Chapter Eighteen
A/N: I do not own anything other than my OCs when they come out to play. Everything else is owned by either Disney or the Greek Myths.
Holy cats you guys, we're two reviews away from four hundred! I can't believe it, thank you all so much for your continued support! :D
Ghrumfwggrwjdafbhs: Thank you so much!
darkpegasuzz: Oh thank you! Hopefully I don't burn out either but if that happens I might just take a day off from writing. Maybe just watch some Descendants :D
Urmimala Hazra: Honestly I wish they had had a Maleficent and Hades confrontation in D3. They probably couldn't get Kristen Chenoweth back but it still would have been nice to see.
MarvelGirl2005: That's going to be fun to write, I guarantee!
Tracie Adams: Well I mean…they might not be able to get punished legally since they're the High King and Queen but their son sure can punish them!
Katt Kiki: Thank you so much!
Marcus Emrys: *shudders* Thank you for that image, was that revenge for chapter 12 of Choosing Home? Lol.
Guest: I love that idea—and that interaction between Leah and Natalie was perfect! :D
FH: I'm going to be completely honest and say I've never seen the Fox and the Hound but I know who Copper is, he's an adorable hound dog who must be protected so he should still be in Auradon!
DS Rider: That'll be interesting to see, for sure!
Lord of the A.U. FanFiction: Thank you!
danifan3000: I'm going to be honest, you gave me the idea for the beginning of this chapter with your query about the scrolls. I do agree though I think Quasi would be a better sibling than Freddy to Claudine.
twilightgirl587: Poor Akiho indeed, nothing worse than snow in your socks! Lol, hey I hate writing Leah just as much as you hate reading her! Puppy dog eyes really are powerful aren't they? No, I'm sure Leah doesn't have a brain. Quasi does have a child, they're mentioned in Choosing Love.
SapphireKiddTaeyeon: Thank you so much!
Guest: It really is!
shortananmx: Glad you enjoyed the chapter!
Wrighting'GIRL3000: Thank you so much!
BlackWidowAndCapRule: Oh thank you so much! I'm so glad you're enjoying it!
Katie2001: Thank you so much!
AmethystDragon14: Yay! Who doesn't like Esmeralda? :D
OUAT: Oddly enough I could totally see that interaction!
billyandkimfan1994: It's really not!
medical ranger: It really is a smart idea especially since the whole reason Evie's stealing the wand is to keep her dad safe. Plus Snow wouldn't want Daniel to suffer.
Hotgirlow: Thank you so much! :D
jedblack1997: I can definitely see about including a scene like that!
fallondyson: Ask and you'll receive! :D
midnight rose112358: I'm so glad you liked it! Yeah, Evie will have some explaining to do about the party and Mal's rep will take another hit when she finds out about Persephone leaving the Isle.
AthenaArtimis25: Thank you so much! It was not a bad pun, and if it was, who cares? I liked it! :D Oh Freddy Boy's days are numbered that's for sure! And of course you can call me Ginny!
Guest: Anything's possible!
Hades55: It really is, just the image of these VKs chasing chickens and acting like regular kids! Oh trust me, the person behind the messed up food barges thinks they're acting completely heroically. Thank you so much! :D
Hope you all enjoy this chapter! Let me know what you think! :D
Beast sighed and looked at the scroll in his hand. "Out of curiosity, how many scrolls are there?"
"Well, counting the one in your hand dad, I got one hundred and three," Ben said. "We've read fourteen scrolls, so we've got eighty nine more to go."
Before Beast could answer, the floating eyeball appeared once more and began to spin. Once the spinning subsided, all that was left was another scroll that landed on Beast's head.
"One hundred and four," Ben corrected himself.
"We're going to be here a while then," Beast sighed and unfurled his scroll.
Mal woke up the next day feeling slightly nervous, though she quickly tamped down that feeling. It wasn't like she could guarantee success; if Hades…if her dad said no to Jay getting a free meal, they wouldn't have any way to tempt Jay into joining the crew.
"I'd have gotten him to say yes Mal," Persephone told her, giving her daughter a small smile.
Scurrying out of her room and quickly leaving Maleficent's castle, Mal made her way to the Underworld. It was early enough to assume that Hades was still there rather than at the restaurant.
"Safe bet. After all, Uncle Hades lives there and doesn't seem too fond of the other villains," Hyllus nodded.
Hades shook his head. Uma calling him 'uncle' he could handle because it'd been years and he'd grown fond of the little squidling. Hercules' kids calling him 'uncle' though? That was just weird.
I'll try there if dad's not in the Underworld. Gods, it's strange…referring to someone as 'dad' even if it's in my head. I mean strange in a good way though. Like days when the cloud cover isn't as dark.
Beast wasn't going to lie, reading Mal's thought was almost like a punch to the stomach. He'd never have that experience, of hearing his little girl call him 'dad' for the first time…he hated to admit it but in that moment he was jealous of Lord Hades.
The only reason she had spent the night in her 'room' at Maleficent's castle was because she didn't want to raise the dragon's suspicions in case she had heard about her confrontation with Evie. The last thing Maleficent would want would be to be made to look bad and her daughter having a confrontation with the child of someone under her control?
"I…I didn't say anything," Evie said, her voice soft as everyone turned to look at her. "Mother handled the invitations to my party anyway."
"Uh huh," Mal scoffed.
Mal held back a shudder at the thought of what kind of 'lesson' Maleficent would teach her for that.
"She even tries and she'll deal with me," Hades promised, growling slightly.
