Mal surveyed her handiwork and then she smiled. Ben had been incredibly curious when Mal had kicked him out of his own room earlier this afternoon. He'd agreed to leave her to it, but not without a sort of nervous glance toward his desk area before he left. She didn't care what his issue was, however. She wanted a private place for them to be together tonight and she wanted to make it special. She had been working for over three hours to make everything just right. This date was going to be perfect.
When Mal had woken up this morning, it was like she could still feel Ben's fingers on her skin. She'd been shocked on how much a few gentle touches had driven her crazy last night. I mean, there were so many naughty things that they could have done last night. But even without talking about it, they had both decided that there wasn't any rush to get crazy. They loved each other. They planned to be together forever. So why not savor every single moment together?
Mal had realized something. Her relationship with Ben was really one sided. Not feeling wise. They were equal there. But effort wise. He'd put together their only real date. Sure, he'd had a little bit of help from Lonnie, but ultimately it had been Ben's plan and Ben's love that had come through. Their other times together had also been kind of centered around Ben as wekk. Mal and her friends didn't have their folks as Parent's day and so they had been Ben's parent's guests. And the Coronation had been completely focused around Ben, regardless of how much excitement the confrontation with Maleficent had added to the festivities. Mal knew that Ben didn't care who had organized what. It was just important to him that they spend time together. But Mal cared. She had no intentions in sitting in the passenger seat in this relationship. It was time to step up and drive.
She checked the clock on the wall. She just had enough time to run down to her room and change. She nearly flew down the stairs and was incredibly happy to see that Evie had laid everything out for her. That girl was the sister that she'd hadn't known she'd missed growing up. In fact, getting to know her so well was just another wonderful thing about leaving the Isle of the Lost.
She quickly shucked the clothes she'd been working in and started to get ready. With a smile, Mal looked through her drawers for the perfect undergarments. She pulled on a pair of delicate hose with a seam that ran up the back of her leg. With another naughty little smile, she hooked them to a barely there garter belt. Then she added a pair of delicate green lace panties and matching bra that didn't leave a whole lot to the imagination. She wasn't entirely sure if Ben would see them tonight. In fact, she wasn't even planning on it because she would be changing into a bathing suit once the date had gotten into full swing. So that wasn't the reason that she had picked them out. And she wasn't so shallow as to think that clothes made her a better person. However, she just felt sexier in them. She felt more desirable. She felt, well, powerful and like she deserved a place in this world and in Ben's life. And that helped her to feel more like she deserved Ben. So the underthings were a confidence booster, nothing more.
That was the doubt that plagued her sometimes. Sure, she was the daughter of Maleficent. And on the Isle, that had granted her status and power. Here, well, here all it meant was that she was basically a bad girl from the wrong side of the magical barrier. Many of her Auradon friends didn't care about that but many of the other people that she dealt with automatically assumed the worst about her because of her mother. Mal did have to admit that up until a little while ago, they might have been right. But she'd changed and she wanted to world to know that she was her own woman now. She wasn't under her mother's claw anymore. Her decisions were her own.
It was with that confidant thought that Mal stepped into the beautiful dress that Evie had made for her. She contorted her hands behind her back to zip it up. It was tough to reach. She considered using magic for a moment but then she remembered that it would defeat the entire point of the evening. Tonight was to be a no magic affair. She'd decorated Ben's room by hand. She'd organized dinner although she hadn't done much of the cooking herself. She'd gotten help from Lonnie and one of the school cooks who liked her. Dinner and dessert would a lot better if her inexpert hands didn't prepare them. Help was okay today. She didn't need to be able to do everything herself. But it was incredibly important to her that Ben know that she worked hard to make this date happen. He needed to appreciate that it was more than the wave of the hands after some rhyming verse. This date was a gift to him but it was also a gift to herself. With it, she got to tell the doubts inside that she could be a great girlfriend.
