I'm back. I'm still planning for the sequel for "Mischief In My Blood," but until then, I give you a series of short stories that actually take place following the previous story. I thought we could take some time off the action and enjoy some teenage magical entertainment.
Pairings for these stories will include MalxBen, EviexDoug, JayxAudrey, CarlosxJane, and ChadxLonnie. But, of course, these stories will feature the continuing development of the blossoming romance between Carlos and Evie.
Rotten to the Core, Part 1
The sun rises to a new day in the kingdom of Auradon. The birds are singing in the skies, the flowers a blossoming on the ground, and every citizen in Auradon has smiles on their faces. It has been four months since the arrival of the four Descendants - Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos - in Auradon. After a shaky start, they made new friends, some of them found love, and they saved the kingdom from Maleficent... twice. Ben and his parents decided it's best to keep quiet about Maleficent's inevitable return until the Descendants find a way to stop her once and for all.
Speaking of the Descendants, they have just awoken at first sunlight and are getting ready for their first day of the new school year.
In Mal and Evie's room, after getting dressed in their school uniforms, they started pampering themselves... well, mostly Evie. After finishing her make-up, she started giving Mal a make-up while the purple-haired sorceress finishes her sketch of her boyfriend, Ben. The sketch made Evie smile. She was happy for her best friend. To think that someone as cruel and mean as Mal could find love in someone like Ben, who is generous and kind-hearted. After the make-up, Evie puts her mirror in front of Mal and the latter had to admit that she looks stunning.
In Jay and Carlos' room, Carlos was about to grab a chocolate bar from his small treasure chest only to find it missing. He saw that Jay stole it and wrestled him all over the floor to get it back. Carlos whistled and gestured to Jay. Dude pounced on Jay and started licking his face, making him let go of the chest. Carlos puts it back to where it was then he signaled Dude to get off Jay. Carlos grabs one chocolate bar from his chest and gives it to Jay. While Jay eats the chocolate and gets into his uniform, Carlos takes Dude to the bathroom to give him a bath.
Later, the four ex-villains meet in front of Auradon Prep.
"'Sup, guys," greeted Mal.
"Ladies," greeted Jay in a formal manner.
"It's a whole new school year," pointed out Carlos.
"Our first full school year here in Auradon Prep," added Evie.
"Bummer! Our first summer here was really rockin'," said Jay.
"Don't worry, man. We can still learn more about Auradon during the school year," assured Carlos.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get this party started," said Mal as she and her friends walked together to Auradon Prep.
Just like last year, the Descendants' first period is Intermediate Goodness Class. They sat in their respective tables, waiting for Fairy God Mother to show up. After five minutes, Carlos decided to break the silence.
"So... Evie, how are you and Doug?" he asked.
"Well, we haven't been on the first date, but things are going well," answered Evie.
"Why would you want to know about their relationships, Carlos?" asked Mal with a sly smile, suspicious of Carlos' question.
"Is it wrong to ask a friend about her love life?" retorted Carlos.
"You never mind at all if I talk about your relationship with Ben," said Evie.
"I'm just saying. Why would Carlos be so interested?" said Mal.
"Can we change the subject?" suggested Jay, feeling awkward.
"Like about you and Audrey?" said Carlos. Mal and Evie started giggling.
"It's a working progress," said Jay. "Can we talk about something that doesn't involve romance?"
"Maleficent is still out there plotting her revenge," said Evie.
"Not what I meant," said Jay.
"Well, Ben is still going to school," said Mal.
"Why? He's king now," wondered Evie.
"He may be king, but he's still 16. He still has a lot to learn," said Mal.
"So who'll be running the kingdom while he's in school?" asked Carlos.
"No one. In school or not, he'll still be ruling Auradon," answered Mal.
Finally, Fairy God Mother showed up.
"Sorry I'm late. Jane was attacked by squirrels because a nut fell on her head. I don't even want to tell you how it ended," explained Fairy God Mother. "Anyway, good morning. Now, today, you four are going to do more than just know what is the right thing to do. You're actually going to do the right thing."
"What do you mean?" asked Evie.
"Well, you see. Our King Ben has been getting a few complaints about your behavior this summer, so he suggests that you four make up for you deeds in our first session," answered Fairy God Mother.
"What did we ever do wrong?" wondered Jay.
