Below the Surface
Regulus
When Regulus was younger he had dreams. Real dreams of freedom and escape. All of those dreams were meant to happen with his older brother. That was before the betrayal. Now all he dreams about is revenge and misery. Funnily enough, those dreams are all still centered around his brother. I guess that’s one thing that’ll never change. Sirius used to joke when they were little, that just like his star; he could light up the pitch black night. As usual, Regulus was stuck as an afterthought.
“I don’t think you’re an afterthought.” A wispy voice says, pulling him from his thinking. He sighs.
“Thanks, Pandora.” He’s learned by now, not to question the things his friend says. She had a habit of saying random things at random times. She insists she’s relaying information from some narrator. Part of him was inclined to believe she’s just crazy.
“I’m not crazy.” She says from her spot next to his other friend, Dorcas. In moments like these, he’s reminded that though it sounds insane, Pandora often relays the exact thoughts he has, as he has them. She must be hearing something. Still, he thinks, blue. Turtle.
“Blue turtle.” Pandora yawns, twirling her snowy white hair around her finger. Damn it. He swears he hears Pandora snicker.
“Ev, pass me a cig” he sighs. Evan, who is currently wrestling with Barty, freezes.
“Sure thing, Reg.” He says, reaching into his pockets. He digs around a bit, before he finds one to give to him, then untangles himself from Barty to pass Reg the cigarette. Sometimes Reggie wonders if Evan can hear this narrator character too, or if perhaps he’s so mentally unwell, he doesn’t notice it.
“And can you two stop wrestling, before you fall off this roof.” He adds, before taking a long drag, and exhaling deeply. The roof had become a sort of oasis for them to escape their parents. Regulus will be the first to admit that they didn’t get along well at first. When their parents first started scheming together, they forced their kids to “play” together. They all fought against the idea, all subconsciously fighting against their parents by fighting against the friendship. Eventually they realized they could be valuable allies for each other, and even started to enjoy each other's company. The roof sits at the very edge of the isle, overlooking it on one side and providing a perfect view of Auradon on the other. It’s a grimy hangout spot, but it works. Evan and Barty straighten themselves out. Barty’s mousy brown hair is a stark contrast to Evan’s pure white. Well pure white aside from all the dirt.
“Regulus. Can you please join the conversation.” Dorcas huffs, and crosses her arms. Against the moonlight, tiny silver scars stand out against her dark skin. One day he might ask her about those.
“I’m sorry, what conversation?” he snarks. Barty and Evan double over with laughter. Idiots. Dorcas glares at them.
“I hate all of you. Except Pandora,” she amends. Pandora smirks, rather pleased with herself. The five of them stay out and talk until sun down, letting their guards down slightly and enjoying themselves. Once it gets late, the conversation becomes forced.
“So…”Barty says, “Anyone up for a game of, uh, something,” Regulus scowls at him at the same time Evan turns to him annoyed and mouths shut up.
“Well I tried.” Barty shrugs. Ugh. Regulus sighs heavily.
“Come on guys. You know we have to get back.” He says. He doesn’t even want to think about what would happen if they were late.
“Do we have too? Really.” Evan questions. Regulus decides not to dignify that with an answer. They clean up and make their way through the darkened streets. The “neighborhood” (if you can even call it that) smells like must, mold, and a hint of desperation. They reach the shaky little apartment they live in. From the outside, they could hear loud yelling coming from inside. Great. Groans sound throughout the group.
“Maybe they’re engaging in a passionate historical debate” Pandora suggests. Everyone turns to look at her, confused.
“I love you P, but no.” Barty says, shaking his head.
“Shit.” Dorcas whispers after her mother’s voice rings out particularly loud. Maleficent is a specifically nasty villain. And she puts a lot of pressure on Dorcas to follow in her footsteps, which is unfortunate because, at her core, Dorcas is a lover. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it makes being the Dark Fairy’s daughter a lot harder. Regulus wonders if it was Maleficent who gave her daughter her scars. He shakes off his thoughts and pushes open the door.
“Children!” A less than sober sounding voice cries, as they walk through the door. A man, with an obnoxious top hat and an outfit that doesn’t match, emerges from the stairs.
“Dad.” Pandora smiles. Regulus has to fight to hold back his own smile. Unlike the rest of them, Pandora and Evan have a decent parental figure. The Mad Hatter has his faults (like being clinically insane), but he cares. He’s still weird though. Pandora shoots him a glare. Shit. Sitting over at the table, the rest of their parents are gathered and now whispering in secret.
“Children come here.” A female voice demands. He straightens his back at the sound of his mother’s voice. The five of them make their way to the table, and find a seat next to their respective parent.
“Ah son, you get anything for me?” Jafar asks greedily. Barty smirks and pulls out a false gold chain and passes it to his father. Jafar lets out a squeal unbecoming of a grown man and stuffs it in his pocket. Ew.
After a beat of silence Evan exclaims, “Hey! That’s mine!”
“Finders keepers” Barty replies. Evan opens his mouth to argue.
“What’d you call us for?” Regulus interjects, getting annoyed. His mother’s the one who answers.
“We have news. A mission per se.” Already he didn’t like the sound of this. Whatever their parents have planned for them won’t be good, at least not for them.
“You have all been selected!” Maleficent shrieks. He’d never say it out loud but that woman has always been a bit questionable to him. And not Hatter questionable.
“Selected for what?” Dorcas murmurs quietly.
