Here is the first official chapter of the story. This story is once again early because I am going out of town for a few days and I will have no way to type the chapters. Don't worry, I plan on handwriting the chapters while I'm away. You can pretty much guess how many chapters there will be, but I won't spoil too much.
I hope you enjoy this chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own Descendants.
Jay didn't know what to do. On this Sunday morning, he went to visit Mal, the daughter of Maleficent, because they had plans to cause mischief in the market place with Evie and Carlos. Afterwards, they were going to hang at their hide-out on the center border of the Isle to hide from their parents, mainly her mother.
He didn't expect Mal to have the very same disease that killed his mother and two other citizens on the Isle. Mal had the very same symptoms. Her purple hair color transformed into a dull shade that was quite unappealing. Her pale skin transformed into a gray color that looked too sickly. She was shivering even though she had a high fever and it was close to eighty degrees in the first week of August.
Mal had been laying on her make-shift bed when Jay found her. She had one average sized blanket wrapped tightly around her body. There was no way that any cold air could get through there. However, she was still shivering like crazy.
"Jay. . ." Mal croaked with dry lips, turning her head slightly to look at the thief. "I'm thirsty. . . ."
Jay barely heard the request through all the thoughts that were swarming in his mind. A moment later, he nodded his head shakily. "I'll go by the Slop Shop," he reassured trying not to show the fear in his voice. "Is there anything particular you want?"
"Coffee." Of course, even on her death bed she wouldn't break her daily routine.
"With month old milk?"
Mal snarled her nose in disgust. "I don't want curds. What is this. . . Auradon? I want the strongest. . . . blackest coffee they have. . ."
Jay chuckled at her reaction and response. If she was still picky about her coffee, then there may be some hope after all. "Black-like-your-soul it is," he joked with a small laugh to hide his sob. "I'll be back in half an hour at the most."
"Can you grab. . . a couple. . . blankets?" She wondered softly as she rested her head back down. "I'm freezing. . ."
"I'll see what I can do," Jay promised with his famous smile, the same smile he had used back when Anastasia was sick. "I'll stop by my place before going to the coffee shop. I'll be back in about an hour. Will you be fine until then?"
"I can manage." She gave a small yawn and her eyes begin to flutter. "Please don't tell Mother. . ."
"I won't." Not like he was going to tell her anyways. Maleficent was a cruel vicious person and a terrible mother. She wouldn't care that Mal was sick if she knew. "Just get some rest. I'll be back in two hours."
She gave a light nod, not really listening, before she was back to sleep, leaving the thief to disappear like the Cheshire cat.
Jafar was working at his shop when his son Jay made a loud ruckus when he entered the living quarters of the shop. The sorcerer waited until the customer left the store before he went to check on his son.
To say that Jay had a hysterical fit would be an understatement. In the one minute of being alone, Jay completely trashed their house.
The musty old couch was knocked over. A couple lamps were shattered on the floor along with the few plates and glasses that they owned. There was a giant hole in the wooden table that was thrown against the wall. A few drawers were strewn on the floor and just as few cabinet doors were off their hinges.
However, in the midst of all the destruction sat a young man with his knees up to his chest and his head in his hands. He looked so innocent, aside from the scratches on his hand that drew little blood. Poor Jay seemed to have gotten over his destructive self and was now in a crying fit.
Jafar knelt beside his son and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. Jay shot his head up as though he had been electrocuted. Tears drenched his cheeks and his eyes appeared blood-shot.
"She has it," Jay whispered hysterically. "She has it!"
That only confused Jafar. "Who has what?"
"Mal!" The son screamed with him starting to cry even more. "She has it!"
"Calm down," the father chided in a calm and soothing tone. "You aren't making any sense. Take a deep breath and tell me again."
Jay did as instructed and calmed down only slightly. "Mal," he began once again with a shudder in his voice. "She has the disease."
Jafar immediately took his son into his arms. Jay cried all of his sorrow into his father's shoulder. They stayed like that for a good hour, not moving until Jay was finally able to control himself.