"You'd have to beat me to it dear," Persephone told him.
Aurora looked over at Phillip Sr. "No sword offer?"
"I'm reigning in my urge to kill," Phillip Sr. said. "No child should have to fear their parents' reactions to them getting into an argument of all things."
I should have just stayed the night in the clubhouse, Mal thought as she walked the streets of the Isle. Sure we don't have a bed or heat there but it's better than getting almost no sleep because you don't know when the dragon'll strike.
Ariel felt her heart break as she heard that. While she was happy that her little cousin had a safe place where Maleficent couldn't get to her, the idea that Mal would rather sleep on the floor than on a bed…
Thankfully, a somewhat tired Mal meant a scowl was presented to the other members of the Isle. Meaning she wasn't stopped by anyone on her way to the Underworld.
"Not even Freddy?" Harry asked.
"I don't think he was out that day," Mal told him.
"What about Zevon?" Jay added.
"…I think I shoved him out of my way about halfway to the Underworld."
"Good," Uma said with a smirk.
Shaking her head as she opened the door, Mal couldn't help the small feeling of relief she felt as she stepped inside.
"Hello?" Mal called softly, walking further in.
"Mal?" Persephone called, walking out to greet her. "Hello sweetie."
"Hi Lady Steph," Mal said, using Persephone's proper title. Maleficent still insisted that her lackeys call her 'her excellency' sometimes, Mal didn't know if she'd be required to do the same with Persephone. Better safe than sorry.
Persephone sighed. She knew there had to be a reason why Mal had referred to her by 'Lady' Steph the first few months they knew each other but she didn't think it had to do with Maleficent.
"Just 'Steph' is fine, Mal," Persephone said, giving the young girl a sad smile. "Your father's in the den. Just go on in, he'll be happy to see you."
"I'm always happy to see my kids," Hades said with a nod of his head.
Mal nodded and made her way to the den. Hades, it seemed, was deep in thought as he hadn't even heard Mal come up.
"What were you thinking about?" Poseidon asked.
"It's been over ten years, you think I still remember?" Hades told him. That was a lie; of course he remembered. He'd just gotten finished weighing another group of kids' souls and was thinking how lucky he was that Mal probably would never be in that group. Or at least it would be a long time before she was.
"Fath…dad?" Mal asked softly, correcting herself mid-word as she was prepared to call Hades by the old title. Saying it out loud for the first time, dad was definitely the better choice.
"Definitely agree there," Neal nodded, grinning at Mal.
No reaction seemed to come from Hades, and Mal assumed that the God hadn't heard her. Summoning all the confidence she could that came from strutting around the Isle like she owned it (one of the few perks of being Maleficent's daughter), Mal walked into the den and plopped on the sofa next to her dad.
"So a regular Tuesday then?" Hadie chuckled.
"You know, you really need to serve something different at your restaurant," Mal said, her topic choice surprising her but she decided to roll with it.
"That's how you broached the subject?" Uma asked.
"Hey I was five," Mal shrugged. "I wasn't as well versed in the art of subtlety."
"Oh really?" Hades asked, looking over at her. If he was surprised to see her, it didn't show on his face. "Well what did you have in mind? There's not much available to us other than fish and I'd rather not feed the people of the Isle stuff sent from the boat. I'm cruel but not that cruel."
Belle sighed and Beast closed his eyes briefly at the reminder of what the people on the Isle were forced to eat. All because they hadn't checked in.
Ben looked at Akiho and nodded. They were going to get that footage and see what was happening. No matter what.
"What about chicken?" Mal asked, a seemingly innocent tone to her voice. "Then people wouldn't constantly be comparing yours and Ursula's food. For the record, Uma would like that—apparently, your food's better."
"What?! Come on cuz, we both know that's a lie! I mean Uncle Hades' food is good but his fish is not better!"
There was no love lost between Uma and her mother but she would be damned if the restaurant got slammed because of this.
That was a total lie, no one on the Isle would risk irritating the daughter of the God of the Sea but Hades would never know. Besides, there was no harm in stroking the ego of a God; even if that God was one's dad.
"So, I'd never know huh Mali?" Hades chuckled.
"Good idea in theory Mal," Hades said with a smirk. "Just one tiny little problem. How exactly do you propose I get my hands on one of those feathered pests?"
"Why am I now picturing Pain and Panic walking along the streets of the Isle with a net?" Ashaki chuckled.
"Probably because that's what they did when they had to capture Abu," Emir pointed out, having grown up on that story.
"Oh my crew's on it," Mal said with a smirk of her own. "Or at least we're close to. Harry and Uma found some of Old man Slade's chickens in town yesterday and we tried to catch one. They're too fast though so we're going to bring in Jay."
"I thought you don't admit weaknesses?" Phillip Jr. asked.
Normally, Mal would have snapped back but she could tell that there was no malice in the boy's question. Just curiosity.
"He's my dad," she shrugged. "He and mom are probably the only adults it's safe to admit a weakness to."
Hades couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at that. Granted Jay wasn't an unknown entity but his father was connected to Maleficent.
"Really brother? Judging a boy based on who his father is?" Zeus asked, raising an eyebrow.
Maybe I shouldn't worry so much. I'm doing what the Boreadon elite did when they set up this Isle, condemning Jay simply because of who his father is.
"Going to accuse me of being a hypocrite again Zeusey?" Hades shot back.
I'm not condemning the boy. I just want Mal to be careful. Hook and Ursula may be slightly lower on the Isle totem pole but at least they're not in league with the dragon.