“For the love of all things evil, child” her mother sighs exasperated, “speak up!” Dorcas gulps nervously, then takes a deep, steadying breath.
“What were we selected for?” She says loudly, then smiles,”Was that better?” Her mother stares her down. Regulus feels a tinge of pride when Dorcas doesn’t back down. Finally her mother turns away with a scoff.
“Anyways,” his mother drawls, “you five have been invited to… Auradon Prep.” Reggie’s whole world goes silent for a second. He can’t believe his ears. If he didn't already know his mother didn’t joke, he’d say she was playing a trick on them. He immediately glances at Evan who looks as if he’s already wrestling with the idea in own his head, while Pandora’s face shines with hope. Barty seems to be thinking of all the possibilities, and Dorcas, like himself, was trying hard not to show any emotion at all.
“Why now?” Barty asks.
“Well son, we’re not quite sure and we don’t really care. Auradon is willingly allowing you on their lands, which means we’ll have people on the inside.” Something isn’t adding up, their parents would never accept an invitation to Auradon without an ulterior motive.
“People on the inside for what, exactly?” Reggie asks. There was clearly something else at play here.
“You all will go to Auradon Prep.” his mother states, “You will steal the Fairy Godmother’s wand and take down the barrier.” Despite his best efforts, his mouth gapes open in surprise. One quick look around the table told him his friends were equally as shocked. The table goes silent.
“Ooh a heist, how exciting!” The hatter exclaims, breaking the silence.
“You want us to steal The Fairy Godmother’s wand?” Regulus repeats to his mother, making sure he heard her correctly.
“Precisely,” she confirms “that dusty old bat keeps it in the museum. Sneak in, grab it, and undo the curse.” Yeah, like it’s that easy.
“Mother, you don’t seriously believe they won’t take precautions upon our arrival.” He tries to reason. Going to Auradon would force him to fight demons he’s not quite ready to face yet.
“This is not a debate, Regulus.” His mother snaps. Well that’s just great.
“What if we get caught?” Dorcas questions irritably.
“Don’t get caught.” Her mother says equally as irritated. Dorcas blinks.
“Seriously! W-What if-“
“That’s enough, Dorcas! Go to bed and pack. I don’t want to see your face again until morning.” The dark fairy screams. Dorcas, looking visibly upset, stands up and storms up the stairs. The room quiets once more.
“Well that’s enough talk for now. Time for dinner!” The Hatter sings.
Dinner is an even more subdued affair than usual. No one speaks; except for his mother telling them that they were to leave tomorrow morning. That’s not enough time. He was beginning to become frustrated with this lack of control.
They finish dinner quickly and each parent(aside from Maleficent”) takes their child/children to the side for a private conversation. I guess trust is wavering thin.
“Regulus, I want you to bring only your nicest clothes. You must look your best. Always.” His mother says, once they’re alone. He simply nods, confused. Why do I need to look good to steal a magic stick? His mother must’ve seen the confusion, for she clarifies.
“You see, crime is all about connections. You must be liked, in order to get favors. And to be liked you must be attractive. Beauty is a key that can unlock any door. Without it, you’ll never succeed.” She warns, straightening a piece of his hair.Oh. Swallowing the knot in his throat, Regulus smiles.
“I understand.” He says.
“Good, good. You know I only say this because I… love you, right?” His mother asks in a numb tone. On instinct he replies nearly robotically.
“Of course, mother.” They both knew she was lying. The Evil Queen only loved two things in this life: herself and her reflection. She put up this perfect power family persona to the world for God knows why, but Regulus knew the truth, and Sirius did too. It’s part of why he left.
~Later~
Once their bags were packed and their parents were asleep, Dorcas and Pandora snuck to the boys’ room. They all sit in a circle on the floor. Upon sitting, Pandora pulls out an item wrapped in a napkin. She wordlessly hands it to Dorcas, who unravels it to find two pieces of bread from dinner.
“Thanks.” She smiles
“What the hell are we gonna do?” Barty bursts out. Dorcas is quick to shush him, and Reggie throws a quick glance to the door.
“We go to Auradon.” he responds.
“Yeah, and do what exactly?” Evan snaps angrily. Reggie sighs.
“I’ll figure it out.” He says.
Dorcas wipes the crumbs from the corner of her mouth and clears her throat. “Are we really going to break the Barrier? I mean there are some dangerous people on this island.”
Barty scoffs, “So what? We deal with it. Every day in fact.”
“I’m rather excited to see Auradon.” Pandora says dreamily, “to see the people there.”
“Well I hope you’re excited to see them be killed by a bunch of villains,” Barty snarks, “cause that’s what’s gonna happen the second the Barrier disappears.”
“Oh piss off.” Dorcas hissed, though nervously toying with one of her locs. Barty smiles.
“You know it’s true. Once the Barrier is down, the villains will be out for blood.” He smirks.
“Shut up, Barty.” Evan snaps. Barty rolls his eyes, but settles down slightly.
“We don’t have a choice,” Regulus declares, “We’re going to go to Auradon as planned. Then steal the wand, then lift the Barrier. The rest, leave up to me. Everybody got it?” The group nods in silence. Seems like he’s gonna have to confront his past earlier than he had originally planned.
“So, what exactly is the plan, Reg?” Dorcas asks. He takes in the group surrounding him. His group. A group of misfits tied together by a shaky alliance and a thin string of trust. This school year will be…interesting, to say the least. When he finally speaks, his voice is confident, just like his mother always taught him.
“We’re gonna give Auradon a school year to remember.”