#ch: Dizzy Tremaine

[sl-newsie]

Spelled (Carlos de Vil x Sanderson Daughter) Descendants 2- Ch. 5: Evil Makeover

I’m almost to the barrier-! Uh-oh. Almost forgot.

Before I lose my magic, I bring my broom to a halt and chant: “Possessions most near and dear, disappear and meet me here.” There. Now I’ll at least have some clothes and potion ingredients. Moving on!

The broom zooms forward and I pass through a golden curtain of barrier. Almost immediately I feel my magic seem to leak away. Gotta land fast! I fly over to the back of a shed and poke my head out to make sure the coast is clear. I must say, the Isle… is kinda sketchy. Not that I’m surprised. Still, looking around at the run-down warehouses and eerie-looking people I don’t blame the other VKs for not wanting to come back. 

By now Mal’s driven up and notices me looking around. “Don’t worry. My hideout’s on a top floor away from the worst of the bad guys. Welcome to the Isle of the Lost. Population evil, magic zero.” 

I wince. “You’re right- ever since I crossed the barrier I’ve felt… weaker. Like I’m getting tired much faster.” I don’t like it. Not one bit. But I guess I’m going to have to get used to it. At least no one here’s booing and hissing at me. 

I run after her as she drives through the narrow street past the rugged inhabitants. She hides the moped behind a crate and motions me over to a fenced off set of stairs.

“Just a sec-” She throws a rock at an overhead sign and triggers a gate to open. “I’ll drop my stuff off and then we’ll go to Dizzy’s place.”

“Who’s that?” I ask as I follow her up the stairs. 

“Lady Tremaine’s granddaughter. She used to do Evie’s hair, and if I’m going to fit in here then I can’t walk around with this pathetic blonde head.”

“Hey!”

Mal holds up a hand. “No offense to your original hair, but it just doesn’t work for me. Here we are.”

We enter Mal’s hideout, which is basically a large apartment with some couches, tables, and chairs strewn around the room. I also notice my trunk has been properly transported here. The walls are colored with various greens, blues, pinks, and purples with thorny designs, as well as a giant mural of the 4 VKs with the words Rotten To The Core scrambled below. 

“Impressive,” I say with a nod. “Looks… cozy? I mean the thorns are kinda my thing but you make them work too.”

“Thanks. I’ve got some additions to make, but I’ll do those later. Let’s go.” Mal drops her backpack onto a couch and starts walking back to the stairs. I do one last look around at the incredible art and follow, sticking close to Mal. Thankfully the few passerbys in the streets pay us little attention.

“Here. This is the place.” Mal leads me to a shop with a sign that says Lady Tremaine’s Curl Up & Dye. 

“Looks… colorful?”

She smirks and opens the door. “It’s better on the inside.”

She’s right. The place looks as if paint cans exploded everywhere! I’m not sure if it’s intentional, or an extreme accident gone wrong. Upbeat pop music plays overhead, while a young girl wearing a splattered overall jumper, pigtail buns, and perky glasses sweeps up clumps of colored hair. Mal puts a finger to her lips and starts creeping up on the girl with a sneaky smile. Once she sees Mal, her eyes light up and she nearly drops the broom.

“Mal! Is Evie back too?” She asks giddily.

“As if. Dizzy, this is Magica.”

Dizzy notices me in the back and makes a fascinated look. “Ooh! Your hair is perfect! Who did it?”

I bite my lip. “Um, I did? Technically it’s because of my magic so I’m not sure it’s permanent-”

“I love it! Do you think I could study it to mix a dye of that tone? My customers would adore it!” 

“Oh!” Her enthusiasm definitely is refreshing compared to my previous peers. “Thanks, Dizzy. But we’re not here for me, we’re here for Mal, who’s currently having a salon crisis.”

The young hairdresser lifts her glasses up to get a better look, and immediately starts commenting about Mal’s current hair and nails. She sums up her diagnosis and asks Mal how far she can go.

Mal shrugs. “The works, I guess. Do what you gotta do.”

Dizzy grins and starts to gather supplies, while I leave her space to work. “One all-over makeup it is! I’ll just sit back and watch the show.”

The next few hours include seeing Dizzy dunk Mal’s head into a tub to wash out the blonde, curl her hair up with empty cans, and waiting for the hair to dry while painting Mal’s nails a much more appropriate color: black.

Once everything’s dried and set, Mal turns to look in a mirror to see Dizzy’s finished work. “There I am!”

“You look like you, Mal. Terrific job, Dizzy!” I give her a thumbs up.

“Here- you earned this.” Mal hands the young girl some cash.

Dizzy squeals with delight as she goes to put it in the register- 

“Fork it over, young one.”

I whip my head to see a guy in a pirates hat and tattered red tailcoat holding a hook up to Dizzy. She does as he asks, only for him to jerk his hook towards the register.

“And the rest.”

 Grudgingly the splatter-colored girl takes the entire stock of money from the cash register and hands it to the wannabe-pirate.

“Still running errands for Uma, or do you actually get to keep what you steal?” Mal asks smugly.

The pirate recognizes her, then smirks. “Well, well, well. What a nice surprise. Just wait ‘til Uma hears you’re back! You’ll never get your old turf back.”

“Good. I don’t want it.”

The pirate guy brandishes a hook at the end of his hand and runs it through Mal’s new hair. “I could hurt you…”

That’s it! I’ve had enough! I storm over and yank the guy’s hook (why a hook?) away and stare the pirate straight in his eyelined face.