Poseidon sighed. He could definitely relate to Hades' want of keeping his daughter safe. It was one of the reasons why Poseidon didn't speak to Zeus for a month after Athena died. It may have been irrational, since there wasn't much that could protect against a ship smashing against rocks, but if it could have saved Triton from that heartbreak, the gift of immortality would have been welcomed.
"So if we bring you a chicken, can we get another option for the menu?" Mal asked, unaware of the internal dilemma being raged in Hades' brain.
Tiana couldn't help but smile a little, both at the childish innocence only a five year old could have and at the prospect of another restauranteur adding something to his menu.
"If you like Lord Hades, I have some recipes for chicken I'd be happy to give you," she said.
"The offer's…the offer's appreciated Queen Tiana," Hades said after recovering from his shock.
Naveen shook his head. "You two can talk shop later. For now, let's just listen to this scroll and hope the image of Facilier and Ursula doesn't enter back into my head."
"Just to make sure I understand, you're actually going to bring another member into your gang just so I make something different at the restaurant?" Hades asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well when you put it that way Uncle Hades, it sounds insane," Uma chuckled.
Mal sighed. "Dad, if I keep eating fish, I will turn into a fish."
Poseidon shook his head. "Nothing wrong with that, though if you're interested I'd be happy to help."
"Or so would my father," Ariel spoke up. He could easily turn them into mermaids for a day and turn them back into humans. What? You actually thought that trident in the museum was real? Why would he allow the item that allowed power over all the oceans to be easily stolen? When it was in Atlantica, it couldn't be removed from its pedestal unless it was by him or one of his descendants.
This time, Hades did notice the change in title but chose not to comment on it; the only sign he noticed was a small smile on his face. "Mal, I don't think that it's possible for you to become a fish. Not unless you ask your Uncle Poseidon to do it. As for Jay, I know he's a good thief and could more than likely catch one of those rats with wings. But his dad is in league with your mother. You really want to make one of her minion's son your minion justfor the sake of some chicken?"
"Just because Jafar's in league with Maleficent doesn't mean Jay would be," Aladdin spoke up. "A child is not their parent…"
He trailed off as he caught sight of Hades' knowing look and a flush came to his face as the former street rat realized he'd made the same argument Lord Hades had been making while reading these scrolls.
"I mean Princess Aurora is pretty much proof of that!" Ashaki spoke up.
Jasmine sighed. "I feel I should scold her but…is she wrong though?"
"Dear, aren't you the one always saying that it doesn't make sense for the Auradon elite to keep the kids locked on the Isle just because of who their parents are?" Persephone asked, walking into the den.
Meg chuckled. "She's not wrong. After all, you've been saying that since we came in here for this reading."
"Yeah dad," Mal nodded. "If it's wrong for Boreadon to do it to the kids, then why should I do it to Jay? Besides, from what little I know about Jay, he may need the gang as much as he'd be useful for us."
"A true alliance then," David said with a small, sad, smile.
Hades looked over at Persephone and sighed. "Alright. But be careful. There may not be many people on the Isle that I trust completely, but at least Hook and Ursula aren't in league with Maleficent. In fact, I may trust Ursula a bit more than I'd trust others on the Isle just because she's a relation. That being said, I still trust her as far as I can throw her."
"How far can you throw her?" Melody asked.
"Not far enough to trust her," Hades replied.
"Rambling dear," Persephone said, sneakily taking a photo of the two of them sitting on the sofa; Hades having turned his head back toward Mal so he was looking at his daughter instead of at Persephone. Otherwise he'd have seen Persephone take the photo.
"I thought I saw a flash of light!" Hades exclaimed.
"Right," Hades nodded. "The point I was trying to make was that I don't want you getting hurt just because you brought a new player into your gang."
"I wouldn't hurt Mal!" Jay exclaimed, a hurt look flashing across his face before he could stop it.
"I know that now," Hades told him. "I didn't know that then."
"Don't worry about me dad," Mal said, still surprised at the ease in which she called Hades by the title.
Maybe it helps that he actually acts like a parent—like Milah did with Harry and how Facilier acts with Uma.
Harry sighed softly at the mention of his mother. It may have been about fourteen years since her death but it still hurt to think about her. Thankfully, Naveen's confused and slightly disgusted mutters about Facilier and Ursula distracted him.
Which was exactly what Naveen had planned on. He had seen the hurt look on the young boy's face and so played up his reaction. Oh sure, he was still disgusted and confused but he could talk about that with Tiana.
"I'm your father, I'm always going to worry about you."
Mal smiled slightly as she got up. Jay wasn't going to come find her after all and she still needed to get Uma and Harry. "By the way, the next time Jay comes by the restaurant, he's going to get the same deal as Uma and Harry since he'll be in the crew."
"You were confident about that," Lucy chuckled.
"Of course I was," Mal smirked.
"Don't count your chickens Mal. Jay could say no."
"Hades, was that a pun?" Hera sighed.
"Why would it be…oh, because they're going to catch chickens," Hades said. "Hmm, I dunno. Might have been."
"We'll see," Mal smirked. "I'm going to go get Harry and Uma, we're going to go make the offer to Jay today. I just wanted to make sure it was confirmed that Jay would have the same offer Harry and Uma got before we asked Jay to join us."
"Smart, cover your bases," Eugene nodded.
"Of course he does Mal," Hades chuckled. "I still don't want you getting ahead of yourself there. Like I said, Jay could always say no."
