Chapter 2: Father's Blessing

A/N: Just a short Author's note here. If the plot of the movie was meant to cover more than a week, I apologize in advance for this. When I watched the movie, it seemed as though everything had taken place within a week at the most. Other than that, please enjoy Chapter 2 of The Twisted Tale!

The funny thing about my dreams is that they never stay dreams. On the Isle, my unconscious mind had certain ways of slipping from my body and going off into the great unknown. Technically, that should have been impossible, given that Maleficent was my mother and magic wasn't permitted on the island. But, then again, the power I wielded wasn't just magic.

The moment my eyes closed, I found myself in a cave. The cave was familiar in and of itself despite me only being there in spirit. I sighed, knowing that there was no way around what was about to happen. With an unhappy forward march, I ventured deeper into the grotto. Having done this walk many times before, I focused more on my surroundings than I did on the path. Though the area was dimly lit, my eyes could make out carvings on the walls. Pictures of destruction and death and the world in flames. Plus, the tension in the air worsened the farther I got. Finally, I stopped in the middle of a chamber. There was no one here as always but that didn't stop his voice from speaking to me anyhow.

The prodigal son returns. It has been quite some time.

I grit my teeth and cast my eyes out into the darkness. "Get out of my dreams." I replied stiffly.

That's no way to talk to your father. Certainly not a father who will rule all of Auradon with your added assistance.

I snorted in derision. "Please. Like I'd ever help you." My voice took on a more serious edge as I growled, "You lost the right to call yourself my father. You don't own or control me and you damn well can't tell me what to do."

I have heard Maleficent's plans. I have seen what she wants. And though the future twists and bends, that which she desires shall come to past, whether you like it or not.

Though I couldn't see him, I knew the smug bastard was smiling in the dark. You believe that just because you are off the Isle that you are free of me. But you will soon learn that freedom is something you'll never possess. So long as you are my son, you shall walk in my shadow. Now, wake.

I didn't want to follow his orders but already, the scene before me was fading. The darkness of the cave became blinding light and, before I was forced to shut my eyes, I saw eyes of yellow in the light and then nothing at all.

At the moment that I woke up, I could feel that something was wrong. Checking the clock, I gaped in alarm. It was 4 a.m. and I wasn't a morning person so something about my apparent insomnia was off. To make matters more interesting, the usual stiffness in my joints had vanished and I felt relaxed and comfortable and ready to greet the new day. I yawned and got out of bed, making my way to the bathroom. Not bothering to look in the mirror, I turned on the faucet and washed my face a couple of times. But when I looked up, a complete stranger greeted me.

The figure was very tall with dark skin and glowing yellow eyes. His ears were pointed slightly and a wily tail slithered up from behind him. I opened my mouth in horror and the figure in the mirror did the same although the look on his face seemed pleased. Flicking my tongue out, I checked the inside of my mouth. My teeth had become razor sharp. I began to pat myself down and pinched myself multiple times.

Finally, I couldn't deny it. Somehow, during the night, I had transformed into a modern day beast. Remembering my friends, I peeked outside to make sure they were still sleeping. Thankfully, they were fast asleep, snoring the morning away.

Sighing, I reentered the bathroom and tried to figure out my next move. I already knew what this was. Father's idea of a blessing. I'm guessing this was what he meant when he said I'd always walk in his shadow. If anyone saw me like this, even my friends, they'd understand why I never talked about my father and why I didn't want anything to do with him. They'd understand why Maleficent and I were at odds.

"Okay, obviously, I need some way of changing back. We've got class first thing today and the last thing I need is people figuring out all of my secrets." I began to think it through carefully. I needed a spell that would change me back easily. Thinking off the top of my head, I recited, "Of this form that's become quite a bore, change me back to the way I was before."

I repeated it a couple of times for emphasis but the spell seemed to have the desired effect. Slowly, but surely, the devil in the mirror melted away and a young, handsome guy took its place. I scanned my physical appearance for any signs of trouble. My black hair with purple highlights had regained its familiar shine. My eyes were green like before. I no longer possessed horns and my skin was as pearly white as it should have been. I waited a few more minutes to make sure that the worst of it was over but, in the end, it looked like my transformation wasn't going to happen again.

After avoiding that little scare, I looked at my bed in confusion. Now that I was aware of it, I wasn't tired in the least. Even though it was too early, my mind had no intention of falling asleep. And so, I stayed awake until the sun rose in the distance and the others began to wake.

