Chapter 8:
The tension throughout Auradon Prep was palpable the next day, there weren't too many students left, instead slowly filling up with visiting dignitaries and magical folk, but it was as though everyone knew instinctually that something big was about to happen. Most hadn't been privy to the exact details of what was happening with Fairy Godmother and Jane this afternoon but the few that were felt like they were sitting on pins and needles.
Ben, Mal, Evie, Jay, Carlos, and Jane sat at the edge of a large clearing in the woods near Fairy Godmother and Jane's cottage, as several fairies prepared the area for the ceremony. The friends had been told that nobody except Fairy Ida, Jane, and her mother would be allowed in the clearing during the ceremony, so they were doing their best to calm Jane down beforehand.
"The ceremony is pretty simple Jane, just remember to repeat the spell's words after your mother and try to relax," Mal said, watching as the girl in question paced back and forth nervously biting her nails.
"I know, my mom's told me a dozen times and we practiced this morning but what if something goes wrong?" Jane said.
"Nothing is going to go wrong, but you have to stay calm and focused. If you panic you won't have control of your magic," Mal replied, feeling as though she'd repeated the same thing several times now.
The group exchanged glances as Jane just nodded and continued pacing restlessly. They didn't know what else they could say to help her, she didn't do well under pressure and it was clear their reassurances weren't helping. When Fairy Godmother walked into the clearing an hour before the ceremony was to start, the group all stood up to greet her.
"I'm so happy to see you all here to support Jane, this is quite an important step in her life and you all are such good friends to her," Fairy Godmother beamed, making Jane blush.
"Mother are you sure they can't stay?" Jane asked.
"Oh sweetheart, if it were possible of course I'd say yes, but there can't be any distractions," Fairy Godmother replied, patting Jane gently on the cheek.
Jane turned to the others, giving Carlos a sad smile before taking his hand. "I'll call you after?"
Carlos gave Jane's hand a squeeze. "Yeah absolutely, we'll all be waiting." He leaned in and quickly gave her a kiss on the cheek, very aware of all the eyes on them.
Jane turned pink to the roots of her hair and turned to follow her mother across the clearing.
A hand settled on his shoulder and Carlos looked over at his friend's faces. "You think she'll really be okay?"
Mal bit her lip, "Magic can be tricky, I was trained since birth by my mother and I'm nowhere near as strong as her. It all depends on how badly you want it. Jane has to be confident that she can handle it, and it's going to be a lot. Instead of gaining power little by little she's going to get slammed by all of it at once."
"Jane knows what's at stake, she won't fail," Evie added, noticing how pale Carlos had gone beneath his freckles.
"Whatever happens Fairy Godmother and Fairy Ida are there to help, Jane's stronger than she looks; so we need to have faith in her," Ben said, as they all piled into his waiting limo.
The silence was thick in the car as they headed back to Auradon Prep, Mal and Ben sat beside each other holding hands and exchanging pointed looks, Evie tried to stay distracted by her social media account updates on her cell phone, while Carlos kept watching the minutes slowly tick by on his own cell phone screen, resting his head on Jay's shoulder. A sudden text message chime made everyone jump and Carlos almost dropped his phone.
"It's from Jane," Carlos said, quickly opening the message app.
Jane Can't transfer mom's magic, need to neutralize the magic wand. Help!
"Crap, it was too much for her to handle," Mal muttered after Carlos read the text aloud.
"Driver, turn us around and get us back to Fairy Godmother's immediately!" Ben shouted.
"Did you figure out a way to neutralize the artifacts yet? Maybe we can do the same thing with the wand," Carlos asked, looking at the girls.
Evie shook her head, "None of the potions were strong enough for that much magic, we'd need to brew something the size of a lake."
Mal and Ben suddenly looked at each other. "The Enchanted Lake!"
"Would that work?" Mal asked.
"I'm not sure, it purifies all magic spells and curses, which is why your love potion stopped working. We can ask Fairy Ida if she thinks it'll have any effect on magical items," Ben replied.
As the group raced back into the clearing it was to find a tearful Jane sitting on a rock while Fairy Godmother, Fairy Ida, and several other fairies stood huddled together speaking in hushed tones. Carlos quickly knelt beside Jane and held her as she collapsed into his arms.
"We didn't even get to try, as soon as Fairy Ida touched mother's wand she said there was no way I could handle all of the magic in it and all of the magic that needed to be passed into me. She said once mother's magic is inside me it will change to become part of me and any excess will need an empty vessel to fill and it won't be compatible with the magic in the wand," Jane sobbed brokenly.
"Which is certainly not Jane's fault, everyone's magic is different; even between mothers and daughters. If there wasn't so much magical energy needing to be transferred we could get away without using a wand, but your mother is the most powerful Fairy Godmother in all the realm and we can't just release the excess without somewhere for it to go," Fairy Ida said, stepping up and smiling gently down at Jane. "It would be like trying to fill a mayonnaise jar with jelly. The jar wouldn't be able to hold it without overflowing and it would make both taste terrible."