Mal just shook her head and smirked a little. "Only an insane person would turn down an offer like this. Jay's a thief, he's not crazy."
"Jury's still out on that!" Harry called.
"No, I'm pretty sure you're the crazy one of us," Jay chuckled.
With that, Mal made her way out of the Underworld back onto the streets of the Isle. Wasting no time, she scurried to her clubhouse where Harry and Uma were waiting.
"Look, girls, are we sure about this?" Harry asked as Mal walked up, he and Uma sitting on the milk cartons that passed as furniture. "I mean, really, is there anything Jay would bring to the crew that I don't?"
"Devilishly good looks?" Jay asked with a smirk.
"So my question still stands," Harry said, chuckling at Jay's astonished look.
"Jay's a master thief," Mal said as she made her way over to them. "He could get us stuff we need, maybe even get us some good stuff from the barge if we don't feel like eating from Ursula's or Lord Hades' places."
Jay puffed up his chest at hearing Mal call him a master thief at the age of six.
Emir shook his head and poked Jay in the head. "I thought your head was getting a little too big. Wanted to deflate it before it took you off the ground," he said upon receiving a glare from the other thief.
"Master thief? He's six!" Harry growled. "That's like saying I'm a master pirate. Besides, all Jay steals is valuables. Nothing we could actually use for day to day life."
"Um…isn't food something you need from day to day?" Dizzy asked.
Mal and Uma stared at him for a second.
"Harry, we're going to ask him to steal a chicken," Uma stated. "A chicken is food. How do we not use that in everyday life?"
"Exactly!" Celia nodded.
"Not what I meant," Harry shook his head. "You get a chicken, you kill it, you eat it, it's gone. One use item."
"Not really," Celia spoke up. "Feathers could be used to plump up the pillows or add warmth to a blanket, the guts are good for talking to your friends on the other side or so dad tells me."
No one wanted to comment on the fact that she knew that off the top of her head.
Uma sighed. "True. Besides Mal, I was thinking. Jay could turn down the offer. After all, we're still younger than him. That might matter more than what we're offering."
"Younger but offering access to food," Emma said with a sigh. "I think that might outweigh the age concern."
"Uma, we're offering him food security and a stable place to sleep," Mal stated. "I've been in his dad's shop a few times with Maleficent. Jay's 'bed' is a blanket under the TV shelf in his dad's shop. I think he'd be mad to turn us down just because we're younger than him."
"Thanks Mal," Jay muttered as he looked away from Aladdin's shocked look. The last thing Jay wanted was his pity.
"Hey, do you think I knew my words were going to be recorded and then discussed with a bunch of Boreadon elites?" Mal asked him.
"You know, with his muscle, I bet in a couple of years we could get a bed in here," Uma said with a small grin, slowly getting back on board. "It'd be better than sleeping on the ground here—even if the blankets do help a little."
Esmeralda sighed softly, Phoebus wrapping an arm around her shoulders in comfort. To hear children living like that…
"At least they're going to start to come off," Phoebus whispered. "Remember, today was the start of Prince Ben's initiative."
"Yes but Phoebus, it's just four kids. All the rest of them are suffering," Esmeralda whispered back.
"Let's at least make him the offer," Mal suggested and Harry rolled his eyes.
"Fine," he muttered. "I still don't see why we'd need him though."
"Ah past-Harry, do you eat your words?" Uma smirked.
Harry chuckled. "Yes cap'n."
Mal shook her head but gave Harry a small smile. "You might like having another boy around more than you think, Harry."
"If you say so cap'n but I doubt it," Harry said as he got up. The bruise on his chin from his attempt to catch the chicken the other day seemed to be darker and Mal couldn't help but wonder if Harry had tried to catch one of the feathered beasts on his own just to prove that they didn't need Jay.
Mal and Uma shook their heads while Jay rolled his eyes. Honestly, there was no one more stubborn than Harry.
Stubborn idiot, she thought as she rolled her eyes.
"I stand by that thought by the way!" Mal stated.
"Come on, we have a thief to find," Uma said, getting up herself.
"Shouldn't be too hard. I mean, doesn't he almost never leave his daddy's store?" Harry asked with a slight mocking tone to his voice.
"You got a problem with that Harry?" Jay asked, glaring slightly to hide the hurt. He knew they weren't friends back then but he didn't think Harry would have mocked him for working in his dad's shop.
"Says the boy who also hardly leaves his papa's store," Mal shot back, rolling her eyes at him. "Now come on."
"Thank you Mal!" Jay said.
"I was five and we barely knew each other!" Harry exclaimed.
"Fine," Harry grumbled as the three of them left the clubhouse and made their way toward Jafar's shop. Mal led the way, being the member of the gang who'd actually been to Jafar's shop before. Plus, as Maleficent's daughter, it would make negotiations go smoother should they need to be done.
"Power is power, to steal a quote from the Dragon," Mal shrugged. "There's no denying that fact and if Jafar was there, he'd be less likely to throw us out if he saw me."
"Morning Jay," Mal said, throwing open the door to the shop. "I have a proposition for you."
"Well that's certainly one way to start a conversation," Evan chuckled.
Did she know exactly what the word meant? Nope. But she had seen it in one of the few books the Isle had and it was the same situation as she was in right now. It seemed like the right time to use it.
"You used it correctly," Belle nodded. "But…if they lock the library how did you…?"
"Someone throws out books," Mal said with a shrug. "At first it was just picture books but then chapter books started showing up."
Emir and Akiho looked over at Ben who was quite adamantly avoiding their eyes. He wasn't throwing them out, but putting them in the donate bin in their castle. He had five copies of one book, he didn't need all that!
