I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while. I was sick, so you know... rest and recovery. But I'm back and I deliver you a new chapter. I hope this was worth the wait. Enjoy.
Leave a review after reading, please. Feedback is always appreciated.
I'd like to thank the following users for reviewing the previous chapter: DragonEmperor999, Bal-Breelice04081998, rose1041, top story, silverwolf, Guest21, Guest43, chocolatesbello, 61394, Luvs2Read, CarvieCamfia
I'd also like to thank those who told me to keep going. I really needed it after "what happened".
To Guest43: About Mal being a rebel, I do see your point, but CJ had to make to compare Mal to something, that's all, since she is not a villain to the people of Auradon. As for the mystery behind the reason why Mal keeps dreaming about "Ways to be Wicked," well, you're getting warmer.
To silverwolf: I think C.J. likes Jay. She did call him "cutie" in the Wicked World series.
Mal was outside Auradon Prep, waiting for someone. She looks down at the spell book in her hands. Just looking at it brings a wicked smile to her face. Just touching it makes her feel the dark magic surge within her, and she loved the feeling. A part of her was afraid of this, but she ignores this feeling because she feels that the very book she is holding is what she needs to put an end to CJ's reign of terror before it rises out of control. She had spent the entirety of the previous day practicing spells in private. Now, she feels she needs to test a spell on a person to see if she's ready.
Mal's wicked smile grew wider when she saw the person she's been waiting for coming towards her. It was Jane, who was walking while texting. Mal can only guess that she's texting her boyfriend, Carlos. Whenever they're not together, she would talk to him through texting. It sort of bugs Mal that she does this almost every second of every day. Doesn't she know that Carlos has a life outside of her, she wondered.
Mal hides her spell book behind her back as she puts on an innocent look on her face.
"Hey, Mal," Jane greeted.
"Hey, Jane," Mal greeted her with the sweetest tone she has ever used.
"So, what do you need me for?" asked Jane.
"I just need you to stand there and keep your mouth shut," said Mal.
"Okay, why?" asked Jane.
"Just shut up," said Mal, sounding more annoyed than sweet.
Mal removes her hand from behind her back, revealing to Jane what she has been hiding. Jane was shocked to see what was in Mal's hand.
"Is that your mother's spell book?" She asked.
"I told you to shut up," said Mal, dropping the sweet tone in favor of a slightly furious one.
"Did you steal that from the museum?" asked Jane. "Why did you do it? I thought you were finished with magic. What will the King say about this? Have you told him yet?"
"Ugh! What does Carlos see in you?" Mal complained, annoyed by Jane's babbling.
"Well, Carlos said I was cute and sweet," said Jane, answering Mal's question. "He also said that..."
"Rhetorical question, Ms. Bibbidi-Bobbidi," Mal interrupted her. "Now, shut up and let me do my thing. Say another word, this becomes worse for you."
Jane resisted the urge to say another word, for her own sake. Mal opens her spell book and flips through the pages, searching for the spell she seeks. A smirk creeps up on her face as she stopped flipping, which tells Jane that Mal found the spell she was looking for. Mal looks at Jane with a devious look in her eye as she started waving her finger. Green sparks emanated from her finger.
"A twist in time, a clock in cracks, I command the hands of time to go back," she chanted.
Mal casts the spell on Jane, who started moving and talking backwards rapidly. She then began walking backwards in the exact same path she walked on to arrive to Mal while texting. Mal couldn't help but cackle in amusement as she watched Jane walk backwards out of her sight.
"Looks like I still got it," Mal said to herself, proud of herself. "Look out, CJ. I am about to rain on your parade. Maybe I'll even use acid rain to do so."
Mal's personal moment was interrupt by the ringing of her phone. Ben was calling her.
She answers. "Hello?"
"Hey, Mal," Ben greeted. "Look, I know you're still upset that I wouldn't return your spell book, but I have an opening in my schedule that could be filled with a lunch date. That is, if you're interested."
"Uh, sure. I'd love to have lunch with you," said Mal.
"That's great," replied Ben happily. "I'll bring the strawberries."
"I don't know if I can love you more than I already do," Mal replied, smiling.
"Well, see you at noon, I guess," said Ben. "I love you."
"Love you, too," said Mal.
Mal arrives at Castle Beast at exactly twelve o'clock to have lunch with her boyfriend. To ensure that he doesn't find her spell book like he did during their date at the lake a few months ago, she hides it somewhere in her dorm. Mal enters the dining room to find Ben sitting down on his chair. In front of him is a couple bowls of porridge and a bowl of strawberries.
"Careful no little girl breaks in and eats all this porridge," Mal joked.
Ben laughed, obviously amused by Mal's words.
"You look lovely," said Ben, eyeing Mal's beautiful short lavender dress with black threads sewn to look like raging fire.
"Well, I dress to impress," said Mal regally.
Mal sits down and the two start eating their porridge. Mal, as expected, was chowing down strawberries like a feral animal, which makes Ben laugh a little. His smile, however, drops as he stares into his porridge.
