey's presence was due mainly to the fact that Audrey and Jane ran in different circles. There wasn't any ill will between the two, not really, they'd just never really had a reason to hang out together. The two girls respected each other, sharing an occasional greeting if they passed in the hallway. They had different interests and different friends.
Audrey moved her backpack from beside her to on her lap, "I need your help."
Jane dropped her book bag by the door and walked over to Audrey, "Oh, I don't know, Doug's a much better teachers than I am, you should probably go to him."
"It's not about school, just listen." Audrey patted the bed beside her and Jane reluctantly sat down. Audrey looked around, as if ensuring that no one else was in the room and whispered conspiratorially, "I want to pull a prank."
"Um, okay. I'm really not the person for this—" She broke off with a gasp as Audrey pulled out Mal's spell book. "Audrey, how on Earth did you get that?"
Audrey smiled, proud of herself, and responded, "I bumped into her in the hallway and her books went flying. I just couldn't resist slipping it into my bag as I helped her pick up her books. I looked through it and found the perfect spell."
"You think that I can do it because my mother is Fairy Godmother?" Jane sighed. Most people assumed that because she took after her mother in looks that she must also have inherited Fairy Godmother's special talents. Unfortunately for Jane, she took more after her father in that regard. She was clumsy and not very good at most things really. She could do magic, but she messed up a lot and there wasn't really a reason for her to pursue it further, so she simply didn't.
"Well yes, you're half fairy. That means there's magic in you probably." Audrey shrugged, "Besides, it'll be mutually beneficial. Because I want to prank Mal, but if we go after Mal, we could probably get Carlos too."
"I don't want to get in trouble," Jane wrinkled her nose at the thought of enduring another lecture from her mom. "Besides, why do you think that I'd want to prank Mal and Carlos?"
"Because," Audrey said primly, "Would you have grabbed the wand if not for Mal's telling you that you weren't good enough?" Jane wished she could shrink into her shoes. Anytime someone mentioned the coronation she would feel guilt and regret and disgust and so many not fun feelings. She really didn't like thinking about the coronation. Which is probably why she'd never thought of it being Mal's fault. But as Jane thought about it she found that she couldn't make herself be anything more than mildly annoyed at Mal.
Jane shrugged, "Yeah, I guess you're right, but that was months ago. I've moved past that."
"Well I haven't. She stole my boyfriend in front of the whole school and got away with it." She thumped her fist on the bed spread, "Ooh!" She huffed, "I will not forget what she did."
"Audrey, you're with Chad now. You should just forgive her already." Jane insisted. She knew that she'd messed up at the coronation, but Jane was truly and thoroughly good and wanted to spread that goodness to others.
How Audrey managed to make rolling her eyes proper and mannered, Jane would never understand. "I am with Chad, yes, but I can't let her think that what she did was okay. I'm totally over Ben now. This isn't to get him back, obvi. It's to make sure she knows that she can't steal what's mine without repercussion."
A harmless prank wasn't the end of the world. Maybe she'd even enjoy it. Jane decided that she'd help Audrey, but before agreeing she continued her line of questions. "Why Carlos?"
"He did turn you down, right? I mean we all know he's about as straight as Queen Merida's hair but still. That was a total diss and a slap to your reputation." Audrey explained, opening Mal's spell book.
Though Jane had already made her decision, being reminded of that particular embarrassment only strengthened her resolve. A funny prank as revenge for public humiliation? It seemed fair to Jane. "Alright, I'll help." She took the book as Audrey offered it to her. "But nothing dangerous." Her eyes followed where Audrey's daintily painted fingernail was pointed.
"A de-aging spell?"
"Mmhmm. I was thinking that just about everyone is super awkward when they're in their preteen years, right? It's like a rite of passage for being a human that you just have to be awkward. We make the cookie recipe, but add less of the magical components so they don't age back too far. Then we say the spell, get the targets to eat them and voila! They spend a few days in prepubescent hell before the magic wears off!"
Jane covered her mouth to stifle her giggles as she imagined Carlos and Mal running around trying to figure out what had happened to them. "Let's make them tonight?"
"Definitely."
"Oh no." Jane whispered looking at the dough. Audrey had left her to measure out the potion they'd prepared beforehand. Jane measured it out over the mixing bowl but as she was carefully making sure she didn't pour too much in, she'd hiccoughed and done exactly that.
"Everything okay?" Audrey called from where she was rummaging around in the pantry.
"Yes! Everything's just fine!" Jane called back and quickly flicked the switch to start the mixer. They didn't have enough magical ingredients to start over. Mal and Carlos would end up be a tad bit younger, but that'd still be funny. At least she hoped so. She began reading over the words of the spell so she at the least, she wouldn't jumble up one of the magical parts.
"It's called a bake sale, sweetheart. You know, to raise money to buy the teams stuff?"
Mal raised an eyebrow, "And I care because?"
"I just thought that you'd want to support your friends on the team. Jay's very passionate about tourney and the cheerleaders want to surprise the team with something awesome! But we can't get anything awesome if we don't get any money."
