Chapter Text
The trip back to the Isle was done in silence. The past few days had been so nuts that the limo ride felt like the calm before the storm. Celia was asleep, the adrenaline rush from being kidnapped finally running out in the car. Given it was her second ever ride in one that probably helped, as well as how well kept the roads were. Beside her Harry and Gil would subtly glance at Uma then each other before looking anywhere else. Uma’s eyes were staring at nothing as her mind chewed over everything to come. Not only was she going back to the Isle for the first time in a year, she had a pretty good idea who would be waiting for her.
Then again, maybe no one would be. It’s not like Auradon would give anyone there a phone or WiFi signal in the last year. They saw it as a security hazard; which it is. If the villains could contact the outside world they could reasonably find a way out. If there was one thing the VK’s knew from the rants and ragging, was that being imprisoned didn’t mean the villains didn’t have minions on the outside. Anyway, with it being so late the limo’s most likely wouldn't be noticed. Maybe she’ll be lucky to avoid confrontation until she is ‘home sweet home’.
And maybe she could swap places with Mal and turn into a giant scaly lizard. There’s no way word hadn’t spread of Hades’ leaving the barrier. That never happened, the island was a one way only destination by design. You’d have to be invited off and no one would dare invite a villain . Until Beasty Jr. More than once Uma heard her mother, when she actually cared to speak to her, warn that the Auradon idiots would only bring a villain outside their prison if they wanted something from them. For all the bluster she’d heard over the years, no one was really sure the power drain the magical villains were subjected to really worked on the God of the Dead. That plus his little show before all this went south wouldn’t have left much confidence in his return. Deities have long memories after all.
The trip to the Isle from the castle was normally an hour but to make it home before daybreak the drivers pushed the limos to go as legally fast as they could. This plus the late hour and with most of the people of Auradon either home or staying in hotels now that they were free of the curse meant they reached the dock for the Isle in half the time.
By then Gil had dozed off as well, quietly snoring, leaving just Harry and Uma. Oddly quiet, Harry seemed at a loss for words to say and Uma couldn’t blame him. There was so much to talk about; the things she’d done while avoiding capture, the foods she’d tried that weren’t expired, the wonder of being free to move about place to place without a magic wall stopping you when you went too far. The horror when she found herself blocked from her crew, no matter how much magic she used before escaping to try again. The awe as she breathed in the magic of the seas and hidden caves. Uma was raised to respect the sea and take pride in being blessed by it. Even if she’d never seen such clear waters until the Cotillion. Even if Ursula wouldn’t talk about her family unless she felt vindictive. Even if she had to learn who she was named after thanks to a storm that locked them inside for hours.
"You don't have to come back,"
Uma snapped her head to Harry, surprised he would say such a thing right then. They were inside a limo , who knows if the driver was listening in even with the screen up. But Harry just looked at her calmly, with a clarity in his face he only let the crew see; Gil and Uma the most.
“You could leave. We’ll tell the crew you're alive and not locked up in an Aurdon or Atlantician prison and that’ll be enough.”
“You must have gotten drunk before we left,” Uma huffed with her arms crossed and an eye roll that didn’t fool Harry a bit. “I said I will go back and I am. Even getting a nice cushie limo ride in the deal. Be rude to dip out,”
“Aye, but it’d be better than the reception you’ll get on the Isle.” Harry said, his face carefully blocked by Uma’s so the driver couldn’t read their lips in the mirror. Not that a driver would while driving. One has to hope to keep from crashing anyway, but with all the hidden magic in Auradon, who knows if he was even touching the wheel?
“I’ve never run from a good fight,” Uma replied with a raised eyebrow. Her hand that faced away from the driver tapped on her arm. The tapping was silent but the code was clear between the two. They made it after all. Well after splitting from Mal. ‘ What are you getting at?’
‘If you return to the Isle you’ll never be free again.’ Harry tapped. His mouth said, “I know, but it's been a long year. You migh’ be rusty.”
‘I rather be with my people in a cage than free and alone.’
“I’m sure I'll manage. Besides, if I didn’t offer you know Mal would have sent me back anyway. I did easily evade everyone, even my cousins, for a year. It's the show of it all, make the new Queen look good,” Uma said, sounding nonplussed as the limo turned to the bridge for the Isle. I’d probably get my magic taken too. She thought ruefully now that she has shown her tenacity. Honestly it was probably thanks to Audray’s death-nondeath that Uma avoided that.
The limo moved down the bridge, the driver activating the magic and they were moving over the sea. Uma steeled herself, filling her lungs with the last taste of magic, the comforting sound of the ocean's song in her mind, the warmth of her mothers necklace on her skin.
‘Are you sure? There's still time!’
‘Harry, I want my crew back. If I can't bring you all to freedom, I will live my life making sure you all know it the best way I can in the Isle.’
“Your both so stupid,” muttered Gil turning his head just so. He peeked out from under his hair and winked, apparently not so dozy to fall to sleep after all. “We’ll be OK, the crew is back together now. Even without grapes,”
Harry rolled his eyes and shoved Gil hard enough to knock him into the window but not too hard.