"If someone hands you a crying baby," Fairy Godmother asked, "Do you:

Curse it?

Lock it in a tower?

Give it a bottle?

Carve out its heart?"

If we're being completely honest here, only one of those answers sounds the least bit right.

So it was almost comical when Evie raised her hand and asked, "What was the second one?"

Fairy Godmother's smile slipped off her face and she looked around the room. "Okay…anyone else? Anyone at all?"

I could have easily answered but I wasn't much for it. I had already answered enough. Plus I was getting bored and when I got bored, my attention span flew out the window. A table over, my sister looked equally uninterested as she sketched the wand's design, going over the image until it was flawless.

The sound of Mal's name being called caused both of us to look up. She answered the question and the warm sparkle in Fairy Godmother's eyes lit up once more.

Carlos looked impressed. "You are on fire, girl!"

Mal tugged at a lock of her hair. "Just pick the one that doesn't sound like any fun."

Seeing that they finally understood how to get an easy "A" in this class without actually learning anything, I glanced behind us as a girl began to walk up the aisle. When she had to go between our tables, she let out a slight squeal and sort of ran through before coming to a stop before Fairy Godmother.

The girl gave her a clipboard and spoke quickly about the coronation. Mal, being as sneaky as possible, nudged Evie. Fairy Godmother scribbled down her signature and then called out to us. "Everyone here remembers my daughter Jane." She then tried to reassure her daughter that everything was alright. "Jane, this is everyone."

Jane, now in the spotlight, waved uneasily. "Hey… that's okay. Don't mind me. As you were." She hurried out of the room.

"Your daughter Jane looked like she was about to faint. Just saying." I mentioned before going back to my spells.

Fairy Godmother took my idea and stowed it away. "She'll get used to you. Now, let's continue. You find a vial of poison. Do you:

Put it in the King's wine?

Paint it on an apple?

Turn it over to the proper authorities?"

Carlos and Jay's hands shot up but she decided to call on Jay. "C) Turn it over to the proper authorities."

"I was going to say that."

Jay grabbed Carlos and put him into a headlock. Meanwhile, Evie was looking at herself in her mirror and I was trying not laugh as per usual.

"Boys!" Fairy Godmother bellowed. "I'm going to encourage you to use that energy on the tourney field."

"Whatever that is, it already sounds interesting," I said, perking up.

Carlos, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with it. "No thanks! Whatever that is, I'll pass."

The coach blew his whistle before pairing us up. "Jay! Ben! Lev! Offense!" He gestured to me and the pretty boy to my right. "Chad! You're on defense. Taylor! You're the shooter!"

I had gotten a mini explanation on what tourney was but it didn't do much in terms of actually helping me understand. All I really knew how to do was avoid the kill zone. The coach began shouting at Carlos for staying in the kill zone.

As soon as the drill started, I made it a point to stay out of Jay's way. His way to living life dealt with making sure everyone else lost, whether they were on the same team or not. So, it came to no surprise to me that he began to plow most of the team down. I was brought out of my musings when I was forced to defend myself from a bigger dude.

He was doing what he could to push me back and he was succeeding. Faking to the left, I sprinted past him and smirked his way in an attempt to rile him up. Hearing him growl, I threw myself into the kill zone, weaving and dodging until I made it to the other side. Then, I watched in a cruel satisfaction when the guy who had chased me got pummeled by flying disks. Getting back into the game, I was able to fake out three other guys on the defense before we managed to make it to the enemy's goal. The ball had landed on the ground between Ben and Jay. Already knowing the outcome and dreading the collision bound to happen, I grabbed onto Ben's shoulder firmly and pulled him away, allowing Jay to score. In the end, Jay hooted and hollered and gloated in everyone's faces.

That's when the coach called him out. "You! Get over here! What do you call that?" His expression was unreadable for all of two seconds before breaking out into a huge grin. "Because I call that raw talent. Come find me later. I'll show you something you've never seen before. It's called a rulebook. Welcome to the team, son." He patted Jay on the shoulder and then turned to me. "You're pretty good at finding your way around the defense. Keep doing what you're doing and you'll fit in fine."

Then he turned to Carlos and in the most uncritical way, he asked, "Ever thought about band?"