The group cringed at the woman's description but it got a smile out of Jane, and she wiped her eyes.
"Ma'am, do you think if we put the wand in the Enchanted Lake it would help?" Ben asked.
Fairy Ida looked thoughtful for a moment. "Although strong, the Enchanted Lake's powers deal with purifying evil or malicious magic, and I don't detect any of that in the wand. No, rather we need a void lake, a lake or any other large body of water that will draw out the magical energy and turn it into a neutral power. This way even if a person were to not use it, the power could be absorbed into anything; even the Earth itself."
"I've never heard of a void lake or anything like that," Ben said.
"There were several around the world decades ago, but I believe some were destroyed or contaminated. I think the dwarves used to protect an underground spring somewhere near the mountains, but I'm not sure if there are any dwarves left in the area," Fairy Ida added.
"Evie, do you think Doug would know?" Mal asked hopefully.
"I can certainly ask him," she replied, hitting his number on her speed dial list.
A few minutes later Evie hit the end call button. "It's been years since his dad or uncles have been in their mines and he's never heard of any springs but he said he'd ask."
Jane gave a grateful smile, "Thanks, Evie."
"Since it looks as though this won't be solved immediately and we'll have to postpone the ceremony, then I believe it would be worthwhile for Jane to get some magic lessons in the meantime. Usually, we would wait until you start your formal training at the Fairy Court but by your age, most children are much further along, so we'll start with the basics now. Mal, would you be so kind as to work with Jane as I teach her? I know your mother had taught you all this already but I find having a friend to help can speed things along," Fairy Ida said, causing Mal to pause in surprise until Ben nudged her.
"Yes, of course, I'll help, I don't really know any Fairy Godmother spells though, I only practiced the spells out of my mother's book," Mal replied hastily.
Fairy Ida smiled, not phased by Mal's admission in the least. "Not to worry, a spell is a spell good or evil. The point of this training is to get Jane used to calling on her power and not being afraid of it."
"Well, while you and Jane are practicing we should probably head back to school and see if Doug's had any luck," Ben said to Mal, eager to do more than stand around in a clearing all day.
"Can Carlos stay? I know before he couldn't because of the ceremony but if one friend helping is good, won't two be better?" Jane asked.
Carlos tried not to squirm as everyone looked at him. As much as he wanted to help Jane, magic was not his forte. "I really won't be very much help Jane, I don't have any magic."
"Actually I have a very important task for Carlos. Every one of you has at least a touch of magic, except for you Carlos, and in order for you to handle the magic wand and place it into the neutralizing waters you must not be magical in any way or the waters will try to draw your powers as well. So, I am going to entrust the wand you and you will have to be the one to place it into the water and then bring it back to Jane," Fairy Ida said, holding a long, narrow wooden box that contained the magical wand.
"Wait, I don't have any magical powers and neither does Evie or Jay, why can't one of us do this?" Ben asked, as Carlos practically shrank behind Jane in fear.
"Because young king, although you do not wield magic like Mal or Jane, your father was under a very strong spell for many years and a small bit of that was transferred to you when you were born. The same goes for Evie, the ability to brew potions and the amount you were exposed to has become a part of you. Your father Jay, was able to tap into a hidden amount of natural magical ability and over the years strengthened and harnessed it, so it too was passed along with your birth. None of you are completely without magic, so it must be Carlos or another like him that is as void of magic as the waters will be," Fairy Ida explained.
"I thought magic had to have a place to go once it leaves the wand? Won't Carlos absorb it then?" Jay asked, causing Carlos to pale at the thought.
Fairy Ida shook her head. "Not without his body already being a home for magic. Which is why none of you are to touch the wand or the waters, it would be very dangerous. Carlos is completely safe however, he can neither use the wand's powers or be overrun by them."
The assurances from Fairy Ida, Fairy Godmother and Jane did little to help Carlos and he felt like a nervous wreck on the ride back to Auradon Prep. The wand box sat in his lap, though Carlos was terrified of touching it, images of it sparking out of control in Jane's hands at Ben's coronation flitting through his mind.
"Dude, it's not going to attack you," Jay said, tapping the lid of the box with a finger.
Carlos scowled, "I know, but it's still the most powerful wand in all the kingdoms, what if I lose it?"
Ben reached across the seats and took the box. "Then we'll keep it under guarded protection until we find the neutralizing waters."
Carlos looked relieved for a moment before a thought struck him. "If we do find the waters does that mean we can neutralize all the artifacts too?"
"I guess so, though you're going to be the only one who can do it. Fairy Godmother put a dormancy spell on them so they could be handled safely but we still can't touch the water," Ben replied.
