Thorn and Ember

·. 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝒲𝑜𝓇𝓈𝓉 𝒦𝑒𝓅𝓉 𝒮𝑒𝒸𝓇𝑒𝓉 ·.

THE CORRIDORS OF Merlin Academy buzzed with the usual hum of students rushing between classes, but Maleficent felt every glance linger just a second too long. It had been three days since she and Hades had decided to. . . well, whatever it was they were doing, they hadn't really defined it. And that was fine. Right? Causal. No need for labels. But even with that unspoken agreement, there was one thing they did agree on—no one could know.

She slipped into a shadowy corner of the hallway, peeking around to make sure no one saw her ducking into the dance room. Her heart raced as she slipped inside, closing the door quietly behind her. Hades was already there, leaning casually against the mirrored wall, arms crossed. He looked up from his phone, raising an eyebrow as she entered.

"Subtle," he teased, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Oh, shut up," Maleficent muttered, crossing the room and standing next to him. She flicked her eyes towards the door again, making sure it was still closed. "I don't need people getting ideas."

"People already have ideas, Mal. It's not like we've been particularly. . . discreet." Hades' tone was playful, but there was a hint of seriousness in his voice.

Maleficent shot him a glare, though her lips twitched into a small smile. "We've been perfectly discreet."

"Sure," he said, drawing the word out. "Because making out in the music room after hours is very discreet."

She rolled her eyes, crossing her arms. "That was. . . different."

"Uh-huh." Hades reached out, gently grabbing her arm to pull her closer. "So, what's the plan? Are we pretending to hate each other again?"

"Maybe," she said, glancing up at him. "At least in public."

He leaned down, his lips just inches from hers. "And what about in private?"

The tension between them hummed, but Maleficent wasn't going to let him have the upper hand just yet. "We'll see if you behave," she quipped, leaning back slightly.

Before he could reply, the door creaked open.

"Oh, there you guys are."

Maleficent and Hades jumped apart like guilty teenagers caught in the act. Eve stood in the doorway, eyes wide with feigned innocence, though her smirk said otherwise. Maleficent narrowed her eyes, but Eve just shrugged.

"I was just looking for you, Mal," Eve said, her voice light and casual. "I figured you'd be, you know... around."

Maleficent crossed her arms, trying to appear nonchalant. "What do you want, Eve?"

"Nothing really. Just making sure you weren't up to anything. . . suspicious." Her eyes flicked between the two of them, her smirk widening.

Hades rubbed the back of his neck, clearly amused but trying to hide it. "Yeah, well, no need to worry. Nothing suspicious going on here."

"Sure," Eve said, dragging out the word like she didn't believe it for a second. She gave Maleficent a wink before slipping back out of the room. The door clicked shut behind her, leaving an awkward silence in her wake.

Hades chuckled softly. "She knows." Maleficent groaned, rubbing her temples. "Everyone's going to find out, aren't they?"

"Probably," he said, not bothering to hide his amusement. "But hey, look on the bright side. At least we won't have to sneak around anymore."

"Sneaking around is half the fun," Maleficent muttered, though a small smile tugged at her lips.

Hades tilted his head, leaning in again. "So. . . now what?"