“Don’t bet on it, dim-wit. You go play Jack Sparrow dress-up somewhere else, and leave this girl’s business alone before I turn you into a hedgehog!” 

I keep glaring at his shocked expression as it shifts to an evil smirk. “Oh, Mal. Who’s your friend? She’s feisty!”

“Magica, meet Harry Hook. Harry, meet Magica Sanderson.” Mal seems a bit on edge, but still confident enough that I can handle myself with this new foe. Meanwhile the one known as Harry tilts his head in recognition.

“Ah, I thought you looked familiar! My my, what a beauty you are, just like your mother…” He licks his lips and leans in closer, only for me to snap my fingers and send sparks at his face.

“Stay away, Hook. Unless thy wishes to become calamari! Now be gone!” I flick a warning finger at him.

Harry grins wickedly. “I’ll be seeing you again, gorgeous. Uma will find it quite fascinating that a Snaderson witch is in town…” He swipes his hook to knock down the contents of Dizzy’s register counter, then does a dramatic bow before making his exit.

“Great. More sweeping,” Dizzy groans.

“Not to worry.” I swipe my fingers through the air. “Spick and span with the flick of my hand! Mess, stress, pests, be gone!”

I blink and the room returns to being spick and span.

The girl’s eyes widen. “Whoa! I wish I could do that!”

“I guess you’ve still got some magic after all,” Mal says with a surprised look.

“Pocket spells,” I guess. “Small magic that can go undetected. Might come in handy.”

“Yeah, especially when it comes to Uma.”

I turn my head to Mal. “I keep hearing that name. Who’s Uma?”

“I’ll tell you later. Right now we should get back to the apartment before more suspecting goons show up.”

We say goodbye to Dizzy and start heading back to Mal’s apartment. 

“She’s… actually nice. I thought that all the VKs here would all be mean and devious.”

Mal shakes her head and sadly replies: “The younger ones are more innocent, but once you get older and life gets harder then that starts to fade away. Not everyone here is a complete savage, Magica.”

Oh. I never thought of it like that. At one point everyone goes worry free without a care in the world… then they begin to see the world as something that’s abandoned them. I really was lucky that Father rescued me from this place…

“I’m gonna make some new renditions,” Mal calls as we reenter her hideout. “Feel free to look around, make yourself at home.”

I nod. “Thank you Mal, really. All I ask is that my mother or my aunts never find out I’m here. If they do then they’ll want me to strengthen their coven and there’s no telling what they’ll use me for. Right now I think I shall scope out the area and get a better feel of this new home.”

“Careful Magica,” Mal warns. “Dizzy might be an exception, but there are still lots of people here who’d wanna eat you for breakfast. Like Harry.”

I roll my eyes as I start backing towards the exit. “Don’t make me laugh. His ego would kill him before I could. If he ever shows his face again I’ll turn his hook into a teddy bear.”

“Don’t go too far!”

“I won’t!” 

I might have gone just a little bit too far. Nothing here is the same as how I remember it, though granted I was a small child when I left. More and more sneering faces glare at me as I try to move through the alleys as discreetly as possible. One guy even tries to grab my skirt, but I yank it away and hiss at him to leave me alone. Eventually I find myself in what looks like an abandoned garage, that is until I hear voices coming from around the corner.

I poke my head out and see-

“Carlos?”

[oneinamillicn]

@perceptionborn didn’t ask for this but I SAW DIZZY

“Hello little one,” Ella smiled, having been informed of her step-niece’s arrival by Ben the minute she got there. She’d heard good things about her from Evie, and therefore she hoped in her heart of hearts that Dizzy was nothing like her mother. Or her grandmother. “Do you know who I am?”

[its-r-i-d-i-c-u-l-o-u-s]

Right Side of Wrong- Ch 13: Change the World [Finale]

Words: 2,842

 Warnings: Swearing, hurt/comfort but it’s mostly good stuff!

Ch 12 | Beginning

~ ~ ~

The sound of my breathing was deafening in the ship’s hallways. I found myself so distracted that I almost walked right onto the deck.

Lumiere caught my eye as I flailed to stop myself. I quickly regained my composure and signaled to him that I was ready.

As the trumpets played I ran my fingers through my bangs to get them out of my face.

“The future Lady Mal!” Lumiere announced to the crowd.

I let out a giant breath as everyone began their clapping. Here it was. My big day, as Carlos had called it.

I stepped out into the open, then turned to face my audience. A few small gasps could be heard as they got a good look at me. Just like last time, Evie made a statement with my outfit. She had taken off the front of the skirt, so that it started around my knees and just brushed my ankles in the back. That was already a push against the traditionalism I was supposed to be presenting. Then, she had insisted that all four of us VKs wear fingerless gloves, a popular item on the Isle.

“We’re a united front,” she had explained. “I want everyone to know that if you mess with one of us, you mess with all of us.”

I stumbled forward, trying not to make my injury obvious, but I was certain that most of the crowd could tell that something was wrong. And no doubt at some point during the night, my dress would shift enough for people to notice the bandaging.

When I paused, overlooking the steps and dreading my voyage down, Lumiere leaned over and whispered in his thick french accent, “You work it, girl.”

I laughed, glad to see someone in the kingdom didn’t hate me.

I caught Evie’s eye. She was standing in the front, next to Doug. Her hands were covering her mouth and I wondered if she was admiring her work on my dress, my hair, my makeup, or if she was just shocked to see that I showed up. But she was happy. And I, in turn, felt a flood of relief.

