Chapter Twenty-Seven
Part of Who I Am

"Sister! What sister?" Mal asked, feeling like she'd just been slapped across the face at this newest revelation, wondering when all the surprises in her life were going to stop rearing their crazy, thrice-cursed heads. She stumbled after her father as he pulled her into the side alley just behind her, staggering into the shadows.

"After your mother and I separated for good," Hades began, a touch sheepish though his roguish grin slid into place even if it did look a little forced. "Well, you know, pretty girl meets a handsome lad, they kiss and then…"

She scrunched her face up in disgust. "Ugh. Stop right there before you make me gag."

Hades grinned, his eyes bright with amusement as he watched his eldest daughter squirm at the thought of her father locking lips with anyone. It was wiped away the next moment, replaced by a much more serious, intense look that had her hackles rising. "Mal, listen to me, this is important," he implored. "She needs your help. She has no control."

Mal glared at her father. "Noticed that, yeah."

"We're a passionate lot –"

Mal shuddered. "Gross, stop."

"– and you say she's lost everything," Hades continued as if she hadn't spoken. "Her Human-ish family, her former life, her love – incidentally, I need to meet this boy, see if he's good enough for my daughter. And this," and here he shuddered, "prince of yours, too."

"Dad!"

"Son of the King of Beasts," Hades muttered with a shake of his head. "How in the underworld you'd go and choose that boy is beyond me. Hey, does King Beasty still scratch behind his ear like he's got fleas?" He grinned unrepentantly at Mal's glare.

"Dad," she bit out between clenched teeth.

"Right, we'll deal with that one later. We were talking about your sister's boyfriend. Is he good enough for your litter sister?"

Mal's head continued to spin at the casual usage of the term "your sister" Hades kept throwing around, as if Mal's entire world hadn't just been upended all over again. "He…was," she struggled, trying to wrap her mind around it all. "But the…explosion, and his memories and her memories and…" She shrugged a little helplessly, more than a little overwhelmed.

Hades frowned, genuine empathy on his face. "Too young," he muttered, his eyes fixating on something Mal couldn't reach, something so starkly painful and personal that she wanted to shy away. "Too many, too young."

"Dad," she prompted. "Your warning?"

"Right." Hades shook off his past, forcing himself back to the present and the matter at hand. He could wallow in his memories later. "It's too much all at once for most to handle, let alone a sixteen-year-old girl raised in the Stepford Wives' suburbia –"

"The what?"

Hades waved her question aside, his eyes focused and his tone intent. "She's lost herself, Mal." He placed a large hand on her shoulder and she bristled at the intimate contact, a quiet part of her aching for the father she didn't really know and the other, larger part screaming inside for all the lost time and years, for all that he was placing on her shoulders now.

"Help her find it again," he continued, noting the internal struggle in her eyes but hanging on, daring to let himself hope she wouldn't shrug him off or away. "Before it's too late and we lose her, too. This magical out-pouring? It'll burn her up. She's strong – powerful, just like you." His gaze held true and Mal felt a streak of something warm trace through her at the compliment. Her mother had been the one parent to stick around, who had raised her on her own, but she'd never been a complimentary woman…or a warm one for that matter.

"You have the control, the knowledge, the love of the family you brought together…and mine." He tacked on the last bit with just a trace of hesitancy, having never voiced any such feelings aloud before and Mal felt a shock go through her system. She looked at her father with wide eyes, reeling. Some tiny, childlike part of her heart desperate to reach out and latch onto her father's words but just as terrified that it'd be ripped away or betray her in some way.

Hades gave her shoulder a slight squeeze, acknowledging the pain in her eyes, the look of a Lost Girl who'd been left to grow up alone, too fast, and how he could have changed that but hadn't. Hadn't had the strength or the nerve, had convinced himself he was giving her a gift – that his inattention would make her stronger. That he had given her everything by giving her nothing.

But he knew only too painfully now that he'd instead denied them both something very vital indeed.

"Let her know she has it, too, Mal," he asked, his voice quiet, almost soft in that semi-darkness and Mal watched her father with a touch of wonder and hesitancy, even now. "Save her before we lose her forever."

Silence filled in the space between them after his little speech, Mal's head swimming as she fought to take it all in, to acknowledge the sincerity in her father's words, even in all the things he wasn't saying. And he gave her that time, that space, not pressing her further as she wrestled with it, but kept his hand on her shoulder in a quiet gesture of support and understanding.

Finally, Mal spoke. "She's a cheerleader, you know."