"Who would have guessed that we'd get sent on a quest by the high fairy that only a spotted mutt could do?" Jay teased, bumping Carlos with his elbow.
Carlos growled in annoyance at the horrid nickname and launched himself at Jay in a flying tackle. Jay shouted in surprise as he was shoved across the smooth leather bench seat, sprawling on his back while trying to avoid being punched in the stomach. Evie yelped in protest as Jay's head connected with her arm and her cell phone was flung to the car's floor. Ben chuckled, grabbed Evie's hand and pulled her to the opposite side of the car and out of the two boy's path of flailing arms and legs.
"It's a wonder those two haven't killed each other yet," Evie huffed, snatching up her phone.
"Damn it Carlos, no teeth!" Jay yelled as Carlos smirked victoriously at the teeth marks in Jay's forearm. Jay snarled and jumped on Carlos, sending both in a heap onto the floor as they fought to throw each other off and gain the upper hand.
Ben and Evie quickly tucked their feet up as the boy's rolled near them. "I don't think either one could cause more than a bruise to the other."
Evie sighed, "I just do not get it, I can't imagine Doug ever doing something like that and you'd never catch a girl being so rough."
"True, but when Mal wants to say she cares about you, or cheer you up, what does she do?" Ben asked.
"She gives me a hug or tells me how pretty I am," Evie replied.
"And can you see Jay hugging Carlos and telling him he's pretty?" Ben laughed.
Evie giggled, "It would certainly result in less bruising, or maybe more actually."
"When Chad and I were younger we used to wrestle all the time, it's a guy's way of giving a hug. Much more manly and macho," Ben said, puffing out his chest and flexing his biceps.
Carlos laughed at Ben's pose, gasping for breath as Jay's full weight pinned him to the floor. "Okay mercy, I give, I give."
Jay crowed triumphantly, wrapping his arms around Carlo's neck and trapping him for a brutal noogie. Carlos screamed as Jay's knuckles ruthlessly rubbed a fiery path across his scalp, his feet kicking wildly as his boots drummed ineffectively at Jay's shins. Carlos clutched at his head as both boys slumped back against the car seats, sprawled across the floor.
"You jerk, that really hurt," Carlos snapped, his scalp throbbing with pain.
Jay pulled Carlos against his chest and smoothed a hand gently through the mussed white and black locks. Carlos glared up at him but Jay just smirked and dropped a kiss to the crown of his head muttering a quiet sorry. Rolling his eyes, Carlos relaxed and let Jay continue to run his fingers through his hair.
"You see, Carlos isn't worrying about the wand anymore," Ben whispered to Evie.
"Was there kissing and cuddling after your wrestling matches with Chad too?" Evie asked with a playful grin.
Ben blushed bright red and quickly shook his head. "No, but I have a feeling Carlos and Jay are more like brothers than just friends like we were."
Evie nodded, watching the two boys on the floor fondly. They had formed a special bond not seen on the isle, as most kids were taught to avoid any sort of personal attachments. Even the adults didn't stay together unless it was mutually beneficial, but it was certainly never out of love.
"For insisting that you guys don't know anything about love or caring about others, I think you've figured it out anyway," Ben commented.
"We just figured each other out, we know what makes each other happy, sad, mad and scared. There aren't any secrets between us, we protect each other, Mal's always backing me up and Jay watches out for Carlos so we're never alone," Evie replied solemnly.
Ben smiled in understanding, the life they had on the isle was too cruel and hard for anyone weak and defenseless, teaming up had kept them alive. It had also created bonds stronger than anything Ben had ever seen. Sure he'd protect his friends if they were threatened, though that never happened in Auradon, on the isle Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos would die for each other. Their face-off against Maleficent was proof enough of that.
As the limo pulled up to the school, Ben reached out to wake Jay and Carlos, who had both fallen asleep.
"Wait! Jay tends to punch when he's asleep," Evie warned, snagging Ben's outstretched wrist. Ben pulled his arm back as Evie sent a sharp and swift kick to the bottom of Jay's boot.
"What?!" Jay yelled, his arm tightening around Carlos' chest as his other hand lashed out.
"Jay, we're back at school, you need to wake up Carlos so we can get out of the car," Evie said, careful to avoid stepping on anyone as she got out.
Jay quickly straightened up, taking stock of his surrounding before releasing Carlos with a shake to rouse him. "We're back at school, time to wake up."
Carlos was stumbling to his feet before his eyes were fully open, snagging the back of Jay's jacket so he wouldn't face plant the ground as he climbed out of the car.
Doug came racing up to the four, looking excited and anxious. "I just heard back from my uncle Doc who spoke to my uncle Grumpy who is pretty sure there are still some old maps in their cottage in Snow White's woods that should show all their old mining tunnels and whether or not there were any underground springs or rivers."