Flashback
Mal was in the park, in her clothes from the Isle, sketching herself and her friends in their Auradon Prep uniforms. Audrey and two other teenage girls (Felicia, daughter of Rapunzel and Eugene Fitzherbert; Abigail, daughter of Alice) arrived gossiping when they saw Mal. Audrey spoke up.
"Hey, Mal, what are you wearing?" she started.
"It's my clothes from the Isle," answered Mal.
"You looks like a princess out of style," said Felicia.
"Or a carny," added Abigail. She, Audrey, and Felicia laughed.
"Don't push me. I may be good now, but that doesn't mean I'm soft," warned Mal.
"Okay, Mal, we'll stop laughing," said Audrey as she turned her back, but before she walked away, she spoke. "They have a point though. If you keep looking like that, how can you be the queen Ben desires? And if you keep threatening people like that, then maybe you're not good at all."
Audrey's final words aggravated Mal. Audrey and her friends walked away, continuing to laugh at everything they said to Mal. All of a sudden, Audrey ends up in a beggar's clothes, Felicia's dress is in stitches, and Abigail is dressed like a carny. They turned around to see Mal holding her spellbook with a mischievous smile on her face, meaning she did it as payback.
"How's that for 'not good at all'?" Mal was amused with herself.
...
Evie was having lunch in the house of the Seven Dwarfs. Doug wanted her to meet his father, Dopey, and his father's brothers, hoping they will like Evil Queen's daughter. So far, things are going well, but Evie's peaceful lunch was interrupted by a glaring Grumpy, who was sitting next to her.
"Is there something wrong, sir?" wondered Evie.
"You may have everyone fooled, but I got my eye on you," said the "grumpy" dwarf.
"Um, Uncle Grump. Just give her a chance. You'll like her," said Doug, trying to change his uncle's mind.
"Do you know who raised her? Evil Queen! The Evil Queen who tried to kill Snow White. Whose to say she's not as evil as she is?" said a skeptical Grumpy, putting emphasis on "evil".
"You think I'm evil? Then maybe I should prove you right," said an irritated Evie. She takes out her sleeping perfume and sprayed Grumpy in the face, causing him to drift to sleep. Doug and the rest of the Dwarfs quickly attended to the slumbering man.
"Evie?" reacted Doug, stunned by what Evie did.
...
Jay was in the village running to escape from someone. After hiding in an alley and checking to see if the cost was clear, he proceeds to the jewelry store. He had his sights set on a lovely pearl necklace. He walked to the cashier and immediately laid 200 Auradon dollars on the table.
"I'd like that necklace," he requested, pointing at the object he aims to buy.
"Is there a special lady involved?" wondered the cashier.
"Well... she can be a little self-absorbed, and a bit of a drama queen, but she's beautiful," answered Jay.
"Halt!" exclaimed someone. Jay turned around to see that the three guards he was running away from have found him.
"That boy is a thief!" yelled another guard.
"I'll take that necklace now," said Jay. The cashier gave Jay the necklace and the former thief used his agility to escape the guards trying to get a hold of him, destroying some glass cases in the process. After being met with glares, Jay immediately runs out of the store.
...
Carlos was in the village for Dude's daily walk. Carlos was enjoying Auradon so far. The sight of a carefree environment brings a smile to his face. When Dude caught the smell of something delicious, he ran towards the direction of the scent, breaking free from Carlos' grip. Carlos chased Dude, knocking over a barrel of berries along the way, scattering them all over the ground.
"Sorry!" apologized Carlos as he chased after Dude.
He ran around a corner and found Dude at a restaurant. He pounced on someone's table, scattering food and condiments, and eating a piece of stake. Carlos runs towards Dude and picks him up off the table.
"You!" exclaimed a furious man.
"So... you know who I am," said Carlos, feeling embarrassed of the situation.
"Is this some joke to you? Having your dog wreck our meal for your own pleasure?" yelled the man's wife.
"You got it all wrong..." Carlos was interrupted.
"Somebody take this low-life hood away!" yelled the woman.
The sound of those words were just the fuel to light up the fire inside Carlos. He saw a waiter pushing a cart full of leftover food heading for his direction. He purposely trips him over, causing him to accidentally crash the cart to the couple, covering them in food. Carlos was smiling at his act, but then he saw a guard. He immediately runs out of the restaurant with Dude. He accidentally runs into a hooded man, causing him to drop his sword. Carlos says "sorry" as he continues to run.