"Something wrong?" Mal asked, mouth full of strawberries.
"Maybe," said Ben. "During our date at the Enchanted Lake, I was gonna ask you something important."
Mal choked on her strawberry at the sound of these words, knowing exactly what Ben was talking about. It made her nervous. She looks down at her gloved hand. Underneath the glove is the ring that Ben was going to use to propose to her. It has been a couple of days since she found and she has yet to tell him that she knows what he had planned.
"There was something I was gonna give to you, but when the cannonball hit the ruin, I lost it," said Ben.
"Can you tell me what it is?" Mal asked, pretending not to know.
"I'd love to, but I need that... certain something," said Ben.
"Is it another gift?" asked Mal.
"You can say that," said Ben.
"Why don't you just ask me," Mal suggested.
Ben's response is silence and an unsure look on his face. "I don't know, Mal..."
"Just tell me," said Mal, holding Ben's hand with her own. "I can tell this is eating you up inside. Best to just let it out."
Ben looked into Mal's eyes. He wasn't sure about asking her now, especially since he wanted the moment to be perfect and beautiful, like back at the Enchanted Lake. However, since that is out of the question, he thinks he might as well satisfy Mal's curiosity. After all, it's her answer that matter, not how he executes the question. He takes a deep breath as he prepares to open his mouth.
"Mal," he started. "Will you marry me?"
Mal looked away from Ben as his question buzzed around her head. Should I tell him, she asked herself. Mal reaches for her glove and immediately pulls it off, revealing a diamond ring on her finger. Ben recognized the ring. It was the one he thought he lost at the Enchanted Lake.
"Yes, I will," said Mal, smiling.
Ben smiled, happy to hear Mal's answer. His smile dropped when his curiosity kicked in.
"You kept it this whole time?" He asked.
"I was just shocked, that's all," said Mal. "This is a big step for us, Ben, and, honestly, it scares me. I wasn't gonna tell you until after we've dealt with CJ, but then I saw the look on your face. You were so worried that you lost the ring. You were just aching to know my answer. Well, my answer is yes. I want to marry you, Ben. I really do."
Mal leans in and kisses Ben on the lips. Both of them smile afterwards, staring into each other's eyes with excitement building up inside them. Ben's elation over what just happened was making his smile grow wider with each passing second. Mal can tell that he was just as eager as she is for the big day.
"I can't believe this is happening," said Ben.
"Believe it," said Mal.
"I just wish we could've done this at the Enchanted Lake," said Ben.
"I know. Proposal over a simple lunch date sounds lame, but I don't care where you propose. All that matters is that you ask," said Mal.
"After we stop CJ, we'll start planning the wedding," said Ben.
"Evie's gonna be so excited," said Mal.
"You don't sound too happy about that," said Ben.
"Knowing her, she's going to be working non-stop to make sure this wedding is perfect for me," said Mal. "We might as well let her do all the work."
Mal and Ben laugh together. Ben never understood Mal's sense of humor, but there are times when she makes him laugh. She truly is unique, he thought.
"So, when do you want to spread the news?" asked Mal.
"After this war is over," said Ben. "Until then, you might want to keep the ring hidden under your glove."
"Already ahead of you," said Mal, slipping her glove back on, hiding the ring from sight.
Mal and Ben continue to eat their meals, but they couldn't stop looking at each other. Ben had asked the big question and Mal gave him the answer he was hoping for. They were going to get married. Just thinking about it brought more joy to them. Seeing how happy the other is fills them with even more joy. Mal had been scared for this moment, but now that it has passed, she feels silly for being scared in the first place.
However, Mal subtly drops her smile as she thought about a certain spell book she has hidden in her dorm. Ben would not be happy once he finds out, she knows.
After lunch, Mal returns to her dorm. What she finds once she opened the door was an unhappy Evie with a familiar object in her hand. It was Mal's spell book.
"Care to explain?" Evie asked, sounding like a strict parent talking to her delinquent child.
"Evie, put down the book," Mal insisted.
"Not until you tell me why I found this under your bed," said Evie.
"Evie, I am serious. Put down the spell book," Mal repeated.
"Did you steal it from the museum?" Evie asked, refusing to drop the matter.
"Evie, I am warning you," said Mal, sounding extremely serious.
"Does Ben know about this?" asked Evie.
"Evie, give me the spell book," Mal demanded.
"He doesn't, doesn't he?" Evie guessed.
Mal's eyes glow green as she begins to lose her patience. Evie notices this and takes a few steps backwards.
"Give me the book," Mal ordered.
"No," said Evie, putting the book behind her back.
Mal's eyes glow greener as she charged at her best friend. Evie tried to keep the book out of Mal's reach, but Mal was relentless. She puts her forearm on Evie's throat and pins her to the wall. She grabs the spell book from her friend's hand.
"Mal, this is wrong," said Evie.
"Shut it, Evie!" Mal yelled, eyes still glowing with the color of an emerald.
Mal increases the pressure of her arm on Evie's neck. Evie tried to speak, but couldn't because Mal was choking her.
