Chapter 35: Father-Son Meeting

"Here are the results of your Redemptial Goodness midterms," Fairy Godmother said on Monday morning as she began handing out the exams back. "For homework to those who feel like they did poorly, you'll be assigned to go over your mistakes in order to get points back."

Mumbles and nervous noises were heard among the six new villainous descendants as their headmistress-teacher began handing out their papers. Obviously, they were nervous about the scores they were going to get because of their inner conflicting emotions: live up to their parents' expectations, be evil, and lose their new friendships, or show goodness, redeem, and get disgraced by their parents?

"Macy, you got an A+," F.G said as she gave Macy her exam back. "You have done so well. I gave you extra points for your essay on chastity." Macy squealed in delight as she hugged her exam paper close to her heart. Obviously, this princess was so glad that she deceived Lady Macbeth.

"An A goes for you, Haya." Haya got her exam back. "I just recommend that you work on your answers involving family honor and all." Shan Yu's daughter gave a nod of understanding. After all, the Hun code of family honor she was raised to respect was much different than those at Auradon, so she had difficulty answering these. Nevertheless, she was grateful for her grade. A Hun child must never go back to his or her parents with poor grades, whether they were for good or evil classes. Proof: Haya did her best and got good grades during her stay in Auradon Prep and Shan Yu never complained in his letters about his daughter doing well in a school of goodness. 'It is essential to thrive in life,' he once wrote, 'no matter what. I'm very proud that you are still taking your education seriously.'

"Charles, you did excellent in your exam," F.G praised Charles Frollo for his A+. "By the way, how was your trip this weekend?"

"It was good," Charles said. In order to help him get more rest from the siren, Ben's parents voluntarily took him and Gabriel with them on their weekend getaway at the village where Belle lived. While Beast had taken Charles on a peaceful boat trip to go fishing, Gabriel had gone on a walk with Belle and her father in town. At first, it seemed strange for the locals to see Gaston's son and all, but they calmed down a bit when they saw the jock fawning over a copy of Les Misérables, a book he used to read secretly during his childhood, in the town bookshop. You can imagine the amount of villagers and Maurice looking at Belle with facial expressions that said: 'You can't be serious! This can't be the son of Gaston!'

Speaking of Gabriel, he presently received a B+ on his midterm. F.G commented on how well he did in the exam. The boy was glad of his grade and kept his pride quietly to himself.

Kory got an A- in her exam and sighed in relief at the sight of her grade. Her weeks of studying had paid off.

Xaos, however, didn't do as great as his peers. "I am slightly surprised, Xaos," F.G said as she gave him his exam paper, with a big red F+ crowning the top. "I've heard that you're doing well in your other classes, but why not in Redemptial Goodness?" The demigod said nothing, but his other five peers silently got the message. The bell rung and everyone, excluding Xaos and F.G, left the room for break.

"It's because of your meeting with him, isn't it?" F.G asked as she installed the screen that she used for the first four VK's Family Day video chat last year. Today was the day when Xaos was supposed to have gone to the Tartarus to visit his father in person, but F.G thought that it would be best that, from now on, any demigod whose godly parent resides in Tartarus could only communicate with the latter by video chat. She wouldn't dare to send a child to that place as horrible as the Underworld.

"It's ready." F.G made a few more touches. "Just click on this button to start the chat."

Xaos stood in front of the screen while she moved behind it in order to listen but not be seen. Xaos took a deep breath and pressed the button. He then got a visual of a dark, metal cell room mostly covered with red mist, which made it impossible to see any other object. Rising above the smoke was a man, who could have been about 6 feet tall, with Middle Eastern skin like Xaos. He wore a blood red khepresh with a set animal where the traditional cobra should have been, a large Egyptian necklace made of bones, diamonds, and crushed hearts, was shaped earrings, and a dirty white sleeveless Egyptian tunic. His bottom half couldn't be seen with all the red mist hovering around. Rusty chains could be seen hanging from the man's biceps and floating behind like peacock tail feathers. His almond shaped eyes were closed at first, but once they opened, burning red flames came out of them.

"Hello, Father," Xaos said respectfully.

"Well there's my grown-up evil eyeball!" Seth exclaimed. "Still looking like my teenage self, only with your mother's eyes!"

"Thank you…Father."

