Mistress of All Evil

by Serena Valentino

  Tulip shook her head. “No, it was Pflanze, the odd sisters’ cat. Or so Nanny believes, anyway.”

  Oberon’s laugh echoed through his branches, shaking his leaves and making them cascade around Tulip once again. “The odd sisters! They are still in this world? I stopped feeling their spirits after Ursula died. I feared they were lost to us, leaving us with the best parts of themselves.” Oberon smiled at the confused expression on Tulip’s face. “Oh, yes, I know the odd sisters. All their deeds, all their secrets, all their betrayals and loves—but they are not for me to speak of. What concerns me now is making the Dark Fairy pay for her transgressions. I have felt her coming here and her dark intentions. It was torture for me to hear the screams of our brethren when Maleficent burned the Fairylands. They burned, and I was powerless to do anything about it. But now we are free. And we have been waiting a very long time to make the Dark Fairy pay with her life.”

  From far away, Tulip heard a tiny scream. Oberon heard it, too. He looked down to see Nanny standing at the base of the lighthouse.

  “Come up here, my dear, use your wings,” Oberon commanded. A moment later, Nanny appeared beside Tulip and hovered in the air.

  “Only for you, Oberon,” Nanny replied.

  The King of the Fairies looked tenderly at Nanny. “And I suppose you’re going to try to make a case for your former charge, your daughter? You’re going to try to save her from my wrath, even though she deserves it? It breaks my heart to hurt you, my wee one, it really does, but I cannot let her deeds go unpunished. And how did she repay you for your kindness to her? She nearly killed everyone in the Fairylands. She nearly killed you, and she still may.”

  “You know it was a mistake,” Nanny insisted. “You know it was my fault. If you have to hold someone accountable, punish me.”

  Oberon chuckled. “You have punished yourself far too much already, my dear one. There is nothing I can do to you that you have not already done to yourself.”

  Nanny was heartbroken. “But so has Maleficent. The odd sisters told me she punished herself for years. She tortured herself for what she did!”

  Oberon shook his head. “She’s learned nothing from it. She’s only slipped further into darkness. Her deeds are not redemptive. Had she taken another path, had she become the witch you hoped she would be, we wouldn’t be here. You know that I speak the truth. And you know that I am compassionate and fair. I don’t dole out punishment unjustly. Use your powers. See her crimes. I saw them all as they happened. You refused. That’s probably your only crime against her.”

  “What of my sister’s part in all of this?” Nanny asked. “What of the three good fairies? Are they to flitter off into the sunset as usual without even—”

  Oberon interrupted her. “No, my dear, they will not. But I will not deal with the good fairies until their charge is safe and her kingdom is no longer asleep. As for your sister, she is one of the reasons I am here. She has disappointed me greatly over the years. I intend to restore compassion and open-mindedness to the Fairylands once again. For far too long have I seen a corruption of fairy magic, and in my name! This will not stand!” Oberon was becoming angry, his voice causing the earth to shake.

  “Excuse me, King Oberon?” Tulip said softly.

  The King of the Fairies looked down at Tulip, remembering she was there. “Yes, dear heart?”

  “Your voice, it is so loud, I’m afraid you will shatter Mr. Fresnel’s lens, which helps light the way of the many ships that traverse our kingdom,” she said, motioning to the beacon in the lighthouse.

  Oberon laughed. “Yes, my dear, you are right. And he was rather crafty. He was never drawn to the mines like other dwarfs. He always preferred the light. He worked very closely with my enemy Vitruvius, the Cyclopean King, to create the most magnificent lighthouse of any age. I see your castle is built around that lighthouse. But I will not hold that against him or you. He was a true artist and craftsman, an absolute gentleman, and quite articulate for a dwarf. But I digress.”

  Oberon stopped and looked down at the strange expression on Nanny’s face. “Am I boring you with my stories again, my dear one?”

  “No. I was just thinking. I should cast a cloaking spell around you and the other Tree Lords. I don’t want Maleficent to know you’re here when she arrives,” she said firmly.

  Oberon’s face became grave. “I see.”

  “Please give her a chance,” Nanny said. “Please don’t hurt her.”

