Maleficent Read online

  He offered his hand, and she reached out to take it. Suddenly, a searing hot flash hit her finger, and she pulled her hand back. Glancing down, she saw his ring had left a red burn.

  “What happened?” Stefan asked, shocked.

  “Your ring is made of iron,” Maleficent explained, shaking her hand to alleviate the pain.

  “I’m sorry.” Then he took the ring off and tossed it far into the field. Maleficent was touched. No one had ever done something so selfless for her.

  Stefan smiled and turned to walk away. She watched him hurry down a hill and then turn around.

  “I like your wings!” he called.

  Maleficent smiled widely, which turned into a giggle despite her. It appeared her parents had been right. Not all humans were bad. Though she felt she’d better keep this rendezvous a secret from the others for now. She knew they would just tell her how dangerous it was to talk to a human.

  At a distance, Stefan ran his fingers over the other smooth stone he had taken from the pool, which lay safely in his pocket.

  A WEEK LATER, MALEFICENT FLEW HIGH IN THE AIR, NOTICING A FAMILIAR FIGURE ROAMING AROUND THE FOREST CLEARING.

  She smiled and accelerated, then gently dropped down behind Stefan. He turned, startled by her sudden appearance.

  “Well, well. Look who came back,” she said.

  “I thought it was worth the risk.”

  Maleficent blushed as a small deer emerged from a stand of trees.

  “If I had my bow, I’d make you a fine dinner,” Stefan said, gesturing toward the animal.

  Choosing to ignore the remark, Maleficent walked over to the deer. It was a beautiful creature. She held out her hand in a greeting and kneeled before it. The deer nuzzled against her palm.

  “Magic,” Stefan breathed, watching them.

  “No. Just kindness,” Maleficent said, correcting him. She kept her gaze on the deer.

  Stefan headed behind her, prompting the deer to walk away. Rising, Maleficent turned to face him.

  “When we met, you said, ‘You’re her.’ What did you mean?” she asked.

  “People have seen you. Flying. The girl from the Moors that looks just like us…except for your wings.” He stared at them, clearly wanting to take a closer look. Maleficent held out a wing toward him.

  “You sure?” he asked.

  She nodded, and he gently touched the wing. “They’re beautiful.”

  “Thank you,” Maleficent said, looking over her shoulder. “They are special, aren’t they?”

  Next Stefan looked up at Maleficent’s horns. “Are they sharp?” he asked.

  The faerie felt her face turn red, and she bowed her head, suddenly feeling self-conscious.

  “They’re majestic,” Stefan continued. “That’s the word. They are far and away the most majestic horns that I have ever seen.”

  Maleficent was overcome with emotion. Without thinking, she hugged him. His body stiffened; it was clear he hadn’t been expecting this reaction. But soon she felt him smile.

  “We can choose to be friends,” Maleficent said. “Why can’t the others?”

  “Maybe they can. Maybe we can show them.”

  So Maleficent and Stefan bonded over a hope for peace, something that made Maleficent feel closer to her parents than ever. Stefan came to the edge of the Moors, the place that became their secret spot. They talked about their lives, their future. Then, on Maleficent’s sixteenth birthday, they kissed—a kiss so pure, so honest, so real that it was True Love’s Kiss.

  But as the years marched on, Stefan spent less time visiting the Moors and Maleficent. He was busy making good on his promise to live in the castle, albeit as a servant. He seemed less concerned with building harmony between the humans and faeries, and more concerned with his life at the castle—a life he seemed to want to keep private. No matter what questions Maleficent asked out of genuine interest, Stefan avoided answering them.

  One day, Maleficent soared in the sky, spotting Stefan nearby on a cliff. It had been weeks since she’d last seen him.

  “Stefan,” she called down to him.

  “Hello,” he replied.

  “Hello,” Maleficent repeated. She suddenly felt awkward around him.

  “Where have you been?” Stefan asked.