"Ugh." Mal groaned, "Fine, but this is for Jay and Carlos and it better be good."
Audrey didn't know if she meant the cookies or the gift but it didn't matter because everything she'd told Mal was part of the story she and Jane had concocted to convince Mal to eat the cookie. Mal forked over the two bucks for the cookie and grumbled, "Aren't all of you literally royalty? Why do you need my money?"
Mal turned away and Audrey panicked. She had to make sure that Mal ate the cookie. "Wait!"
Mal turned back, "What." She snapped.
"Aren't you going to try it?"
Mal laughed, "No way, I was going to give it to Carlos, he loves sweets."
"No!" Audrey shouted. "Uh, I mean, Carlos can't because the team can't know about the bake sale. It's supposed to be secret."
Mal rolled her eyes before taking an exaggerated bite of the cookie. "There, you happy?" Her eyes widened slightly as she chewed, "Wow, this is actually not terrible." She stuffed another large bite of the cookie in her mouth, finishing it quickly.
"Aw, I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me." Audrey cooed before abruptly turning and walking away to hide the devious smile that was forming. "Toodles!" She called behind her.
"Whatever," Mal responded.
Audrey pulled out her phone and texted Jane.
She ate it.
Awesome! :) Just found Carlos, wish me luck! ;D
Bonne chance! xoxo
Audrey grinned to herself. She didn't think that Jane would be the type of person to add emojis after every phrase. How cute, she thought, before pocketing her phone.
Jane was at her wits end. They'd made the cookies directly after their conversation and the whole process had ran into dinner time. Jane checked the cafeteria for Carlos, but he was nowhere to be seen. She ran—well sped walked, she didn't want to seem suspicious now—to Carlos and Jay's room and knocked on the door several times but to no avail.
Taking a chance, she made her way through the hallways to Evie and Mal's dorm. She heard the clicking noise of the sewing machine stop as soon as her hand made contact with the solid oak door. The door swung open quickly and Evie's smiling face greeted Jane. "Hello!"
Jane couldn't help but smile back, "Hey Evie, I was wondering if you knew where Carlos was."
Evie pressed her lips together before saying, "Why?"
"I need to apologize for how I reacted to him turning me down. I realize that it was childish and he deserves to know that I'm sorry for it. Plus I made him some cookies to apologize. Please Evie, I want to make things right." Jane carefully arranged her features into the pouty doe eyed look that she'd practiced with Audrey, just in case.
Evie sighed and slumped a little against the doorframe before perking back up, "Okay fine, but don't make him upset again. Mal and Jay tend to go a little berserk when one of us gets hurt or upset." She gave a nervous giggle, "He's out in the gardens with Jay and Dude."
Jane beamed at Evie, "Thanks! You're the best!" She gave the blue clad girl a hug before bouncing off to the gardens. When she arrived she paused for a moment to take in the smells of the flowers and dirt and let it envelope her. She loved the gardens with their controlled chaos of leaves and vines and flowers. She walked along the gravel path, pausing when she saw Jay and Carlos up ahead, Carlos holding Dude's leash and laughing as Jay gesticulated wildly, recounting some story. Her phone buzzed and she pulled it out to read Audrey's message.
She ate it!
Jane covered her mouth to stop her from gasping aloud. She didn't think that they could trick Mal into eating a cookie. Mal wasn't very fond of sweets, or Audrey for that matter, and Jane had no idea how Audrey had managed the impossible.
Awesome! :) Just found Carlos, wish me luck! ;D
She typed back quickly, impatiently waiting for Audrey to respond. She didn't want Carlos to get away. Mercifully her phone vibrated again.
Bonne chance! xoxo
Jane smiled softly before putting the phone away and lifting her head. She squared her shoulders and took a deep breath. "You can do this." She reassured herself. She walked around the corner and said, "Carlos! Can I talk to you for a moment?" The change in atmosphere was immediate and disheartening. Carlos's eyes widened and he clutched Dude's leash tighter. Jay lost all amusement and stood up tall, crossing his arms and staring down at Jane. She swallowed nervously. She'd forgotten how scary Jay could be when he wanted to. "Please, I want to apologize, it'll only take a moment." She lowered her eyes to the ground when she felt tears pricking at them. She knew she was meek and she also knew she hated confrontation and being on the spot. She thought that maybe she could get through this without panic but she hadn't anticipated Jay's death glare.
She was debating whether or not this was worth it for a prank when Carlos nodded and tapped Jay's arm, attempting to hand him the leash. "Carlos," Jay protested, "Seriously?"
"Yeah, I mean she wants to apologize. The least I can do is to hear her out." Carlos scratched the back of his neck and shrugged.
He walked over to Jane as Jay mumbled, "The least you could do is ignore her but whatever." Jay walked further on the path, sitting down on a bench that was far enough away for him to be out of earshot, but close enough for him to be ready to step in just in case.
"Carlos," Jane began and paused. "I, um, well, heh" she laughed nervously. "I'm sorry this isn't easy."
Carlos bit his lip and nodded, "I know, that's okay. Take your time."