Finally getting the zipper all the way up, she spritzed a little bit of perfume into the air and then walked through it. She wanted it to be just enough to entice Ben but not enough to overpower the room. She thought about it and then spritzed and walked through the spray one more time. The date was up in Ben's room. He kept it clean and all, but, well, it was a guy's room and it smelled like a guy. Her perfume had a little bit of manliness to overcome.
She heard a knock at the door. Expecting Ben to have arrived a little bit early to escort her upstairs, she flung open the door and twirled for the fun of it. Her light diaphanous dress floated gently up and then back down as she turned. Then she gently curtsied. But when she looked up, it wasn't Ben standing there. It was his mother. Queen Belle.
"May I come in?" asked Belle, politely.
Mal wasn't entirely sure why her boyfriend's mother had come to visit her and she was bit flustered. It took her a minute to make her nervous heart stop beating and offer Belle a place to sit.
"Sit with me dear. Just for a few minutes. Then I'll leave you to the evening you have planned with my son. I understand that it's going to be very special."
Mal blushed a bit. "I'm hoping that it will be. He put together a beautiful date for me down next to the enchanted lake last week and I felt like it was my turn to do something special for him."
Belle smiled. "He told me about that date." At Mal's even deeper blush, Belle gently laughed. "Not all about it dear. No teenage boy tells his mother everything that he does. But, well, he was proud of how he made you feel special and I was very happy to hear that your plans for this evening were along the same lines."
"I love him, Your Majesty" replied Mal. "I'm still learning what that means. I didn't grow up in a world that had a lot of love in it so sometimes it can be confusing. But he makes me happy and I think I make him happy. I figure that's a good place to start."
"It's a wonderful place to start. And just call me Belle. I didn't start my life as a princess like so many of the girls around here and I'm not always comfortable with it. My father wasn't even famous. He was just an inventor."
"It sounds like a wonderful way to grow up." Said Mal. "The pressure of being Maleficent's daughter can sometimes be overwhelming."
"I can imagine. Well, you and your mother are really the reason that I'm here. Or more accurately, the reason is what you two have or haven't talked about."
"I swear that I don't have any further plans for mischief!" said Mal defensively.
Belle laughed. "Of course you have plans for mischief. Possible even plans for some tonight if that delicate bra strap on your shoulder leads to the type of undergarments I'd expect it to." Belle laughed delicately at Mal's look of dismay. "You wouldn't be a teenage girl if you didn't have a bit of trouble on your mind. But I know you don't have any further, well, let's call them 'evil plans'. That's very different from a bit of honest mischief and not what I was talking about at all. Dear, your mother wasn't one to trouble herself with unpleasant or embarrassing discussions. And I know that you've never had a boyfriend before. Evie told me that when I was chatting with her yesterday. So as the only 'proper' motherly influence that you have, there's a few things I need to ask you about."
Mal noticed the nervousness in Belle's voice and was really worried. "I know I'm not the girl you expected your son to have as his girlfriend but I swear that I'll…." She trailed off as Belle waved her head no.
"That's not what I meant either. I love that you and Ben are together. Goodness, I'm sorry that I'm bungling this so badly. It's just a strange conversation to have with any child, let alone your son's girlfriend. Well, I'll stop beating around the bush and just be direct. Mal, how much did your mother explain about babies?"
"Well, she said they were squalling brats and that stealing candy from them was a cliché. That was about it."
Belle looked away and then back at Mal. "Dear, did she explain to you where they come from? I mean, how they're, umm, made? And how 'not' to make them?"
Mal looked at Belle in shock. While she looked, her previous blush drained out of her face leaving her pale as milk. Her heart felt like it was either going to explode out of her chest or stop beating. It couldn't seem to make up its mind. "She, well, umm, she explained the basics…" said Mal hesitantly. "That was about it. I, umm, I expected to just figure out the rest with your son. When we were ready."