I made my way down the stairs as more cheers broke out. The heels caused shooting pains through my calf, but I made it all the way down with a smile still plastered on my face.

Perhaps the Beast could sense my discomfort, or maybe he was just being polite, but he met me on the last few steps and offered out an arm to help me down.

“Hi,” I breathed out. The rest of the Cotillion had settled and was once more distracted by previous activities.

“Hi,” he greeted.

Belle joined us, fidgeting next to her husband.

“Ben is on his way,” the Beast promised. “And you look… beautiful.”

His hesitation left me uneasy. I still wasn’t on great terms with either of Ben’s parents. “Oh,” I murmured, halfheartedly. “Thank you.”

“I know we were shocked at first,” Belle cut it, “but you- you are exactly what Ben needs.”

I blinked in sudden realization. They were being serious. The both of them.

“I- uh-” A smile tugged at my lips, but it was uneasy.

“Ben told us that he had a talk with you,” she explained, although it didn’t do much to help my understanding. “About his… situation. I don’t think he’s ever been stronger or happier than he is when he’s with you. We were worried about his transition into becoming a king. But now that he has you, I think we’re in good hands.”

“I, um… Thank you,” I said, flustered.

Their attention was drawn to Evie who stood behind me, patiently waiting for my attention.

“Of course.” The Beast gestured for me to go with her.

“Hi,” we said at the same time, giggling.

She took me by the arm and led me back to the rest of our group. “How are you?”

I sighed. “I sorta feel like I’m gonna throw up?”

“Yeah? Okay. That’s okay.”

I nodded, turning towards the steps as the fanfare played once more.

“King Benjamin!” Lumiere announced.

Ben strode out, with his usual calm smile. Evie and I cheered with the crowd as he made his way toward the edge of the steps and watched the crowd bow before him.

“Go get him,” Evie smirked, leaning into me.

We met at the bottom of the stairs, bowing/curtseying for one another. As my back straightened, he reached for my hands and looked me over, concerned.

“Your leg?” he asked.

“I told you, it’s fine,” I reassured him.

“I hope so… I have something for you.”

I raised an eyebrow, watching him reach for one of his suit pockets and pull out his class ring. My breath hitched, having completely forgotten about it.

“You don’t have to take it, if you don’t want to. But it will always be here for you.”

I nodded. “I want it.”

He smiled, and slid it on, up to my fingerless glove. Since it wouldn’t fit over the leather, it sat loosely around my knuckle, but I was positive that it wouldn’t fall off anytime soon. It was too precious.

He looked up, addressing the group around us. “I owe you guys so much.”

“Yeah,” Evie joked.

“You got that right.” Carlos patted him on the back with a smirk lighting his face.

The rest of the crowd laughed along, although I doubt they had any clue what had happened to Ben today.  “So, if there is anything that you need, or anything I can do for you-”

“Um, actually,” Evie started beside me. “There is, Ben… I know a girl who would really love to come to Auradon. It’s Drizella’s daughter, Dizzy Tremaine. She lost her mother when she was young and since then, she’s been like a little sister to me.”

“Then, she should come,” Ben said, quickly.

I could see how excited he was with the proposition. Seeing the Isle had only increased his desire to help the kids who were still there. Evie was offering him a place to start.

“Okay.” Evie giggled, but it sounded like she was trying to mask tears. “Okay, great.”

Ben leaned in and stage whispered, “She’s a good guy, right?”

“Dizzy? The best,” I confirmed.

“Actually! Um…” Evie cut in once more, then backed off as all eyes turned back on her. “Ben, there’s a lot of kids who would really love it here in Auradon. Kids just like us who also deserve a second chance. Can I maybe get you a list?”

Ben’s smile grew “Yes, yes! Absolutely!... please.”

Cheers erupted around the ship at the proposition. He waited for them to quiet down before continuing.

“And seeing as I have everyone’s attention, Lumiere, if you please.”

Lumiere quickly found his spot atop the staircase. “And now, for the unveiling of King Ben’s masterpiece, designed especially for his lady.”

All eyes drifted to the other end of the ship, where a large rectangle, which had been covered previously, revealed a stain glass window depicting the two of us. We stood in front of a sunny sky, atop a green field. Ben was knelt beside me, holding my hand as if to guide me over the grass.

My eyes were drawn to a couple of features. The dress resembled the one I had worn to his Coronation, although not completely the same, but my shoulders were out in the open, and the glass was a pink color around them, indicating the scars that were there. My hair was dark purple, much like it had been when he met me, although I was certain that when he began this, I had already dyed it blonde. I wore fingerless gloves, like I would have on the Isle, but atop my head was a replica of the Queen’s crown. And my eyes were bright green, much like they would be if I were angry or upset.

I gasped, unable to pull my eyes from the piece. “You made that?” I whispered.

He chuckled. “Yeah. I mean, I designed at least. Do you like it?”

“Yes.” My voice came out almost like a sigh. “Ben, it’s beautiful. It’s… It’s me.”

“Of course it is,” he exclaimed. “Who else would it be?”

I laughed. “No! I mean… that’s me up there. That’s the real me. I’m half-Isle and half-Auradon. And you captured it perfectly.”

He shrugged. “Well, you’d think after all this time I’d know the real you.”

I pulled him in for a kiss.

“I love you,” I admitted. Not just to him, but to myself.