Hades smirked, though he felt tension leak out of him at her acknowledgement. "Yeah, well, no family's perfect." He opened his mouth to speak, paused, and closed it again, studying his eldest. His uncharacteristic hesitancy prompted her to lift an eyebrow at him in response. Quietly, he asked, "What's she like?"

Mal cringed. "Crazy. Broken."

Hades flinched and Mal stared. "No, I mean – before."

"Oh." Mal blinked, as unused to this version of her father as the concept of having a sibling.

"Sweet," she relented, her voice soft. "But strong. Like she's got sunshine in her soul, but she won't hesitate to punch you in the face if you try to hurt someone she cares about." She paused, a smile pulling at her lips in remembrance. "She's got a mean left-hook."

Hades' face lit up in a proud smile. "And the boy?"

Mal's smile dimmed. "He's so essentially…good." She shook her head as if she still couldn't believe it of the insistently positive Zombie. "And he'd do anything for his friends, anything for her. They were good together."

"I wish I'd seen it." Hades' voice was hushed in the shadowed alleyway.

"Yeah, me too." She studied the ground, rolling it all over in her mind, still dizzy with it all but one thought kept pushing through. "I'll do what I can. I don't know what," she bit her lip, "or if it'll even be enough, but I'll try…something." She met her father's eyes, and he discovered something fierce in them that gave him pause. "And I'll keep trying."

To her surprise, Hades smiled down at her and for once it wasn't beguiling or smirking or sneering. And she blinked hard even as she tried to understand it. "I know, Mal," Hades assured her. "If anyone can do it, it's you." There was a pause before Mal gave him a small, tentative half-smile back.

There was an awkward moment that passed between them, like they wanted to do something insane like hug, but as neither was sure how to initiate that with the other the moment passed and they shifted on their feet instead, both looking like they regretted it.

"I've gotta go," Mal said to try and break the weird tension in the air. "I have to – tonight is Cotillion and I – Evie's coming over to help me get ready, and things with Ben are…I've got to go."

Hades nodded in acknowledgement and Mal turned away from her father, moving toward the end of the alley and its muted but brighter light. Something made her pause right before she stepped out of the shadows to glance back at Hades, embraced by the darkness around him, but for once it didn't feel like the darkness enhanced him, but like he sought shelter in it, had resigned himself to it after so long cast upon it.

"Hey, Dad?" She caught his questioning gaze as he looked up at his daughter's voice pulling him from wherever his mind and memories had taken him. "Do you regret it?"

"Regret what, Mal?" His voice was subdued and she was surprised to find that it unnerved her.

"Any of it?" She asked, waiting as the minutes of silence between them seemed to pass into eternity. With a quiet huff of air she turned on her heel and marched out of the alley, hands fisted at her sides. Just as she crossed into the light she heard his reply in a voice so quiet she wasn't sure she was supposed to have heard it.

"…more than you know."

When she glanced back over her shoulder she realized he'd already disappeared. For someone without his powers, he was still no one to trifle with. And, she acknowledged, more human than anyone had possibly ever given him credit for. Including himself.

Mal had already had cause to wish things with her mother had turned out differently, that she and Maleficent could have had a relationship more akin to that of Ben and Belle, with support and compassion and, yes, love. And for the first time Mal found herself wishing that the same could have been true with her father.

She allowed herself to imagine as she made her way back to her apartment. What would her life have been like had her parents not chosen evil to fill the emptiness and hurt in their souls, but had chosen hope and love instead? Would they have been happy? Would the three of them be a family like Ben, Adam and Belle? Or would her parents have still divorced in the end?

Mal discovered that she would not have been…pleased, perhaps, to have divorced parents even then, but then she'd still have Addison, who wouldn't exist otherwise. And what would that have been like? Growing up with a younger sister to pal around with? A sibling who followed you around night and day, wanting to go everywhere with you, wanting to wear the same clothes as you, hang out with you and your friends at the Enchanted Lake all the time?

It was startling to realize that it wasn't such a horrifying thought, and in fact she felt her heart squeeze tight at how this had never nor would ever come to pass. Maleficent and Hades had made their choices. And had paid the consequences for them.

But Mal could choose differently. Had in fact chosen differently already. Had chosen love and all the hardship and beauty it entailed. Had chosen her new life, her friends, and…Ben.

Mal heaved a sigh as she picked up a decent sized rock and threw it at a dented and battered sign with a clank before the gate rose at her stairwell and made her way up to her apartment.

She loved Ben. Of course she did. She'd never stopped. Love had never been the question. She had been the question in their relationship. One she hadn't known how to answer.

