Mistress of All Evil (Villains 4)

Circe shook her head. “I don’t.”

Maleficent smirked. “Then it would seem you’re almost the same girl you were then. Almost, but not quite.”

Circe didn’t understand the Dark Fairy’s meaning, but she decided not to press it. All of this seemed so unreal. Circe had heard many tales of the villainous Maleficent. It was strange to hear the story of her as a hopeful girl—to hear tales of her own sisters as they lay helpless in the solarium. And her sisters were now too close to the Dark Fairy for Circe’s liking. She suddenly felt foolish for leaving the castle while so many she loved were at risk. Her head was spinning. Circe felt as if she were trapped in a nightmare, a mixed-up fairy tale, and she couldn’t tell how it would end.

“What happened to Diablo and your crows? Were they hurt?” Tulip asked, drawing Maleficent’s attention away from Circe.

Maleficent shook her head. “No, they are all still with me to this day.”

“But what happened to them? How did they find you?” Circe asked.

“Luckily, they weren’t hurt by my destruction of the Fairylands. They were trapped in the alternate reality created for the fairy exams. I thought you would know this, Circe. You must have been with your sisters when they found my birds. Your sisters were the ones who moved everyone in the Fairylands to the alternate reality when they realized I was transforming. They knew they would be safe there.”

“I told you, I have no memory of what happened, Maleficent,” Circe insisted. “In fact, I have no memories of my childhood whatsoever. My sisters would never talk to me about that time.”

Maleficent regarded her like a cat eyeing a mouse. “Is that so?”

Maleficent lifted her gaze to Nanny, who was holding the mirror. Nanny studied her daughter. She could no longer detect any love in Maleficent’s heart. It was as if a part of Maleficent was missing. The part Nanny had loved so much was somehow gone, ripped from Maleficent’s being. And Nanny couldn’t bring herself to ask her how she lost it.

“Why did you let me believe I had killed you?” Maleficent asked, pulling Nanny from her thoughts. Her yellow eyes were blazing, and her skin had turned a light shade of green.

“I didn’t know that was what you thought!” Nanny said.

“Why didn’t you at least try to find me? I was your daughter! And you didn’t even try to find out if I was living or dead.”

“I did! I searched everywhere for you. I could not find you, I swear! I thought you had died, consumed by the flames. It took me and my sister an age to restore the Fairylands. You destroyed everything, Maleficent—and almost everyone. It took all my power and strength to bring life back into that place. It wasn’t until the odd sisters told me they had found you alive, years later, that I learned you still lived.”

“You’re a powerful witch. Had you wanted to find me, you would have! How could you not feel me in the world? Even in my dragon form!” Maleficent spat.

“You stayed a dragon? For how long, Maleficent?”

“For years,” Maleficent croaked.

She said nothing more, but Nanny finally understood. She hadn’t been able find Maleficent because she had remained a dragon. She hadn’t felt her moving in the world because Maleficent hadn’t been herself. “I’m so sorry you were by yourself all those years, Maleficent.”

“I had my birds.” Maleficent’s words were like a knife in Nanny’s heart. The thought of her little fairy alone for so many years shattered her.

Maleficent waved her hand. “It’s no matter. I’m content with my life, with my power and what I’ve achieved. I am the mistress of all evil, as prophesied by you and your sister!”

Nanny was hurt. “I never saw that for you!”

“Lies! You knew from the moment you saw me I was evil. You gave me everything I needed to become who I am!”

“Don’t you see it was my sister who caused this? Listening to you just now, I could tell it was her words. She brought about this prophecy!”

“Yes, blame everything on your sister, as always,” Maleficent sneered. “You never take responsibility for your own actions. And I suppose you will say it was she who decided to have Merryweather and her friends care for Aurora and who decided the child’s fate?”

“What should it matter to you who cared for Aurora?” Circe asked, feeling protective of Nanny.

Maleficent’s expression turned as hard as stone. “Your sisters didn’t warn you, did they? Well, let me make it plain for you, and never make me repeat it again. Never question me about the child. Ever! There was a time when I loved your sisters well, but that love will not protect you!”

In that moment Circe realized the magnitude of Maleficent’s rage. She meant what she said; her words were like a spell woven in pure hatred. Her anger was a bubbling inferno inside her, just waiting to come out.

But Nanny saw something else at the mention of Aurora; another emotion had surfaced and overwhelmed her anger: concern. It was like a shining star in the darkness. Nanny could see that this one star had guided Maleficent over the years, even as she had become more corrupt and stopped being the person Nanny remembered. That one aspect had prevailed: her obsession with the child and her relentless need to keep her asleep.

This time it was Circe who interrupted Nanny’s thoughts. “I’m sorry, Maleficent, but if I’m not mistaken, you need my help. Mine and Nanny’s, correct? Might I suggest you stop threatening me, and then maybe we can make some progress?”

Maleficent flashed her yellow eyes at Circe, mildly impressed that the pretty little witch didn’t seem to be intimidated by her. “You’ve been raised well, Circe. You are a very powerful witch, though you have much compassion in your heart. That may eventually be your downfall. But I’m happy to see you have your wits about you, unlike your deranged mothers.”