Realist House-Husband in Fantasy Land 4 - (Sleeping Beauty/Maleficent, SI)

Maleficent hardly required rest.

Maybe it was due to magic, or maybe the past self that once tried to closely preserve that peculiar habit perished the moment sleep gave away her wonderful wings. Merely thinking of slumbering at this time felt like a dreadful thing, but her mind was softly soothed by the sight of the way little Aurora snored in the middle of the huge bed.

The mattress was wonderfully soft, the pillows were cushioned enough to not be too soft or too hard, and her servant was doing a fine work in lying beside Rory as the child found peace in her dreams. In a sense, her mind had envisioned something a little more 'playful' towards the silly man that was John, but this was fine.

Little Aurora was a priority to her, the word that had ripped away a sense of 'pride' in not being too close to the child no longer keeping her from cherishing such a powerful title: mother.

It felt oddly refreshing. To be a guardian, a protector, a parent. And someone that was providing the source of her parental title with enough affection to make this claim worthy. Stefan would have hardly been able to uphold this, same for his foolish wife.

The child, albeit growing in a rather 'divided house', was actually blessed by the strangely fitting nature of fatherhood expressed by John. Ironically so, the young man proved his value both as a strategist and as a family-man. He wasn't the proud farmhand that would burden his back with the chores of providing food and money to his family, but the way he provided the love to their child was enough for Maleficent to be fine with the duty she carried herself.

In a sense, this wasn't anything big for her might.

Aurora may be a fragile human child, but she wasn't one cursed with intensely bad habits. The few inquiries of special meals or 'toys' were less than she would have imagined. There wasn't a surge of 'expectations' or a grow in arrogance and greed within the girl.

She was still bound by the good moral rules her father bestowed to her. A bright child, one that was keen to not only see John as her father, but Maleficent as her mother. The thought alone stirred in the dark fairy a deep sense of delight as she found the warmth of the 'cuddle' somewhat renewing.

It wasn't just a cascade of pleasantly warm water shedding the filth of lonely days, but a perfect blanket that kept the foulness of the past away.

Stefan... he was a little thing.

He paid for his crime, for his sins, and now she could live life as she wanted: away from the true evil nature of what few dark creatures would aspire to, and perhaps rip away the primacy of 'helper' for some of those foolish people requiring the help of fairies and other magical creatures.

One thing that Maleficent always found so upsetting about those, fairies in particular, was when those could be so 'double-edged' about their offers.

Eternal beauty? Prepare to be hunted down by everyone and then be killed by those jealous of your looks.

Immense riches? No one will leave you alone and everyone will want your belongings to 'feel important' to you.

Immortality? Beware being dismembered and then left to rot somewhere away from normal life.

Everything was always so 'half-half' with those magical idiots. While Maleficent wasn't exactly planning to open charities as she understood that not everyone deserved that sort of aid, it was also true that there was no good reason to work so sloppily.

The thought had crossed her mind mere hours ago during that beach trip. Albeit it hadn't given her the means to properly grow closer to her clever servant, she was left pondering over the diplomatic decision of entertaining neutrality or maybe outright 'peace' with someone such as King Triton.

Maleficent was familiar of the name by reputation alone. A formidable sea-born monarch capable of using powers bound to the northern ocean without limitations. Well, ignoring the fact that those seeking refuge to land-locked regions could avoid his wrath but... it was still a valuable friend.

Aurora was also able to make a friend out of the youngest of the king's daughter, and this further normalized a future alliance. Perhaps providing him with a protective ward to use for his family against the dreadful presence of that witch Ursula could also avoid any future issues.

She had nothing against the tentacled sorceress, but if she had to pick between Ursula and Triton, the latter had a greater 'moral' standing. One that Maleficent was actually looking for as she refused to be the 'villain'.

'Appearances matter when you are trying to create a kingdom'.

And while Maleficent herself failed to accept how putting a crown on her horns could truly allow her to avoid long-termed issues with the few peasants finding solace in her 'blessed lands', it was also true that people like Stefan still existed. Thus, by establishing a proper leadership and a 'reasonable council', a rebellion would have lesser reasons to form and then spread extensively in her realm.

It was all the kind of matter that required much time and effort. Things she had aplenty, but that now she was unwilling to expend due to the growing 'tiredness' she experienced. Little Aurora was a 'cuddler' as John had 'warned' Maleficent about, the little blonde already nuzzling against her and coercing Maleficent to lean closer to the child.

The cuddle was not too tight, but it was ultimately eroding her interest to just lie down and let time pass. Her mind was just betraying her as much as her body was, claiming that it would do her some good to sleep with 'reliable' people.

After all, John had no purpose in trying to kill her, not when Aurora was asleep and happily seeking warmth from both her parents. With a final shudder, Maleficent conceded defeat to the rising demand for rest. And while that didn't stop her from thinking, her thoughts were soon replaced with dreams.

Dreams of the past, the present and the future. Dreams of what was to come, but also dreams of what could be.

Sighing quietly, and offering a stressed smile, Maleficent finally gave up her lucidity for a few hours, pleased to wake up to a most peaceful and relatively calm morning.

"Mama!" Rory greeted chirpily, while poor John was still asleep.

Then again, part of her really wanted to just go back to sleep as the slumber had reminded her of what was once hers to claim as a bliss and that now felt like a nerve-wrecking exercise of will.

AN

Next time... another Fairy Tale mix with the plot. This one may see the actual birth of Maleficent's Kingdom.

And a need for her to seek a consort to consolidate her claim~.