After flashing back to their deeds during the summer, the four teenage misfits started laughing. They closed their laughter with a sigh of joy. Their moment was ruined when they saw the disappointed look on Fairy God Mother's face.
"Sorry," they said.
"Okay, so... here's what you're going to do," started Fairy God Mother. "Mal, Audrey just got herself a new car, but some young troublemakers spray-painted on it. She wants you to clean it."
"Figures. Payback for my payback," responded Mal.
Fairy God Mother continued. "Evie, Dopey sprained an ankle after a little accident in the crystal mines. He won't be on his feet until tomorrow so someone needs to fill his spot in the mines for the day. And I suppose you can guess who Grumpy suggested..."
"Great," reacted Evie, clearly not excited.
Fairy God Mother looked at Jay and said, "Jay, the owner of the jewelry store still wants you to pay for the damage. Since you can't pay with money, you'll have to pay by working for him. Just for today."
"Fantastic," uttered Jay, not at all happy.
Fairy God Mother turned her attention to Carlos and said, "And Carlos, the married couple needs a babysitter to look after their 5-year-old daughter, but the one they hired suffered food poisoning, so..."
"Yeah, yeah, I get it. They want me to babysit as punishment for my little stunt," interrupted Carlos.
"You'll all be starting once the school day is over. So let's get started," said Fairy God Mother as she started writing on the chalk board.
After the final bell of the school day, the Descendants meet up in Jay and Carlos' room. However, Evie, Jay, and Carlos are feeling down, since, of course, they have to make up for their summer mistakes with deeds that they can only tolerate.
"Well, I guess it's time for me to go to work," started Jay.
"And I have to endure more of Grumpy's skepticism," added Evie.
"And I have to babysit," complained Carlos.
"Guys, relax. Yes, none of us here likes this one bit. But remember, we're making up for our mistakes. We chose to be good and this is one way we'll prove it to Auradon. By showing them we are more than willing to do what's right or necessary," said Mal, trying to cheer up her friends. "Just go with the flow. In the end, we'll feel better about ourselves."
Her speech didn't work because her friends were still feeling down. Mal sights in defeat. Meanwhile, Dude then wakes up from his nap and hops on to Carlos' lap. The white-haired tech prodigy realized something.
"Wait, who's going to watch over Dude while I'm away?" wondered Carlos. "I can't ask Ben because he's busy with his Kingly duties, and I can't trust Doug after what happened last time." Evie quietly laughed to herself at what he said. That night brought back a lot of memories.
"Put Dude back on his bed. I have an idea," said Mal. Carlos seems unsure.
"Just trust me," she assured. Reluctantly, Carlos did exactly what she told him. Mal opens her spellbook and found the spell she was looking for. She takes Carlos' hand and taps his finger, creating a magical spark on her finger. She touches Dude on his forehead and the magical spark puts him to sleep.
"He can only be woken up by the touch of his owner," explained Mal.
"Good enough for me," replied Carlos.
"Alright boys and girl, let's do this," declared Mal, getting prepared for the rest of the day.
Mal arrived at the Auradon car wash. She saw Audrey's new car and the graffiti all over it. There was animals, flowers, and a writing that says, "Audruh." She couldn't help, but be amused. Unfortunately for her, Audrey was there and she wasn't pleased with Mal's laughter.
"You would think that's funny, right?" started Audrey.
"Hey, I didn't do this, remember?" reminded Mal.
"No, but you're the one whose going to clean it up," said Audrey. "I'll be back in two hours and if this is not clean by the time I get back, Ben will know."
Audrey puts on a smug look on her face and Mal can only glare at her before the princess left. Mal picks up a sponge, fills up a bucket with water, and started scrubbing the paint off Audrey's car. All of a sudden, the front window was covered in bird droppings. Mal looked up in the sky and she swore she wants to fry them for the extra mess.
"Relax, Mal. It's just birds," said Mal to herself. However, now the hood was covered in bird droppings. Mal sighed in despair and face-palmed herself.
At the crystal mines, Evie, dressed in miner's clothes, meets up with the Seven Dwarfs... minus Dopey. The Dwarfs felt a little uneasy around the girl, especially after what she did to Grumpy.
Doc coughs for a moment and speaks. "We-welcome, m-my dear."
"We just want you to know that there are no hard feelings for what you did," said Happy, well, happily.