  “I promise to give you the opportunity to speak with her and to let her know how much you still love her. If she loves you in return, I will show her compassion. I may even spare her life,” Oberon agreed.

  “Will you give her a chance to redeem herself?”

  “I will, my wee fairy, you have my word. But I’m afraid she will disappoint you once again.”

  Nanny and Tulip returned to the castle and gathered with Popinjay in the morning room. Nanny looked sick with worry, and it made Tulip’s heart hurt to see her in such a state. Tulip wanted to take Nanny in her arms and cover her face with kisses, but she was afraid if she did, it would make Nanny cry. “Please don’t worry, Nanny. Oberon promised to give Maleficent a chance. I don’t think he will hurt her.”

  Nanny didn’t answer; she just stared off into nothingness, lost in her own thoughts.

  “Nanny, are you okay? Here, let me ring for some tea.” As Tulip went to pull the bell, an explosion of green light burst from the fireplace. Tulip was sent flying across the room and landed at Nanny’s feet. The room was overwhelmed with green light and flames. As Popinjay helped Tulip to her feet, Maleficent walked out of the hearth and stood before them, tall and imposing, with green flames lingering around her like an evil aura.

  “Maleficent!” cried Nanny.

  “Well, isn’t this quaint? A little gathering, smaller but much more distinguished than I would have imagined. I’m sorry I missed the ceremony for the great sea queen, but I did see it through the eyes of my crows. It was very…touching,” Maleficent sneered.

  Her voice was unmistakable to Nanny. Older, yes, but it was still her daughter’s voice. Maleficent was beautiful, as always. Her long black robes, accented in purple, and her sharp features fit her formidable personality. There was a confidence in Maleficent that Nanny hadn’t seen when her charge was younger, and the grown fairy emanated an air of power and majesty. She was probably the most striking woman Nanny had ever beheld. But her horns! Her beautiful horns are covered in back wrappings….

  “Maleficent,” Nanny said again. It seemed to Tulip that Nanny was diminished and heartbroken. She looked pale and dwarfed in comparison to the fierce firestorm of a fairy.

  “Welcome to my court, Maleficent,” Tulip said, trying to give Nanny a minute to compose herself.

  “Tulip, is it? Yes, that’s right. Tulip. I’m sorry to hear about your mother. Although I can’t take credit for her sleeping spell. That was the good fairies’ doing.” Maleficent looked at Tulip for some time, taking her measure, soaking in her beauty. “I always found it astounding how remarkably alike you and Aurora look, considering—”

  “Maleficent, why are you here?” Nanny asked, finding her voice after hearing Maleficent speak to Tulip so flippantly.

  “Why, to say good-bye to the great sea witch, of course. To show her the respect she deserved.” Maleficent smirked.

  “You never loved Ursula. Why are you truly here, Maleficent?” Nanny asked.

  “You can thank the good fairies for my visit,” Maleficent replied. “I wouldn’t have come at all had they not interfered with my curse. But now that they have, now that there is a chance the sleeping princess will wake, I do need help. Don’t you see? Prince Phillip is in love with the girl. I cannot have him waking her. You’d think the fairies would have thought of something more creative. Practically every princess in peril has been saved by Love’s First Kiss! For goodness’ sake, between witches and fairies, can’t we think of something more original? I’m weary of this. Why must a young girl n
eed a man to save her? Why can’t a princess fight for her own life, break her own curse? Why must it always be a prince? By Hades, I want to kill Prince Phillip on principle, just so we don’t have yet one more prince kissing some helpless sleeping girl, making her feel like she has to marry him out of gratitude.”

  Popinjay cleared his throat. “I wouldn’t expect Tulip to marry me just because I saved her—not that she needs saving by me or anyone else.”

  “Well, aren’t you a modern man of the age?” Maleficent taunted the young prince. “But if I recall, it was Ursula and Circe who saved Tulip, not you.”

  “She saved herself,” Popinjay said. He puffed out his chest to try to make himself seem larger and more imposing.

  Maleficent laughed. “If by ‘saving herself’ you mean jumping off a cliff in an attempt to take her own life because she was heartbroken, only to be saved by witches, then you are correct. Though I will say her story is more original than most. I will give her that.”