  Maleficent narrowed her eyes. “I’ve been looking for you.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes,” she responded. “You’re always disappearing these days.” She lowered herself to him for a kiss. They leaned close together. And for a fleeting moment, it all felt right again.

  MALEFICENT LEANED AGAINST THE ROWAN TREE, WATCHING THE END OF ANOTHER DAY. It had been a month since she’d seen Stefan, the longest time yet. Robin and the other Fair Folk had noticed her growing more solemn and quiet, but she was too ashamed to admit she was feeling a little lovesick, particularly for a human boy. She distanced herself from them, preferring to be alone in case she grew tempted to tell them about her companion, or in case Stefan suddenly appeared.

  As the sun set, Maleficent’s thoughts grew dark as well. She wondered where Stefan was. If he was okay. If he missed her, even a little. Try as she might, Maleficent couldn’t shake the sadness that filled her. Was she wrong to trust a human? Had her parents been wrong, too? Not for the first time, she wondered what things would have been like had her parents lived. She could just picture the scene—running home to the Rowan Tree and finding her mother sitting there, her back against the warm trunk. Maleficent would cry and tell her everything, and then her mother would kiss her forehead and tell her it would be all right. And it would be. Somehow.

  Maleficent shook her head. It was silly to get caught up in a fantasy. She sighed and gave herself a mental shake. She had to snap out of her melancholy. Perhaps she would see what Robin was up to after all. He was always good at cheering her up.

  Suddenly, there was a sound like thunder. Looking over the precipice, Maleficent let out a gasp. She had been so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn’t noticed the approaching army. It was charging toward the Moors, King Henry’s banner flying in the wind. Her heart sank in her chest. It was happening again. Another war. Quickly, Maleficent took to the sky.

  In the countryside at the edge of the Moors, King Henry sat on his horse, addressing his army. Henry was a man long past his prime. His beard was gray and the wavy hair on his head was thinning. His waist had thickened over the years and his fingers ached with arthritis. Despite all that, he held himself proudly, comfortable in his heavy armor. This was not the first time he had gone to war. A kingdom was only as strong as the king who sat on its throne, and Henry had, on more occasions than he could count, proven his strength.

  But that day was different. More was at stake than ever before. The land in the Moors was vast and, from all reports, full of riches beyond imagining. There were natural resources, such as fresh water and plentiful forests. And it was rumored that the streams were filled with jewels. Taking over the Moors would make his kingdom much more powerful.

  But those were not reasons why Henry now stood in front of his army at the edge of the Moors. The reason Henry was about to go to war was that the Moors posed a huge threat. The creatures who lived there had magic. And there was no telling what they might someday do with that magic. So Henry wanted them destroyed. And if a consequence of that destruction was access to rich lands, all the better.

  As his mount pranced nervously under him, Henry gestured behind himself. “There they are,” he began. “The mysterious Moors. No one dares to venture there for fear of the magical creatures that lurk within.” He paused, scanning the crowd for the telltale signs of weakness and fright. Seeing only a handful of men who looked ready to turn back, he went on. “Well, I say…crush them!”

  The army let out a loud cheer. Emboldened, King Henry lengthened his pep talk. “We’re not afraid of �
�magical’ creatures!” he cried. “We have swords!” The men waved their weapons high in the air and let out another cheer. “We will take the Moors and kill anything that stands in our way!”

  He threw the signal and the men charged forward. The first men reached the bottom of a hill covered in mist. They began to climb, the ground shaking under their pounding footsteps. And then they came to a screeching halt.

  From the other side of the hill, two enormous black wings appeared through the mist. Then a pair of sharp, twisted horns. Slowly, Maleficent rose into the air, looking like a creature from hell. Behind her, there was only mist. No army of her own. No faeries or creatures. Just Maleficent.

  For a moment, Henry was worried. He had been prepared to take the Moors unawares. And the creature hovering in front of them was rather scary. But then he smiled. There appeared to be only one.

  “Go no further,” Maleficent instructed, sounding braver than she felt.