And finally, we both knew it was true.

~ ~ ~

After whisking me away for a few dances, Ben went to speak with Evie about her plans for bringing these new kids to Auradon. I had a feeling she was soon going to have a lot more on her plate than just sewing dresses.

I was sitting beside Carlos and Jane, listening to him explain our adventures from the past few days to her, when Jay approached.

“May I have this dance, m’lady?” He teased, offering a hand to me.

“Of course.”

I followed him to the center of the ship and let him lead me through a slow dance.

“You always put your hair in a bun for big events. For once, I want to see it in a ponytail.”

He glared at me.  “Not gonna happen.”

“Please!”

“No way.”

I stuck my tongue out.

I felt grateful. So grateful. To have these moments with Jay. To have a family like Ben and Evie and Carlos. To be free.

“So…” he started, softly. “I take it this means we aren’t packing our bags and stealing a limo?”

I grinned. “As fun as that sounds, I think we can stay. For at least a little longer.”

He returned my smile. “Good. I was kinda worried how it would look to Ben if I ran off with his girlfriend.”

“Nah. Evie and Carlos would quickly explain how incompatible we are.”

“Then, they’d all run to the Isle to beat our asses.”

Our laughter blanketed the deck of the ship.

As one song ended and another began, we slid away from the dance floor and toward the railing of the boat. It was gorgeous, looking over the water. The moon, in the distance, left a glowing reflection on the surface.

“I hear you gave up your seat as captain of the Tourney team,” I said, breaking the silence once more.

“The traditionalism here is bullshit. The fact that I have to go through roundabout ways to get one of our most athletic students onto the Tourney team is bullshit. But Lonnie deserves it.”

I glanced past him, towards the Isle. “That’s why so many of the people over there are… criminals. Maybe they’re right.”

He shrugged. “We’re here to change that, aren’t we? That’s why Ben’s king-”

“No,” I grumbled. “Ben being king is on that list of bullshit.”

Jay hesitated, sensing my shift in mood. “You wanna talk about it?”

“Can’t,” I said through gritted teeth.

“Fair enough,” he responded. “Do you want to talk about something else, then?”

I paused. “I don’t know. I just wish I could be… better, you know?”

He put his arm around me, pulling me in close. “The fact that you had to go through everything you did sucks, Mal. And we’re all recovering from our trauma. Carlos is going to go to therapy, Evie is trying to lose some of her perfectionism, and me… I’m dealing with my shit.”

“You mean, your toxic masculinity? Or your impulsive stealing?” It was a joke. We had all talked the past year. I knew that certain things were sensitive to Jay, but I didn’t expect him to pull away as I said that.

He leaned over the railing, dropping eye contact with me. “Or the fact that I’m gay?”

My whole chest tightened. Oh my god… “Yeah,” I wheezed. “That’ll fuck you up real bad… Coming from your family.”

He rubbed a hand over his face. “I was so scared that I would see my father again when we went back to the Isle. He just… he wouldn't be happy with the guy I’ve become.”

“Who cares! All our parents’ were abusive assholes!” I cried, but he didn’t seem convinced. Finally, I reached out and grabbed one of his hands. “Did your dad know?”

“I think he suspected,” Jay admitted. “But I didn’t even know. Not until I was away from his lectures and expectations. I mean, Carlos just kept asking me why I wasn’t going out with any girls and I… I started thinking about it… But I- No, it’s-” he groaned, frustrated.

“Hey, you don’t have to explain yourself to me,” I said, repeating what I had told Carlos only a few days ago. “Do you think that I care?”

“No…” he said, slowly. “But my father grew up in a traditional society. Just like Auradon. That’s where he got his beliefs and ideals from. A place just like this… That’s one of the reasons I was so ready to leave with you. The Isle sucks, but at least everyone there stopped caring about things like sexuality a long time ago. They’ve got more pressing issues on their mind.”

I shrugged. “Yeah, well, so do we. I’m not going to tell you how to handle this, Jay. But, you know… maybe the people here will surprise you.”

He finally made eye contact with me again. “What a pair of family disappointments we are.”

I giggled. “I like to think more along the lines of we’re learning from the past generation’s mistakes.”

“Sure,” he agreed. “We can go with that.”

Suddenly, Evie had arrived, throwing her arms around us. “We’re going to change the world!” she shrieked, excitedly. Carlos followed along behind her.

“What’s up with you?” I snickered, watching her jump around.

“Ben has official named me ‘Counselor of the VK Initiative’. We’ll start in small batches, grabbing kids of all different ages. The teens will go straight to Auradon Prep and some of the younger kids will be given homes elsewhere. I’ve already offered to take in anyone who needs a home as soon as I get a place of my own.” She sighed, finally coming down off her excited high and looking out to the tiny island we used to call home. “Isn’t it wonderful? We’ll only take the kids who want to go and we’ll propose visiting days for those who still want to see their families. We’ll have to be selective at first, but soon enough, these kids will have a second chance! They’ll be able to see how beautiful and kind Auradon really is.”

“And we’ll see to it that it stays that way,” a new voice joined in. Ben wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “So… first four kids. Who do we pick?”

“Dizzy!” Evie started.

“How about Facilier’s daughter?” Carlos asked. “She’s sly, but then again, so was Jay,” he jabbed at his friend. “She’s pretty open minded. I think she could really use a change of scene and society.”