Carlos gave a fake laugh while Jay howled with laughter. I didn't laugh at all. Right as Ben offered to train Carlos later, I saw movement in the corner of my eye. Nadra was sitting on the bleachers behind us, flipping through the pages of a book. As if she could feel my stare, she looked up and held my gaze and though I tried to look away, I just couldn't.

A hand on my shoulder jolted me out of my trance. "Hey, get your head in the game. The others are waiting for you."

Shaking my head vigorously, I replied, "Sorry, Coach. Won't happen again."

I looked over at the bleachers again but Nadra was back to reading her book. Sighing, I trudged out to the field and we ran the play again.

About an hour later, tourney practice was over. Coach dismissed us and the team dispersed to the locker rooms. I saw Jay heading off with the coach so they could talk and Ben pulled Carlos to the side for a bit of one-on-one practice.

Showering and redressing in my usual clothes, I looked at my schedule. Apparently, this hour was my free period so I could do whatever I wanted. Sweet.

I exited the locker room and headed off to find Mal. But, before I could take a step, a deep voice stopped me. "Hey, where do you think you're going?"

I turned to see the buff guy I had outsmarted earlier that hour. He was flanked by two more team members and they all seemed kind of cranky. My usual cynical look settled on my face and I answered, "Does it matter?"

The tough guy's face turned red and one of his friends egged him on. "C'mon Fazil, are you really going to let this trash speak to you like that?" The buff guy – Fazil – sneered at me. "Yeah right. How does it feel? Knowing that everyone hear thinks you're garbage?"

"Garbage?" I asked and snorted. "Is that all you've got? I'm from the Isle. Everyone from the isle is self-proclaimed trash. If you want to hurt my feelings, you're going to need to try a bit harder. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got somewhere I need to go."

I took one step and then Fazil grabbed my shoulder and slammed me into the locker and glared at me in what he thought was menacingly. I yawned slightly. "You're a big coward, aren't you?"

Fazil clenched his teeth as a vein popped out. "What did you say, punk?"

I rolled my eyes. "I don't even have to say it again. It's clear as day. Somehow, you think I'm a threat to you so you're ganging up on me. Or maybe Jay is the real threat but you have a feeling that you couldn't take him down even with your numbers. Carlos would be an easy target if Ben wasn't working with him. And picking on Carlos in Ben's presence would hurt not only your image but your parent's image. So for all intents and purposes, you're messing with me because you know you can't beat Jay and because you know you can't beat me on our own. That's why you're a coward."

Fazil glared at me and held up a fist. I stared unflinchingly at him and stiffened slightly. If it was a fight he wanted, I'd be happy to oblige.

"That'll be enough of that." A female voice spoke out and Fazil's face paled. Releasing me from his grip, he turned and got to his knees. "Princess Nadra, I wasn't expecting to see you here."

Nadra frowned. "What does that mean? Are you trying to say that if I hadn't been here, you would've gotten into a fight with him for no reason at all besides the fact that you don't like him?"

"Y-no. Of course not." Fazil stammered, backtracking. "I was just doing what I had to do to protect you."

Nadra sighed. Reaching to the sword on her keychain, she unclipped it and pointed it at Fazil. At that moment, it expanded in Nadra's hand and soon, she was holding onto a real sword. "I may be a princess but I can take care of myself. You know that."

Fazil nodded vigorously. Nadra sighed. Then she turned to me. "Are you alright?"

I stuttered out a "fine" before pushing myself off the lockers and striding away. I heard Fazil yell my way but then Nadra began lecturing him again and he fell silent.

There was a bit of shuffling behind me and I turned to see Nadra running to catch up. Off in the distance, Fazil and his buddies glared at me but I ignored them and waited for Nadra. When she was close enough, she slowed to a stop. "Hey! Sorry about that. Fazil can be a douchebag sometimes."

Taking a deep breath, I replied stoically. "Like I said, it's fine. Just wasn't expecting the animosity so soon." Gesturing back down the path, I asked, "What was the deal with that guy anyway? He seemed to know you."

Nadra sighed. "Fazil. My dad hired him as a bodyguard while I'm away from home. Most of the time, he's rather tame. But, as you've probably noticed, he's quick to anger and doesn't like being usurped. When you kept beating him on the field, he took it as a personal insult and went out of his way to make you pay."

"You were watching us practice." It wasn't a question.

"Once I saw the first play, I noticed Fazil glaring at you. I figured he was going to try something later and decided to stop him before he could."

