Old Habits

Revelations

          ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~❶King Ben❶~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When Mal falls asleep, I pick point at the twins and have them follow me outside. They're really hesitant. Are they scared of me?

"Are you gonna lock us up again?" Sophia asks.

I shake my head. "Mal made me promise not to punish you for anything no matter how much I really want to right now." They look slightly relieved. "Now, onto the matter of your powers. You two need to learn to control your abilities. What happened really messed with Mal. She's gonna be weaker for a while because of your control."

"We didn't mean to," Ben insists. "We didn't even know we were doing anything until Jay told us."

I nod and sit down. "I'd like to get to know you, at some point," I restart. They seem startled. "I mean, we are gonna be family soon enough."

"What do you mean?" Sophia asks.

"Mal and I are engaged," I reply, smiling. "We've been together almost since she came over from the Isle. I've loved every moment of it. I'd like to offer you two a room here if you'd like it."

Sophia hesitates but Ben nods. "We'd like that. We want to be with our sister."

"Ben," Sophia hisses. Ben looks at her and takes her hand. She turns to me, hiding slightly behind her brother. "What's gonna happen to us?"

"That is up to Mal. She seemed a little upset you two were hidden from her and that you were here," I reply. "For now, why don't you two go in there and stay with Mal. I'll have your rooms readied."

"Rooms?" Sophia asks.

Ben continues, "We've only ever shared a room. Even when we lived in the forbidden fortress and had all the space in the world."

"Then I'll have one room prepared," I reply. "It should be ready tomorrow."

They nod and immediately walk in. "She wanted to tell you." I jump and turn to see Jay there. "That day at the lake. When you proposed. On the Isle. She always wanted to tell you why she was keeping secrets."

I nod. "It's just a lot to take in."

Jay smiles for a moment before his face goes blank. "They're up to something." Jay pushes into the room and we see the twins looking through Mal's spell book. "Ben, Sophia."

"We have to try, Jay. This is our fault; we need to make her better again!" Sophia cries. Jay takes the spell book and looks at the page. "Please."

"You two don't know how to use magic," Jay explains. "Mal never finished teaching you two. If you try to cast this spell, it could make her worse."

"Then help us!" Sophia yells.

"We can sense your magic," Ben continues. "Please!"

Jay looks at me and I reach for the book. "Can it really help her?" I ask.

He nods. "Yeah, but I'm not sure I have enough magic to complete the spell. It might only partially work."

"Well, we need to do something," I agree. "Are you sure this won't make anything worse."

"If cast properly, then no," Jay assures. "I can cast it and use the twin's powers as well as my own then it'll be fine." Jay crawls up between them and holds their hands. "Alright. We need to say the spell together. Each of you take one of Mal's hands."

"Together as one with hearts so true, give her the strength so her power shines through." They continue to repeat the spell as a glow envelops their eyes. I cover my eyes when it starts to get to bright. Eventually, the light dies down and Mal is practically glowing.

The bags are gone from under her eyes and her skins not quite as pale. Before I make it to Mal's side, I have to move quickly in order to catch the twins before they fall off the bed. "They'll be fine," Jay says, resting his hands on the bed to keep himself up. "They're just exhausted. That spell takes a lot out of a person, especially those with little experience. We'll be fine after a good rest."

I nod and set the twins on the bed beside Mal. They instantly curl towards her like a child would a mother. "They depend on her." I ask, more as a statement.

"She saved their lives and raised them since they were born. If it hadn't been for her, they would be dead by Maleficent's hand." I nod and move to be beside Mal, gently stroking her cheek.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I guess I fell asleep. I'm sitting beside the bed, Mal's hand in my hair as her finger's move through it. I stand up and look down to see her smiling face looking up at me. "Hey," she says, sitting up. I pull her to me and into a heart searing kiss. She smiles into it, returning the passion full force. "That's a nice start to the day."

She sets her feet on the ground and stands, tucking the children into her bed. She takes my hand and leads me just outside. "How do you feel?" I ask.

She smiles again. "Better than yesterday. Those two found my spell book, didn't they?"

I nod. "Yeah, and Jay helped them cast it."

"Can they stay here?" she asks. "They don't have anywhere else to go?"

"Any family of yours is family of mine. And soon, they'll be family in more ways than one," She leans forward, wrapping her arms around my neck and kissing me again. I pull her close and push her up against the wall, pinning her in between. She giggles as we separate and makes my crown crocked like she did that day at the coronation. "I love you," I whisper.

"And I love you."