Chapter 7
That morning, when Aurora set foot in the staff cafeteria, she almost let her tray – filled with croissants and a cup of hot chocolate – fall to the floor. Before her, at the very first table, was Cinderella. Eating a single croissant and drinking milk coffee. Alone. Without hesitation, she rushed to the table and sat down in front of her, a large smile cutting her face in two.
"Cinderella! Long time no see! I'm so happy to finally see you. Are you alright?"
The blonde rose her head and a sincere, composed smile instantly bloomed on her face. The kind of smile Aurora had been afraid she would never see on Cinderella's face again.
"Hi, Aurora! It's nice to see you this morning. Yes, I am fine, thank you," she said, with the calm and joy of a girl who never had to face any issue in her entirely life. Something Aurora knew was false, yet she couldn't help but feel happy that her friend appeared so soothed, for the first time since she started working here. "And you? You had a good night, I hope?"
"Yes, yes," Aurora nodded, smile even wider, sensing that Cinderella's cheerfulness was slowly growing on her. "I had a wonderful night, actually. The new Prince Phillip should arrive today, so this is one less problem to solve."
Cinderella frowned at her above her cup.
"The former Phillip– I mean, your boyfriend left? Did something bad happen?"
"Yes, we broke up," Aurora sighed, more from relief than grief. "But it's better that way, for the both of us. It's been a while since, well... It had to stop."
"I'm glad, then." Cinderella lay her empty coffee cup on her plate, then fixed a point somewhere above Aurora's shoulder, a tiny smirk twisting her upper lip. "I'm sure you already made a certain someone happy..."
"Hm?" Aurora almost choked on her chocolate, and she coughed lightly in her hand as she turned around to follow Cinderella's playful eyes. "Whatever do you m..." She interrupted herself when she found herself drowning in dark, obsidian orbs.
At the far off side of the room, Maleficent was looking straight back at her, her red lips torn into a satisfied smile, while the Evil Queen was whispering something into her ear. Somehow, she was sure that disturbing smile was meant for her and only her.
"Oh God." She swore under her breath as she turned back towards her friend. When she focused on eating her croissant, she knew Cinderella had already noticed the rosy color of her cheeks.
"You got it bad, don't you?"
"I don't know what you mean." Aurora only grunted in response, and the blonde did not even try to suppress the graceful giggle that escaped her lips.
Those words forced the Sleeping Beauty to remember what transpired last night. Or rather, what she did last night. She had blatantly provoked the older woman in the bar, teasing her, kissing her hand, touching her thighs... Just what was wrong with her?
She knew it was no good; for her, for them, for the Park. It was not Snow White she was playing against, after all. It was Maleficent. Even if she was only an actress, that woman was the closest a human could ever be to the infamous wicked fairy. And Aurora knew it. It might be the very reason she felt so drawn to her, to be honest.
It could only end badly, and yet... she was unable to control herself. Every time Maleficent stood before her, it was like an ancient, powerful magic took possession of her body, making her do things she couldn't even begin to imagine, things she did not want.
Wait. Things she did not want? No. Things she did not dare to want. Yes, that was quite different.
In the end, maybe Maleficent did manage to cast a spell on her. She was not sure if Walt Disney would have condone this kind of spell, though. She chuckled to herself at that thought.
"Is your coming-out that funny?" Cinderella asked, the lines around her mouth stretched so high she seemed like she was fighting against an uncontrollable laugh.
"Stop it, Cinderella," Aurora chirped, as she gently kicked Cinderella's foot under the table. "I'm not coming out!"
Her voice died down in her throat when she observed Cinderella's eyes growing as big as saucers, her hands tensing around her cup. She was about to ask her what was wrong, when a deep, thundering voice offered the answer she sought.
"Such a shame."
The voice was unmistakable. And Cinderella's half-uncomfortable, half-mocking demeanor was only confirming her greatest terror. She refused to look sideways and chose to concentrate on her half-eaten croissant once again.
"Hi, Maleficent." Cinderella's cheerful tone broke the silence.