"Well, thanks, I guess." I mumbled. I wasn't a stranger to saying thank you. It was just that I wasn't used to saying it aloud.

"Wow," She said, giving me a lopsided grin. "I can almost feel the gratitude."

"Well, in my defense, I didn't ask you to help."

Nadra smiled. "Alright, next time, I'll mind my own business. How about that?"

I gave her a thumbs-up. "Sounds good to me."

We walked in silence for another few minutes.

"So," she asked, stressing the 'o', "Free period?"

"Is it really that obvious?" I replied.

"Not especially, no." She pulled at a lock of her hair. In the distance, a bell rang and it startled me slightly. "But, the bell signals the beginning and end of periods. Since we're both not running to class, I'm assuming we both have a free period now."

"Yeah, well, I'd probably go somewhere. If I had anywhere to go. I mean, there's got to be tons of places but…" I looked at her intently before changing my line of thought. "Never mind."

Nadra raised an eyebrow but seemed to get from my cues that it wasn't a good subject to bring up. So, she talked about something else. "So got any other periods with me?"

"Dunno…" I paused to pull my schedule out of my backpack and she read through it.

Then, she sighed. "We've got one class together. History of Auradon. So, we'll only see each other for two hours every day."

I frowned. "Why would you want to see me? I'm not that interesting."

Nadra looked like she was about to protest when she tilted her head in an inquisitive way.

"What's up?"

"I wasn't going to ask this since I thought it was a trick of the light the first time I saw it. But are your green or yellow?"

I stiffened but took a calming breath. No need to freak out just yet. "They're green. Why do you ask?"

"When we first met, you had green eyes. But, when Fazil was messing with you, it looked like they were slowly turning yellow. And it still looks that way."

Not this again. I turned my eyes away and looked off in the distance. "Oh man, I just remembered. I was going to talk to Mal about something. But, then I got…sidetracked. I need to go find her."

"Oh, okay, then I guess I'll just see you in class." Nadra patted my shoulder and walked away. Just from her reaction, I knew I wasn't off the hook. Sooner or later, she would bring up my eyes again. And I would need some way to avoid it. Magic seemed to have an effect the first time. Unfortunately, the transformation spell must have need an infinite amount of magic to keep it sustained. Since I couldn't cast the spell forever, I needed a plan B.

"Why do you need my spell book again?" Mal asked, annoyed that I had barged into her room unannounced.

I moved to answer her but stalked over to the closed bathroom door instead. "Evie's not in there, is she?"

Mal shook her head. "Last I saw, she was hanging with that guy named Chad. They headed off near the tourney field about thirty minutes ago." She gestured to me. "Now tell me what the heck is wrong with you."

I sighed before letting the transformation spell slip. Mal's eyes grew to the size of plates as my usual green eyes blazed yellow, horns grew from my head, and my skin turned dark. Once she got a good look at the tail, she opened her spell book and shuffled through the pages. "Okay, what do you need? Transformation spell? I'm sure Mom's got one in here somewhere."

I sighed heavily. "If only it were that simple. This," I said, gesturing to my body, "started happening this morning. When I cast the first spell, it worked for a couple of hours but after that…" I trailed off. It was kind of clear what happened after.

Mal looked me up and down before turning back to the book. "My guess is that the spell requires your full attention. The moment you began to use your strength for other things was the moment it began to unravel."

"Are you saying that the only thing that I can do is cast this spell forever?" I chuckled, my voice devoid of humor. "Because that's going to get suspicious really quickly."

Mal rolled her eyes. "I'm saying that if it takes a constant amount of magic to keep the spell intact, then all we need is an item to act as a conduit to control and manage the spell, like an article of clothing or something that can't be easily removed."

I looked down at my clothes. At the long black trench coat and my forest green attire. My eyes strayed to my hands and as one, they focused on the fingerless glove on my right hand. Slipping it off, I placed it on her bed. "Use this."

Mal cast a spell on the glove to imbue it with magic from both the spell book and the natural magic of Auradon. Putting it back on, I noticed a surge of energy sweep through my body and I suddenly felt way stronger than before. "Here goes nothing." I took a deep breath. "Of this form that's become quite a bore, change me back to the way I was before."

Like before, the transformation was swift. But this time I had a feeling it would work better. When the spell was completed, I reveled in how relaxed I felt. "It worked," I sighed in relief. Mal's lips twitched like she was trying to conceal a smile.