  Tulip hated hearing Maleficent speak to Popinjay that way. She wondered if the Dark Fairy had even noticed the Tree Lords standing outside the morning room. She felt pride, knowing they were there to protect her from the horrible fairy. Tulip tried to imagine the Dark Fairy standing before her as a little girl, helpless and afraid, but she couldn’t. This woman seemed to be afraid of nothing. Her confidence was astounding. She truly didn’t seem to have one ounce of fear in her heart.

  “Why are you really here, Maleficent?” Nanny asked again.

  “The odd sisters were supposed to help me with something very important. As addled and scatterbrained as they were, they were the only people left in this realm I could trust. Now I am forced to ask the very person I trust least for help,” Maleficent replied.

  “You must have known the odd sisters were asleep! But still you came, and you didn’t even know who would be here to greet you!” Nanny said.

  “I sensed great power—yours and another’s. A powerful witch who no longer seems to be in your company.”

  “You mean Circe.”

  Maleficent paused to consider that for a moment. “Ah, Circe. I should have known it would be the odd sisters’ little sister. Of course. It all makes sense. I had to come on the slim chance you two could help me. I can’t break the addendum to the curse alone. I need three witches to break this fairy magic. Don’t you see? Even if I do away with Prince Phillip, there’s still a chance some other young man might wake her from her slumber. We have to keep Aurora in the dreamscape. We must never let her wake!”

  “There is no way you will get Circe to agree to help you,” Nanny pointed out. “She is not like her sisters. She’s not going to harm a child simply because you want her to, and neither will I!”

  Maleficent sighed. “What will it take for you and Circe to help me unbind the good fairies’ spell? Must I prostrate myself in some fashion so you will find my cause worthy?”

  “I will not answer for Circe, Maleficent,” Nanny protested. “She knows only some of your story. She must know everything, as must I, before we can even consider helping you.”

  “Where shall I begin?” Maleficent asked.

  Nanny took her enchanted hand mirror from her pocket, more thankful than ever that the odd sisters had given it to her many years ago.

  “Show me Circe!” she commanded.

  Circe’s stern face appeared in the glass. “What is it, Nanny? Is everything okay?”

  “Circe, Maleficent is here, and she would like to share her story with us. She thinks if she does, we will be willing to help her unbind the good fairies’ spell.”

  “She can share her story, but I will not harm that child!” Circe replied.

  “I do not want to harm her. I want to protect her,” insisted Maleficent.

  “Then share your story, Maleficent. I’m eager to hear what you have to say,” Circe said.

  “I think Nanny can tell this part best,” said Maleficent, surprising Nanny by using her name for the first time since she had arrived.

  Nanny sighed. She could no longer put off remembering her daughter’s heartbreaking memories. “Tulip, dear, can you please ring Violet for that tea? This is going to take some time.”

  The morning of the fairy exams, Maleficent woke to find that Diablo still hadn’t come home. He wasn’t on his perch waiting for her, like she had hoped. She tried to banish all the negative thoughts plaguing her mind. She needed to focus on her exam, but she found herself distracted. Maleficent was convinced something horrible had happened to Diablo.

  She called for one of her favorite crows. “Opal, my pet, will you go see if you can find Diablo? I’m worried about him.” Opal gave a soft caw and flew out the window. Maleficent watched her as she circled over the Fairylands. She knew if anyone could find Diablo, it was Opal. For a brief moment, she could see what Opal saw as she headed toward the thick woodlands. Maleficent had come to realize it was her fondness for Opal that allowed her to see though her eyes. She still needed practice to see clearly through her pets’ eyes, though, rather than experiencing the flashing images she was seeing now. She looked around, yawning. She felt a little better knowing Opal was out looking for Diablo. And she loved waking up in her tree house. The view of the Fairylands was beautiful from up there, and she wondered what it would be like to live life from that vantage point. Perhaps one day she would know.

  “Maleficent! Come down and have your breakfast. You’re going to be late for the exam!” Nanny said from the doorway, startling the girl.

  “How long have you been standing there?” Maleficent asked.