Ben clapped him on the back, "Good job Doug, how far is it to the cottage?"
"From here, probably about four or five hours at least," Doug replied.
"That doesn't give us much time to search tonight. Would your dad and uncles mind if we stayed the night at the cottage? That way we can look at the maps and set out early tomorrow," Ben said.
"Sure, nobody's lived there since Snow White got married, they didn't need to mine as much and found better jobs they liked in town. We might want to pack some supplies though, I don't know what kind of condition the cottage is in after all these years," Doug said.
"I can help make a list of things we might need," Evie volunteered, looping her arm with Doug's.
"Sounds good, don't forget to hit the kitchens, we'll need something for dinner and breakfast. I'll give Mal a call and let her know what's happening. As soon as we're all packed let's meet back here," Ben instructed.
"Jay, why don't you and Carlos pack the food and Doug and I will leave you a list of supplies in your room. I'm thinking basic camping stuff, sleeping bags, flashlights, extra batteries, matches and stuff like that," Evie said, typing out a quick list on her phone.
The group split up, everyone hurrying off to finish their tasks. Carlos quickly loped alongside Jay as they headed for the kitchen, trying to not to think about everything that could possibly go wrong tomorrow.
"Looks like there's some leftover pot roast from lunch, pot roast sandwiches sound good?" Jay asked, grabbing several large containers out of the refrigerator.
Carlos was staring blankly into a cupboard, seemingly deaf to what Jay was saying.
"Dude, you okay?" Jay asked when Carlos didn't answer.
Carlos shook his head, trying to pull himself out of his daze. "Uh, yeah I'm fine."
Jay seriously doubted that but left it alone for the moment as Carlos started pulling arm fulls of food out and dumping them on the large metal prep table beside the sandwich makings.
Across campus, Ben phoned Mal as he headed for Fairy Godmother's office, where his father was currently taking command.
"So how goes the fairy training?" Ben asked when Mal answered.
Mal huffed a laugh, "Well so far we've mastered the proper way to flick and swish a wand and moved on to careful enunciation of incantations."
Ben smiled at the image of Mal and Jane side by side carefully enunciating and flicking. "Sounds like fun, and Fairy Ida did say she was going to start with the basics."
"Thankfully it's so basic even Jane can't over think it. I just wish we could speed things up a bit, at this rate she'll never be ready for the bigger spells by the time you bring back the wand," Mal replied.
"Speaking of which, Jane may have a bit more time to practice, we're heading to the Seven Dwarves cottage as soon as we're packed but we probably won't reach it until tonight. Are you okay staying with Jane or would you like us to pick you up on the way?" Ben asked.
Mal hesitated, on the one hand, these remedial magic lessons were about as exciting as watching paint dry but on the other Jane had been making progress and she'd thanked Mal after every swish and flick for staying with her. "Is there something specific I could do to help?"
"Actually it's pretty much going to be up to Doug and Carlos. Once we get the maps and make it through the tunnels, Carlos will have to do his part with the wand and then we'll be back as fast as we can," Ben explained.
"Then I guess you've got that covered, so I'll stay here prepping Jane. Let me know if there's anything else I can do," Mal replied, feeling a bit frustrated at not being able to do more.
"Oh, I sent for the first group of isle kids the other day and I won't be there to greet them!" Ben exclaimed suddenly.
"When are they supposed to be arriving?" Mal asked.
"This evening, if everything goes right. Maybe I should just send the others ahead?" Ben wondered, pacing the hallway in front of the headmaster's office.
"No, you need to make sure the wand gets neutralized, who else can be there? It needs to be someone the kids are going to trust, should I come back?" Mal said.
"You can't, you promised Jane and Fairy Ida you'd stay and help. Carlos and Doug obviously have to go, that leaves either Evie or Jay," Ben replied.
"Neither one is going to want to stay behind, but I think Evie is your best bet. She'll make sure the kids are welcomed and taken care of, and I'll come back after dinner to give her a hand," Mal said, the frustration mounting. She was so used to taking charge of a situation, that having to sit and wait was making her very uneasy. "Promise me you'll call as soon as you make it to the cottage, okay? And please be careful tomorrow."
Ben sighed, he wished he could reassure Mal that everything was going to be fine, it made his heart ache to hear the worry in her strong voice. "I promise Mal, I love you."
Mal bit her lip hard as Ben's confident, sweet voice said those words she didn't think she'd ever get used to. "I have this ridiculously sappy urge to beg you not to go, so before I start crying like some over emotional princess, I love you too, bye!"
Ben slumped heavily against the solid wooden door behind him, Mal's words making his chest tight and knees weak. She hated admitting to having any emotions, but he knew every time she got overwhelmed and confessed to him, she was letting him into her heart a little more. Taking a deep breath and trying to summon his courage, Ben tucked his phone into his back pocket and prepared to update his father on the latest news.