"I know who you are," she had said.

"Do you?" Maleficent drawled back, challenging the foolish young girl and daring her to act unafraid for a single second longer. But the girl remained stalwart, nodding her head and giving Maleficent the biggest smile she'd seen on anyone's face in many, many years. Maybe her courage wasn't as fake as Maleficent had first thought…

"You're my fairy godmother!"

For a solid five seconds, there was only silence between them as Maleficent tried to wrap her horned head around what the young Princess Aurora had just called her. Of all the many names and titles Maleficent had acquired over the years and of all the many names and titles she had expected Aurora to come up with, "Fairy Godmother" was not one of them. It shook Maleficent to her very core and, for a brief moment, she wondered if she had even heard the girl correctly. Fairy Godmother? Had she lost her wits?! Maleficent couldn't think of what to say or do, so she remained there with a blank expression. Fairy Godmother? This couldn't be real…

But in the years to come, Maleficent would come to love that name above all others. Maybe it was the least expected, but it was definitely the sweetest to the ear. Nothing filled her with greater joy than to hear it. Nothing filled her with greater joy than to hear Aurora calling sweetly out to her, practically singing the name, Godmother! It was so wonderful to hear! Godmother! She was Aurora's godmother! That thought, coupled with hearing Aurora say it out loud as an almost constant reminder, brought Maleficent the greatest joy she had ever felt. No matter what sort of mood Maleficent was in, all she needed to hear was Aurora's voice, soft and sweet, calling out that beautiful name and suddenly, Maleficent would melt. Always, a smile would flicker across her face, unbidden, but that was what made it all the more beautiful. Then she would turn and respond with a little nickname she'd made up for Aurora.

"Hello, Beastie." It was a beautiful thing, each woman having made a special name for the other that no one else could use. It was deeply symbolic of their own relationship, something that no one else could touch. And Maleficent was certain that her name from Aurora, (Godmother!), would forever be one of the most important and cherished things the girl had ever given to her. Nothing could ever top it! Or so she thought…

But five years after Maleficent and Aurora first started addressing one another with their special names for each other, something happened that led to an even greater, brighter and more beautiful exchange of names than had ever been before. It was no trivial thing, no small or passing matter. Instead, it had nearly taken a war to bring about the change, but when it finally happened, it was like watching a phoenix rise from the ashes, a dying bird coming back to life, rejuvenated in bright, golden flames.

"I know you!" Aurora had pleaded with Maleficent as the Dark Fairy closed in on the evil human queen named Ingrith.

"You do not!" Maleficent snarled back at the girl, seeing not a daughter or even a friend, but instead, a traitor, who had chosen humans over fairies.

"Yes I do!" Aurora replied, crying now. "You're my mother." And in that one single word, the entire world changed. Suddenly, all of Maleficent's rage and hatred was gone. It had just vanished. With one word, it was like a curse had been broken and she could finally see clearly again after spending so long blinded by bitterness and vengeance. You're my mother… And Maleficent had thought that nothing would ever top "Godmother"!

But just hearing that word, that one simple word, brought the dying fairy queen back to life. If Aurora's usage of the name "Godmother" would cause Maleficent to melt, Aurora's usage of the name "Mother" caused Maleficent to come back to life, rejuvenated and restored, mind and memory cleared once again. It reminded her of who she truly was underneath, exactly what Aurora had called her: Mother.

And not long after the end of the battle, Maleficent got to return the favor.

"Phillip!" she shouted out to the young man who had aided her in battle and was currently courting Aurora. "Do you love my daughter?" and she hadn't just been asking in order to test Phillip and see what his true answer would be. She had also asked just to find an excuse to call Aurora her daughter. She had always known that Aurora was such, but it was high time that she got to say it out loud for the entire world to hear! And finally getting to say it for all to hear, including Aurora, felt even better than the day Aurora had returned Maleficent's wings to her. Getting to call Aurora her daughter and hearing Aurora call her Mother brought Maleficent higher than her wings ever could.

And from that day on, Godmother and Beastie were no more. Those names, though beautiful and powerful, were outdated now. It was time for a change, a growth, a transformation. Now, they were Mother and Daughter, just as it always should've been and finally was becoming and that, Maleficent was certain of, was the greatest title of all. Mother! She was Aurora's mother! Yes, most definitely, she was! She was Aurora's mother! Mother!

(And now, whenever Aurora would come to visit the Moors, she would call Maleficent "Mother" and it would make the Dark Fairy feel just as alive and complete as it had the very first time Aurora had ever said it, calling out to her in her darkest hour and bringing her back to life once again, just like a phoenix rising from the ashes to brighter and better future).

AN: Here you go, marycamp, your second chapter where Maleficent gets to muse on her own nickname.