Once again, someone he loved was wrongly being taken away from him.
As Jay had promised Mal, he returned with her cup of coffee and a couple more extra blankets. Mal was ever so grateful. She situated herself to were she was barely sitting up so she could sip on her coffee. It took her about an hour to drink all of the contents of the small cup, but Jay figured that was better than not drinking anything at all.
Mal wasn't as cold as Jay thought she would be. Even though he had brought two enormously fluffy blankets, she didn't need both. When he had helped wrapped the blankets around her, she immediately took one of them off her body. She claimed the second one was making her sweat to much after only being on her for a moment. However, Jay complied and neatly folded the blanket next to her bed.
Jay knew the symptoms would only get worse as the week progresses. Mal seemed to have feeling in her legs for now and at the moment she no longer seemed thirsty. He thought the tension would ease, but then she made another request.
"I'm hungry." She complained with a little whine in her voice. "Can you get me something to eat?"
Jay stood from his spot on the floor and stretched his arm and back before asking, "What would you like?"
"Something I can hold down," Mal requested as she scooted herself back down on the bed. "Maybe something from Ursula's Fish and Chips?"
"Mal," he chided as though he was scolding a misbehaving child. "Are you sure? Maybe you should ask for something else."
She shook her head stubbornly with another yawn. Jay knew she must be having trouble staying awake. He remembered the other three being awake for ten minutes, and then sleeping for four hours on the first day. It took real strength to stay awake for as long as she had.
"I want something familiar," she insisted with a head strong attitude. "I used to eat at the restaurant all the time when I was a kid-"
"Before you got into the fight with Uma." Jay argued persistently.
Mal let a small grimace grace her lips for a few moments. It was a memory that she would like to forget, but Uma would never let it go. She sighed exasperatedly. "Uma will make an exception. I know she will." She tilted her head in curiosity, though it was hard to do from her position. "Aren't you supposed to grant people's wishes?"
Jay groaned in irritation and annoyance. He had a secret that only a few trustworthy people on the Isle knew about. Those trustworthy people were his father, Mal, and Lady Tremaine. Sure, he could have told Evie and Carlos, but they weren't that close yet. Here's the big secret: he is a genie. Technically, he's only half genie, but he still has the wristband that confines him to a lamp, always hiding them from sight. He has never been able to produce any magic and he could, even with the dome in place, because, again, he was a genie. As for his lamp, he gave it to Mal when he was young because he trusted her more than anyone else.
"Grant my wish," she weakly ordered. "I want food from Ursula's restaurant, preferably something that I can eat without throwing up."
He sighed, but slowly agreed. "If that is what you wish, a dumb wish might I add."
"A wish nonetheless." Mal yawned again, turning her back to him. "This time, be back in an hour. I know you tricked me last time."
Jay chuckled at her attempt to be intimidating and authorative. "One hour," he promised. "Until then, go to sleep. When you wake up, I'll be back."
She didn't say anything to argue with him. She waited until she heard him leave before she closed her eyes. Mal couldn't help to mutter bitterly, "I don't want to sleep during my last week of living." She finally fell asleep, with a single tear slipping down her cheek.
Jay felt incredibly tense when he walked to the other side of the Isle. He, Mal, and a few others were not welcomed on that side due to either feuds, family issues, murder attempts, etc. He had been outlawed from that side around the same time as Mal. He was merely being her friend and it costed him to be exiled to his side of the Isle.
With each step that he took, more people glared at him like he didn't belong because he truly didn't. However, Jay knew better than to cause a scene. He was doing this for Mal. He had to keep his mind focus on that. He only wished he brought a sword. He was vulnerable at the moment and everyone knew it. They could attack him at any second, but they wouldn't.
They would have to wait for their captain's order.
With a pit in his gut, Jay walked through the restaurant doors. Immediately, all eyes were on him. He ignored them and walked to the bar table, where three people he needed to talk to were standing behind. Two of the three glared at him while the third gave him a bright smile.
