A/N: Sorry for the long, clunky chapter. I understand if you all wanna skip this one because of how long and complicated it is, but I worked really hard on this and I wanted to make it special for you guys. Again, sorry in advance, but please enjoy if you like this story so far, if not, then I never said I was perfect. Nobody is anyway.
"From the North to the South to the East to the West! Lost Boys, Lost Girls, you all know you're the best! Hit the streets, it's your day, Turn it up, now's your chance! It's time to get up on your feet and dance!~" The students chanted and sang from inside their school bus as they headed right for Emerald Acres where "There was no place like home".
At the school of Emerald Acres, the students were all lined up in front of their school with a man with a rather tall hat and a beautiful woman standing beside him as they stood a few feet in front of their students. All of the students were chattering among each other, wondering who they would meet and wondered what to anticipate as it was almost time for the Games that would begin very soon, but first, the new students visiting from their school had to get settled. Meanwhile, Peter and Audrey were hiding in the bushes together, both looking rather smug and even smirked at each other.
"Think we can turn them against each other easily?" Audrey asked Peter eagerly.
"I don't think, Pinky, I know, because I know everything," Peter smirked darkly. "I hear this school is friendly rivals with your school."
"Yeah, for the most part," Audrey rolled her eyes slightly. "I don't get it, but it might take a little while for them to turn against each other."
"Oh, no need to worry..." Peter reassured. "I know how to get fights started and cause drama and based on my references, so do you. You can ruin reputations pretty easily based on what I've seen you do."
"Well... It is going to be a certain someone's birthday actually." Audrey said.
Peter raised an eyebrow curiously. "...Yours?" he then guessed.
"No, not mine," Audrey told him before looking over in the crowd of classmates of hers before pointing someone out. "See that girl in the blue dress with that freckled boy?"
Peter took a look. "Ah, yes," he then said before smirking. "That girl who mentioned she had a crush on de Vil at The Mayor's brat's birthday slumber party."
"Exactly," Audrey smirked back as she nodded. "Her birthday is coming up real soon. For starters, we should do..." she then leaned in to whisper an idea to him on how to ruin Jane's birthday and how to get the fire started of causing chaos between the two schools before The Summer School Games would even begin.
"Hm? Oh, yes... Yes... Yes~" Peter asked before listening and grinning darkly. "Ooh... Daddy loves it when you talk like that, my Queen of Mean~" he then said to her diabolically.
"I know, I love it too~" Audrey giggled and smirked. "It feels so good to be bad~"
"Mm-hmm..." Peter nodded. "And the more you do it, the 'gooder' it starts to feel."
Audrey blinked before giving him a look. "Uh... Gooder isn't a word." she then said to him.
"Do I look like I care?" Peter asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Wow... Even your grammar is bad," Audrey said before smirking. "I kinda like it."
"Damn right you do," Peter smirked. "Now come on. Let's go sneak around a bit before you make your grand entrance to the ones who deserted you for Mal~"
"Yes..." Audrey smirked back with a nod. "That purple bitch must pay."
"Now you're talkin'. Off we go then." Peter told her before they ducked down to hide away instantly before anyone else could see them.
The students soon looked around as they got settled into Emerald Acres.
"Step lively, Jane." Headmistress Fairgood smiled sweetly as she stepped down from the bus with her daughter and the freckled boy beside her followed her, trying to keep his backpack quiet and even seemed to shush it, making some other students look at him strangely.
"Vice Principal Glinda can help your students get settled if you'd like me to show you around, Headmistress Fairgood," The tall-hatted man said to the woman who stepped off of the bus with her daughter. "There have been quite a few changes since your last visit."
"Oh, yes, Principal Walsh," Headmistress Fairgood nodded with a small smile. "I'm sure that would be fascinating."
The two nodded at each other and soon walked off together. The students then began to look around and went to look around their new surroundings. Dude sniffed the air and soon poked his head out of Carlos' backpack and suddenly ran out and ran across the school grounds.
"Dude! Get back here!" Carlos cried out as he went to chase after the dog he had adopted as his pet unbeknownst to his mother.
"Carlos!" Jay cried out. "You're gonna miss Jane's birthday!"
