Daddy Issues | A Descendants Story | Mal & Hades

THREE

A/N A chapter. lol. 

I was planning on writing something here to explain where I went for three months but decided the mystery was more exciting.

Maybe I was abducted by aliens? Perhaps undertaking a mission for MI5? Maybe I was sworn into a secret religion that doesn't allow you online?

I guess you guys will never know.  

Thanks again for all the amazing comments, I hope this will do for now.

THREE

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In a blink, Mal was back. Back in Auradon, back in danger, back in real life.

Her eyes were trained on Audrey as she paraded before the school, fingers running along Uma's statue. The gleeful spark in her eyes would have gone unnoticed by most, but it was one Mal was familiar with- mischief. She was evidently proud of what she'd managed to accomplish and for a moment, Mal could do nothing but watch. She was angry, not just with Audrey but with herself. She was the one who had pushed Audrey to this; it was Mal's fault.

The bitter taste of self-loathing flooded Mal's senses, her mind having always been her worst enemy. The only thing stopping her from spiralling was the warmth of the ember pulsing in her hands. Hades. As the name flashed before her subconscious, the tension seemed to leave her body, like water bursting through a dam. She'd managed to let everyone down in the last 24 hours, she wouldn't let her father down to.

"This isn't you," Mal would have congratulated herself on the strength behind her words had the situation been less dire. The fact that Audrey had already succeeded in cursing all of Auradon was forgotten as Mal stood before her, not seeing a villain but a girl who felt betrayed and alone. "You don't have to do this, Audrey. I can help you fix all of this."

She seemed to realise too late that those were possibly the world words she could have spoken as a flash of light was sent spiralling towards her, Mal narrowly managing to dodge it.

"You, help me? Like you helped your friends?" Audrey mocked, her eyes shining. "You couldn't help anyone," She knew she was right, Mal knew she was right. She'd spent the past hours pretending she was helping, that she knew what she was doing but she didn't. Not really. Mal had already let everyone down. Even if she did manage to beat Audrey, it wasn't really a win. All she was doing was trying to solve the shitshow that she'd started.

If only for a minute, if only momentarily, Mal knew she couldn't think like that if she was to stop Audrey. Believing she could stop her was half of the battle. And like that, she managed to shut off the overwhelmingly large part of her brain that was blaming herself- telling her she'd fail. The part of her brain which knew that even if she did win, she won't have actually won anything. Not really. But she managed to detach herself, build a wall and hide behind it as the ember flared to life.

For a short while it was a blur, flashes of light seemingly coming from everywhere, until it all stopped.

Mal stumbled backward, her chest heaving as she watched Audrey's body slump to the ground. "I did it," she whispered to herself, glancing at the ember as a small smile graced her lips. She'd done it, she'd won.

Her rapid heart began to even as she let out a soft chuckle, "I did it."

And then the moment was gone, wall crumbling down, as she looked back up and saw Audrey's body lying unnaturally still on the ground. The ember fell from her hand as her arm fell limp beside her and her heart stuttering to a halt. "I did that," she choked, unable to make her body move any closer.