MALEFICENT

I found Aurora in her small cottage we had built for her by the edge of the moors. Its space occupied land right on the border of the moors and her father's old lands, for she was the new queen of both areas. She refused to live in the castle, because its past was foreign to her, and she did not like the power it assumed. Aurora was a humble queen and liked to live with her people, not above them.

I knocked on her door and opened it slowly. "Beastie?" I called.

"Come in, godmother!" she replied happily. She met me at the door and brought me to sit down with her at her table. In no time at all, she had a glass of tea placed in front of me.

"How are you, godmother?" she asked.

"Fine Beastie. I am fine."

"Are you sure godmother? You don't look fine," Aurora inquired.

"Yes, yes, I am alright," I said brushing off her concern. "I am slightly…distraught. I freed Diaval from his service today and the absence of him has not settled yet."

"Ah," she replied. A few moments of silence followed. "Is he going to remain here?"

"I don't know Beastie. That's his decision."

Aurora smiled. "Well, I should hope he does, for I would miss him greatly. Wouldn't you?"

I narrowed my eyes as I peered into hers. They were up to something.

"What are you trying to gain from this, Aurora?" I asked, inquisitively.

Aurora raised an eyebrow. "Nothing, godmother. But you must already know how he feels…?"

I felt my cheeks flush and stared at Aurora. I could feel my tone getting agitated as I said, "What do you mean? Feel what?" I was certain that I knew what she was going to say. He hated me. He hated my actions, my decisions, everything. And I couldn't bear to hear it. "Nevermind. Aurora, I must go. Thank you greatly for the tea."

I left Aurora with a slightly stunned and mistaken look on her face. Clearly she had much more to say, but I did not want to hear it. I was out the door and into the forest in a matter of short moments.

I walked briskly toward my nest, in need of a place to think.

I arrived to find Diaval sitting at the base of my tree.

DIAVAL

I saw Maleficent briskly walking her tree, which I was sitting behind. As she came around the back of it, she stopped suddenly as she saw me. Her eyes widened, but snapped almost instantly back to her blank glare.

"What are you doing here?" she asked accusingly.

"N-nothing! I just… came to see you," I replied, taken aback by her sudden rudeness.

"Why?" she demanded. "Why would you ever want to see me?"

"Ummm…" I stumbled, confused by the question.

"Just go Diaval. I don't have the patience for this right now. Come back tomorrow."

I was crushed. What was I thinking? That maybe she loved me too? I couldn't have been more wrong. I got up and turned to walk away, when suddenly I remembered.

I was no longer her servant. I turned around.

"No," I said assertively. "You don't tell me what to do anymore."

Maleficent looked at me like I was crazy. Then I could almost hear the wheels in her brain turning, as her eyes softened and she frowned.

"Diaval," she said softly, looking at the ground. "I'm sorry. I- I forgot…"

"You forgot what?" I asked, wanting to hear her say the words.

She looked up at me slowly and returned my stare. "I forgot you are no longer in my service."

I nodded. "That's right. And these woods are my home as much as they are yours."

"Yes, Diaval, they are."

"And I don't want to be treated like that anymore. You don't have the right to treat me badly and talk to me like that."

I could see Maleficent's hands tremble and clench tight. Her eyes became watery and she whispered in the softest of voices, "I'm sorry," before she turned quickly and took off with her wings. She was gone in all of three seconds.

I felt remorse. What had I done? Was she crying? Maleficent?! Since when was crying even a part of her genes?

I had a right to stand up for myself. Didn't I? I sat and rewound the conversation in my head, trying to think of what set her off. I had gotten frustrated with her before. Normally that just ended in her enchanting me until she could get far enough away that I couldn't find her. Now she couldn't do that anymore.

Was she upset she no longer had a servant? I had no idea.

Either way, I felt horrible for causing her such pain. Though my brain told me to wait a few days, my instincts told me to find her, and I was never one to betray my instincts.

I changed into my bird form and took off.