"Hello," answered Maleficent's cold voice, though her twinkling orbs never once left Aurora. "I am afraid I have to disrupt this lovely breakfast of yours. You ought to come with me, princess."
The familiar nickname acted as a magnet, and Aurora finally lifted her head, only to get lost into black, unfathomable eyes.
"W-what?" She stammered miserably. "Why...? I mean, where are we going?"
"Well, I would suppose you will not know, unless you follow me." Maleficent's voice was suave, drenched in dangerous sarcasm.
Aurora was starting to regret her shameless behavior from the night before. Surely Maleficent was only calling for Aurora so that she could make her pay for her insolence, right?
And she knew that, at that game, she had no choice but to lose.
Yet, she followed her regardless.
As the two reached the Park entrance, a tall, massive silhouette wearing a shining armor and a glossy prince's outfit ran towards them.
"Oh my God, finally I meet my partner!" The guy giggled as he took Aurora's hands.
The Sleeping Beauty risked a worried glance towards Maleficent as the boy crushed her hands in his, and she was strangely pleased to see Maleficent tense visibly at the prince's behavior. Boosted by the witch's concern, Aurora managed to smile tersely.
"Hello, Phillip. I'm glad you finally arrived. It was kind of embarrassing to perform at the Parade on my own."
"Don't worry, dear," Phillip let her hands slide from his and gave her a conniving wink. "I'm here, now." He paused and turned towards the wicked fairy, a large smile shining on his face. "And you've got Maleficent, too!"
The latter raised a sceptic eyebrow. Phillip's grin only widened, and he bent down to whisper in Aurora's ear.
"She's so cool, right? Aw. You would be so cute together, you know."
At that very moment, Aurora feared her jaw might fall to the floor.
"I- Er... What?"
The prince chuckled loudly, and Maleficent's gaze darkened as she seemed quite unnerved to be still left out of the joke.
"Ah ah! You're so squeamish, Aurora, you're so fun! Now, come on, where's my room? Will you show me around? I wanna see the dragon's lair... Oh, Mal, will you take me there? I heard there's a cool bar nearby the entrance, called the Drunk Fairy or something..."
"It's The Fairytale." Aurora drawled, completely dumbstruck. Maleficent was not so much more at ease with such outpouring joy.
"The Fairytale? So cool. Can we go tonight, Aurora? I wanna meet your friends. Oh, and yours too, Mal."
"I suggest you stop calling me Mal, O dear prince." Maleficent spat.
"My bad, my bad!" Phillip exclaimed, hands raised in a gesture of peace. Then, he placed his right hand on Aurora's elbow. "C'm'on, 'Rora, show me the Castle!"
'Rora threw a pleading glance towards Maleficent, who only answered with a ruthless smile. Without an ounce of pity, the wicked fairy turned on her heels, her black cloak swirling in her wake, and let the poor Sleeping Beauty alone with a very peculiar prince.
Once Aurora was done with the tour of the Disneyland Park, she found herself leaning on the handrail of a wooden pontoon in Swiss Family Tree House. Her eyes were transfixed on the Pirate ship floating in the lake below, when Phillip came to stand next to her. He seemed strangely calm.
"I'm sorry if I look a little... too excited," he said softly. "It's just... My last job was so hard, I'm just so happy to begin on a new one. Especially one in this place so full of laughter and happiness, you know? It's life-saving, honestly."
For the first time, Aurora was touched by Phillip's words, and thought she could learn to feel comfortable in his presence.
"I understand. It's fine, really."
Phillip only nodded, and Aurora was relieved to see that his smile was sincere, contrary to the one of the other Philip.
"So..." His voice was back to his teasing, mocking tone. "You have a huge crush on Mal, uh?"
Aurora's eyes grew as big as saucers, and when she bent her head down to hide her shock, her tiara almost fell.
"I- What? No, I don't! I just-"
"You just... have a crush on her." That Phillip's laugh was warm too, and it somehow soothed her mind. "Hey, it's okay. I mean, there's not that much of an age gap between you two, right? And anyway, even if there was, it would be alright."
