pecan pie [descendants]

step six

Some of the crowd from earlier gathered again to see Jo, Imogen, Scarlet, and Amaris off.

Jo hugged Celia Facilier one last time while Amaris squeezed the life out of Dizzy. Jay and Carlos threw all of the girls' stuff into the trunk of the purple limousine that was parked just beyond the barrier. The license plate read 'Mal' in fancy lettering. Imogen was eyeing it with obvious distaste. Jo let go of Celia and moved to stand beside Imogen. Amaris released Dizzy and the daughter of Drizella launched herself at Evie.

"Promise you'll visit soon," Dizzy begged.

Evie ruffled her hair playfully. "Of course. I'll try and move some stuff around in my schedule, okay?" She gave Dizzy a quick squeeze before addressing the newest VKs to come to Auradon. "All ready to go?"

"Yeah, I'm done here," Imogen said. She nudged Jo. "You?"

"The school does have cooking equipment I can use, right?" Jo asked.

Carlos nodded. "You have free rein of the kitchen as long as you clean up after yourself. And share, of course."

Jo gasped and nearly swooned. "Oh wow. What am I gonna make first?" Imogen shook her head with a chuckle and pulled a day-dreaming Jo into the limo. Evie, Jay, Carlos, and Mal entered through the other side, and Amaris and Scarlet were just behind Jo and Imogen. Soon enough, they were all piled into the limo. There was enough room for all of them and a fully stocked snack bar. Jo's mouth started watering.

While Mal gave the driver the go-ahead, Jay noticed Jo's longing gaze and grabbed something from the bar. "Here, try this. You'll love it." Jo furrowed her brow and accepted the treat. She wasn't sure what it was exactly, but she decided to trust Jay and take a giant bite. Instantly, her eyes lit up.

The hard outer shell was sweet milk chocolate, but the inside was gooey peanut butter. It was the best thing Jo had ever tasted. She didn't hesitate to shove the rest in her mouth, forgoing all social graces. Imogen was laughing beside her until she grabbed one of her own, and then she was in the same euphoric state.

"It's a peanut butter cup," Jay explained, passing Jo and Imogen some napkins. The limo lurched forward. "Good, right?"

"It's amazing!" Jo gushed. She wiped her face with a napkin. "Imagine mini versions of those in warm cookies instead of chocolate chips. Maybe that's what I'll make first."

Evie giggled. "No pressure, Jo, but I've been craving your snickerdoodles."

"Or you could make brownies," Carlos 'subtly' suggested. "The ones with the chocolate chips in them."

"Speaking of chocolate chips, I've been hyping up your chocolate chip pancakes to Ben, so don't be surprised if he asks for some," Mal said casually. It took a second for Jo to register that by Ben, she meant the king. An awkward silence fell over the VKs. Mal wrangled her platinum blonde hair into a ponytail.

Amaris broke the silence. "So, what are you gonna make first, Jo?"

Jo thought about it before a brilliant idea hit her. "Snickerdoodle brownies. The best of both worlds." She looked over to Scarlet, who was absentmindedly braiding her hair. "What's the first thing you're going to do in Auradon?"

"Take a luxurious bath," Scarlet answered almost immediately. "Evie has these things called bath bombs and she's gonna let me have one. I'm just gonna soak in the warm water and relax."

"I'm gonna take a nap," Amaris declared. She had a dreamy look in her eye. "I bet the beds are super comfortable."

Jay nodded. "Oh, they are. Sometimes too comfortable. I've lost count of how many times I was late to class because I slept in." Evie shook her head playfully at him. Everyone looked to Imogen expectantly.

She shrugged. "I figured I'd probably start by checking out the library." 

Amaris smirked. "Nerd." Imogen scowled. Jo rested her head on Imogen's shoulder as the car rolled along the magic bridge. Amaris attacked the snack bar and Scarlet took to playing with Evie's hair. Jo closed her eyes and tried to ignore Mal's intense stare. What did the daughter of Maleficent want from her? Mal was the one who left. It was Mal who chose to abandon Jo, not the other way around. Mal didn't get to pout over it.

"Do you guys eat this stuff all the time?" Amaris pried, her mouth full of something or other. As much as the chef in Jo wanted to try a bit of everything, she didn't want to take chances with her stomach. It was already churning; there was no need to add fuel to the fire.

"Well, not all the time," Carlos said. "But we could if we really wanted to. There's so much food in Auradon."

Imogen shifted next to Jo. "And yet so little on the Isle. Weird how that works. Evie, you're the royal advisor, right?"

Evie's voice sounded a bit tight. "Uh, yes, yes I am."

"I'd like to speak to King Ben about some policy changes," Imogen explained. "I have a lot of ideas." Jo grinned. That was Imogen. She wasn't even in Auradon yet and she was already setting up meetings with the king. 

Holy shit. They were actually going to Auradon. No, they were in Auradon. Jo opened her eyes to see Amaris and Scarlet were hanging out the windows as the limo cruised along the road now. Behind them, the glimmery bridge dissipated. Jo's hands started to shake. As if she had a sixth sense, Imogen intertwined her fingers with Jo's.

"They're going to hate us, aren't they?" Jo whispered. Jay, Carlos, Mal, and Evie exchanged looks.

"Some of them," Evie admitted, "but not all of them. When we get to Auradon Prep, we're going to introduce you to some of our friends that you can go to if you ever need help."

Jay sighed. "It's not going to be easy. Even after we defeated Mal's mom, there are people who don't like us. But that's why we picked you four. We know you can show Auradon that VKs aren't necessarily villains. Especially you, Jo."

Mal smiled gently. "If anyone can change someone's view of the Isle, it's you, Jo. I know you changed mine."

Jo's heart dropped into her stomach. The way everyone was looking at her...was the fate of the VK program really in her hands? She tried to swallow the bile rising in her throat. Oh no. She was going to fuck this up. That was what Jo did. Jo took good things and ruined them. Jo was a monster. Her dad had been saying it since she was old enough to understand.

And that was the real reason Jo was so kind and warm. Because she knew deep down what she really was, but maybe if she acted vanilla sweet, like bright lemon zest, then no one else would figure it out. In truth, Jo was not lemon zest. She was the pith, the bitter white rind of the lemon. And maybe that's why she dedicated her life to putting good tastes in people's mouths because if they knew what she was, the bitter taste that made you gag, they'd look at her with the same disgust she grew up seeing in her father's eyes.

"Jojo?" Imogen prompted softly, squeezing Jo's hand. "What's wrong?"

"I think I'm gonna hurl," Jo confessed. She could feel it in the back of her throat. She was sweating profusely but freezing all at once. She was sat perfectly still, yet she was dizzy. Jo was going to throw up like she always did when things get hard.

(Further proof that she was nothing more than a disgusting mass of evil.)

Amaris chuckled. "Well, you better swallow it, because we just pulled up to Auradon Prep, and our welcoming party includes the king."

*

nia updated so i updated. next chapter jo finally gets to meet ben!!! everyone say a quick prayer that she doesn't throw up all over him