"What's so funny?"

Mal calmed herself before answering. "Most of our friends wouldn't have called how you looked 'a bore'. In fact, why don't you tell them? You know, who your father is? If they knew, I'm sure they'd still treat you the same."

Checking a mirror to make sure that the spell took full effect, I rolled my eyes. "I have no qualms against telling them. And maybe, if we were still on the Isle, I would. But, we're in Auradon and if at all possible, I'd like to keep this secret for however long we're here."

Mal shook her head. "Yeah, well suit yourself."

Snatching the spell book from her hands and ignoring her protests, I remember the Memory spell I made up and said, "From this book where spells hide, enter my mind, place knowledge inside."

The pages fluttered restlessly as I cast the spell and only stopped once it was completed.

Tossing the book on her bed, I turned to exit the room. "Mind telling me what that was?" Mal asked haughtily.

"A Memory spell. Since Mom didn't trust me with the spell book, I made myself into one. All of the spells in her book are now etched into my brain. And now that I have this… power glove, I can use magic to cast them whenever necessary. So see ya." Leaving the room, I set off down the hall and to my History of Auradon class.

"Can anyone tell me which villain is believed to be the personification of all evil? Anyone?" The teacher looked around the room for a volunteer and his eyes landed on two hands. Fazil and Nadra. "Fazil?"

Fazil lowered his hand and replied, "No brainer there. Maleficent's the worst of the worst. Her and any scum associated with her." I could feel his glare on the back of my head when he said that particular bit. I ignored his comment and kept my eyes front.

Nadra scoffed. "Okay, are you done being a complete douchebag?" Fazil's eyes narrowed and he reluctantly shut his mouth.

Mr. Wallace turned to Nadra. "Alright, what do you think the answer is?"

"There are many such answers but given the wording of the question, there's only one being it could possibly be. Chernabog. It appeared about a millennia ago and began to take Auradon over and turn it into a hellish land. It would've succeeded if not for the sorcerer who managed to defeat it and boot the demon off to the Isle. It's believed that evil exists in this world because it exists."

"Right as always, Nadra." The teacher applauded and the class halfheartedly went along with him. "If we were talking about the modern days, it would be true that Maleficent is the worst of the worst. But if we're expanding the horizon, Chernabog is the vilest there is."

"Now, turn your books to Chapter 6 and read pages 102-115. I'll be back in a little while." Mr. Wallace turned and left the room. The moment the door closed, one of the students went to the door and the rest erupted into laughter and conversation. Getting up from my seat, I went over to Nadra, who was dutifully reading the assignment. Sitting down next to her, she immediately asked, "Did you want something?"

"Not really."

"Then go away."

"Nope."

She looked up from her reading and fixed me with a glare. I chuckled softly and whispered to her, "Unless your eyes can glow green, you're not going to get me to move."

She looked at me, the glare disappearing just as fast as it appeared. Finally, she said, "Fine."

She went back to her book and I went back to mine. Little did I know of the smile that graced her face the moment I turned away.

Mal, Evie, Carlos and I congregated into the girl's room after our classes were over. And already things were looking different. For starters, Carlos was on his laptop, looking up things. Shocking. But seriously, he was sitting next to a dog and not freaking out. I assumed Ben opened his eyes to the truth. Either that or he didn't know what a dog looked like. Then, there was Evie. The teachers, though rather reluctant, were doing their best to make us feel at home here. That also meant assigning homework. But, from the stacks of books on the table, I knew that Evie had way more work than the rest of us, which wasn't fair in the least. I was about to call her out on it but Mal shook her head and told me to drop it.

Jay walked in the room and struck a pose. The tourney jersey was an impressive sight. For a split second, I wondered how long before I got mine before realizing I didn't care.

Carlos whistled, impressed. Jay walked over to the window and addressed Mal. "Did your plan work with Jane? Can you get her to steal the wand?"

Mal was annoyed. "You think that I would be going through every single spell in this book if I hadn't completely struck out?"

"Someone's in a bad mood," Carlos muttered.

"More of a bad mood than usual?" I asked with a frown. "That's a first."

"Our mom's counting on us. We can't let her down." Mal snapped.

"Like I haven't heard that before," I snapped back.

"We can do this," Jay spoke out before the argument could get worse. We all froze and turned his way. "If we stick together."

Mal nodded. "And we won't go back until we do… because we're rotten."

