Truth Or Fiction

Chapter Twenty Seven

Phoebus unfurled the scroll and hoped that the contents would be more uplifting than the previous one had been.

Mal groaned as the little storm cloud's cries continued to ring through the Underworld.

Great way to start, Hadie thought with a small sigh. He just loved hearing about how Mal hated him.

Sure it might have been irrational, to be upset about something that Mal used to feel, but if she could be upset that he hadn't been a girl then as Zeus as his witness he could be upset about this!

It had only been about three weeks or so but the little brat was as obnoxious as could be. What was worse was the fact that he seemed to take up all of Steph's time.

"Younger siblings always do at that stage," Robin nodded.

Mal hardly got to see or spend time with her step mother since the little storm cloud was born.

What did you expect? She's his mother! Mal thought as she tore yet another page out of her sketchbook, balling it up and tossing it in the corner where it joined the growing pile of pages containing ruined tag idea after ruined tag idea.

"I am also your mother Mal," Persephone said, her voice soft as she knew her son was also upset. "You could have said you wanted me honey."

The constant crying was making it hard to concentrate, and the interrupted sleep made drawing difficult since Mal kept messing up making it so the drawing didn't turn out right.

Oh sure, that's my fault too. Guess I'm just to blame for everything that goes wrong in Mal's life now, Hadie thought as he rolled his eyes.

She hated wasting the paper but at least it could be used as fuel if they ever needed to make a fire. Plus the page had been filled to the brim with tag attempts, there was almost no white space remaining. If she could find a spot to attempt a tag, it wouldn't have the space needed to be good.

Rose shook her head and looked over at Rowyn. "Are you sure you didn't die or something and take over Mal's body for a time? Because that sounds exactly like you with your sketches."

"If you're going to have a good sketch, you've got to have the proper amount of room on the page," Rowyn stated. "Mal gets it."

Uma was right after all, little siblings were useless. At least Uma didn't have to worry about Celia replacing her though.

"I don't know if I'd call them 'useless'," Aziz said, looking over at his brother and sister. "Strange? definitely. Annoying? Without a doubt. But never useless."

Dad did try though, Mal thought as she started on a fresh tag. The day the storm cloud was born.

Of course I did, Hades thought with a small frown as if the scroll had implied that he had just ignored Mal in favor of Hadie.

Mal shook her head. She hated thinking about that day...the day her life got turned upside down and not in a good way.

"Mali?" Hades called, knocking lightly on Mal's closed door a few hours after Hadie was born. Mal laid on her side, her back facing the door. She really didn't want to see her dad right now. She didn't want to hear the news that she'd been replaced.

This brings back memories, Kit thought as he remembered how Lucy had pouted for days after they had told the kids that Cinderella was pregnant.