"Seriously?" said Grumpy. "Alright, you blue she-witch, pick up a pickax and start digging."
"Yes, Captain Grumpy," said Evie sarcastically. She gets a pickax and started digging the gems out of the walls.
Jay arrived at the jewelry store and he is met by a still angry owner and his cashier. "Welcome back, son of Jafar," greeted the owner. "Mr. Jones, you may take the rest of the day off." The cashier left the jewelry store. The owner gave Jay his work clothes and said, "It's simple: 'The customer is always right.'"
"Meaning..." Jay wanted more information.
"Don't argue with the customer," said the owner. "That register better be full by 9 o'clock or you'll have to come back here tomorrow. Understood?"
"Yes, boss," said Jay sarcastically. After getting dressed, he steps to the front counter and greets a customer.
Carlos is arriving at the address of the married couple he messed with during the summer. On his way there, he accidentally ran into a mysterious elderly man who has a sword strapped to his belt. He couldn't help feel that the man seemed familiar. He ignored his curiosity and proceeded to the house. He knocks on the door and the wife answers. She gave him a glare and he could only smile sheepishly as she invites him inside.
"Honey, the boy is here!" called out the wife.
The woman's husband arrives with his daughter.
"Who is he?" asked the girl.
"Carlos," introduced Carlos.
"Is your hair covered in snow?" asked the girl, intrigued by his hair color.
"No, it's white from birth," explained Carlos.
"How are you born with white hair?" asked the girl again.
"Ask him later, dear," said the girl's father. "This is Emily. We're trusting you to watch over her until we're back at 9."
"You can count on me, sir. If I can take care of a dog, I can definitely take care of your daughter," said Carlos with confidence.
Six hours later...
It's 9:30 and the Descendants have returned from their long night. Jay was in his room trying to straighten his back after a hard day at work. Walking through the door is the rest of his friends, only to see them in an unusual state. Mal has a dried... something... on her hair, Evie is covered in dust and oil, and Carlos' face, hair, and clothes are covered in paint. Carlos walks up to Dude and pets him, breaking Mal's spell and waking him up. Dude greeted his owner by licking him the face. This actually made Carlos smile.
"So... what happened to you guys?" asked Jay.
Mal started. "Let's see. First, birds kept treating the car like their personal bathroom, and if that wasn't bad enough, while I was refilling the bucket, some brats came by and spray-painted the car. I got so mad that I lost control and almost set those kids on fire. Their parents came by and they scolded me to the point where I tried to incinerate them, only to cover the car in smut. By the time Audrey showed up, the only mess left on the car was the 'Audruh' writing on the hood. She was not happy."
Evie spoke next. "I was trying my best to dig up as much gems as I could, until I accidentally caused a little rock slide. Grumpy started complaining and I was starting to lose it, but instead of spraying him, I decided to move deeper into the mines to dig up gems in peace. That was until I accidentally hit a pipe within the walls, and I got covered in oil, along with the rest. The Dwarfs hate me and... I sprayed Grumpy... again."
Carlos takes his turn to speak. "Well, me and Emily were just watching TV until she wanted to play hide-and-seek. She actually left the house. It took me a couple of hours to find her in someone else's back yard. Then she got hungry so I fed her, but all she did was spit milk on my face. I figured out she loves art so we were going to paint, but she decided to paint on me because she thinks it's funny. When she painted my hair, I yelled at her. Her parents came home to see her crying."
"What about you?" Evie asked Jay.
"Customer service wasn't so bad, but some customers got very testy with me and I was losing my mind. I wanted to get paid, but the owner wouldn't pay me. Before I left, I took half the profit I made today. I thought I deserved something for all that trouble. He was so angry," answered Jay.
Mal sat down and told her friends, "Guys, we weren't good today. We were..."
"... rotten to the core," they all finished simultaneously.
"Worst of all, this will go down in our grades in Goodness," added Evie.
"Who cares about the grade? I care more about us keeping our promise!" yelled Mal.
Carlos walks to Mal and puts his hand on her shoulder. "Whoa, whoa. Calm down, Mal. Wouldn't want you to lose control again, wouldn't we?"
Mal brushed Carlos' hand off her shoulder and departs the room, leaving the three to think about their own actions.
Evie was about to return to her room when she saw Doug waiting outside.
"Oh, hey, Evie. I was waiting for you," started Doug.