Soon, the outsider students were shown around the school and told of what to expect for The Summer School Games. Mal nodded, trying to take in the information as she was new to this concept, but was curious and itching to get started. Speaking of itching though, she couldn't help but feel a strange feeling of something in the air that she couldn't place about this Emerald Acres that seemed to be hiding something from her. She tried not to let it bother her though as she continued to follow the others down the hallway, seeing a lot of black, purple, and green coloring like her own school's blue and gold.
"So, Principal Walsh, it's my daughter's birthday today..." Headmistress Fairgood began. "I was wondering if today we could probably have a welcome to your school party as well as a birthday party for my little Janey Waney~"
"Mom..." Jane murmured, blushing in embarrassment from the nickname.
"Well... All right then," Principal Walsh said with a small smile. "I see nothing wrong with that. So it's your birthday today, dear?" he then asked the girl beside the woman.
"Uh... Yes, sir..." Jane smiled back nervously. "It's no big deal really."
"It's no trouble at all for me," Principal Walsh beamed. "Let's get you kids settled in and we'll have some cake and music later on. Now, Headmistress Fairgood, I've booked rooms for your students to stay at the Gale hotel."
"Yes, except for two," Headmistress Fairgood nodded. "Evelyn Mills and Malissa Ignus have somewhere to stay with a resident in your town, but they will meet up at the school as needed. Won't you, ladies?" she then asked Mal and Evie.
"We will, Headmistress Fairgood." Mal and Evie promised.
"Very good," Principal Walsh smiled and nodded. "I look forward to our students' adventures against each other. I just hope you're ready to lose this year, Headmistress Fairgood." he then gently chided playfully.
"Oh, I don't play to lose, I play to win, Principal Walsh~" Headmistress Fairgood chuckled and playfully punched his arm.
"Nice enthusiasm." Principal Walsh smirked as then continued along the hallway.
"Well, this school sure is interesting." Mal commented.
"It sure is," Evie nodded. "I wonder if there are any special surprises we should look out for?"
"Hopefully nothing too severe," Mal replied. "I just can't help but feel like I'm going to be in for a big surprise later though."
"Well, it is Jane's birthday and plus you haven't been in Emerald Acres before," Evie remarked. "It's bound to be a pretty big surprise either way."
"Hmm... I guess so." Mal nodded as they continued to walk together down the hallway.
Evie then looked over as she took out her phone and texted her mother that she made it to Emerald Acres alright with Mal and would call later.
"All right, my dears! Can you all hear me?" Headmistress Fairgood called to her students, making them stop talking among each other as they explored the hallways of the new campus.
The students then settled and eventually quieted down a bit.
"All right, good," Headmistress Fairgood smiled warmly. "Principal Walsh and Vice Prince Glinda have arranged for you all to stay at the hotel, so your bus buddy will become your new roommate. Come to the front desk of the hotel and you can collect your key cards and get settled in, but we'll meet back at the school in an hour for the party, okay?" she then suggested. "For my little Jane's birthday and for our welcome into this new town. Sound good?"
"Yes, ma'am!" Most of the students responded while others, such as Chad, were too busy on their phones to properly pay attention.
"Okay, good," Headmistress Fairgood smiled. "Vice Principal Glinda, would you mind showing us there then?"
"Not at all," Vice Principal Glinda smiled as she stepped over. "I'll take care of you kids now. Principal Walsh has some work here to take care of, but you'll meet some new friends and possibly rivals very soon."
"I like it." Evie whispered to Mal.
"Yeah. She seems cool." Mal whispered back.
"Evie, dear, since your aunt lives here, do you need help to find her or can you manage on your own?" Headmistress Fairgood asked as she came over to the two girls.
"I can call her from here. She texted me a new number," Evie reassured. "Thanks for letting me and Mal stay with her. I haven't seen her in a very long time."
"I hope that you have fun, but remember to come back in time for the party," Headmistress Fairgood told the girls. "Remember, you are cordially invited."
"Yes, ma'am. We'll be there." Evie promised.
"Sure is nice being invited to a birthday party for a change." Mal smiled sheepishly.
"Just remember to be on your best behavior since we're visiting a new school," Headmistress Fairgood reminded the girls before she walked off. "Okay, everybody! Let's follow Vice-Principal Glinda!"
The other students soon walked off as Evie took out her phone to call her maternal aunt.