She bit her lip as she let herself into her apartment. She didn't want to be like her parents, turning away from good and its challenges, from love and its hardships to become the bitter, lonely people they'd become. But the question now was, was she too late? Or could she somehow salvage her relationship with Ben, be unafraid? Could she save Addison from whatever deep, dark rabbit hole the girl had traversed down?

Mal rested her forehead against the doorframe of her small bathroom. "Skies," she muttered. "How do I tell them?"

Because there was one thing she knew for sure: she couldn't do this alone. She wouldn't make the mistakes of her parents; she would let her friends and family in. But…where to even begin?

"Ma-al!" Evie sing-songed as she waltzed through Mal's door, snatching up the train of her dark blue satin and black beaded dress before it could snag on the splintered frame. With a sigh she snatched up her trailing half-cape to drape it over her red leather, elbow-length fingerless gloves so that it wouldn't be covered in dust. It was the maid's year off at Mal's place, which normally didn't bother Evie much as her mother's damp, cobwebby crumbling castle wasn't much better, but she'd already survived the trip across town in this outfit in perfect condition and had every intention of arriving at Cotillion the same.

"Back here," Mal called from her room where she sat in a ratty, plum colored robe, combing out her damp hair. Mal found a smile for her friend as Evie made her grand entrance, twirling on the spot to show off her gown. "You look fantastic, Evie."

"Thanks," Evie glowed. "Dizzy made my accessories." She all but shimmered with pride. "I can't wait for this school year to be over so that they can open up the schools to everyone. Dizzy is going to make a name for herself beyond the barrier."

"No doubt," Mal agreed as Evie bustled over with a dress garment bag, settling the hanger onto a slightly rusted hook on the wall.

"You're going to love your dress, M. It's," she brought her fingers close to her ruby-red lips and kissed the air above them, "perfection." She set a different, smaller bag onto Mal's bedspread and unzipped it, rifling through its contents and setting some onto the comforter. "We'll keep your hair simple – curls, to frame your face, minimal makeup, of course, and Dizzy designed the most adorable little crown for you to wear –"

"E," Mal reached out and snagged her friend's hand with fingers that trembled just the slightest bit, stilling her friend's bubbling energy. "I…there's something I need to tell you. You and Jay and Carlos." She shifted, uncomfortable and anxious.

"You can tell me anything," Evie reassured her, her voice low and comforting. When Mal shook her head, Evie's brows pulled together in a slight frown.

"All at once," she continued with a hard swallow. "I need to tell you all at the same time…I don't know how to tell it more than once."

"Okay," Evie agreed. "I'll call the boys. You slip into the dress and I'll get your hair started as we wait for them."

"Okay," Mal nodded, a touch sheepish. A tiny part of her resented that she was, but the rest of her was overwhelmingly grateful that her best friend was so calm and steady when Mal felt like nothing would ever be solid beneath her feet again.

While Evie made the calls Mal slid into the dark purple gown with its black lace and beading and green pipping that Evie had made for her for "a special day." Mal couldn't begin to articulate how relieved she was to not be wearing the yellow, frothy gown Evie had originally sketched up. Evie seemed to have instinctively realized that Mal would need the comfort of her familiar signature colors and she couldn't even begin to know how right she was yet.

Mal was just slipping on the matching purple gloves Evie had prepared, her hair fantastically curled when the boys knocked on her door. With her natural grace Evie all but danced across the room in her heels, the train of her dark blue half-cape skimming across the floor in her wake.

"What's going on?" Jay asked in lieu of greeting as he moved through Mal's entryway, tugging at his more formal clothing. Mal had an instant to realize he'd worn his hair up in a topknot for the occasion in an attempt to tame his hair when Carlos's voice echoed from behind him.

"Everything alright? Is this Girl Talk? I have to meet Jane at the dock in twenty minutes." There was an excited flush to his cheeks that Mal envied as he struck a dashing figure in his black and white leather suit jacket.

"Mal has something she wants to share with us," was all Evie said in response before waving them down the hall to where Mal sat nervously perched on one of her stools trying not to tug too hard on the curls Evie had created in her hair.

"So…this is Girl Talk?" Jay asked, shoving his gloved hands into his pockets.

"It's…" Mal gave a shaky laugh that had all their eyes darting to her in concern. "I don't even know how to– I ran into Hades," she told them, the bluntness of her delivery startling them all. "After we parted ways to get ready for tonight. He found me on the street and," she gave another unsteady laugh, "he found a way to turn the world upside down."

"What do you mean?" Jay asked.