“And Uma,” I muttered, glancing at Ben. The whole group went silent, shocked to hear me suggest such a thing, but I was dead serious. “She deserves it. It’s all she’s ever wanted and all that she’s been working towards.”

Ben nodded. “That’s what we talked about… when she had me trapped on the Isle, I told her that I was going to do everything I could to get those kids over. And I thought… I thought she could help.”

“She can,” Jay agreed. “She’s brilliant. But, um… maybe put extra guards on the wand for the first week she’s here.”

We all chuckled. “Definitely. Until the kids are settled in, we need to keep an eye on them,” I reasoned.

“A better eye than you kept on us,” Carlos clarified. “We 100% could have broken the barrier if we wanted to.”

“Yeah, no offense Ben, but we were pretty sly when we first got here,” Evie joined. “You have no clue how much mischief we got up to.”

“Fair enough, but in my defense, I kinda saved the day, didn’t I?” He joked. “You didn’t take over Auradon all because Mal fell for my charm.”

I stuck out my tongue. “And I’d do it all again.”

“Even putting a spell on me?” he questioned.

I considered it for a minute. “Hm… I mean, what can I say? I am evil.”

“The new ‘Mistress of All Evil’,” Evie corrected.

Carlos shook his head. “Nope. As a Lady of the Court, I dub thee: ‘Lady Mal, soon to be, Queen of All Evil’.”

“Hey,” Ben interrupted. “She’ll be the Queen of everything. Not just the evil.”

“I’m not a Queen!” I argued.

“Not yet,” Jay corrected. “How about we stick with: ‘Lady Mal, Defender of Auradon’.”

Evie quickly agreed. “It’s perfect.”

“Well then,” Ben announced, “To Lady Mal, Defender of Auradon!”

“Defender of Auradon!” they all cheered.

[its-r-i-d-i-c-u-l-o-u-s]

Right Side of Wrong- Ch 8: Nothing Has to Change

Words: 1238

Warnings: None that I could think of

A/N: Hey! Sorry about the short chapter. I wanted to post it yesterday, to make up for the fact that it wasn’t much, but I spent most of the day in urgent care yesterday (I’m fine, no worries!) So, yeah. I hope you like it either way!

Ch 7 | Ch 9

~ ~ ~

Evie held up a finger, signalling that she wanted to surprise little Dizzy when we walked in.

I glanced around and found her hunched over a table in the back of the room. It was past closing and Lady Tremaine was no doubt back upstairs.

Evie tiptoed over, slowly leaning over Dizzy’s left shoulder. The girl jumped, first in fear, but soon she realize who was beside her. “Evie? Evie, you came back!” she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around the girl.

“Hi!” Evie smiled broadly.

It was sweet. I knew that both Evie and Dizzy had been through a lot in their time on the Isle.  They were each other’s optimistic side. And they both had dreamed of the day they would finally get to see Auradon.

“Is it all just like we imagined?” Dizzy demanded, pulling away from the hug. “Do they really have closets you can walk into? Have you been to a real swimming pool? What does ice cream taste like?”

“It’s cold, and it’s sweet, and if you eat it too fast, it gives you a headache,” Evie explained, tapping the girl’s temple.

“Really?”

Evie nodded, leaving Dizzy lost in the thought. It was weird to think that there was a time neither of us knew what ice cream tasted like either.

She gasped in realization. “I saved your sketchbook for you!”

“You did?”

Dizzy ran off to get it. Evie glanced up at me, looking close to tears. That book used to be her life, but because we had to leave the Isle so fast, she never got the chance to get it back from the young girl. She didn’t even have time to say goodbye to Dizzy.

I glanced away when Dizzy came back with the giant book, placing it on the desk and insisting that Evie sit down. It was hard to watch Evie like this. She was so happy and so very sad at the same time. She missed the preteen with the wacky hair who would sit and talk to her about dreams for hours. Dizzy was basically her little sister.

I stepped away and grabbed a plastic bucket and some disposable gloves. I knew that it would take a minute for Evie to focus up and get to work with me, but I could at least start it.

As I approached some of the chemical vats, trying to remember which ones we needed, Dizzy said loudly, “I knew it! You can take the girl out of the Isle, but you can’t take the Isle out of the girl!”

Evie went quiet.

~ ~ ~

“You got it?” Evie asked, before pouring something steamy and blue into one of the disposable gloves.

“I got it,” I confirmed.

Evie was much better at the chemistry part of the operation, so I sort of just did what she asked and tied them all up.

“That’s five smoke bombs,” she let me know as I dropped this one in with the others.

“I think that’s enough, right?”

She shrugged. “If it’s not, then I doubt more smoke bombs will help anyway.”

I sighed, picking up on what she was saying. Weapons. These were a diversion. But if something went wrong, we’d need bows and slingshots and swords. Not smoke bombs.

“M, how amazing would this look with my shredded tee and my heart purse?” She held up a small headband with red jewels on it. No doubt one of Dizzy’s.

“Very amazing,” I told her, not entirely sure what shirt she was talking about.

“Take it!” Dizzy insisted. “Take a bunch!”

“Oh, Dizzy!” Evie walked over to place the headband in her purse and Dizzy grabbed random accessories off her desk to give to her. “Oh my gosh. Thank you.”

Dizzy dropped a handful of jewelry into Evie’s bag, saying, “it would make me so happy to know that you were wearing something of mine in Auradon. Almost like me being there myself.”

Evie pulled her in for a hug. “I really wish I could take you with me,” she confided.