"...I hope your aunt likes me, Evie." Mal said softly.
"Oh, I'm sure that she will," Evie reassured. "Aunt Zelena's cool. At least from what I remember."
"So tell me... Is she a 'prim and proper ont' or a 'dirty, fat aunt'?" Mal had to ask as there were always those kinds.
"I'm sure that you will like her regardless of who she is," Evie said before she soon got an answer. "Hello, Aunt Zelena? Hi! It's so good to hear your voice... Oh, I'm good. Listen, my school made it over to your neighborhood and we were wondering if you'd come pick us up and we could come hang out with you? ...Okay, good. We'll wait for you here. Thank you so much." she then said before hanging up.
"Well, I guess that was easy," Mal replied. "All there is to do now is wait."
Carlos was shown to still be running around and looking around. Dude was wandering off on his own as well as he sniffed the air before sniffing the grass, following a trail next to a road that nearly seemed to be gold in color. Another nose followed Dude's nose, showing to be a black female dog with a pink ribbon in her head. The two dogs glanced at each other before sniffing each other and began to circle each other curiously. They both seemed to wag their tails at each other before they seemed to like each other's company and they soon became friends with each other.
Eventually, after a while of waiting, Mal and Evie soon saw a car ride up over to them. Not just any car, it was noticeably green and the horn honked.
"That's her," Evie said as she stood up. "I recognize that car anyway."
"I see that your aunt's a fan of green." Mal commented as she stood up with Evie and the two soon began to approach the car.
The car soon stopped beside the two girls and the window rolled down to show a rather perky and excited redheaded woman. "Hello there, girls!" she then beamed. "It's so nice to see you."
"Aunt Zelena!" Evie beamed and laughed, hugging the woman instantly. "I've missed you so much~"
"I've missed you too, Sweet Pea," Zelena smiled as she hugged her niece back instantly before looking back at Mal. "And this must be your special friend?"
"Yes! Yes!" Evie beamed as she stepped over. "Aunt Zelena, this is Mal. She's my best friend and Mom adopted her so that she could become my sister."
"How very nice," Zelena smiled warmly. "Hello there, Mal. It's nice to meet you."
"...Hey." Mal blinked before she held her hand up.
"Quite a conversationalist," Zelena teased. "Why don't you come in the car and we can go over to my place so you two can get settled in, huh?" she then suggested.
"Sounds good, Aunt Zelena," Evie nodded as she looked at Mal. "Come on, let's put our stuff in the trunk."
"Sure. Okay." Mal said as she went to behind the green car with Evie.
"Oh, this is going to be a really fun time," Zelena smiled. "I was so excited to hear you were coming to town, Evie. I've missed you, your mother, and brother so much. I'm looking forward to getting to know you better too, Mal."
"Me too, I guess." Mal shrugged as she wasn't sure how to be properly social.
"Sorry, Aunt Zelena," Evie said softly. "Mal takes a while to adjust to meeting new people."
"Oh, I completely understand," Zelena replied. "Regina was the same way when we were growing up. She even insisted that she was The Queen of the House and Daddy bought her her very own crown so that she could get whatever she wanted. Spoiled girl." she then sighed and shook her head.
Mal chuckled, finding that a bit funny to find out about Regina. Eventually, the two girls came into the car and they rode off together to go over to Zelena's home in Emerald Acres. Mal sat in the back as she took a look at her phone as Zelena told Evie fond memories of growing up with Regina as sisters which made Mal go far back into her phone to see very old photos before the old days of JMNI phones being popular. She sighed with a small smile, looking back at when she was a baby and Lily was holding her and the two were very close until the latter's untimely demise.
After a while, Zelena slowed down her driving. "Well, here we are," she then told her passengers, making them look out the window to see a simple, but very comfortable house. "This is where I live."
"Hm... Looks comfortable enough," Mal commented as she looked out the window. "I just hope you have room for us."
"Of course I do," Zelena smiled. "You can stay in my spare room. Now, are you going to have dinner at this party or should I order us something?"
"I think we're just gonna have cake for dinner tonight, so..." Evie shrugged with a small smile.
"I'll see what I can do," Zelena said before unbuckling her seatbelt and went to get the door for them. "Your party sounds very nice. I wish that I could go with you. You wouldn't want a square adult like me buzzing your harsh as it goes, I think."