"Hi, Doug. Sorry, but now's not a good time," said Evie.
"I know. I heard about what happened," said Doug. "Did you seriously have to spray Uncle Grump again?"
"He was getting on my nerves," said Evie. "Did they say anything else?"
"They chose not to punish you. Though we won't be hearing Uncle Grump's word until tomorrow," answered Doug. "Can I get you anything. Soap? Shampoo?"
"That's sweet, Doug, but no. I need some time for myself," said Evie as she enters her room.
Jay decided to head to the Tourney field to exercise, even if it's evening. When he arrived, he saw Audrey sitting on the bleachers, looking distraught about something on her phone. Jay decided to give her some comfort.
"Hey, what's wrong?" asked Jay.
"Your friend, Mal," answered Audrey as she showed Jay what's on her phone. Someone took a picture of the "Audruh" graffiti writing on her car and posted it. Now, people are starting to make fun of her. The post already got 68 comments.
"I'm really sorry about that," said Jay.
"Why are you apologizing? This was Mal's work," said Audrey.
"True," said Jay. "But don't be so hard on her. She's trying to be good."
"And she's doing a fantastic job," said Audrey sarcastically.
"I'm gonna leave now," said Jay as he left Audrey.
Carlos was in his room feeding Dude. He was still thinking about how he acted towards Emily earlier. He felt... callous. He once loved being like that, but now he feels bad. He was wondering if he was even destined to be good. He spent his entire life growing up in a place where everyone is cruel, vicious, but above all... evil. His despair was interrupted by the sound of his phone. It was Jane. He had no choice, but to answer.
"Hey, Jane," greeted Carlos.
"Um... h-hi, Carlos," greeted Jane.
"Why're you calling?" asked Carlos.
"I was wondering if you could come over and help me with my Physics homework. I'm having trouble," said Jane.
"Sure, I'll be there in a few," said Carlos as he hangs up and was about to leave when he saw Dude following him. "Alright, boy, you can come."
Mal returns to the Enchanted Lake to cool her head off. She lights up her hand with fire and it was normal. Mal lets the darkness consume her temporarily and it transforms into black fire. Mal regains control of herself and the fire reverts back to its original state. After turning off the fire, Mal continued to stare at her reflection in the lake. However, her quiet moment was interrupted when she saw Maleficent's reflection. She turned around to see her mother.
"What are you doing here, mom?" asked Mal in anger.
"I did say I would return. But not to take over Auradon. Not yet. I came to see you," answered Maleficent.
"You saw what I did, didn't you?" guessed Mal.
"Yes, I did. And I must say, I am proud of you. The fear in the eyes of those little beasts and their parents. I can't help but be happy for you," said Maleficent.
"If you think I will succumb to the darkness, I won't. I'm just having a hard time controlling it," said Mal.
"You do that. Doesn't matter. It's your destiny. You are my daughter," said Maleficent before vanishing.
Mal decided to walk home, until she saw a motorcycle heading her way. It was Ben.
"Mal, what are you doing out here? Curfew is in fifteen minutes," asked and reminded Ben.
"I don't care," said Mal.
"This is about what happened, isn't it?" guessed Ben.
"Am I such an open book?" replied Mal sarcastically.
"Kind of," said Ben. "Look, I understand. You lost your temper. But did you really have to try and set them on fire?"
"Ben, you know where I was raised. I was raised to enjoy inflicting pain on others. I may have chosen to be good, but I'm still rotten to the core," said Mal.
"Don't say that..." Ben was about to say something to comfort her, but Mal interrupted.
"No, Ben. No more. Just take me back. Don't say a word," said Mal. She hops on the motorcycle and Ben did so. He started riding it back to Auradon Prep.
Mal returned to her room just after 10 o'clock, but Ben lets it slide. He is the King after all. Mal saw Evie was asleep. She dresses up in her nightwear, but when she tried to sleep, she couldn't. She kept seeing her mother every time she started dreaming. She decided to just stay up all night. She reaches into her school bag and picked up a container full of strawberries. She started chowing them down quietly as she continued to think.
"Pull yourself together, Mal. Don't listen to whatever she says. I may have evil running through my veins, but that doesn't mean I still can't make my own choices. I swear to you, Ben, I will not be the villain I was raised to be. I will be the hero you always believed me to be."
That concludes part one of the first story. Leave a review.