“At least one of us had her dream come true, right?”

That sent a blade right through both of our chests.

Dizzy deserved so much more, I thought. And here I was. I had had a life so many only dreamed of and I was running away from it. Running back to the Isle of all places. But maybe someone who deserved it more would take my place. Someone like Little Dizzy.

“E, we gotta go,” I said, pulling her from her thoughts.

She blinked at me, almost in confusion, then nodded. “Okay.”

We peeled our gloves off and waved goodbye. As we were leaving, Evie paused in the doorway and watched Dizzy flip through her old sketchbook.

“She’s gonna be okay,” I insisted.

“Yeah,” Evie breathed out. “But she could be so much more.”

I reached out and grabbed her hand, knowing that I couldn’t do anything to make this better for her. “Let’s go.”

She soaked in Dizzy and the shop for what was possibly the last time, then followed me back to my apartment.

~ ~ ~

“You don’t find it… scary? Being back here?”

I shook my head. As we walked, I glanced up, my eyes drifting between the rooftops. “My mother taught me that the only thing to be afraid of was her… and she’s gone now. It’s weird how different it is now. But this place is my home.”

“I feel suffocated here,” Evie told me. “When I stepped into Auradon, it was bright, and beautiful, and clear. This place is a dark maze that swallows people whole.”

“Not if you don’t let it,” I insisted.

“You don’t make any sense sometimes, Mal.”

“Well, I’m traumatized,” I joked.

She chuckled slightly. It was the first time I felt actually comfortable to talk about something like that with her. Sometimes I didn’t want my past to become a difficult subject. And when you were on the Isle, nothing was a low blow. Nothing was a difficult subject.

“You know, I really thought that true love was what you and Ben had.”

We slowed to a stop next to the stairs. I glanced at my shoes, unsure what to say.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“Nah. I’m not coming back, Evie. I can’t. I really tried to tell you.”

“If you’re staying, I’m staying, too.”

Ugh. My friends were too stubborn. “No. Evie, you are an Auradon girl. And I am… and will always be… the girl from the Isle.”

She looked away from me. Because she knew it was true. Evie couldn’t possibly live on the Isle once more. Not after having her dream life in Auradon. She practically had a business, and friends, and a boyfriend, all waiting for her when she got back.

A tear slipped down her cheek. “I thought you were fine. Why did you have to hide this?”

I gave her hand a quick squeeze. “I didn’t want to let you down. I was trying so hard to show everyone that I was going to be alright. Because you had worked so hard to make me feel welcome in Auradon.”

“I won’t stop you. But I… I’m going to miss you so much.”

“Even though we’ve changed?” I asked.

“Nothing has to change,” she assured me. “You’re a part of me, M.”

I grinned and she returned it through her tears.

“Let’s go save Ben.”

[its-r-i-d-i-c-u-l-o-u-s]

Right Side of Wrong- Ch 4: Pleasant Goodbyes and Warm Welcomes

Words: 2845

Warnings: panic attacks, gang activity, anger and recklessness

A/N: I almost forgot to post this today... whoops! But anyway, I just wanted to warn you that this is the first time you guys are going to see a POV change in this story. It will happen a few times, so hopefully you can distinguish pretty easily between them.

Ch 3 | Ch 5

~ ~ ~

I ran straight for the dorm rooms. I didn’t know where else to go. Only one thought was running through my head: I cracked.

I couldn’t keep it together. Couldn’t handle the pressures of being an Auradon girl… That was it.

I didn’t breathe for the next hour. I couldn’t. I could barely hiccup between sobs.

Lucky enough, Evie wasn’t in the room when I got back. There was no way to hide from her in this state, and for some reason… I still didn’t want her to know how upset I was. Maybe it was because I was sure she would be able to convince me to stay. And then I would end up in the same cycle again, wishing desperately to get away until I broke under all the pressure.

I threw on some pants and a plain tshirt. It wasn’t very Isle-like, but I just needed to get onto the Isle undetected. After that, I would find something more suitable.

I packed up my bag with a few belongings and sat down with a pen and paper.

I debated who to write the letter to. There were some things that I needed all of them to know before I left. So, I figured, since Evie would be the first one to find it, I’d address it to her.

My writing was a scribbled mess, difficult to read even if I hadn’t been crying. But I was able to get it all down on paper. I tried to tell myself that I was doing this for their good. They could all be so much happier. Ben especially…

My eyes slid down to the ring he had given me. I hadn’t even taken it off since the whole fiasco with my mother. But I couldn’t take it with me, no matter how much I wanted to. It wasn’t mine anymore. I was giving Ben up and along with him went everything else.

It took me a few minutes to put it down, rolling it between my fingers. It was gorgeous, something so meaningful to our relationship that I never thought I’d be parted from it. But I couldn’t waste time sitting here and pondering on a life where I could always wear this ring. That world was long lost.

As I stood and grabbed my stuff, the coat rack to the right of the door caught my attention again.

My old jacket still hadn’t moved, the dragons sitting comfortably.

It burned that my mother had control over all of my old stuff, including this dumb jacket. If I stepped on the Isle wearing that, I would practically be waving a giant flag that said, “MALEFICENT’S BACK”.

In my anger and my desire to wear something familiar back to my hometown, I threw the bag to the floor and grabbed the leather article once more. It had a faintly smoky set to it, something which helped clear my mind from the emotional afternoon. I laid it out across Evie’s work table and grabbed some thread cutters.