"Fish for Brains wants another copy of the mad book with the freakish cat who wears a hat," Harry chimed in. "His brothers destroyed it."
"Go on," Jay said, leaning on the counter as Mal, Harry and Uma made their way into the shop. "When the daughter of Maleficent says that, it's bound to be good."
"And I was right," Jay nodded.
"I believe you may have some skills that would be handy for our crew," Mal said, crossing her arms over her chest.
"So what you're saying is you need a thief?" Jay asked, smirking at Harry who was standing behind Mal. "But you already have a pirate."
"Not really a good idea if you want them on your side," Elle pointed out.
"Shut it, you run down trinket snatcher!" Harry growled.
"Also not a good idea," Melody said, echoing her sister.
"Harry!" Mal snapped in warning. The last thing anyone needed was for this meeting to get back to Maleficent and a fight between the son of one of her minions and the son of Hook would definitely get back to her in someway. Harry glowered but backed down a little.
"Good, the last thing you kids need to do is deal with a fight," Eric sighed in relief. He didn't know how stocked the shelves were but if one of the kids got hurt because some merchandise fell on them…
"What we need, Jay, are your swift hands," Uma chimed in. "We think they might be good at catching one of the chickens that have made their way into town."
"What's in it for me?" Jay asked. "You're telling me there's not one member of your little trio who can catch one of those feathered fiends?"
"No and trying to do it just results in pain to this day!" Uma exclaimed. "I swear Jay, you just wanted to hear us admit we couldn't do it."
Jay shrugged. "Hearing the daughter of Maleficent say she needed my services was a bit of an ego boost, I'm not going to lie."
"So you're saying you wouldn't be interested at free meals at Lord Hades' restaurant?" Mal asked with a smirk. "Not to mention a guaranteed place to sleep that isn't under a shelf?"
"At first you had his curiosity but I think now you have his attention," Emir chuckled, trying to ignore the rage he felt at someone being forced to sleep under a shelf.
Jay paused for a slight second before looking back at Mal. "Go on," he said. "I just need to help you catch a chicken and I get all that?"
"It does sound too good to be true," Kitty nodded.
"You'll have to help us move a bed into the clubhouse at some point," Mal said. "And you'll have to actually get a chicken for Lord Hades to use at his restaurant. Plus anything we think we might need that you can snatch, it's ours."
"That's not a bad deal," Hades said. "Though I would point out that Jay benefits more than you do."
"That was the idea," Mal said with a shrug. "Anything too evenly balanced or favoring us, Jay might have said no."
"Shouldn't be an issue," Jay said with a small nod. "I can catch one of those feathered feasts with my eyes closed."
He hopped over the counter so he was standing in front of them. It helped that the part of the counter Jay had been standing in front of was significantly lower than the rest of the counter.
"Oh come on Mal! Just ruin my coolness factor!" Jay grumbled.
"Just know that your list can't interfere with my dad's quota," Jay told Mal, who nodded. Jafar wasn't the most subtle and would often tell Jay his quota to fill for the day when they were at Maleficent's so Mal was quite familiar with it.
"Quota?" Aziz asked, looking at Jay.
Jay shrugged. "Dad's got a daily quota of stuff I need to steal for the shop," he said.
"What happens if you don't make that quota?" Emir asked, though he wasn't sure if he truly wanted to know.
"I'm sure you'll find out," Mal said, answering for Jay.
"Do we have a deal?" Mal asked softly.
"We've got a deal," Jay said with a nod before smirking. "Oh cheer up Hook. One might think you weren't happy to have another guy around."
Harry rolled his eyes, glowering a little but not reacting under the watchful eye of Uma.
Oh Gods, even at five, Uma was the only one he'd truly listen to, Mal thought. Maybe these scrolls will get him out of his denial. That'd be something positive at least.
"Oh, and to be in the crew, you'd better be prepared to learn how to sword fight if you don't already," Mal added.
"I know a bit," Jay said with a nod. "But I'm not pirate level."
"Oh we are so sparring when we get out of here," Emir said with a smirk.
Harry shook his head. "Get your own sparring partner!"
"I have one! His name's Akiho, oddly obsessed with reindeer."
"Then keep him! Jay's my sparring partner!"
Jay snorted. "I feel like I'm in the middle of a custody battle," he muttered to Mal.
"Well, well, well. Something we can teach you," Harry said with a small smirk.
"Bring it Hook," Jay told him, a smirk on his face.
Harry smirked. "And how long did it take you before you could beat me again? That's right, I think you were twelve."
"Oh, see? You two are already getting along," Mal said with a smirk of her own. "Now, think you can actually get one of those feathered pests?"
"With my eyes closed," Jay told her. "Dad's trained me to sneak since I could walk after all."
"Honestly why put in that work?" Audrey sniffed. "All they are are filthy rats with wings."
"They're also food," Phillip Jr. told her.
"I'll believe it when I can see it," Harry grumbled.
Jay smirked. "Come on then. You'll get your own show," he said as he walked out of the shop toward the town square. Harry rolled his eyes but followed Jay, the girls trailing them.
"This should be good," Ashaki grinned.
"Now, first thing I need to know is where the thing I'm supposed to be grabbing usually is," Jay said.
"They're normally by Old man Slade's place but obviously they've escaped from there," Mal told him. "Also, they're stupid chickens so who knows where they'd get to."
"That'll make it harder," Aladdin sighed. "Not to mention, you might not be the only ones who realized the chickens had escaped."