  King Henry smirked at her gall. “A king does not take orders from a winged elf.”

  “You are no king to me.”

  Henry yelled to his troops, “Bring me her head!”

  Once more, the army thundered forward, the sound of hoofbeats mixing with the clinking of armor. As Maleficent watched them approach, her heart thudded in her chest. She couldn’t help thinking this was what her parents must have seen and felt during their final moments. But she would do anything to protect the Moors, just as they had. Lifting her wings higher, she let out an ear-piercing shriek and began to fly forward.

  And then, from behind her, she felt a surge of magic. Turning, she watched as a malevolent army appeared. They clawed and climbed their way up the hill. Some of the creatures were scaled, others had feet turned backward, while others had leather wings. Some snarled, while others slobbered like diseased hounds. There were ones who walked upright and others who crawled along on four legs. But they all had one thing in common: they wanted to protect their home. And they had defended this place from invading humans many times before.

  As the hodgepodge army of creatures approached, Maleficent nearly cried in relief. She had been so scared that she wouldn’t be able to rise to the occasion to fight at the front lines if it had ever come to this. But now she had her army, who had no doubt rushed to her aid when they had learned of the trouble, and she felt braver with the creatures behind her. She had become their makeshift leader. And they were ready. Giving a signal, she watched as they began to attack viciously.

  Confident that the creatures could take care of the larger army, Maleficent set her sights on King Henry. As soon as he had seen the Moorland army, the king had turned his horse and begun racing for home. But Maleficent wasn’t going to let him go that easily. He was one of the monstrous humans. The kind Robin had warned her about. The kind who came to destroy everything she cared about for his own gain. The kind who had killed her parents. Her fury rising as she took to the air, she flew after him.

  It took her only a moment to catch up to Henry. From above, she battered the king with her wings until he fell off his horse. She landed and stood looming above him. “You will not have the Moors now or ever!” she cried, her voice booming.

  Frightened, King Henry raised his armored hand, trying to protect himself from Maleficent. As he did, the iron gently brushed Maleficent’s cheek.

  She let out a gasp and raised a hand to her face. Where the iron had touched her skin, it burned painfully.

  Noticing that his enemy was distracted, King Henry scrambled to his feet and hobbled away, wheezing in pain. All around him, the rest of the army retreated as well, running as fast as they could from the terrifying creatures.

  Sighing, Maleficent gave a signal, and her army ceased its attack. Maleficent saw more familiar faces among the ranks. Balthazar nodded at Maleficent and she nodded back, hoping she was conveying the gratitude she felt. Robin, though shaken, looked undeniably proud of her. She bowed her head and flew away, afraid that if he looked at her long enough, he could tell she’d been spending time with one of the humans he despised, even if the human seemed to be good.

  As she headed back into the Moors, Maleficent was left alone with her thoughts. A human attack. Could they dare to hope that this would be the end of it? That peace could still be possible? How she wished she could talk to Stefan. Maybe they could make a plan to form some sort of treaty between the faeries and the humans. But a nagging notion interrupted her other thoughts: what if Robin was right? What if all the humans banded together against them? What if Stefan sided with King Henry?

  KING HENRY LAY IN BED, DOZENS OF COUNCILMEN AND GENERALS SURROUNDING HIM. From an alcove, Stefan watched the scene, lighting the last candelabra. He had to lean in closely to hear what the weakened king was saying.

  “When I took the throne, I promised the people that one day we would take the Moors and their treasures. And each of you swore allegiance to me and to that cause.” He started coughing violently, sputtering as he tried to sit up. Stefan appeared with a pillow and placed it behind the king’s back.

  “Defeated in battle,” the king continued as if there had been no interruption. “Is this to be my legacy? I see you waiting for me to die. You won’t have long to wait. But what then? Who will rule? My daughter? Or perhaps I will choose my successor.”

  An audible intake of breath sounded from the other men. One of them, be king? They all stood a bit straighter.