"So, have you been evil lately? Do tell me you've done at least one small mischievous thing at Auradon Prep so far!"

"Well…" Xaos gave a quick, nervous glance at the Fairy Godmother, who did look saddened but also encouraged him to tell the truth. "I intentionally flunked my Redemptial Goodness midterm exam and got an F on it."

F.G gave a disbelieving face.

"Well done!" Seth said as he clapped his hands. "Anything else?"

"Last month, I caused a toxic explosion that nearly killed everyone in Chemistry class," Xaos continued.

'That was an accident!' F.G's facial expression said.

"This is getting exciting!" Seth was clapping his hands like some toddler eager to open his presents on Christmas morning. Xaos went on to describe the mischievous things he did: how the Dark Rulers were spreading their wicked music in the school, how he let his pet scorpion wander off freely in the dorm he shared with Doug, how he helped Haya smuggle her Hun rum in Auradon by hiding the bottles in his drum set, how he used one of his father's amulets while he and Doug were having a fishing contest, etc. Xaos saw the Fairy Godmother as he spoke the truth to his father and seeing her face full of both sadness and disappointment pained him.

"I'm so proud of you!" Seth said once Xaos had finished listing all the misfits he did. "You know, I was worried that you'd have reformed like Maleficent Junior and her gang." He made a hissing tone of disgust as he said the word 'reformed'. "But look at you now! This shows that your evil education was worth it!"

"I'm…glad you think so…Father," Xaos struggled to say.

"I'm so gonna have to brag about this to the rest of my prisonmates! Loki is going to be jealous!" Seeing him acting like this slightly embarrassed Xaos. "By the way, how is his daughter? You know, your girlfriend?"

"Kory?" Xaos got nervous. Kory had no problem to not hide the truth from the rest of her family: that she didn't feel like being as evil as them. But Xaos couldn't tell Seth that his girlfriend was reforming. Otherwise, he'd oppose their relationship. "Oh, you know…she's like her dad. Playing nice in order to hide her trickster nature. Heck, she temporarily gave Gorgon hair to an annoying princess last month."

"Thank hell! Annoying princesses are a waste of nature. Well, it's great to hear that she's still evil. Otherwise, I'd fear that Loki and I made a terrible decision on your…"

"Don't worry, Father!" Xaos reassured the god. "We're still a perfect match made in Hell."

"That's my nasty little boy!" Seth said. "Well…they'll soon cut off the communications. It was great to hear from you, Xaos! Don't forget to make sacrifices!"

"Sure…as long as they aren't human…"

"Don't be ridiculous! I'm not that sacrilegious!" The screen then went black and Xaos' knees landed roughly on the floor. Heat was boiling through his veins as his muscles tightened. The demigod kept blinking in order to avoid shedding tears.

"You know I am disappointed with you right now, right?" the Fairy Godmother asked quietly and calmly as she walked and stood in front of Xaos.

"I wish I didn't have to do this," Xaos said bitterly. "Admitting all the bad things I did just so I could please my father in front of you and not tell him what else I really did in Auradon Prep. I'm not ungrateful of everything you and everyone else have offered me here in Auradon Prep, but my fear of my father's wrath and disapproval is greater."

F.G knelt down in front of him and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I understand, Xaos," she said, "but do know that being here is a lifetime chance to step away from the path that your parents have traced for you to follow. And that I'm going to have to put you and Haya in detention for smuggling alcohol in school."

"Understood," Xaos said as he got up. "But Hun Rum isn't actual alcohol. The Huns just called it rum in order to sell bigger quantities of it back on the Isle. And Haya was worried that her Hun Rum bottles, reminders of her family, would have been confiscated if they were seen. That's why I let her hide them in my drum set."

"I see. Nevertheless, smuggling is not allowed in the school perimeters. I'll have a personal chat with Haya. You, in the meantime, should try to improve your deeds a bit. Your amulets will be confiscated for a week and you'll have to serve detention hours at lunchtime by helping organize the library until the end of the month. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Good. You're excused."

Xaos nodded politely and went to grab his stuff. The Fairy Godmother watched as the son of Seth left the classroom looking glum.

"Benjamin was right about giving the children on the Isle of the Lost a chance to live here," she sighed. "I can't imagine how worse they must be living it right now."