Of course, the third was none other than Gil, the son of the bastard Gaston. Everyone on the Isle knows Gil should be in Auradon. He is too kind, polite, and sweet to survive the Isle, but somehow he has.
The second was Harry Hook, the son of Captain Hook. He had lost a bet with the first person and became the first mate of the pirate crew. Jay can't stand the jerk because of what he did to Mal, but that's another story.
The first person was Uma, the daughter of Ursula. She became 'captain' when she won one of Captain Hook's ships in a race. She made a bet with Harry Hook that if she won, she would be captain and he would be first-mate and vice-versa. Uma and Mal used to be friends before they got into the fight when they were ten.
"Since this is your first time crossing the line, I'll give you one warning," Uma stated, not bothering with beating around the bush. She pointed to the door. "Get out."
"I wouldn't be here if it wasn't important," Jay retorted rudely, causing some pirates to place a hand on the hilt of their swords. With a sigh he lowered his voice, "I need to talk to you three. Alone."
The captain and first-mate shared a quick look before Uma motioned her head to the back room. "Follow me."
Reluctantly, the thief followed Uma with Gil and Harry just a feet behind him. They walked through the kitchen and went through the back door that led to the alleyway. Jay waited until all of them were outside and the door was closed before he spoke.
"Mal's sick," he revealed, getting straight to the point. "She needs food that she can keep down and she wants it from this restaurant."
Harry scoffed in disdain. "Why should we ca-"
"She has the disease," Jay snapped in anger. He looked down at the ground and let out a deep breath to calm his temper. When he looked up after a few moments, he finally noticed Uma's reaction.
The color drained from her face, leaving it a faded caramel color. Her eyes were wide in surprise and looked close to watering. She had a sad frown on her face, her lip quivering on its own.
Uma cleared a lump that formed in her throat. With a small voice, she wondered, "How bad is Mal? How far is she?"
"Not as bad as I thought she would be," Jay reassured, trying to stay slightly upbeat so he wouldn't break down again. "Her fever isn't too high, she sipped on a cup of coffee for an hour until it was all gone, she isn't cold enough to need a large amount of blankets, and she's hungry. However, this is only day one."
Uma nodded her head erratically as though she was trying to get rid of some bad thoughts. "I'll get her something to eat," she whispered. "Just. . . wait here."
She rushed into the kitchen with Harry trailing after her. Gil perked up as though he had an idea. "I have something that can cheer her up," he insisted energetically. "Don't leave before I come back. She's going to love it."
Before Jay could give the slightly younger boy an answer, he already ran off into the streets. About ten minutes later, only Uma returned to the alleyway with a small care basket. The basket held a small container of soup, an even smaller bread roll, and a small bottle of some colored liquid.
"The soup is what she used to eat as a kid," Uma explained timidly when Jay looked through the contents. "The cook made it from the fresher ingredients. The bread is slightly stale, but its something solid in case the food decides to come back up. The drink is flat soda about three days past the expiration date. When you need anymore, come back at any time. This is the only week you can come to this side of the Isle. The only condition is you have to tell me how she's doing."
Like Gil, she didn't wait for him to answer and strolled back in the restaurant to go back to work.
The next moment Gil arrived with something particular. It was quite strange to see such a bulky teenage carrying a small stuffed toy animal. The toy animal was a worn-out light brown fuzzy bear with a small baby blue bow around his neck. On the bottom of the bear's foot was a cursive embroidered 'B'.
"This may help her sleep a little better," Gil suggested as he handed over the precious item. "It helped me when I was younger."
Jay gingerly took the item and placed it on top of the basket. "I'll make sure she gives it ba-"
"She can have it." Gil insisted with a kind smile, a smile that wasn't fake or trying to fool anyone. "Consider it a 'Get Well' present. See ya!"
The pirate headed back into the restaurant leaving the thief with one depressing thought.
Gil doesn't deserve to be on the Isle like Mal doesn't deserve to die.
Cliffhanger! Be sure to check out 'A Trip to the Past' next week!