[4] Phoenix | Descendants 3

FOURTEEN: Falling Into Place

Mal walks into the dining room, seeing Helena setting the table for themselves and boys when they would eventually arrive. The smell of food that she and Celia just made filled the house, an array of delicious cooked foods incorporated fresh vegetables, meats and seafood. It was something Helena worked hard for to give the VKs that just crossed the border a chance to experience the food that they never got to on the Isle. And for dessert, they would have the cake that was originally made for Jane's birthday party. There was no saving it now, so they might as well enjoy it.

Uma took a seat at the table, reaching forward and serving herself food. Celia sat next to her, taking everything that was offered to her and happily digging in.

The daughter of Maleficent walked up behind Uma. "That was a really good idea, to check the museum." Helena walked past Mal with a raised eyebrow, genuinely surprised but happy. It was great that Mal was trying to make amends with Uma, something which Helena knew it took a lot of Mal to do. "Now we know we're on the right track."

"Is there an insult in there that I missed?" questioned Uma, surprised at Mal's attempt at making amends. As stubborn as both girls were, no one expected one to make amends with the other. But Helena was happy that they were finally getting along with each other. They would be able to do so much more together than apart.

Mal chuckled softly. "Just ... I wanted to thank you."

"Good," Helena intervened, fearing that the peaceful moment would end disastrously. "Now, sit down and have something to eat. Here, I made your favorite."

"Thanks," replied Mal, taking a seat across from Uma.

"I wouldn't say that we're on the right track,"  said Uma lowly, unsure of how to reply to Mal's words of gratitude. "There's still a lot we don't know, like where the wand is, where our parents' stuff is, and why Audrey would even want their stuff to begin with."

"We need to sit down, put together all that we know and figure out how we can move forward from here," Mal said authoritatively. "But we should wait until the boys get here before we start."

"And after they eat too. We don't want them to be distracted while they're eating," added the daughter of Hades. "It's not good for you."

The sea witch turned to Mal. "Is she always like this?"

The purple haired girl nodded, "Yes, she is."

The Underworld princess rolled her eyes as she finished setting the table. "I'm going to find Evie and Doug. They need to eat too."

Helena left the dining room, searching for Evie and Doug that were most likely catching up on the whole situation. Celia stood up as well, having finished her food and wanting to go check on their sleeping friends. The daughters of Maleficent and Ursula sat at table in silence, eating the food in space lacking their usual tension and resentment. When they had finished, the two girls moved on to each have a piece of cake.

After a few moments, Mal realized that there was still more she had to say. "So, I maybe kind of missed the boat a little bit on calling you Shrimpy and not letting you join the gang."

Uma nodded in agreement. "Yeah. We could've really torn up the Isle together."

A sudden slam on the window interrupted the girl's friendly moment, causing them both to jump in surprise. Uma and Mal stood up as the house began to get darker and darker. Boards continued to nail themselves against the window until they covered each and every entrance and window.

"What's happening?" asks Helena, joining Uma and Mal in the middle of the house.

Celia ran down the stairs, attempting to go out the back door only to have it boarded shut in seconds. Her heart began to race as she realized that there was no way out of this. Wood now covered the windows and doors, blocking out sunlight and leaving the girls in a dimly lit house.