"Harshing your buzz I think is what they said in the old days in like 1994 or something." Mal remarked.
"Ah, right..." Zelena said before nodding as she unlocked the trunk for the girls. "Don't worry. I'll get the hang of it sometime."
"Sure you will." Mal said with a small smirk as she and Evie grabbed their bags.
Zelena smiled as she soon unlocked the front door for them. "One of you please close the trunk after you get your things," she then gently requested. "Unfortunately there's no button to close and lock the trunk other than just opening it and unlocking it."
"Gotcha, Aunt Z." Evie nodded as she took her bag out and closed the trunk after Mal got her bag.
"You can ask me anything you want while you're here," Zelena said. "And I'll try my very best to answer."
"Well... For starters, I guess I gotta ask... Where have you been so time?" Evie asked, suddenly making her aunt skid to a halt.
"...What did you just say?" Zelena asked as she looked back over her shoulder to her niece.
Evie gave her aunt a bit of a look. "Aunt Zelena..." she then said, a bit firmly.
"Oh... All right..." Zelena sighed sharply. "Why don't we sit down on the couch?"
Evie looked curious, but shrugged as she decided to sit down with her aunt. Mal took out her phone and sat with them, not fully paying attention, but was curious as well as they got comfortable and settled into the cozy house.
"Well, Evie... Sweet Pea... There was a reason why I haven't spoken to your mother in a while..." Zelena said softly and nervously with a small smile. "I just hope that you understand."
"Please, Aunt Zelena, you can tell me anything," Evie replied. "Henry will tell you the same. I'm a great listener and my friends will tell you that too."
"She really is," Mal nodded in agreement. "Whenever I need anything I can always count on Evie to be there by my side."
"Well... Okay..." Zelena said with a small smile. "The thing is... Well... I might have met someone."
Mal and Evie's eyes widened. They were surprised, but not in a bad way.
"Aunt Zelena, that's wonderful!" Evie beamed as she instantly rushed over and hugged her aunt right away. "Why would you wanna keep that from us?"
"Well, I-" Zelena began.
"That sounds kinda awesome," Mal said with a small smirk. "Congratulations. I'd be very careful though and make sure he's the one, otherwise you'll have some rugrats running around with no idea on what to do with them."
Zelena grinned sheepishly in response to that.
"...What?" Mal asked from the older woman's reaction.
"...It's funny you should mention that..." Zelena said sheepishly.
"...Why?" Evie asked before looking curious. "...Aunt Zelena, you didn't... Did you have... Um... Did you... 'Call the stork'?" she then asked, using a code as she felt uncomfortable with saying the actual word.
"Let someone butter your muffin for you?" Mal decided to ask for Evie with a small smirk.
"MAL!" Evie complained.
"What? You weren't gonna say it." Mal shrugged in defense.
"Hmph..." Evie firmly pouted.
"...Well, actually, girls... Yes," Zelena said as she heaved a sharp sigh before looking at them. "...I had sex."
"Gross." Mal winced then.
"Oh. So now you don't like talking about it?" Evie playfully rolled her eyes at Mal.
"That's different," Mal replied. "There's just something unnatural about an adult talking about that sorta thing."
"Well, it's made only for adults and I suggest that you girls keep that sort of behavior to yourselves until you have a ring on your finger." Zelena smirked as she crossed her arms.
"Yes, ma'am." Mal and Evie forced themselves to say before looking sheepish.
"So, uh, who is this guy, Auntie Zelena?" Evie asked. "Can we at least know him?"
"And do you have any children because of him?" Mal added.
"MAL!" Evie complained again.
"Evie!" Mal retorted in the same tone.
"You two definitely are sisters now," Zelena teased before she sighed and nodded. "Well... Yes, we do have a child together. He's taking her out on a stroll right now. Perhaps after your little birthday party with your friends, you guys can meet him and your new cousin?" she then suggested.
"Well... Okay," Evie said softly. "That sounds pretty good."
"Why don't you go get changed and get ready for the 'Welcome to Emerald Acres'/birthday party?" Zelena suggested then. "I'll still be here waiting for you when you get back."
"Okay, Aunt Zelena," Mal replied. "We look forward to it."