  “But who among you is worthy?” The king’s eyes flashed with anger. “Kill her! Kill the faerie, and avenge me. Upon my death you will take the crown!”

  Stefan backed away from the bed quietly, knowing that as a servant, he would not be missed. Once he stood outside the king’s chamber, he panted, his palms against his knees. He knew what he had to do.

  “Maleficent? Maleficent?” Stefan called out. It had been so long since he’d set foot in their old secret spot, but it was as beautiful and serene as it always had been.

  Maleficent landed swiftly behind him. He spun around, surprised. He almost laughed, thinking how he should have been used to her entrances by then.

  She eyed him wordlessly for a moment, trying to see if he had changed. It was as though he had never left. He still wore his threadbare clothes and a flask at his side. But Maleficent was even stronger now after winning a battle, aware of her power and authority, her ability to protect her friends and her home. She had been reminded of the Moors’ war-stricken past, why the others were so suspicious of outsiders.

  At the same time, she couldn’t help feeling a flutter in her stomach as she looked upon his familiar and comforting face. Forcing the sensation aside, she squared her shoulders and raised one perfectly arched eyebrow. “How is life with the humans?” she asked.

  He stared at the ground, clearly uncomfortable. “They are horrible,” he said after a moment. “And they will not stop. They mean to kill you.” He looked up into her eyes.

  Maleficent listened carefully. She had once loved this human deeply. Now she wasn’t sure if she could trust Stefan.

  “When we first met, you told me never to come here again. But I did, and I told you it was worth the risk.” He brushed her hair out of her face. “It still is. I have chosen.”

  Stepping closer to her, he whispered, “I belong here, with you. If you’ll have me.”

  Maleficent relaxed, moved by his words. She hugged him as she had done the day they had first met, and it felt like everything was right once more.

  A short while later, Maleficent lay snuggled in Stefan’s arms. Her wings were wrapped around them like a warm blanket, and as dusk faded into the darkness of night, they continued to laugh and talk. It was a joyous occasion. She loved and was loved in return, by a human no less. Her parents’ goal of peace between the races had been achieved by her. And now she and Stefan could live in the Moors together. Now there was hope for peace for everyone. She couldn’t wait to introduce him to Rob
in and the others. It would likely take some getting used to, but in time, they would learn that an alliance with some humans was possible and could even help protect the Moors from future attacks.

  Smiling to herself, she reached over and took a small drink from Stefan’s flask. Then, closing her eyes, she began to drift off. The last thought she had before sleep overcame her was that maybe, just maybe, she would get to live happily ever after.

  AT DAWN MALEFICENT AWOKE TO A SEARING PAIN IN HER BACK. Groaning, she shook her head. She felt groggy and fuzzy, and she shook it once more, trying to make the odd feeling disappear. But as her head cleared, the pain returned twofold. Looking at where Stefan had been, she saw that he was gone. And then, reaching over her shoulders, she found that her wings were gone, too. All that remained was a long, thin cauterized wound where they used to be. On the ground nearby lay an iron chain, a few black feathers stuck to the links.

  Shock and horror filled Maleficent as she realized what had happened. That she had been betrayed. That Stefan had taken her wings. That he had lied. Stolen her heart and her wings. As grief overtook her, she let out an anguished cry. Why? she screamed silently. Why would he do this to me? Dropping her head into her hands, she began to sob. For she knew the answer. She had known it deep inside all along. Stefan loved his world, loved his kind, more than he could ever love her. He had taken her wings to prove to that wretched King Henry that he was loyal, even though it meant being disloyal to her.

  How had she been so blind? Humans had killed her parents. Humans had attacked her home time and time again. A human had ruined her chance at a happy life. She should have listened to Robin. Humans were not to be trusted. She had led them here by befriending one, and now she was paying the price. She didn’t deserve to live here with the others.

  In that moment, a part of her died. The part that believed in joy, hope, and peace. The part of her that believed in love. That part was gone forever. Stefan had seen to that.