A Fifth Descendant

Chapter 9

Hayden sits, completely bored, at his table in the Remedial Goodness 101 'classroom' when Fairy Godmother comes in pushing a rolling cart with a television sitting on it. She gives him a disapproving look for having his boots on the table again and just gets a blank look in reply.

"Children, excuse me," she says excitedly as she comes to a stop in front of her little teaching platform. "Um, as you know, uh, this Sunday is Family Day here at Auradon Prep and because your parents can't be here due to, uh, distance we've arranged a special treat."

Hayden cocks one eyebrow. "You mean because our parents can't be here because they're prisoners?" he asks bluntly.

Fairy Godmother stutters for a few seconds, unsure how to respond, while the other four share smirks.

"Uh, well," she clears her throat before finally just turning and pushing a button on a little remote to turn the television screen on. "Kids!" She waves them over as Maleficent appears on the screen, too close as she apparently adjusts their own side of the connection.

They all watch for a moment as the so-called Mistress of All Evil struggles to work a simple video call. Though, to be fair, there's isn't really any technology on the Isle unless someone, usually Carlos, could fix up a broken electronic shipped over from Auradon.

After a few minutes of struggling, Maleficent finally figures it out and steps back. As she does, Evil Queen, Cruella, and Jafar also come into view. Mal, Evie, Carlos, and Jay all step forward to speak to their parents while Hayden stays in the back, arms crossed and hip leaning against one of the tables.

After all, he has no one to speak with. His father is confined to his kingdom and, until the seasons change, so is his mother.

The Evil Queen gasps in delight as soon as she sees her daughter. "Evie! It's mommy!" she exclaims with a wave. Evie smiles and waves back. "Oh, look how beautiful," EQ goes on. "You know what they say: the poison apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

"Don't you mean the weeds?" Maleficent asks with a smirk. Jafar laughs as Cruella seems to finally notice Fairy Godmother.

"Ooh, who's the old bat?" she asks loudly.

Hayden grins to himself as he sees the way the other four get so awkward about the way their parents are acting.

"This is Fairy Godmother," Mal says pointedly.

"Still doing tricks with eggplants?" Maleficent asks cattily.

"I turned a pumpkin into a beautiful carriage!" Fairy Godmother shoots back, obviously offended as the villains laugh.

"You couldn't give Cinderella until 1:00 AM?" Maleficent continues. "I mean, really? What, the hamsters had to be back on their little wheels?" She and Evil Queen share a fist bump as Fairy Godmother's face starts to turn red.

"They were mice!" she protests as Mal starts to gently move her away from in front of the camera. "They were- they were mice!"

Hayden shakes his head as he sees the smug looks on the villains' faces. Is this really what some of the most infamous villains in history have become? Is this how far they've fallen?

"Thank you," Mal tells Fairy Godmother quietly as she gets her away from the screen. "Hi, mom," she greets tensely.

"Mal!" Maleficent exclaims. "I m-mi-miss you," she stutters, visibly struggling to get the words out.

"You children are never far from our thoughts," Jafar cuts in as he and Cruella wave.

"I got it," Maleficent snaps in their direction. She turns back to Mal. "How long must mommy wait to see you?" she asks.