"Mal... stop... please," Evie pleaded, struggling to speak through the choking.
"And if I do, how will I make sure you don't spill the beans?" Mal asked, refusing to release Evie.
"Mal!"
Mal turns around at the sound of the familiar voice. Carlos came running into the room, along with Jay. Carlos pulls Mal away from Evie, while Jay shields the blue-haired daughter of Evil Queen from the daughter of Maleficent. Mal, eyes still glowing with fury, attempts to charge at Evie again, but Carlos made sure to keep a tight grip on her.
"What is going on here?" asked Jay.
"Mal stole her spell book back from the museum," said Evie.
Mal stopped struggling, but her furrowed eyebrows and clenched fist tell that she was becoming angrier. Jay and Carlos look down and see Mal's spell book on the floor, which she dropped after Carlos grabbed her.
"You stole your spell book from them museum?" Jay asked, surprised. "If I didn't choose to be good, I'd be proud of you."
Mal grabs her spell book and steps back, raising her hand, threatening to cast a spell if any of her friends attempt to come closer. Jay continued to shield Evie, but Carlos wasn't going to stand back and watch Mal break down again.
"Mal, just relax, please," he pleaded.
"You don't understand," said Mal.
"What I understand is that this is wrong," said Carlos.
"That's what I said," said Evie.
"Take it from an ex-thief. This is definitely wrong," Jay agreed.
"This is the only way I can stop CJ and her goons from hurting anyone else," said Mal, gripping her spell book tightly.
"Is this about CJ or is it about you?" Carlos asked.
Mal was shocked by this question. Why would he ask her a question like that? She just told him the reason why she stole her spell book back.
"What are you talking about?" She asked.
"I think he's saying that you stole your spell book back because you wanted it back. You wanted to use your magic again," said Evie.
"Mal, you don't have to do this," said Carlos.
"I have to," said Mal.
"To save Auradon or to satisfy your lust for power?" Carlos questioned her.
Carlos places his hand on Mal's arm and lowers it, trying to calm her down. The glow from Mal's eyes begin to dim as she stared at Carlos, who was looking at her with a hardened expression. Carlos pulls Mal into a hug in an attempt to keep her calm. Mal reluctantly hugs him back.
"How do you do that?" asked Jay, raising an eyebrow in confusion.
Evie nudges Jay on the shoulder and glares at him, telling him not to ruin the moment with unimportant questions.
"Mal, we're just worried about you," said Carlos. "You haven't been yourself lately, and it's scaring us."
"Maybe that's what I want," said Mal.
"No, it's not," said Carlos.
"How would you know?" Mal retorted. "You think you all know me. You don't know me, not as well as you think."
Evie comes out from behind Jay and approaches Mal, taking her friend's hand into her own and looking at her with worry all over her face.
"You have to tell Ben," said Evie.
"No, I can't," said Mal.
"I thought you promised that there will be no more secrets between the two of you," said Evie.
"Well, I have to break that promise for the sake of Auradon," said Mal, freeing her hand from Evie's. "And don't tell me otherwise."
Mal walks out the dorm, only to stop when a hand grabbed her arm. She looks back and sees Carlos, visibly worried, obviously for her. Evie and Jay looked at her with the same look.
"Where are you going?" asked Carlos.
"Somewhere to do something stupid," said Mal.
"Mal, please, don't make this worse than it already is," said Carlos. "We care about you. I care about you."
Mal can feel herself calming down even more at the sound of Carlos' words. He seemed to be the only one lately who can truly pull her out of her rage. She hanged her head as she looked at the spell book in her hand. She begins to wonder if she's doing the right thing. When she looked back at her friends, she begins to feel conflicted. Suddenly, her eyes glowed for a few seconds, which clearly frightened everyone in the room.
"I'm sorry, Carlos, but if evil is the only way to stop CJ, then I have to take that chance," said Mal darkly.
Mal frees herself from Carlos' grip and walks out the dorm. Evie, Jay, and Carlos look at each other, still worried about their friend.
"I have a bad feeling about this," said Jay. "Mostly because she just said the word evil."
In the depths of the ocean, miles away from the Strait of Ursula, which was located within the barrier surrounding the Isle of the Lost, was a cave that once belonged to the sea witch herself. It had been cleared out of potions and any magical objects twenty years ago, but it remained majestic, in a dark, creepy sort of way. Inhabiting the dark cave is the daughter of Ursula, who goes by the name of Uma. She sat on a sea rock, waving her tentacles for no reason. Her long, thin braids danced to the weak current within the cave.
Uma's moment of silence ends when she hears footsteps coming towards her direction. She jumps off the rock and prepares herself for battle.
Coming from around the corner is a familiar face. One Uma was not happy to see. Standing before her with some sort of purple aura surrounding her is Mal. Uma can guess that the magical aura around Mal allows her to breathe underwater.
"What do you want?" Uma asked.
"I need your help," said Mal.
Uma's here. What's gonna happen? Well, you're gonna have to wait until the next chapter to find that out. Anyway, I hope this was a great chapter. I hope it really was worth the wait.