"To the core," We said in unison.

Evie decided that it would be a good time to mention that Fairy Godmother wouldn't use her wand until the coronation, which was only days away. Unfortunately, that stopped us from stealing it during some moment of the night. If we wanted to steal it now, I'd have to be in broad daylight with about a million spectators all around.

Someone knocked on the door and since there weren't that many people who even acknowledged our presence, I had an idea who was on the other side. Mal opened the door and there stood Prince Ben.

"Hey, Mal," He said hesitantly. "I didn't see you guys today. I was just wondering if you had any questions or anything… you need."

Mal was the picture of nonchalance as she answered, "Nothing that I can think of." The others shook their heads to help with the ruse.

Ben was relieved and just about to excuse himself when she called him back. "Oh wait, is it true that we all get to go to your coronation?"

"Yeah, the whole school goes."

"Wow, that is beyond exciting. Do you think that it's a possibility that the five of us can stand in the front row next to the Fairy Godmother so that we could soak up all that goodness?"

Ben's smile turned into a frown. "I wish you could. Up front, it's just me, my folks, and my girlfriend."

"Your girlfriend?" Mal echoed.

"Yeah, I'm sorry." He really seemed apologetic.

"Okay, thanks. Bye!" Mal shut the door in his face. I muttered, "Keep slamming the door in his face and he'll definitely think something's up."

Mal ignored me. "I think it's time that Benny-Boo got himself a new girlfriend. And I know just the love spell." Carlos tossed her the spell book and we got to work.

"Alright, it says we still need one tear."

Carlos went digging in the onion box. "Just cut some onions."

"C'mon Carlos, this is magic. It's not that simple." I said. "It's probably supposed to be a tear with specific properties."

"It says that we need one tear of human sadness." Mal elaborated. "This love potion gets the best reviews so we need to follow it exactly."

Jay was bored. "A tear's a tear."

Evie shook her head. "That's not true, Jay. They both have antibodies and enzymes but an emotional tear is more protein based than a reflex tear."

"You go, girl!" I said, snickering.

Evie blushed and we went back to the recipe. The door on the side opened and the girl that visited them earlier walked in. I think her name was Loonie?

"There you are, Mal. I was looking for you. You know, all the girls want you to do their hair." She eyed the mix. "Midnight snack, huh? Whatcha guys making?"

"Cookies." I said off the top of my head.

Lonnie dipped a finger in and tasted before we could stop her. Noticing our over exaggerated expressions, she tried to reassure us. "What? I'm not going to double dip."

Evie tried to compose herself. "Do you feel anything?"

"Yeah," Mal added, "Like maybe it could be missing something?"

At that moment, Jay had the ridiculous idea of hitting on her but if she noticed, it didn't show. She ignored him and said, "It could use some chips."

Mal sighed in disappointment. "And those are?"

"Chocolate chips," she explained. "Just the most important food group." She sprinkled some into the mix noticing our confused expressions. "Wait, didn't your parents ever make you guys like chocolate chip cookies?"

We stared at her blankly. "Like when you're feeling sad and they're fresh from the oven with a big old glass of milk and she just laughs and puts everything into perspective and…" She trailed as she watched our spirits plummet even lower. Mal and I shared a look. It wasn't sadness really. It was more like we were wistful.

Lonnie looked around. "Why are you all looking at me like that?"

Mal went back to stirring. "It's just different where we're are from."

"Yeah, I know. I just thought even villains love their kids."

We all looked down then and Lonnie's face paled. "How awful." She went to grab Mal's hand and as she did, a tear sidled down her cheek. With one fellow motion, I swiped the tear from her cheek and dropped it into the mix.

Lonnie touched her cheek and was about to ask me why I just did that. But I just ushered her out saying, "Thanks for listening. You're really cool. Sweet dreams! Bye!" She left in a hurry but it didn't matter to me that much. The operation was a go.

The next day, it was easier to breeze through my classes now that we had a set schedule. Plus, we had one custom brewed love potion for dear old Prince Ben. Once he took a bite out of one of those cookies, he would be in Mal's clutches and we'd all be one step closer to our goal.

After my History of Auradon class, I made my way to the school library to check out a couple of books. If I was going to counter my father's insistent pestering of my life, I was going to need to know what I was dealing with. Discreetly looking through the shelves, I happened upon a couple of books that seemed prominent enough. I just hadn't counted on a certain someone being in the same aisle.

