Unknown Happen Stance

Chapter 50: The Grandmother's Secret

Venta's Mischief and the Gathering Storm

"I wonder what else I can mess with," Venta pondered, a mischievous glint in her eye. "I suppose I could have picked any one of the Winx to follow into another world, but after Flora voluntarily rejected me after curing Icy with that Petal Shower trick and with Stella, Bloom and Aisha already blocking out anything compatible between us, I had to find another target. Tecna seemed so lifeless, but Musa? She was intriguing, both internally and externally—who knew she'd lead me back to my birth home?"

"It is also Acheron's too," she chuckled. "Oops, I've said too much. Oh, who cares? All this world's problems would fix themselves if he were simply back in his post as the official Judge of magical and non-magical creatures." She sighed, contemplating her whims. "But I don't want to give away this world just yet even though that's where Acheron belongs. I don't want any boring restrictions on my fun."

Suddenly, a loud herding hoot echoed through the air.

"Gosh, dang it!" Venta muttered, hiding herself quickly. "My Auntie must know I'm back. Swarming owls! Eurgh! Athena, why must you be so persistently pursuing?"

"Hmm, no one checks the boring old Magic Museum. I bet I can find an object to trick one of these people into becoming super duper dangerous." It was so foolish of the Beast to forbid magic; most non-magical humans could hardly resist her allure. With her mind set, she soared into the dull Museum, skillfully passing the wax statues until a security guard approached.

She batted her eyes and flashed a glorious, enticing smile. "Thank you, love! Don't mind me; I'll mean you no harm. Just give me the key to the Future Realm Items' section. I've been sent by the highest authorities to ensure everything is safe!" She wove a spell of overpowering affection around his mind. Enchanted, he handed her the key and walked away in a daze. She unlocked the door with a flourish.

"There it is—Maleficent's scepter, a wicked feminine Mogwai who makes all her lovers who betrayed her pay with endless pain trapped deep beyond. Now, you shall possess Audrey as your host, as soon as her grandmother calls out her failures with these words: 'All those plans for the future gone; you were supposed to be His Queen, and you let Him slip through your fingers! Your mother could hold onto a Prince in Her Sleep!'"

"As you wish, Aphrodites's daughter, but I have one request: since Evie has given Mal such a hard time, you might as well give her some struggles as well."

"I know the perfect thing for little miss perfectionist Evie: the fear of never being aware that Doug truly loves her, because he never commits to saying the 'L' word. I'll go do that right now! She'll be too focused on her own worries when she becomes the catalyst of lack of faith for Mal to forget her fears and anxieties about the Beast."

With a wave, pink-orange magic swarmed into the scepter. "You will have full control over every power in Maleficent's object now, instead of it controlling you, Dreya."

"Thank you, Venta."

"Alright, now it's time to visit Evie and carry out the rest of my plan," Venta responded enthusiastically.

Meanwhile, Evie and Musa were helping Lonnie and Mulan sprinkle ash on the rim of the well and the ground around it. As the ash began to shimmer, a bubble shield appeared, enveloping the land of Mulan's family and their home, protecting them from the Mogwai threat lurking in Musa's and Evie's shared guestroom.

"Let's go meet with your Mogwai now. Maybe now that he's feeling a little under torture, he'll tell us something he never would before," Evie suggested.

Flora's glass reflection, an illusion Casey had brought to life, felt the stench of ash seeping through the closed door. The coarse, smoky scent scraped against the shadowy fury that it held, intertwining with the glassy thorny thicket Flora had encased around the figure. Mulan opened the door, stepping over the threshold with her daughter, Evie, and Musa following closely behind.