"Yes, we certainly do," Evie nodded in agreement before she faced Mal. "Now come on. Let's get you into something fabulous."
"Okay." Mal said with a small smile.
Zelena beamed warmly at the girls, allowing them to go and get ready for the party. She then took out her phone and decided to check it for any messages or missed calls just in case.
Eventually, the girls got changed in their new outfits, a midnight blue long-sleeved dress with a heart-shaped locket and black heels and a short-sleeved purple dress with green accents and a matching vest with black heels and soon went to go and join everyone else at the party in the school gym.
"Have a good time, girls." Zelena smiled warmly.
"Thanks, Aunt Zelena," Evie smiled back as she went to get to the party as planned with Mal. "We'll try to save you a slice of cake."
"Don't stay up too late or invite any boys over." Mal added playfully.
"Ooh, I'll try very hard not to." Zelena smirked warmly.
Mal and Evie laughed before they left the woman's house to go and meet up with everyone else at their school for Jane's birthday party and the 'Welcome to Emerald Acres' party with the other students.
"This must feel pretty huge for Jane," Evie commented as she brushed Mal's hair to make her look happy and pretty for the big party. "Not only are we celebrating her birthday, but a whole other school is too."
"It'll be interesting, that's for sure," Mal nodded. "At least there's not a lot to do today besides this party and getting settled."
"Yeah... We need some time to get settled in first," Evie replied as she hugged Mal's shoulders before finishing up. "And you look wonderful by the way."
"Hmm... You're only saying that because you styled me," Mal smirked playfully. "But yes, I do... Edna's so lucky to have someone like you on her side."
"Thanks, Mal~" Evie beamed. "Let's go see Aunt Zelena."
"All right then." Mal nodded.
And with that said and done, Mal and Evie soon came to go and see Zelena who was about to go and order a pizza.
"Hey, girls! Is pepperoni pizza okay if you're still hungry after the party?!" Zelena called out from her living room.
"It's fine, Aunt Zelena!" Evie called back as she and Mal were on their way over. "We're getting ready to head down to the party, okay?"
"Okay, dears, you have fun," Zelena nodded before looking at the girls. "Oh... You two look amazing." she then beamed at the sight of the two teenage girls.
"Thanks, Aunt Zelena," Evie smiled. "I work for Ms. Edna Mode, you know."
"So I've heard, Sweet Pea," Zelena smiled back warmly. "That's very exciting for you. Hmm... Would you like a lift over to your party then?"
"Sure, if you don't mind," Mal replied. "We'll try not to be out too late. Tomorrow's the start of something new after all."
"Indeed, it is," Zelena said as she went to take them over to the car. "Oh, Evie, we have so much catching up to do. Do you like anyone in school? Do you have a boyfriend? Give me the hot gossip... I wanna be the cool aunt."
"You already are, Aunt Zelena," Evie chuckled. "I promise that we'll catch up whenever we can."
"Oh, all right..." Zelena giggled. "I guess I'm just so excited to see you again after such a long time and it's great to have you here with us, Mal."
"Thanks. Glad to be here." Mal agreed.
Zelena beamed as she continued to drive the girls off to the school to meet up with everyone else, unknown of what was going to happen very soon. Soon, the girls made it over and came to join the rest of the party, seeing their fellow classmates and saw the students from Emerald Acres as it looked like everyone was divided among their own schools so far, mingling and some shy students were against the wall in the corner, looking at their phones.
Chad laughed as he brought out a selfie stick before seeing Jane as she was distracted among the crowd. "Oh. Looks like Carlos forgot about your birthday, huh?" he then asked her, a bit carelessly.
"Well, maybe not, maybe he just took the wrong trail or something," Jane covered up for her boyfriend, trusting him to make it over in time. "Or you know what? They probably don't celebrate birthdays where he comes from, maybe it's like a cultural thing."
"Oh, yeah," Chad nodded before he smirked at her. "Or maybe he just forgot. You never know." he then added with a chuckle.
Jane narrowed her eyes at him.
Wendy firmly pouted. "Excuse me a second, Felix." she then told the boy who came as her date for tonight.
Felix nodded at her, letting her go.
"Hey, Chad, look!" Wendy piped up as she rushed over and pointed in a random corner. "There's people taking selfies."