"True but we're the only ones who had a Jay," Mal said with a smirk.
"So it's a waiting game to see if we can find one?" Jay asked. As Mal nodded, Jay gave a small sigh, almost inaudible to anyone not listening closely. That made it a lot harder. His mom had taught him that having a mark made stealing anything a lot easier than leaving it to chance.
"Your mom was a decent thief. That's some good advice," Eugene said, giving Jay a small smile.
"How can you—?"
"Leah, I was a thief before I met Rapunzel," Eugene said, glaring at the older Queen. "I can recognize when another thief is good even if I might not condone it anymore."
Thankfully, they didn't have to wait long as they came across three chickens in an alley close to Hades' restaurant.
"Watch and learn," Jay said with a small smirk. This was perfect, since there was nowhere for the chicken to run, all Jay would have to do is back them up against a wall and grab one. There was more than one of them too, which only tripled his chances of grabbing one. As he crept into the alley, Jay shook his head slightly. He couldn't have planned this better if he'd tried.
Glancing at the chickens, who still hadn't noticed they weren't alone, Jay sized them up; trying to see which one of them was the biggest. If the chicken was going to go to Lord Hades, it had better be plenty plump.
"Or as plump as they can be being from the Isle," Jay amended his past thoughts.
That one, in the middle, Jay thought. The one that's…is he trying to eat a rock?
"…doesn't that sound like that chicken Miguel's mom always talks about?" Emir asked.
"Hei-hei!" Ben nodded.
"How did he get on the Isle?"
"Maybe he had kids who ended up on the Isle?" Akiho ventured.
"Come here you," Jay said as his hand shot out, grabbing the now squawking chicken by the neck and picking it up. "No one wants rocks with their meat!"
"See? What'd I'd tell you?" Jay asked, still holding onto the chicken by the neck as he turned to face the others. "Now does Lord Hades want this thing alive or does anyone have a dagger?"
Alexandria gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. "You're going to stab it! Isn't there a nicer way to kill it?"
"…no, no I can't. It's like killing Hadie's innocence, I can't," Mal muttered, shaking her head.
"I'll deliver it," Mal said, walking up to Jay. "Besides, Lord Hades has knives in the kitchen of his restaurant he can used to turn the bird into food. It's not too far from here actually. By Lady Tremaine's hair salon."
Cinderella shook her head. "I'm sorry, it's still hard to believe my step-mother has a hair salon."
"She's also a midwife!" Dizzy spoke up. "Aunt Ana is too! Mom's not but Granny needs someone to help watch the store if she has to run out to deliver a baby."
Taking the chicken from Jay, Mal added, "stop by whenever you want Jay. Just tell him you're with me and you should get your meal without any problems."
Jay nodded and turned to look at Harry. "Believe me now Hook?" He asked, raising an eyebrow and smirking a little.
"I told you I'd believe it when I saw it," Harry sighed. "Well I saw it so I have to believe it."
"And I'm glad I did!" Harry grinned, wrapping an arm around Jay's shoulders.
Jay nodded, the smirk still on his face as Mal walked off. A question had been in the back of Jay's mind but he hadn't wanted to ask it while Mal was still there. After all, she was Maleficent's daughter. The last thing Jay wanted to do was make things tense with her mom and his dad.
After all, if I got dad kicked out of Maleficent's crew, he'd probably lock me out of the house for a month, Jay thought with a small sigh.
"Hey, what's Mal's deal with Lord Hades?" Jay asked, finally satisfied that Mal was out of earshot. "I'd wager he doesn't just give out free food to anyone yet Mal thinks we can just walk in no problem?"
Ashaki chuckled. "The funny thing about that is the fact that Lord Hades gives out free food regardless yet he has a reputation for not giving out free food."
Uma and Harry looked at each other and shrugged. "Dunno," Uma said. "But it's the truth. We just tell him that we're with Mal and he gives us our food, no problem."
"All she tells us if we do question it since she's Lord Hades' errand rat is it's part of her agreement with him," Harry added with a shrug. "We don't question it often since who questions easy food?"
"I'll tell you who would question it! The Gaston twins! They've got less brains than Gil and that's saying something!" Harry stated.
"Gil's not too bad," Carlos said and grew quiet as Harry glared at him.
"Harry, stand down," Uma shook her head. "The pup's right, Gil's harmless."
"But most people aren't in the business of giving free food to their errand rats, let alone their errand rat's crew," Uma pointed out.
"Most people aren't the God of the Dead," Hyllus pointed out. "So it doesn't make much sense to compare them."
Jay shrugged. It was kinda weird but like Harry said, if it got him free meals by being in Mal's gang, he wasn't going to complain.
"That's because you've got a brain in your head unlike some people I could mention!"
"Oh, keep the fact that you know Mal's Uncle Hades errand rat to yourself," Uma said. "If Mal…if her mother found out, she might not be too happy."
"And who would I tell?" Jay asked. "Freddy hates me just as much as he hates you two because of dad's wish to become a genie, Zevon creeps me the hell out, the Gaston twins are dumber than a bag of rocks, and Gil's in our crew!"
"Maleficent not being too happy at me being an errand rat would be an understatement Uma," Mal sighed, ignoring the growls that resumed upon hearing that.
"I mean, the daughter of Maleficent as a lowly errand rat?" Harry added, shaking his head.
"Hey, there are a lot worse things if it gets you food around here," Jay pointed out.
"Yeah like a certain practice we won't mention because of the younger kids," Uma muttered.