Jane felt herself relax a bit. Carlos always had that effect on her, which was one of the reasons she'd asked him out in the first place. Jane was normally a ball of stress and anxiety but being around Carlos made her feel different. He wasn't as emotionally exhausting as most people were to her. "I need to apologize for how I behaved after you, well after you turned me down." She began softly, "I shouldn't have yelled and made a scene, I just freaked out on you and it wasn't fair. I'm super embarrassed about it now." She chuckled sheepishly before adding, "And in hindsight, throwing myself into a tense situation after pulling an all-nighter to study and not caffeinating myself properly was not the best decision I've ever made."
Carlos let out a laugh, "No kidding. But I forgive you. It was a pretty out of character reaction for you so I guess I was just as much hurt as I was surprised. One question, though."
"Yeah?"
"Why'd you pull an all-nighter?"
"I had a test the next day in Trig where I needed to memorize the unit circle, plus I had a presentation for my Ancient Auradon History class and I wanted to make sure I did well," Jane explained.
"Yeah, but staying up all night doesn't help." Carlos looked at her confused, "You need sleep to do well on things."
Jane shrugged, "I couldn't sleep. I was too nervous." She didn't like where the conversation was going so she pulled out the plastic baggie holding the cookie and said, "I made you a cookie to say I'm sorry, but I forgot to mention it with my apology."
Carlos's eyes lit up and he grabbed the cookie, "Apology one thousand percent accepted. You're the best Jane!" He gave her a quick hug before eating the cookie with remarkable speed.
Jane giggled, "Carlos it's all over your face." Carlos made a show of cleaning his face that made Jane laugh further. She was glad that Carlos had actually forgiven her. She knew he would've probably eaten the cookie regardless but wasn't confident that he'd put the past behind them. She hoped that she wouldn't lose his forgiveness after the prank.
"No! That was mine!" Mal growled at Jay.
"I'm a thief, that's what I do best." He shrugged nonchalantly and ran a hand through his hair.
"Jerk!"
"Grape." Jay responded, popping the 'p'.
Mal gasped and Ben grabbed her arms as she lunged at Jay.
"Calm down, guys! It's just a board game!" Ben said as he restrained his girlfriend. "It's supposed to be fun."
Mal huffed before sitting back down next to Ben. "Fine, but this means revenge. I'm about to kick your butt into the next century Jay."
"We tried to warn you that Jay and Mal are competitive." Evie shrugged as she rolled the die. She marched her game piece—the blue one of course across the board before drawing a card. "Move a player of your choice back two spaces." She pursed her lips thoughtfully and said, "Sorry Jay, but I must avenge my bestie. Such is the way of life." Jay fake grumbled as he moved his game piece back two spaces. "You're welcome Mal." Evie smiled at her. "Mal?"
Everyone turned to Mal to see her staring off into the distance. "What's wrong, love?" Ben asked, resting his hand on her shoulder. She blinked slowly before turning to look at Ben.
"I don't feel good." She admitted. Alarm bells went off in Evie and Jay's head. Mal never admitted to feeling anything but on her best game. Showing weakness on the isle had never been allowed, they all knew this. Even after the four had finally accepted that they would never have to return to the isle, Mal still upheld this rule religiously.
"Yeah me either." Carlos softly side from Jay's side. "I'm really tired." He let out a yawn and leaned against Jay.
"It's not even eight thirty on a Friday night, C," Jay protested. Carlos was never this tired this early. He didn't even go to bed this early during the week.
Mal's eyes threatened to close and she struggled to stay awake. "I wanna go to bed now" She mumbled, words slurring.
"Mmhmm." Carlos agreed.
"Alright." Evie agreed, "We'll go with you." She waved her hand at Jay and Ben to help Mal and Carlos up. Evie wrapped her arm around Mal's waist and led the way to their dorm.
"Don't need your help…" Mal complained, though the bite of her words were lost when she yawned in the middle of it, elongating the words.
"Of course you don't," Evie reassured her. "Ben, go get blankets and pillows and stuff. Sleepover in my room."
"On it."
After a long and arduous walk back to Mal and Evie's dorm, during which Jay ended up carrying Carlos, the two finally managed to get Mal and Carlos upstairs and through the doorway of the girls' room. Evie had just finished tucking Carlos into her bed when Ben showed up with the requested bedding.
"They could just be really tired from a long week." Evie said, "But just in case there's something else wrong, I want to be here for them."
The three fell into an uneasy silence, divvying up the blankets between them.
The next morning the three teens awoke to screaming. Jay jumped to his feet, fight or flight mode initiated. The wailing was coming from Carlos's bed.
"Evie!" Jay called as he stared wide-eyed at the figure on Carlos's bed, then Mal's. Evie shrieked when she stood up and Ben rubbed his ears.
"What's happening?" He asked, looking at the two former villains.
Evie pointed at Mal, "They're tiny!"
"What?" Ben questioned before standing up himself. "Oh my god…They've been turned into children?"
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~R&R~
Updates on Sundays :)
(EDIT: Chapter has been edited for typos. If you spot any I missed, drop me a line in the review box and I'll make sure to fix it. Thanks!)