"Lev!" Nadra's eyes raised in surprise. She noted the books in my hand as she made her way to my side. Reaching up to grab the first book, she raised an eyebrow at me as she read aloud, "The Magical Wonders of Puberty?"

My face went beet red and I snatched the book from her fingers and placed it on the nearby shelf. "It's not what you think. I saw it on one of the tables and I was putting it back. That's all."

Nadra's amused expression didn't waver but she didn't call me out on it. Trailing her eyes down the spine of each book I carried, she whistled. "Wow, haven't seen so many books about magic in my life. You really want to read them all? I mean, you still have lunch and the tourney game later. You'll need to eat and save your strength if you want to do good today."

I snorted at that and carried the books to the front desk to check them out. As the librarian hurriedly went through my stack while avoiding my eyes, I turned back to Nadra and scoffed. "I doubt the coach is going to let me or Carlos on the field. I mean, it's only been one day."

Nadra smiled. "I wouldn't worry too much about that. Just like the coach saw something in Jay, he saw something in you too. I doubt you'll be on the sidelines for too long."

I frowned but kept my silence. When the librarian asked for my school card, I complied, put the books in my bag and left the building, with Nadra hot on my heels.

Around lunchtime, I found myself flocking near Mal's locker. Most of the school was getting ready for the big tourney game today. Nadra was being a true friend and giving me a pep talk. By the time I had made it back to my locker, she had almost finished. "And just know that no matter what happens, if we don't win today's game, it'll most likely be your fault. And the team will blame you for their misfortune. And that's all you need to know about tourney. Both the good and bad. Good luck." She smiled happily, gave me a two fingered salute and walked off. That girl…

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Mal putting our plan into action. Ben, the ever trusting fool, didn't think anything was amiss.

Mal managed to sweet talk (I might as well say guilt trip; it's technically the same thing) Ben into taking a bite of one of the cookies. Right as she was asking how they were, the spell started taking effect.

"How do you feel, bro?" Jay asked.

"I feel… I feel… I feel like singing your name. Malllllllllll! MHHHHH!" Mal covered his mouth and still, he tried singing.

"Please tell me this isn't some wanton form of a high school musical. The last thing we need is people breaking out in song as if it's normal." I groaned.

It seems that Nadra was right on the money when she told me that I would be placed in the game. I had been put in during the last half of the game. And I was doing what I did best: confusing the hell out of the other team. I'm not sure what the rules of tourney were regarding magic but by changing the sight of the enemy team, I was able to make them believe I was on their team and more often than not, I was able to get them to pass it to me and display it as me stealing the ball from them.

It worked for a time. Then around the last two minutes, the Coach sent both Jay and Carlos in. I had assumed Carlos was going to be a benchwarmer but it seemed that Jay wanted to end this game with a bang. Jogging up to them, I asked, "What's the plan?"

"Destroy them, what else?"

The first run of Jay's strategy didn't go as planned. Though we had the other team on the ropes and both Jay and Carlos had some nice moments, the other team's goalie was able to block Jay's shot.

There were only twenty two minutes on the clock and it was a no-brainer that this was the final play. When the other team's goalie put the ball back into the game, Jay immediately intercepted the ball and managed to get around the guy blocking him. Noting the opponent making his way towards Ben's blind spot, I charged into him and used my shield to stop his advance. "Ben, go!"

Acting as a buffer force, I kept any and all players off Ben as we sprinted across the field. To our right, Jay and Carlos were using a similar maneuver that managed to get us through the kill one quickly. With ten seconds on the clock, Jay threw the ball at Carlos, who bounced it off his shield and high into the air. Jay yelled for Ben to take the shot and he did. The ball hit the net and the home side erupted in cheers. We won. Our final score: 3-2.

If this wasn't the most shocking thing to happen that day, I didn't know what would be.

"Excuse me, excuse me, can I have your attention, please?" Ben gets on the shooter. "There's something I'd like to say." The crowd's cheers died down and stared at Ben with rapt attention.

"Give me an M!"

"M!" The Crowd shouts back.

"Give me an A!"

"A!"

"Give me an L!"

"L!"

"What's that spell?"

"MAL!"

"Come on, I can't hear you."

"MAL!"

"I love you, Mal. Did I mention that?" Ben asked and that's when everyone broke out into song and I groaned. "Oh my god, this is a high school musical. Called it."