"Selfies! Guys, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Wait for me! Wait for me!" Chad called out as he ran in that direction with his selfie stick, ditching the two girls instantly.
"Thanks..." Jane sighed.
"It's okay, Janey..." Wendy coaxed. "Happy Birthday. I'm sure that Carlos wouldn't be late on purpose."
"...You're probably right," Jane nodded bashfully. "I just can't believe I'm having this party... I hope that the Emerald Acres kids don't try anything funny and try to ruin it."
"I'm sure that they won't," Wendy said with a small smile before looking at the other students, though one girl seemed more wicked compared to the others. "...Most of them anyway. After all, we're all friendy rivals here, right? It's better than the James Barrie school with that rotten Peter boy."
"I never liked him," Jane firmly pouted and shook her head. "At least we won't have to worry about him here."
"Definitely," Wendy smiled. "Just try to enjoy the party and get ready for the fun we're going to have starting tomorrow."
"Yeah. It'll definitely be a brand new adventure." Jane smiled back before hugging her best friend.
Wendy beamed as she hugged Jane right back, gently patting the other girl on the back.
"Hey." Carlos suddenly said as he came over.
Wendy blinked before she looked over and smiled brightly. She then turned Jane around who then gasped in shock and she stepped backward, going back over to Felix so that the two would have some privacy.
"Oh, my gosh, I was so worried./You didn't show up," Carlos and Jane then started to talk over each other once they saw each other. "I didn't forget your party./I got scared that maybe you got lost. I'm so glad you're all right." the two then smiled at each other before hugging each other instantly.
"Happy Birthday." Carlos told Jane warmly.
"Oh... Thank you." Jane beamed.
"Hey, uh... I know I'm a little late, but..." Carlos then said as he got out of the hug before reaching into his pocket to take out a small wrapped box. "Again... Happy Birthday. I made it with my 3D printer."
Jane smiled before she opened up the box and brought out a necklace that said "JARLOS" on it.
"That's our names put together." Carlos explained through blushing.
"No. I get it, yeah." Jane reassured warmly.
"Yeah, because, you know, we're together," Carlos continued to explain, looking bashful. "You and me were like a couple."
"Right. 'Cuz Jane and Carlos make Jarlos." Jane reassured him that she got the iea.
"Yes. Yeah. I could've gone with Cane, um, but I went with Jarlos," Carlos continued to stammer rather awkwardly as Jay seemed to roll his eyes and shake his head. "Unless you prefer Cane."
"Oh, no. No, I love it." Jane promised him.
"You prefer Cane? Yes, you do," Carlos said, deciding to take the necklace to go and fix it, heading for the doors of the gym they were in. "It's fine. You know what? I can remake it. It's cool. It's fine."
"No, Carlos. It's perfect." Jane promised with a warm smile before she soon turned around and moved her hair out of the way to expose her bare neck at him so that he could hook it on just for her.
Carlos let out a small gasp and soon came over behind Jane and went to wrap the necklace around her while Wendy and Felix smiled fondly at the two of them.
"You know, Carlos, of all the birthdays I've ever had, this might be my favorite." Jane smiled warmly.
"I think it's my favorite too," Carlos smiled back before blushing. "Even though it's your birthday and not mine."
"Oh, Carlos..." Jane sighed and shook her head before smiling and kissing him right away.
Carlos then beamed before he looked over at the birthday cake in concern before he let go of his girlfriend and suddenly looked irked. "Okay! Who got into Jane's cake?" he then demanded.
The other students murmured together and looked over at Jane's birthday cake which seemed to have a piece taken out of it. Rather crudely if I might add, like someone just grabbed a piece out of it by hand. Everyone had to wonder about this and why, though under punch bowl the table, Peter was shown to have grabbed the cake and was sitting with Audrey under the table, both smirking with each other as Audrey lifted up the tablecloth to look out at the scattered students.
"So, who should we hit?" Peter asked Audrey as he licked some frosting off from his hand as he quite liked cake a lot.
"Hmm..." Audrey paused before smirking. "Maybe one of mine so it looks like they can't trust the Fighting Monkey rejects?"
"Ooh... Deception and betrayal from your school's friendly rivals... I like it~..." Peter grinned before he snuck out a bit while the other students were distracted and he soon chucked the cake slither with all his might.
