A/N: I'm just going to let y'all know that like half of this was written last year almost a whole year ago, while I barely finished the Mal-Hades interaction yesterday. As expected, I've already completely forgotten what I wanted for this + plot details I previously wrote? My writing style has DEFINITELY also changed, yikes. I tried reading through but my mind's been hazy lately, I'm only back here out of immense guilt, also because I have no idea how to write the Pomefiore boys lately I'm very burnt out...but yeah, I won't make promises, this is a short chapter, I'll hope to continue this soon when in actual fact I've previously, like, already written three different ENDINGS for this, lol. Anyway, just...enjoy these little crumbs, I guess? 🙏
"Magic lessons, Mal, might have been one of your smartest ideas so far."
"And also, one of your dumbest." Evie chips in, hair completely disgruntled as she hits the button on her alarm. "I definitely did not volunteer for extra studies—!"
"Woah, who woke you up on the wrong side of the bed?" Their door creaks open, and Audrey surveys the two boys lying on a shared mattress in the middle of the girls' room. "Uh, huh. This sure is interesting."
"Close the door before someone else snitches." Mal sighs. "I've had enough to deal with."
"Starting with the fact Jay accidentally wished that he was in tourney practice and ended up messing everyone's time tables for the day?" Audrey smirks. "It's hot news right now — VK accidentally loses control of new magic and causes a swap of classes in the middle of the morning."
"You don't say." Jay groans into his pillow. "I thought I needed a lamp to grant wishes?" "Don't you pay attention to magic history?" Evie proceeds to kick him in his side lightly. "The lamp is what binds the genie's magic. They're essentially free to wield the wish magic however they like once they're free of the lamp. I'm surprised Genie didn't get you a lamp during your first few lessons."
"Nope." Jay removes his beanie, ruffling his hair sheepishly. "He might have been too excited, he didn't remember."
"I wouldn't put it past you to use hypnosis, actually." Carlos inputs. "Right, Mal?"
Their leader flushes. "Okay, so I showed him a spell or two. It's not outrightly my fault!"
"Not your fault? Huh." Audrey sits on one of their desk chairs. "That's certainly something interesting. But I thought you were only learning pyrokinesis from Hades? Since when did you get to touch anything else?"
They all exchange glances. Would this be a good time to come clean with Audrey?
"Right. We're friends and all, but you still can't tell me, right? Evil schemes and all?" Audrey raises her eyebrows. "Come on, guys, this truth thing has to work both ways. You come clean, I provide intel."
"My mum gave me a spell book." Mal concedes at last, pulling out the leather-bound book. "A grimoire of sorts, documenting spells done by humans back in that era in order to perform magic of sorts. By following the incantation, I can force my magic to achieve the same outcome, but I haven't learnt how to truly manipulate my magic by itself without relying on the incantations."
"No way." Audrey grabs the book over, faster than they can react. "Can anyone use these spells?"
"Not exactly." Mal eyes her book. "Also, are you not afraid that some former possession of my mum's can potentially curse you?"
"Doesn't curse you, though?"
"I'm mostly immune, what haven't you learnt?"
"It's not like it would bite my hand off." Audrey flips the book back to the front, examining the cover, not seeing the little hand gesture behind the table. "How could she even have cursed— gah! It bit me!"
YOU ARE READING
"...Mother?" (A Descendants × Hadeficent story)
FanfictionC O N C E P T: "The mother whom you think you know, the one who raised you up from the moment you could understand and remember things, Mal, is not your mother. It was Auradon's replacement of your mother, sculpted to how they wanted the 'Mistress o...