  Nanny gave her a sad smile. “Long enough to know Diablo hasn’t come home. Not to worry, my sweet. He is safe. I can feel him in the world. I’m sure Opal will find him. Trust me.”

  Maleficent and Nanny went down to the kitchen. Nanny had been up all night, baking various pastries, which she had arranged beautifully on pretty flower-patterned plates.

  “Are we having guests for breakfast as well?” Maleficent asked.

  Nanny looked up from the pot of tea she was making. “What? No! Why do you ask that?”

  “You’ve baked so much!” Maleficent’s yellow eyes were wide but happy. Her long black hair was wild, as it often was when she first woke, and Nanny thought her horns were beautiful. They seemed to have finally stopped growing less than a year earlier and were a lovely deep shade of gray, which complemented her yellow eyes. And Nanny had noticed Maleficent’s skin was a very light shade of lavender. That meant she was either happy or worried. Maybe both. Nanny had realized years before that her daughter’s skin tone changed depending on her mood. At least today she wasn’t green, which would have indicated she was either angry or extremely sad. Green was a color Nanny hadn’t seen on Maleficent in quite a while. Nanny blinked a few times, taking in her daughter’s beauty, before she realized Maleficent was waiting for a reply.

  “Oh, yes, you know I bake when I’m nervous. Now eat something before you have to get ready for your exam.”

  Nanny was definitely more nervous than Maleficent. Not only was the table filled with artfully decorated pastries and little cakes, but she had also made an assortment of preserves and clotted creams and a lovely lemon curd. Those sat beside bowls filled with fresh fruit. “Does nothing on the table look good? Would you like me to make you some porridge?”

  “No, Nanny, I’m fine. Everything looks beautiful. Sit down and have some breakfast with me.” Maleficent gestured to the chair next to her.

  Nanny shook her head. “I can’t, my dear! No time! Now eat!”

  Maleficent grabbed a large chocolate chip scone, broke off a piece, and covered it with clotted cream.

  “Try the cinnamon berry preserves, my dear, and the maple butter. I made those just for you,” Nanny insisted. Maleficent had intended to try them; the maple butter was her favorite. “I thought you would like that, my dear. Now hurry up and finish! You’d better go get ready soon.”

  Nanny stopped fussing for a minute and looked at her daughter
. “My dear one! I almost forgot! Open that package on the table. It’s a gift for your birthday.”

  Maleficent smiled as she tore open the brown paper. Inside the parcel was a set of beautiful black robes edged in silver and embroidered with silver ravens and crows. She had never seen anything more beautiful. “Thank you, Nanny!” Maleficent flew into her mother’s arms and kissed her on the cheek.

  “My darling, do you know how beautiful you are?” Nanny asked. Maleficent’s pale cheeks turned pink, so Nanny changed the subject. “I know you’re going to do well today. I just know it. And if you will forgive the suggestion…you know I love you just as you are…it’s just that—”

  Maleficent stopped Nanny before she could continue. “I had already planned to cover my horns.”

  “Not for me, mind you. Just so there is no reason for my sister to give you grief!”

  “I know.”

  Nanny patted Maleficent on the cheek and then gave her a light kiss. “You know I think your horns are beautiful.”

  “I know you do.” Maleficent flashed her mother a radiant smile, returning the kiss with another. “Thank you, Mother.”

  Everyone was assembled for the exam in the main garden, which happened to be one of Nanny’s favorite places in the Fairylands. The fountain statue was fashioned in the image of Nanny’s old friend King Oberon—a large, imposing tree with a kind and wise face. Water cascaded from the statue’s full branches, replicating rain. Nanny looked at her daughter with pride as she stood beneath the towering statue, waiting for her exam to start. She looked majestic in her new robes. Maleficent had covered her horns with silver ribbons Nanny had given her, which matched the embroidered silver crows on her gown. Nanny thought Maleficent looked almost grown-up. It made Nanny’s heart swell with pride to see what a lovely and intelligent young woman her daughter had become. She’d never imagined Maleficent would want to take the fairy exams. Even if her sister didn’t pick Maleficent for wish granting, at least Maleficent was brave enough to take the exams with the other students after everything they had put her through when she was younger.