The Twisted Chain || A Disney Fanfic [discontinued]

11. the church

"It's hopeless, Odelia!"

Queen Leah collapsed into her chair, an expression of raw tension pinned to her face. "Running away? In the middle of a meeting? Is the girl insane? If this is our last hope, Odelia, then we'll all be dead by tomorrow morning."

The fairy who sat beside Elia's queen, keeping a positive demeanor in contrast to Leah, placed a reassuring hand upon her friend's shoulder. "Nonsense, Leah. It isn't hopeless whatsoever. The girl just needs to adjust to this world, that's all. Earth, as you can probably remember, is extremely different from the Disneyverse, especially in this era."

"But running away during an urgent meeting? Completely ridiculous. Did you see how quick she was to defend Maleficent? And you expect this girl to be the one to defeat that monster?"

"She was under pressure, my friend, that's all. We all were. Personally, I can't blame her for running away. She seemed so frightened, having all that news thrown onto her at once." The Blue Fairy stood, making her way towards the row of stained glass which the rain had been mercilessly beating against. "She just needs some time alone. Time to think- to decide if she really wants to help us."

"And what if she refuses?"

"We'll have to convince her to make the right choice. We'll get her to stay with us, Leah. I swear to you, I am not letting your granddaughter leave here without her full agreement to assist in Maleficent's defeat."

Leah twitched and dug a tooth into her lip at the mention of the word "granddaughter". Ivory seemed eons away, held down by chains, miles and miles beyond Leah's reach. So distant, so untouchable, so icy and unreal.

"Do we know for sure that she is the daughter of my son and Maleficent?" Leah questioned. "You said yourself, my friend, we can't know for certain until we test her."

"As I said before, as powerful as I may be, my magic isn't always one hundred percent accurate. We'll have to give her a test, Leah- a number of them, most likely, just to be safe. And I will prove, not only to you, but to the whole Disneyverse, that Ivory is, in fact, a child of royal blood."

Leah whipped her head around, eyes littered with flecks of worry. "How can she be? How could she possibly be so pure if her blood is mixed with the blood of that... That demon!"

"Leah!" Odelia rushed to the chair and knelt at the queen's side. "Leah, calm down. Please, you- you have to calm down. You remember what happened the last time you were angered, don't you?"

Leah paused, blood turning to ice. "Yes. Yes, I do."

The Blue Fairy nodded, looking upon her friend with sympathetic eyes. "Leah, I know that you're stressed. I am, too, in all honesty. But you must trust me. I know darkness when I see it, and Ivory- well, Ivory does not have any darkness within her. Not a single bit."

Leah had a paleness in her face, a far-off expression- there, but not fully. Her gaze lingered on a painting that hung on the adjacent wall, depicting a handsome young man, harboring a thin mustache and amber colored eyes, wearing a white vest adorned in pins of gold- Walt Disney. Upon arriving in France, Belle had offered to take the painting down, but Leah had insisted that it stay put. "It brings back horrid memories," the Queen of Elia had confessed. "But it reminds me of why I'm here. What I'm fighting for."

"It will take some time to fully accept the girl as Walt's daughter," The Blue Fairy spoke. "And once you do, you'll be glad that you did. Walt, after all, would accept the girl as his daughter, and would encourage you to, as well."

At these words, Leah stiffened and leapt from the chair, causing Odelia's heart to thud in alarm. "How do you know what Walt would have accepted?" Her words were icy cold, leaving reddened marks. "You didn't know him!"