A/N: Howdy to all you guys who thought this story was done! The sequel turned out to be little more than an extended epilogue, so I'm in the process of merging them.
"...And everyone felt that the world (and perhaps the universe) had passed from the control of known gods or forces, to that of gods or forces which were unknown."
- H.P. Lovecraft, Nyarlathotep
Mal had always adored the rose gardens before the palace lawn. Perhaps it stemmed from her peoples' obession with briars and thorns. Perhaps it was because there had been no roses on the Isle before the fall of the barrier. In any case, the roses were one of her favorite things about Auradon, and when she made sure there was computer access in every community of her new nation, she included rose plants with them, to make Auradon the kingdom of Justice and Roses.
It had been a full year since Mal had nigh single-handedly taken over an empire, and running it was stupidly easier than expected. Unlike the Isle, there was already a groundwork that just needed to be tweaked and improved. With the prevalence of email, postal service, and modern technology, citizens from the farthest reaches of the country could appeal to Mal for aid. Jane filtered through the letters and digital requests that arrived daily, and directed the senders to websites and organizations that would help. Those with tricky solutions got forwarded to Mal herself.
Not everyone was so pleased at first, not with the grisly deaths of their previous rulers overhead. But none of the dissenters were brave enough or wealthy enough to fight back, and they'd seen what happened to Chad, after all. So after a while, and lengthy reforms, most dissent died down. While Mal wouldn't hesitate to quash rebellion, she hadn't needed to yet.
It wasn't all work and no play. As much as the original four refused to become greedy and complacent like their predecessors, what was the use of taking over a kingdom if you didn't enjoy it? The servants who worked in the palace were treated more kindly than they had ever been, and had taken to saying that the four rulers who employed them were the happiest kings and queens who ever lived, because they knew what it was like to have nothing, and respected what they'd earned.
The new colors of the kingdom were gold and violet (not lavender, like the dress she wore to fool the council, but the color that was made when Ben's blood stained the royal blue carpet), and Mal decided to keep the name, mostly because she couldn't think of a better one, and she wanted to reuse all the old stationary.
Still, something was missing.
One year became two, and Jay and Carlos were married, on the second anniversary of their very own happy ending.
They both wore custom Evie-designed suits, and the affair was a matter for celebration throughout the kingdom. Apparently, anti-gay sentiments were still somewhat strong here in Auradon, so instead of celebration, the announcement was met with trepidation and grumbling. At least, until Carlos went on TV and announced that he and Jay wanted to share their happiness with all their subjects, in the form of a two-hundred dollar cheque to every citizen over the age of sixteen, and a new state holiday, known as Revolution Day on the anniversary of their reign.
It was amazing what a little bribery could accomplish.
That first Revolution Day went off with a blaze of fireworks and cookouts throughout the region, and it was still a popular day for weddings in years to come.
Uma successfully took back the trident of her mother's legacy, and left Ursula to manage Atlantea, while she went back to pillaging the seven seas in the name of gold and as a self-proclaimed pirate king (it was apparently a gender neutral term, and she'd taken over from Hook, who never reclaimed his title, for reasons unknown.)
On the third Revolution Day, she asked Mal to change the marriage laws to allow the union of three or more participants, and so Uma, Gil, and Harry, were the first polyamorous marriage that Evie herself officiated. They were soon promptly followed by Antoine, Ginny, and Daria, who had at first been blatantly against the idea of marriage, but later decided to go through with it so that little Anne-Marie would be their legal heir.
Surprisingly enough, Rapunzel approached her next, explaining how for years, she'd been madly in love with two people, and now that she was pregnant, she wanted to make sure Ruby Fitzherbert knew of her parents' marital status, not unlike her young stepsister had done.
Three years since Auradon had first changed hands, and Mal still felt something missing, but now she'd gotten the spark of an idea, and something came to her, like a quiet vision.
Twentieth birthday. It was celebrated throughout the land, as Mal's four years in power had seen massive changes for the better in all aspects of life, and Mal was a beloved High Queen among her subjects. Any dissent was either underground, or gone, and there was peace in all the land. Fairy tales often start with once upon a time, but this fairy tale started with a curse word and a forbidden friendship.
The next book of the fairy tale began with two bottles of expensive vodka and smeared make-up, and fireworks.
They'd gotten way too drunk at the after-party (the one with only close friends, no one they didn't trust), and all four of them ended up leaving late into the night, all holding hands (touchy and affectionate) as they didn't separate to go to their own rooms.
"Ooh, I still remember how hot you looked in your uniform on the day we took over," Mal purred in delight, running a hand across Jay's tattoos. "All intimidating shadows and blood stains on black armor."
"I never wanted to say it, I never thought I'd be attracted to anyone but Carlos ever again," Jay laughed uncharacteristically, all their lips made loose by alcohol. "But Mal looked so hot when she killed Aurora and slit Audrey's throat."