The cake went flying and soon suddenly hit Jane, making her gasp and yelp.
"What the?!" Carlos gasped and looked around. "Who threw that?"
Mal looked around before firmly frowning at Wilhelmina who seemed to be laughing. "Oh! You think that's funny? Throwing cake at one of my friends?" she then glared.
"What're you talking about? I didn't throw nuthin'!" Wilhelmina glared back in defense.
"That's a redundant statement, so you did do something!" Doug glared, showing his geeky side.
"What?! Why, I oughta..." Wilhelmina glared back before she grabbed some of the cake and tossed it right at him, only for him to duck and it then hit the back of Jay's head.
"Hey! Cut it out!" Jay snapped.
Soon, a great big food fight broke out in the gym, concerning the adults instantly. The students all blamed each other over whose fault it probably was and what probably got it started. Headmistress Fairgood looked and felt mortified as did Principal Walsh and Vice-Principal Glinda. This was the last thing they wanted, especially with competitions that were supposed to start tomorrow and not in such a violent and aggressive way.
"Why did this happen?!" Evie cried out. "Who could've done this?!"
"I wonder..." Mal murmured thoughtfully to herself during the chaos.
Then suddenly, two familiar and unwanted faces were shown.
"Hey... What are they doing here?" A girl muttered once she noticed Audrey and Peter.
Jane looked over in concern once she, Wendy, Felix, and Carlos saw the big fuss as someone came to their party. The Emerald Acres students seemed to look confused while the Auradon Heights students looked terrified.
"Did anybody save us any guacamole? No?" Audrey asked as she walked around the party that went on without her. "It's like someone forgot to invite us. Mal... You're probably used to this?" she then smirked as she faced the girl. "Crashing a party and guessed that somebody lost your invitation."
"Audrey...?" Mal blinked. "Everyone's looking for you back home."
"Home? Whose home? Your home? Definitely not," Audrey smirked. "MY home... Does that make you sad? Does it just ruin everything?" she then asked the other students who were her mindless minions and pretty much kissed the ground she walked on back when she was dating Ben. "Mindless little drones. How could you forget what she did to us? How could you forget that I was supposed to be your Queen?!"
"Time out, okay, okay. Time out. First off, great to see you, Audrey, I really missed you this summer, oh, is this your new friend? He seems nice." Chad smiled nervously and innocently and rushed over as he looked at Peter.
Peter just narrowed his eyes, nearly looking demonic and even snarled.
"Ah!" Chad let out a high-pitched yelp before he came back over beside Audrey's side. "But, hey, before you do whatever you're gonna do, I was wondering if maybe you wanted a... A loyal boyfriend by your side?" he then asked the girl. "Another partner-in-crime? Sidekick? Or maybe just a lackey to do both of your bidding, um, change tires. Or smoothie runs?" he then added. "Please?" he then pleaded, crossing his fingers.
Audrey and Peter looked over at Chad before they seemed to smirk at each other.
"He could be useful, my Queen of Mean," Peter suggested with a demented smirk after looking over Chad. "Besides... We could always use a little entertainment~"
Audrey smirked back as she soon seemed to agree. "You can be useful." she then decided after Chad's begging and pleading.
"Yeah?" Chad smiled.
"Fine..." Audrey then said. "Stay close to us and we'll have some revenge... Especially for what I have planned for this school tomorrow at the start of The Summer School Games."
"You can't get away with this, Audrey," Mal glared at her rival. "You're supposed to be in summer school with Mr. Hyde."
"Ask me if I care, Mal, because you sure don't." Audrey smirked.
"You had your chance to get away from Audrey, but now you're sinking lower into the deathly quicksand that is her wrath," Peter glared as he got in Mal's face. "And she's working with Peter Banning... And I'll let you in on a big secret..." she then leaned in to whisper right into Mal's ear. "Peter Banning never fails."
Mal squirmed out of severe discomfort and pushed him away as he smirked and cackled at her.
"Come along, my Queen," Peter told Audrey. "You need your beauty rest for tomorrow."
Audrey nodded before beaming at him. "Come, Chad. You can help us if you're going to be useful to us." she then demanded.
"Coming, Audrey!" Chad nodded as he rushed after Peter and Audrey.