He hadn't missed Uma nearly calling Maleficent by her name but he wasn't going to comment. No use in rocking the boat this early.
"That's…that's always a good idea," Jane nodded.
"We know that," Uma said. "But what Harry's saying is that there's no way her excellency would let Mal be an errand rat."
"Why do you call her that?" Audrey sniffed.
"Well one, because that's what your grandmother called her the day of your mom's christening. You know, the one your grandparents failed to invite the Dragon to," Mal pointed out.
"And two, it's a good way to avoid slipping up and calling her 'Maleficent' to her face," Uma stated.
"She might not know," Jay pointed out.
"Jay, it's the Dragon," Harry shook his head. "She knows everything."
"And she's not going to, right?" Harry asked, a slight growl to his voice. He knew what the dragon was capable of, having mopped up Mal a couple of times after a 'lesson' from Maleficent. The last thing he wanted was for Mal to get hurt because they had trusted the wrong person.
Mal couldn't help but shoot Harry a small smile upon hearing that. She knew how much Harry hated change but she never thought one of the reasons he'd been so resistant to bringing in Jay was because he didn't want her getting hurt.
"You're like my sister Mal," Harry said, seeing the smile.
"She'd be your younger sister too," Uma chuckled. "Since you were born in April and Mal's in June."
Ben perked up. "Really? What day? We might share a birthday!"
"That's classified and the month would have been too if someone wasn't a blabber mouth," Mal stated, glaring at Uma.
Phillip Sr. turned to Aurora. "Please Briar, my sword's literally not doing anything—."
"Phillip, you're a grown man. If you want to go risk your life by stabbing Maleficent, I can't stop you," Aurora shook her head in amusement.
"What would her excellency know? Nothing that I know, that's for sure," Jay said with a small smirk.
"Good answer."
"I'm not dumb," Jay stated. "First off, me blabbing to the Dragon would just get me known as a blabbermouth. Not the best rep on the Isle. Second off, you all just let me in your crew."
Jay looked around, more than a little willingly to change the subject. "So, are we just going to hang around this alley until Mal gets back?"
"That's a good way to get jumped," Uma snorted.
"We could start heading over to the restaurant?" Uma suggested. "That way we can get the best table and the best portions when the chicken's done."
"Uma, no one ever eats at Lord Hades' restaurant. We'd have our pick of tables," Harry reminded her.
"Which means that you can still pick the best one," Tiana said.
"So? We'll still be able to pick the best table."
Harry shrugged. "Sounds good to me. Harriet's on fish duty anyway so Papa won't notice if I'm gone."
Harry bit back a sigh as he heard that. You've got Lord Hades, he told himself. You don't need the Captain.
"I never turn down food," Jay said with a nod, joining them as they start to move out toward the restaurant.
"You'd be an idiot to turn down food," Jay amended his previous statement.
That's certainly the truth, Aladdin and Eugene thought.
He couldn't help but smile a little. He had been pretty much a loner since no one wanted to hang out with him. The perils of being a thief and having a dad who ran a pawn shop. No one wanted to risk their stuff, what little they had, winding up on Jafar's shelves.
Lonnie frowned—it wasn't Jay's fault his dad made him steal! He shouldn't have been ostracized for that!
It was nice, being in a group that wanted his thieving ability.
The three of them made their way to the restaurant, where Mal already had a table claimed.
"He said it should be about fifteen minutes," Mal told them as they sat down. "He does need to kill and cut up the thing, but that was about maybe ten minutes ago."
"That poor chicken!" Alexandria gasped.
"Do you want to be the one to tell her that happens to all chickens or should I?" Kitty muttered to Lucy.
"Let Chad be the one to do that," Lucy shook her head.
"We can wait," Jay said with a nod.
Mal grinned and looked over at the former lone boy of her crew. "So Harry, finally on board with Jay in the crew?"
"You know it just occurred to me," Mal said. "Weren't Henry and the others part of our crew by that point?"
Uma shook her head. "I didn't start leading that bigger crew until we were seven, Mali."
"Ah, right."
"I still don't see why we need him but if he's useful in getting food, I won't protest," Harry said with a slight glower.
Mal rolled her eyes. "There's safety in numbers Harry. Every kid knows that. Besides, he got us that chicken. Would you rather have Freddy boy's gang have that? Thanks to Jay, we eat. They don't."
"Oh what a beautiful thought that is!" Harry said with a smirk.
"But…doesn't everyone deserve food?" Macaria asked, looking around with a confused look on her face.
"Oh I'm sure Freddy finds a way to get it but at least this way we get better food," Mal explained.
Harry nodded with a small smirk. "That is certainly something I can get behind."
"Hey, as long as you're fine with me in the crew, I don't care what your reasoning is," Jay smirked.
"Welcome to the Rotten Four, Jay," Mal said with a smirk as their food came out. It was faster than they had expected but then again, Hades was a God. Who were they to question him?
"Hey, you kids can question me all you want," Hades chuckled.
"And we do," Mal smirked.
Jay didn't respond but dug in to the dish in front of him. The others didn't care, as they did the same thing.
"Gods, if Jay keeps catching chickens like this, we'll have to rename ourselves the fat four," Uma said as she finished her meal. "How is it Uncle Hades was only doing fish before yet his chicken tastes so good?"
"My thing is…how do the chickens keep multiplying if we keep catching them?" Harry asked. "We catch them probably once a day yet they just roam without a care in the world."
"We live on an Island filled with people who're supposed to be dead and that's what you question?" Jay asked him.