"That's what I was afraid of. Well, there are some things I need to tell you about and I'm going to leave you with a couple of books that you can read too." When Mal's face threatened to go even paler, Belle reached out and put a gentle hand on hers. "I know you don't want to hear all of this, but well, at least I'm a girl telling you about it. My father had to tell me. Trust me that was an incredibly awkward conversation. Especially the way he started it. Forgive me dear for the language, but what he said to start conversation is too wonderful not to repeat." Belle pitched her voice lower to match her father's. "I know you don't want to have this conversation with me girl, but it's much safer if you're embarrassed BEFORE you're bare assed."
Mal stared at the queen in astonishment. She felt the hint of a giggle trying to escape her mouth and tried to hold it in. A bit of a smile escaped. Then a tiny laugh. Then, almost in unison they were both overcome with laughter. Finally, Mal got a hold of herself. Taking a deep breath to keep the giggles at bay, she said. "He really said that to you?"
Bell smiled ruefully. "He did and when I was at the ripe age of fourteen and hadn't even considered having a boyfriend yet. Unless you counted dating books. But he was right. It was better to know. And to know more than just the 'how things fit' parts. I'm a mother dear, so I know it all. And while I want to be a grandmother, I don't want to be one quite yet. So let's get started."
Belle went on to explain a lot about being with someone both physically and emotionally. Some of what she said was obvious. It was important to be responsible. It was important to respect each other. But Belle also went over more risqué topics such as the many things that a couple can do together that won't result in a baby.
Mal was shocked on more levels than she could count. Some of the activities that Belle told her about sounded like a lot of fun. Others, well, some sounded a little unpleasant. A few even distasteful. Others didn't make any sense at all. But the fact that Ben's mother was telling her these things was nothing short of surreal. Finally, Belle had wrapped up what she had to say.
"Well, dear, do you have any questions?" Belle asked. "If you do, please come see me. Or you could talk to Lonnie too if you feel too embarrassed to come see me Her mother spent a lot of time with soldiers so she made sure her daughter had a firm grounding in the facts of life."
Mal just shook her head in shock.
"Well dear, just remember. What a couple who care about each other can do together when they're alone is, well, a lot. And there can be a lot of power control between the two of you, especially when one knows more than the other. Or when one of the two is likely to be overwhelmed by the other. Neither you nor my son are weaklings. I think you're up to the challenge that being a couple can bring. There's no rush to do any of the things that I've talked about. But it is better that you know about them before you're caught up in the moment and make a bad decision. Don't make any babies, but otherwise, have fun."
Mal nodded. Then remembering one of the acts that Belle had told her about, had to ask her one more time. "That... that thing you told me about... You seriously enjoy it? I mean, it's not gross or…" She trailed off, unable to go into detail.
"I do. And so does my husband." Belle said, now blushing herself. "And for it being 'gross', once you're in the moment, you can decide for yourself how you really feel about it. And that's the real power in being with someone. You both find things you enjoy. You both take care of one another both physically and emotionally. You have the power to drive your partner wild but you need to temper that with making sure that they're ready for whatever you're doing. Power and responsibility come side by side, be it on the throne or in the bedroom. Well dear, unless you have any other questions. I'll leave you to your evening."
Belle stood up and showed herself out. Mal sat down, lost in thought. She flipped through the books that Belle had left her. That queen was an earthy sort of woman and one of the books was very detailed in what a couple could do together. Then there was another knock on the door. Mal quickly stuffed the books in a drawer and opened the door. This time it was indeed her beloved Ben. She repeated the spin and curtsy for him that she'd inadvertently done for his mother. The look in his eyes fed her ego. He offered her his arm and then led her out into the hallway.
"My mother said earlier that she wanted to talk to you. Did she find you?" Ben asked politely.
"She did." Replied Mal, trying to suppress her blushes again.
"She didn't tell me what she wanted to talk to you about. What was it?" Ben asked. Mal was speechless and the moment dragged on. Finally Ben asked again. "Is it a secret?"
Mal smiled. "Not exactly a secret, but I'm not going to tell you anything that she told me. But if you're lucky, I might show you a little bit of what I learned."
