Descendants 1

Chapter Three

I hit the battered city wall with another blast of bilious green spray paint.  LONG LIVE EVIL, it declared, in my best graffiti style. Purple hair, dragon-emblazoned leather jacket, killer boots – I’m not exactly trying to blend in.  I capped the can, admiring my handiwork, then plunged into the marketplace.  Easy to disappear in this crowd of worn-out faces.

I saw Jay from the corner of my eye, perched on a rooftop, watching me.  He’s all swagger, dark hair, bulging biceps straining against his leather vest.  He’s got that dangerous glint in his eyes, the one that says he’s about to do something… interesting.  Then, in a series of impossibly smooth moves, he’s down from the roof and heading my way.

Evie was strutting across a table, all dazzling smiles and dark waves of hair, even with the makeup caked on.  She's a natural beauty, even if her mom drilled into her that looks are everything.  Her blue outfit, that red gem-and-gold crown necklace, the little red purse – it’s all very her.  She barely glances up as Jay disappears into the crowd.

Carlos popped out of a window, all skinny limbs and white-and-black hair, his red, white, and black leather jacket a perfect match for his personality.  He’s already pilfered a handkerchief and an apple – he’s got that lowlife charm down pat.

Evie and I met up in a back alley, just as Carlos and Jay joined us.  We were a force of nature, slipping through the warehouse district, past clotheslines and rusty basins.  I tagged an M on a shower curtain, Jay snagged a teapot, Evie charmed a merchant, and Carlos kicked over a fruit basket.  We were a whirlwind of chaos, striking fear and respect into everyone around us.  We were bad.  Really bad.

I snatched a lollipop from a kid – he started crying, of course – and held it up triumphantly.  My friends laughed.  It was a good day.

Then a shadow fell across the street, the merchants scattering like cockroaches.  Only one person could cause that kind of reaction.

Henchmen cleared a path for her, and there she was: Mom. Maleficent. Mistress of Evil.  Leather-wrapped horns, scepter in hand, those green eyes blazing.

"Hi, Mom," I said, grinning.  Classic me.

"Stealing candy, Mal?" she drawled, that deceptively disappointed tone.

I shrugged. "It was from a baby," I said cheerfully, holding up the lollipop. My friends cracked up – they know how much I love being deliciously wicked.

Mom smiled, a real smile, not one of those fake ones.  "That's my nasty little girl!" she said, then snatched the lollipop right out of my hand. She actually spat on it, clamped it under her arm, and handed it to one of her henchmen. "Give it back to the dreadful creature," she ordered, eyes gleaming.

"Mom..." I muttered, annoyed.  She always has to one-up me.

The henchman trotted off to return the lollipop.

"It's the details, Mal, that make the difference between mean and truly evil," Mom said, waving to the grateful mother.  She turned back to me.  "When I was your age, I was cursing entire kingdoms." She made a grand gesture.

I mouthed, "Cursing entire kingdoms!"  Rolled my eyes.  Seriously?

"Walk with me," she said, putting a hand on my shoulder.  "See, I'm just trying to teach you the thing that really counts: how to be me."

"I know," I said, nodding.  "And I'll do better."

"Oh!  There's news!" she exclaimed, spinning around.  "I buried the lede!" She pointed at me and my friends.  "You four have been chosen... to go to a different school. In Auradon."

Evie, Jay, and Carlos instantly tried to bolt.  Mom's henchmen were faster.  They scooped them up before they could get a step away.

My jaw dropped.  Auradon?  Seriously?

My friends stopped struggling.  Seriously?  This was actually happening?

"What?" I demanded.  "Mom, you have to be joking."

"Nope!" she said, a wicked gleam in her eye.  "You'll be joining the bastion of privilege and exclusivity of... Auradon Prep."  Even saying the words felt wrong.

"Mom! I'm not going to some prissy pink princess boarding school!" I protested.

"And perfect princes!" Evie added dreamily, stepping beside me.

I glared at her.  Her smile vanished instantly.  "Ugh!" she said, faking disgust.  She got it.

"I don't do uniforms," Jay declared.  "Unless it's leather. You feelin' me?" He grinned, trying to high-five a terrified Carlos, who was practically clinging to Mom.

"I read somewhere that they allow dogs in Auradon," Carlos mumbled.  "Mom said they're rabid pack animals who eat boys who don't behave." He gulped.

Jay leaned in and barked in Carlos's ear.  Carlos jumped, and Jay laughed.

"Yeah, Mom, we're not going," I said flatly.  "You're not going to see me doing curtsies and book reports."

"You're thinking small, punkin'," Mom said, licking her lips. "It's all about world domination!"  She turned to her henchmen.  "Knuckleheads!"  Then, with a dramatic swirl of her cloak, she turned and walked away, her henchmen flanking her.  "Mal!" she called over her shoulder, beckoning me.

We exchanged glances – a silent agreement.  There was no way we were not following her.