"But, I-"
Phillip's hand landed on her forearm, gentle and reassuring.
"You don't need to hide the truth from me, you know. It was obvious. The way your eyes shone when they meet hers. The way you always searched her attention."
Aurora let out a tired sigh. "I don't have a crush-"
"And I think it's mutual."
Aurora's words died in her throat as she gazed at Philip, mouth wide opened.
"You... You think so?"
"Ah!" Phillip shouted, pointing a victorious finger at her. "I knew it! You've got the hots for Maleficent. Ah ah! I'm so proud of myself!" He interrupted himself and continued in a more quiet voice. "But don't worry, I'm sure she's got the hots for you, too. I saw how she was, like, wishing I was dead when I held your hands."
"You did that on purpose?" This time, Aurora was positively astonished.
"Well, yeah. And also, you seemed so nice, and your skin looked so smooth, I wanted to check that out!"
The Sleeping Beauty burst out laughing, surprising even the oh so spontaneous Phillip. "You truly are an odd prince."
"In a bad way?" Phillip asked, mockingly pouting.
"Oh, no, no. In a very good way. I think I might even start to like you."
Prince Phillip draw in a breath and covered his mouth with his hand in a parodic gesture.
"Oh, my. But you can't, Maleficent would kill me! That's cruel, 'Rora, even for you!"
Aurora's laugh increased and she shook her head in disbelief.
"No, not that way."
"Not the way you like Maleficent?"
Phillip's grin was playful, and yet so kind, so Aurora could do nothing but smile in return, honest and peaceful.
"No, not the way I like Maleficent."
The two left Robinson Crusoe's Tree and walked back to Sleeping Beauty Castle in a slow, carefree pace, smile still plastered on their face. When they were about to enter the giant building, a slender, broad-shouldered blonde man crossed their path, and Phillip's eyes gleamed so bright it looked like they were invaded by stars.
"Hello, Aurora, Phillip." John Smith greeted them politely, bowing his blue helmet at them.
"Hi." Aurora responded.
"Uh... Hello, John." Phillip's voice had suddenly lost all of its superb, and was shaking with slight tremors.
"Hello, Philip." When John's blue orbs met Phillip's, John's smile was radiant.
And then, the moment was lost and John Smith was gone. Phillip turned towards Aurora, his hair tousled, a fierce glow sparkling in his brown eyes.
"Hey 'Rora, do you think, by any chance, that John Smith could be gay?"
And Aurora burst out laughing, once again.
"I haven't the slightest idea," she managed to mumble between crazed laughing fits.
"Hm. You know what? I have an idea. I help you win Maleficent over, and you help me win John over. Do we have a deal?"
Aurora's eyes flew from Phillip's knowing smirk to his outstretched hand, and back again. She let herself be entranced by that confident grin.
"I have no idea what I'm getting myself into, but... we have a deal." She shook his hand.
Phillip's thrilled squeal only confirmed what she already knew.
She did not have to fear that Phillip's intentions.
Perhaps, after all, the best modern tale should be about a princess and a prince refusing to become spouses.
And instead, they chose to become friends.
Author's Note :
Finally, I am back! And with me, this Chapter 7 that you have waited for a long time, and I apologize for this. After the end of my tests, I had to get my personal life back together, and find the inspiration, and all that took longer than I thought.
And so I want to thank you for your patience. I hope you like that chapter. Also, I hope that those of you who despised Phillip (for good reason) will like that one much better!
Please do not hesitate to share your thoughts in the reviews, it always means a lot to me.
And I will go prepare and write Chapter 8.
I think this Fanfiction will be around 10 chapters, so not much more to wait, friends!
The girls will soon get what they want...
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: a great friend of mine here will borrow An Ironic Twist of Fate's universe to write a fanfiction from Cinderella's point of view. It will develop her secret and her relationship with Lady Tremaine. My friend's pseudo is Egs, you can check their account if that story has caught your interest. I warmly recommend you this Fanfiction. I have read some sneak peeks, and I have great hope for that story! It shall come out shortly.
~Goddess of All Evil.