Mal watched Chad and rolled her eyes before she felt a bit concerned and anxious. What exactly did Audrey mean by that and why was she doing this? And with that shitweasel, Peter Banning? Somehow, they were able to get away from the adults' gaze and soon, the food fight stopped and soon, both schools began to look like they were starting to hate each other all because of Peter and Audrey.
"Um... Yes... I'd like to thank Headmistress Fairgood for this very special... Erm... Birthday/Welcome Party, though I'd like to remind you all that you're not high school freshmen and need to stop acting like it," Principal Walsh spoke nervously as he wiped his face from the cake smudge that splatted him during the student chaos. "I just want to wish you all luck for tomorrow's Games and please, let's try to keep it mature and professional."
The students just kept their hateful gazes on each other as this now looked like the beginning of the end, all because of Peter and Audrey.
Mal and Evie soon made it back over to Zelena's after some light cleaning up.
"Man... Audrey's working with that shitweasel in this school?" Mal complained. "Some people won't let things go."
"Don't let her get to you, Mal," Evie comforted. "Remember, you've got me and your real friends in the space between."
"Thanks, Evie," Mal said with a small nod. "I just can't imagine how this could get any worse."
"Let's try not to think about that," Evie said before she went to open the door and walked through it since she saw her aunt's car in the driveway. "Aunt Zelena! We're home!" she then called out.
Laughter soon filled the air as Zelena was the one laughing with a man who had joined her in the house.
"...What is this? A Disney Channel sitcom?" Mal deadpanned from the random laughter.
"Very funny..." Evie smirked before they went to follow the laughter and soon came into the living room to see her maternal aunt. "Aunt Zelena?"
"Oh, girls. Welcome back," Zelena smiled. "Did you have a nice party?"
"It's a little complicated..." Evie murmured.
"Oh... I see..." Zelena said before she came over to them and brought the girls over to the couch, causing Mal to look wide-eyed. "I want you both to meet someone very special. This is my boyfriend... Hades."
The man was soon shown with a small smile, carrying a baby girl on his lap who wore pink pajamas and seemed to have matching scarlet hair like her mother. "Hello there, girls... It's nice to meet you," he then greeted. "I have a surprise of my own for you... A brand new baby cousin."
"Oh... She's so tiny..." Evie cooed and smiled while Mal just looked wide-eyed and shocked at the sight of the man.
"Would you like to hold her?" Hades offered to Evie.
"Sure, uh, Uncle Hades... I'd like that very much." Evie smiled, looking ready to do so.
Mal soon suddenly took off running over to the guest room that she and Evie were offered.
"Mal?!" Evie asked in concern.
The man then suddenly looked wide-eyed himself at the mention of Mal's name.
"What on Earth got into her?" Zelena asked in concern.
"I don't know..." Evie frowned softly. "I better go check on her."
"Yes, please do," Zelena nodded. "I just hope she doesn't hate babies or something like that."
Evie then went to go after Mal and tried to open the door, but it seemed to be barricaded shut. "...Mal, are you sitting right in front of the door?" she then asked as she struggled to get in. "Kinda hard to come in through this door."
Mal didn't seem to answer right away.
"Mal... Come on... Open the door, Mal!" Evie complained as she tried again.
Mal didn't answer again as Evie knocked on the door. She then heaved a sharp sigh before she soon stood up and went to open the door before both of the girls yelped and they suddenly fell onto the floor together.
"Mal... What the heck?" Evie complained. "Do you hate babies or something?"
"No, it's not that..." Mal sighed.
"Are you hating on Hades when you don't even know him yet?" Evie then asked.
"No, it's not that either..." Mal said. "...But-"
"Aha! So you do hate Hades!" Evie glared and crossed her arms. "...Why? You don't even know him."
"Evie, it's not like that! Will you please just listen to me?!" Mal cried out.
Evie looked stunned, but she settled down a little. "Okay," she then said. "I'm sorry, Mal... That was just kind of a crappy thing to do to a stranger... No offense. What's the problem then?" she then asked. "What do you not like about Hades?"
"It's not that I don't like Hades or even hate the baby," Mal heaved a sharp sigh as she explained to her friend what was on her mind from meeting the new man of the house. "Hades is my father." she then revealed.