It wasn’t the best job I could have done. Threads hung down the back of the jacket and pieces of the dragon patch were torn as I ripped it off, but it felt so good.

I pulled the jacket over my arms and zipped it to the top.

Clearing the last of my sadness and worries from my eyes, I picked up the discarded bag and my motorcycle keys and left the room without so much as a look behind me.

~ ~ ~

Ben buried himself into his work. He was shaken from his argument with Mal earlier.

He shouldn’t have freaked out on her, but he couldn’t stop himself. He had done his best to be there for her for the past year, and she had been lying to him. She had been lying about using magic. Lying about doing her best. Lying about getting better…

Why hadn’t she told him? If she was really upset, why didn’t she just talk to him? He had made it clear that he would always support her, hadn’t he?

“Deborah?” he called.

“Yes, Your Majesty?” she responded from the other side of the bluetooth.

“Can you ask Lumiere to call me regarding Cotillion?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Thank you.” He hung up and began to look over some paperwork from earlier that day, when he heard a soft knocking at the door.

“Ben?” Evie asked.

“Evie! Come on in!” he told her.

He took out his earpiece and stood up to greet her, but was met with an unexpected sight.

She spun around, shutting the door as fast as possible. When she turned to look at him, she had tear streaks running down her face. She scanned the room for others.

“What’s wrong?” He dodged around his desk to rush up to his friend. “Do you want to sit down, or…?”

She shook her head, tilting her face back, as if that would make her reabsorb the tears. “No, Ben. It’s just… Um, Mal…” She was breathing heavily.

“What about Mal?” he demanded, getting more concerned by the minute. “Is she okay?”

“She’s gone back to the Isle.”

He opened his mouth to speak, but the words knotted themselves in his throat. She went to the Isle? But… why?

Evie slowly forced a piece of paper into his hands. He glanced between her and the object she had just given him a couple times before realizing that he needed to read what’s inside.

Dear Evie, it read. I’m so sorry. I’m sorry to you, Jay, and Carlos, that I ever got you caught up in my mess. I know what my life and my mother have done to you three. The Isle was bad enough, but being tied into Maleficent in any degree meant you were doomed from the start and I was the tie that held you three there. I only hope the place has changed. Because, by the time you read this… that’s where I’ll be.--

“Ben,” Evie whispered, interrupting his reading. Holding up her hand, she presented him with another object. The class ring he had given Mal.

His hand shook as he reached for it. It was cold in his palm. She had taken it off a few hours ago. Most likely, right after their fight.

--Tell Ben that I’m sorry too. I’ve had him caught up in this lie that I was his dream girl for too long, and I’m not. He’ll find someone perfect for him. I know he will. But he is a king and I am a monster.

“This is my fault,” he breathed out. “This is my fault! I-I blew it.”

“Ben-” Evie’s voice cracked as she spoke, too heartbroken to be able to comfort him.

“She’d been under so much pressure lately, and instead of being understanding, I just went all Beast on her.”

“Ben, had she talked to you about this?” Evie questioned.

His heart felt like it would shrivel up in his chest. What was he supposed to do? He needed Mal. “We got in a fight. It was stupid, but I found out she had been lying to me about using magic and I was just so… upset. And I-”

“I look at this,” Evie interrupted, pointing at the note that Ben had crumpled up his hand, “and all I can think is, how did I miss this? She had been sending out signs all the time to me, and I-” Her voice broke off with a sob. “And I told her not to talk about it. I mean… how selfish can I be?”

“No, Evie. I’m the one who sent her over the edge today. This is on me… I have to go there and apologize,” he realized. “I have to go there and- and beg her to come back!”

“Ben, you’ll never find her-” He tried to argue with her, but Evie wouldn’t let up. “The Isle is huge. Maybe not compared to Auradon, but it is set up specifically to be confusing and ugly and… you have to take me with you.”

His neck could have snapped with the force he used to look at her. “Are-Are you sure?”

She nodded, although her face wasn’t exactly screaming yes. “She’s my best friend.”

It took both of them a minute to settle in and come to terms with what they planned to do. But the minute Evie was certain that she was going, she was making plans.

“I haven’t talked to either of the boys about this, yet,” she explained. “I can only hope they’ll agree to come with us, because there’s safety in numbers and none of us are… too popular over there right now.”

“Thank you.”

“But let’s get two things straight. The first being, I’m not going to force the boys, or anyone for that matter, to come with us. And neither are you. That place is an actual hell and I do not blame a single one of them for avoiding it. We have to be prepared to do this alone.”

Ben nodded quickly. He was more than happy to hear her demands if it meant a better chance of getting Mal back.

“And you have to promise me I… we won’t get stuck there again.”

It broke Ben’s heart to hear that. Those poor kids. They had lived an unspeakable life, one that he and the other students could never comprehend. And for so long, no one had even spared a thought for them.

“I promise,” he told her, with his deepest sincerity.

She huffed. “Good. I’m going to tell the boys… do you want to keep the note for now?”

Ben looked down. The paper had become so squished in his hand that a section or two had ripped around the ring, which was sitting in the center of his palm.

“Yes,” he responded, softly.

Evie gave him a look of support, then left so that he could process alone.

~ ~ ~

Nobody saw anything on the Isle. It was almost comforting to be back in a place where I wasn’t under constant observation. But… it was weird. Because I could walk down a busy street and still feel utterly alone. I was utterly alone.

I knew what I would be giving up when I left Auradon. Or at least, I thought I did.