Mal nodded, her dad was a surprisingly good cook. You wouldn't think a God would be but Hades proved that wasn't the case.
"Why thank you Mal," Hades chuckled.
"So other than catching chickens, what do you guys do for fun?" Jay asked, not used to being part of a gang.
"Sword fight and play pranks on anyone who's not one of the four of us," Uma told him.
"Yeah, come by the clubhouse tomorrow," Mal said. "Harry'll get you started on sword fighting. We'll all be able to practice at the same time now since we've got an even number."
"So we'll get to see more sword fighting?" Robin asked with a grin on her face.
"I might like her," Mal muttered to Uma.
"Me too, any Princess who likes sword fighting is worth knowing," Uma nodded.
"Mal, don't think I'll go easy on you," Uma said with a small smirk as Harry shot a smirk of his own toward Jay.
"Bring it on, octo-girl!"
"Oh, you're going to regret that, dragon breath," Uma taunted with a small chuckle.
"So what time tomorrow?" Jay asked, cutting into the banter. "I don't think dad's got me watching the store so I should be free."
Jasmine shook her head. A six year old shouldn't be expected to watch a store, especially not unsupervised!
Mal, Harry and Uma looked at each other. "Noon?" Mal suggested.
"That works," Jay nodded.
"How about one of us swing by one of our food stops and pick up lunch, we can eat in the clubhouse after sword practice?" Mal said.
"I can stop by mama's restaurant if no one has an issue with fish," Uma said.
"I'll eat anything," Jay shrugged with a small smile.
"You can't exactly survive the Isle being a picky eater," Jay added.
"But…what about allergies?" Ben asked as the adults looked on in shock.
Mal tapped her chin. "Allergies, allergies…oh that would explain why some of the kids get all puffy before they—."
"Not in front of Celia, Mal," Uma stated.
"I wasn't going to get graphic Uma! Hadie's here too, remember."
Oh dear Gods, Beast thought in horror. That's…that's a horrible way to go. And these are children! With no hospital, there'd be no epipen to relieve the reactions…!
"Oh, we're going to get along just fine," Uma told him, smirking a little.
"Fish is fine, Uma," Mal said while Harry nodded.
Uma nodded. "I'll bring the food to the clubhouse then. We can do the sword fighting after we eat since mama's stuff is better warm anyway."
"You know, if you ignore the sword fighting, it's almost like when we'd go to your tree house when mom and dad would visit Arendelle," Emir muttered to Akiho.
"That's right, we'd always pack a picnic basket! Though Ben would try to fill it with books instead of sandwiches," Akiho chuckled as he muttered back.
"I can hear you two!" Ben said, shaking his head.
Harry grinned. "You know, I bet in a couple of years when we're a bit older, we could manage getting a sofa or a bed in there.
"We did manage it," Harry smirked.
"How?" Emma asked.
"You'll just have to wait and see, lass," Harry told her and then winced as Uma elbowed him in the arm.
"You plan on keeping me around that long, Hook?" Jay teased.
"You plan on staying around that long?" Harry shot back as Mal and Uma rolled their eyes. Harry would clearly need some time to adjust to the new dynamic of the gang.
"I don't like change," Harry stated, crossing his arms.
"We know," Uma, Mal, and Jay said; their voices flat.
"A sofa or bed would be nice," Uma agreed. "But right now, it'd just take up room. Room we'd need for sword fighting. We want to be the best after all."
Mulan nodded. "If you want to do something, be the best at it."
"Okay, okay, 'savior of China' we get it," Shang chuckled.
"We will be the best," Mal corrected with a slight smirk. "We'll be so powerful that no one will mess with us. We'll be rotten. To the core."
"See? They even say they're rotten!" Leah exclaimed.
"They're also five and six respectively," Phoebus pointed out. "When Zephyr was five, he wanted to be a triceratops."
Uma and Harry nodded with a smirk on their faces.
"Shouldn't be a problem," Jay said with a shrug.
"So…anyone want to go make smoke bombs and throw 'em at Evil Queen's daughter?" Mal asked, keeping her voice low in case one of the Evil Queen's allies came in. Hey, Queenie may have been allies with Maleficent but that didn't mean she didn't want to make her own play for ruler of the Isle.
"Like I said, every two years or so," Mal said, shaking her head.
Maleficent was awful but the last thing Mal wanted was for Evie to have her spot. Blueberry would be insufferable if that happened!
"Leave Evie alone Mal," Carlos spoke up, to everyone's surprise. Sure his voice was still soft and laced with timidness but that probably was more to do with Estelle sniffing around his feet than anything else.
"Huh, pup's got some bite to his bark," Harry chuckled.
"I'm in," Uma told her, a wicked grin on her face. "Boys?"
"I'm in," Harry told her.
"Me too!" Jay said with a smirk and Mal grinned.
"Let's go," she said. "We'll have to stop by Lady Tremaine's and grab the stuff to make 'em. It shouldn't take too long though. Uma and I have the recipe down pat now."
Of course you do, Evie thought with an internal sigh. And I'm your test dummy.
They ran off, the four of them ready to make their own mischief.
"And the Isle was still standing?" Aziz asked with a chuckle. The four of them reminded him of Emir and Akiho, two people who should never be left unsupervised.
"Sure was!" Harry nodded.
"Who wants to read next?" Beast asked, setting down the scroll.
Snow White smiled. "I'll read, if no one else minds."
"I don't think you'll have any complaints, Queen Snow," Ben said with a smile of his own.