Carlos had been thinking about how it felt on the Isle, when they were left behind together with just he and Evie, and how she hugged him too tight for comfort, and he'd caught her when the lookout tower was cannonballed.
"I think I can't live without you." Evie murmured. "Any of you."
"Then don't." Jay laughed. "I'm not going anywhere."
The magic laced between them in a way it hadn't before. Mal got a sudden recollection of the day she first met Evie by climbing up the trellis of her bedroom window with white fingers and open-mouthed exertion. It was the magic of change and rebirth, a new shift in the universe. As her lips met Jay's mouth in a greedy kiss, Evie and Carlos were kissing behind them, but it felt like Mal was kissing everyone, and the entire universe shifted two feet to the left.
Mal's magic sang out in realization of the change, of the fact that they were all meant for each other in the same way that she was meant to rule Auradon, one way or another, in every single timeline (either by Ben's side, or over his body). Whether friends or lovers, they were always the four, in every universe, in every lifetime.
Four, forever. Fourever. Her magic sang, and her drunk mind blurred the words into one.
"I didn't think I liked men." Evie noted shyly. "I know I couldn't live without you three, but it's different and confusing."
"I love you all but I'm still in love with Evie." Mal muttered, confused and too drunk to think about it too much. "But I really wanna ride Jay like I fucking own him, you know?"
"Once I would have chosen Carlos over either of you girls," Jay admitted. "No offense."
"None taken~!" Evie answered in a sing-song tone with a giggle.
"But now, I wouldn't want to have to decide. It's all or nothing." Jay laughed. "Oh man, this is so confusing. You do own me, Mal. Except for, like, the parts that Carlos owns."
"Let me explain it then," Mal laughed, collapsing onto her huge bed, the kind they'd always dreamed about on the Isle. Kissing Jay again, pulling him near to her so that it felt like they were one person, each one fourth of a whole.
"Evie is my true love. Carlos is yours." She breathed as she pulled away, leaning their foreheads together in a way that was more intimate than anything they'd ever done before. "But the four of us are meant for each other, in any configuration. We're four parts of a whole."
It shouldn't have turned him on like this, watching Mal kiss his husband with all the passion of a Fae Queen, but it did and Carlos liked it.
"Hey C," Evie purred, using that one letter nickname like she did for the ones she
really loved. "We won't let them have all the fun, right?"
Carlos was smitten.
Across the castle, Jane awoke with a shudder (she didn't stay long at the afterparty, not prone to drinking), and she looked to Diaval's perch, murmuring to herself and the bird. Being the Court's secret-keeper, she had felt the shift in the magic, adding and multiplying, and gaining momentum like a snowball rolling down a frigid mountain.
"Everything has changed, Diaval." Jane purred, running a hand over the bird's black and silky feathers. "They've realized the third part of the pattern."
The bird became man, and paced over to the window with a contemplative look.
"When the queen and empress united, the Isle was brought to it's knees. When the magician and knight were bound, Auradon knew no mercy." Diaval chimed in, watching the full moon with satisfaction as he wondered over the new development.
"Now that four are one, I wonder what new challenge will be overcome by their power?" Jane finished his thought, and turned to a new page in the journal.
In another lifetime, Evie ended up with Doug, and Ben was still alive, and Carlos was meant for Jane, and Jay was madly in love with Lonnie. In that universe, Mal was set up to be the benevolent ruler of Auradon, and the Isle remained a prison colony for the rest of their lifetimes. As the secret keeper, it was Jane's responsibility to know all the perpetual timelines, and how all (but her own) would play out.
In another alternate future, Mal had taken over Auradon, but never looked beyond Evie for happiness, and everything remained as it was, somewhat complete, somewhat stagnant, never having reached the magic's full potential.
Neither of these alternate futures were explicitly worse than the present - both required Mal's doing what she thought was right, and both offered a unique view of Happily Ever After.
In this world, with the realization that they were all four meant for each other, and the knowledge that something was missing, they finally found the piece that fate had set out for them, and took the road less travelled. In this universe, Mal would be empress, and the four of them would indelibly change the entire world with their next move.
Jane kept her own set of tarot cards these days, after learning the craft of reading them from Evie. It was traditionally a witch's craft, but that didn't exclude the Fae from using them on occasion, though their results were often less accurate. Jane liked to use them to gauge a situation, and she often used four decks simultaneously, one for each member of the inner circle. The question she asked the cards tonight was simple, and required only one card from one deck.
"What happens now?" She asked.
The tarot answered with The Tower.
That card was a card of chaos. It meant the world was being shaken, and everything they knew would change. The Tower was a card of shifting, of earthquakes and massive changes. The Tower was a deer jumping out in the middle of the road or a surprise visitor or an ex begging you to take him back. It wasn't bad, necessarily, but it was unpredictable, and Jane found herself shaking her head with amusement.
Mal never had an easy ride, did she?