His jaw dropped open in time with Carlos's as Mal related the story Mal's father had told her. She told them as quickly and succinctly as possible, trying to rip the bandage off even while still trying to wrap her own head around it.

There was a long, stretched-out moment of flummoxed quiet as everyone tried to absorb this new information.

"Dalmatians," Carlos cursed quietly under his breath. "I don't envy the crazy your life has turned into."

Mal gave a watery, shaky laugh in response. "It's almost enough to rival your mother's booby-trapped fur closet."

Carlos shook his head. "No, I think this surpasses it by leaps and bounds. A sister." He and Jay exchanged stunned looks, but it was Mal who noticed that Evie had gone especially quiet.

"E?" She ventured, moving closer to the gentle girl. Evie gave her a tremulous smile in return, just as dazed but astonishingly conflicted and confused at feeling so. "Hey," Mal took her hand and squeezed it tight. "I might have a half-sister by blood, but you were my sister first."

Evie gave her a sweet, misty smile in return before sliding her arms around Mal and hugging her close. "I suppose that means we've both gained a little sister today." Mal laughed, incredulous, and the two swayed a bit in the hug, hanging onto something solid in a world that kept drastically changing its scenery.

"We're here for you, Mal," Jay reassured her when Evie pulled back. He placed a warm palm on her shoulder as Carlos nodded his agreement. "No matter what happens tonight, we're with you."

Mal felt a flush of warmth thread through her veins that had nothing to do with the magic she was born with and everything to do with the love her friends had given her. She wasn't alone. And it felt wonderful.

It felt like everything.

Ben sat back in his chair with a sigh. He'd arrived back from Uma's pirate ship a mess in more ways than one. Fortunately, a shower had fixed up one of those, and now that he'd scrubbed the dust and sea salt remnants out of his hair, washed and medicated the rope burns at his wrists, and shoved his dirty and torn clothing to the bottom of his clothes hamper it was time to sort out the mess in his head.

What was he going to do? Tonight was his King-in-Waiting ceremony and celebration and things with Mal were still…complicated. Not that he'd ever expected a relationship with Mal to be an easy one. He felt a small smile pull at the corner of his mouth. No, what would have been the fun in that?

If he was being perfectly honest, he rather liked that his relationship with Mal was never predictable. That none of it was what was "expected" or fairytale perfect.

He loved Mal for exactly who she was, and wouldn't want to change a thing – from her currently pink-violet hair to her vivid purple outfits to her dragon accessories to the tips of her scuffed-up leather boots. Mal put on a tough front and her tongue could cut anyone down to size, even a king, but he also knew she was as fiercely loyal and loving as they came.

"If only she wasn't quite so…stubborn," he muttered to himself with another sigh, swiping his hand across his face in exasperation. He pulled his hand away from his face to stare moodily at the royal ring still gracing his finger after Mal had returned it.

Would she ever take it back? Would she ever take him back?

Gaze wandering to the steaming pot of tea Mrs. Potts had kindly left sitting on his table with a small dish of sweets Ben pushed himself upright and pulled his porcelain tea cup closer. Staring down at his cup like it had all the answers he sought he began to pour himself a cup of hot, relaxing rose tea. After a few seconds he frowned at the lack of liquid in his cup, glancing at the pot to see if something had clogged the spout when his eyes widened to see the tea traveling up toward the ceiling against gravity.

"What?" He exclaimed, turning swiftly at the sound of a giggle behind him. He spun to see Addison sitting in the window seat, her white hair outlined in gold by the late afternoon sun filtering in through the gauzy curtains as she lazily flicked her wrist to play with the water, her eyes glowing.

Her name slipped off his lips but she continued to ignore him, making the tea chase itself in a circle or dance in complicated patterns in the air. Her expression was almost childlike in its innocence and rapture, but there was something ragged and frayed at the edges, like she had invisible cracks everywhere and one last tap would shatter the rest into pieces no one could put back together again.

Addison's eyes flickered to something beyond Ben's shoulder at the same time he heard a soft sound. Turning on his heel he came face to face with dark eyes and a taunting grin.

"What's my name?" she purred before a hand clamped itself across his mouth from behind and a sharp, gleaming hook rested its cold surface against his neck.

"Now, now," Harry tutted. "No need to alert the cavalry. We're just here for…a bit of fun." He shoved Ben back down into his chair as Uma pulled up the chain of her necklace from beneath her netted top to reveal the shiny gold shell attached to it. Uma grinned as the shell began to glow bright and Ben realized too late that the bands around Harry and Uma's wrists were both missing.

"Now," she grinned. "Let's see what this baby can do."