Choosing Family

Chapter Twenty Three

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

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.

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

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

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. It'd been bad enough just seeing her replacement, she didn't want to have it said out loud.

"Mal, come on. I just want to talk. You were so excited when Steph was pregnant, what changed?"

"You promised me a sister," Mal muttered under her breath. Later on, when Mal looked back on this time of her life, she would realize that neither Steph nor Hades ever actually said the storm cloud would be a girl. But in the moment, all Mal cared about was the fact that her dad had a son all his own.

Hades sighed. "I'll leave you alone for now Mal. But I do want to talk to you. I'll see you in the morning okay?"

Mal stayed quiet as she listened to his footsteps grow softer and softer, the only noise other than Estelle's scratching at the door. She knew her boy wanted to go see her dad, she did too. But...she didn't want to get hurt twice in the same day.

Is this what Maleficent meant by love is weakness? Could...could the dragon actually be right about something? Mal thought as the storm cloud's cries broke through her thoughts and Mal grabbed a pillow to cover her ears.

"Stormy please...rest your head. Now it is, time for bed. Please stop, don't you see? I want Steph and dad for me," Mal sang softly, pressing the pillow to her ears to block out the wails and closed her eyes as she imagined a world where it was just her, her dad and Steph.

A world where it hadn't been the worst day of Mal's life-and considering how many bad days she'd had in the seven years she'd been alive that was saying something. After all, good days weren't exactly common with Maleficent as your birth giver.

Estelle whimpered as the little storm cloud's cries seemed to grow louder. Mal rolled her eyes—she knew what that meant.

Here comes dad, with another attempt for me to bond with my replacement, Mal thought with an inward scoff as she brought her sketch book higher and closer to her face as if to act as a shield. No thank you! I can stay in this room for as long as I possibly can dad! One of the only good things about growing up around Maleficent: hunger doesn't bother me!