After I had parked my bike outside my old apartment and dropped off my stuff, I went wandering. There were a couple of things that needed to happen before I started making it known that I was back.

I pulled around a tight corner and found myself in front of Lady Tremaine’s Curl Up and Dye.

I groaned, seeing the large “Closed Until MIDNIGHT” sign on the door. I had completely forgotten. I contemplated coming back later, but something came over me. If I could somehow avoid Tremaine, I wouldn’t have to deal with any crowd inside which would be great, but there could only be one other person inside…

Dizzy’s music was muffled in her headphones, but still loud enough that I could hear it from the doorway.

The shop looked as it always had. Steaming vats of colorful chemicals lined the walls. All highly toxic, but on the Isle, that was the least of your worries.  There were dried splatters of paint and dye on the walls, floor, and chairs. Vibrant wigs hung in front of windows and all the mirrors were shattered.

Dizzy danced along to the cute dance-pop song she was listening to and swept up small segments of hair on the floor.

I paused, watching the preteen lost in the blissful peace. It didn’t take her long, though to turn my direction and freeze.

“Mal!” she shrieked, pulling off her headphones. “Is Evie back, too?”

It hurt my heart to tell her no. Dizzy had been looking up to Evie since E first came into Lady Tremaine’s when she was 12. They were both made of the same creative mold, just slightly different talents between them.

Dizzy’s face dropped and I could start to feel the tension rising in the silence.

“I, um, forgot that you guys don’t open until midnight.”

She nodded, looking sort of solemnly at the floor. “Uh, Mal? What are you doing back here?”

I shrugged, wandering a bit. “Turns out princess life… not for me.”

“Well, that’s… I don’t know how the others are going to take that.”

“I know, I know. Everyone hates me because I ruined the chance to break the barrier and killed the Mistress of All Evil,” I grumbled. “But hey! Hate can be a temporary state of mind. What are things like now that my mother isn’t in charge?”

Dizzy bit down on her lip. “Okay? There’s still… bad stuff.”

“There will always be bad stuff,” I noted, glumly.

“Yeah. There isn’t really a set ruler. Just some big gangs who are dominating different sections of the Isle.”

I quirked an eyebrow and she went on.

“The Evil Queen has got the north. She broke away the minute she heard that Maleficent was dead and began gaining territory. A lot of your mom’s goons work for her now. I think Jafar followed her up there as well, but no one’s heard from Cruella since that day. There’s a rumor that she’s dead, but I doubt it. If someone had killed her, they’d be using that to their advantage. Shan Yu has a bit of a following, but not enough conquer any territory for himself. And the pirate’s around the bridge… they all belong to Uma.”

“Uma?” I wrinkled my nose. I hadn’t heard her name in a long, long time.

Uma was the daughter of Ursula, a “once was” sort of villain around these parts. When my mother was choosing her following, she sort of tossed Ursula aside as pointless. And the minute I realized we didn’t need her mother’s favor, I dropped Uma like a hot potato.

It wasn’t anything against the girl. In some ways, I was glad that she was one less person my mother could torment. But oh boy was that hard for her to hear.

There was a time when half the Isle would call her Shrimpy, a nickname I had used when telling her that she couldn’t be a part of my gang. Her and her mother were suddenly at the bottom of the island food chain. Her mom opened a restaurant which she worked in for years, doing dishes and serving passing pirates.

She made it clear to me that she would get her revenge on me someday. I was never much afraid of her, seeing as I was backed by some of the strongest people on the Isle, but Uma was strong. I could see that she was far more of a leader than I was. So, I didn’t push her too far.

Then, about two and a half years ago, she sort of fell off my map. The most I heard of her was from Harry Hook or Gil, Gaston’s son, because they were often her little lackey boys.

She stopped leaving the edge of the barrier. She seemingly stopped plotting any sort of revenge on me. And now she was back, over two years later, with a whole gang under her control.

“Figures,” I muttered under my breath. “So, what is your deal? Has your grandmother given you any customers yet?”

She shrugged, glad to drop the topic. “Ah, just a witch here and there. Mostly it’s a lot of scrubbing and scouring and sweeping. Lots and lots of sweeping,” she prompted, waving her broom back and forth.

“Sounds like the old Cinderella treatment, eh?” I joked.

“Yeah. She’s gone from Wicked Stepmother to Wicked Grandmother.”

Dizzy glanced at the ceiling, as if afraid Lady Tremaine would hear her. It brought me back to a time where I was living on my toes like that. Never saying anything bad about my mother, because she had ears everywhere.

“That’s not really much of a switch,” I said, solemnly. “Hey, Dizzy, you used to do Evie, right?”

“Yeah,” she responded excitedly. “I thought of the little braids.”

“You have any ideas for me?” I raised an eyebrow, as if taunting her to try and think something up.

Her eyes narrowed, tilting her head to get a look from different angles. Then, she stepped forward, confidence reading on her face.

“The washed-out blonde with purple tips? The best of no worlds. You can’t see where your face ends and your hair begins!”

I chuckled. I could see why Evie liked the girl. I thought that Evie was just there for the attention, but so far, Dizzy had just been hitting me with the cold, hard truth. She was five feet of glitter and business.

She pulled me into one of the chairs and looked me over. “Hm. How far can I go?”

I clicked my tongue. “The works? I mean, whatever makes me feel like me, but, you know… way worse.”

“Yay!” she squealed and ran to get her stuff.