The limos reached the Isle and pulled up to a stop. The doors unlocked and they got out, Gil gently waking up Celia so she could too. They hadn’t gone for her things before leaving so once they closed the door their limo took itself out of there. Maybe it was the rush to leave, but the driver didn’t question the young adults' bags on their backs. Each had something to share with the crew first, other kids second, then whoever they didn’t have a list against. Uma watched as the barrier closed behind the limos and just like that the sea’s song was silenced. Thankfully it didn’t hurt as much as she had expected. The question is was that because she grew up without magic so her body was used to the lack? Or was it that it would take a while for the magic to fully die out now that the barrier was closed again? Uma would have to find out on her own. Hades shrugged nonplussed from his spot, the chains falling to the ground the moment the barrier closed.
“Welp, I’m gonna head out. See ya,” and with that and a rocker hand Hades walked off into the shadows. This left the four VK’s on their own but when have they not been?
“The shop first or the arcade?” Uma asked the group but looked to Celia who tiredly thought about it.
“The shop. I don’t want to wake dad up this late.” she decided and Uma nodded. Harry, having been on guard since they got out of the limo and was watching with a critical eye nodded stiffly and as one they moved in the direction of the chop shop. The three young adults made a sort of triangle around Celia as they moved deeper into the isle. The limos thankfully dropped them off not too far, but they still grabbed what they could for weapons. Armed with rusty pipes and a large wood plank for Celia they thankfully didn’t run into any trouble.
-
Uma wasn’t sure what she expected when she returned to the chop shop. It wasn’t like they decorated. Besides no one was dumb enough to try to set fire to one of the few places where you could get relatively safe food. Sure the fish were typically sickly, small, or poisonous but so long as they were prepared right you might live and just have some indigestion. As it is, she felt a warm and uncomfortable feeling of comfort at the site of the place in one piece. Not wanting to stay in the open longer than necessary she opened the door, walked in and stopped two steps inside. Behind her Harry bumped into her back, causing the second step and stopping himself from snapping in surprise when he saw what made his captain freeze. Standing in the middle of the shop was none other than the Sea Witch of the Deep, Ursula.
A tall woman at all times Ursula took up most of the middle of the room. Her tentacles were as huge as ever and were lightly curling and uncurling but nothing else. Ursula had taken to hair wraps on the island as she couldn’t magic her hair under control and it takes far more effort then she usually used to change her hair now. It's not often Atlantician shampoo made it in the deliveries, even with the odd sea folk criminal trapped here. Her face was devoid of makeup but her signature red lip, her eyes were steely and her arms were crossed tightly in front of her chest. She wore what was a simple black dress and a shawl over her shoulders. All in all, it was no wonder why the VK’s stood like fish bait.
Uma didn’t even glance at Harry at this moment, suddenly realizing that in her year away she’d gotten soft. Before, if she saw her mother out of the back room she’d have made a sassy comment about the old witch to her face. But now, as she looked her mother in the eyes, she found herself tongue tied. There was a lot she could do before opening time.
Ursula looked at Harry and flicked a tentacle towards the door. “Leave, pirate. I have words for my wayward daughter.”
Harry started and opened his mouth but Uma signals with her hand and he backs down. The worry couldn’t quite leave his face, but Uma was his captain and leader. If she wanted him to stand down, he would even if he really didn’t want to. He scoffed for the show of it and turned around just enough to be rude but not enough to fully lose sight of the sea witch and left. In his hand was Uma’s bag, having subtly slipped it from her back. Uma didn’t watch him go, knowing he had the sense to escort Celia back to her dad with Gil before trying to sneak back for her. While Ursula never was the most physically violent of the villain's parents she was more than ready for a fight. Never get between Ursula and her evening swim.
Ursula looked at Uma for a moment then jerked her head towards the kitchen. “Come here, and be quick about it.” Without waiting for an answer Ursula turned herself around and left the room. Uma followed behind not sure what to expect but having several ideas. Since it was late enough for most of the people of the Isle to be asleep or drunk there was no true audience for a villian parent. More than often a VK on the bad side of their parents would be punished in full view of the others. This ranged from the public beatings in the streets with fists and wood planks to other more orthodox weapons. Just because they didn’t have magic and the Aurdionian people knew better than to let them smuggle in their ‘tools of the trade ’ doesn't mean they couldn’t get creative. On the contrary in fact.
Uma steeled herself to be snatched up in her mothers’ tentacles and thrown in a hole until enough people were awake enough to spectacle over her. She heard that happened to enough VK’s to expect it, although until now she didn’t really worry about it happening to herself. But that was before ditching everyone for a years’ vacation in the sea. Things can’t be the same after that, she ain't that lucky. Still she followed her mother through the doorway and closed it; closed but not locked. Hopefully if the plan was to trap her in the shop then Harry and Gil could sneak in and get to her before she starved or something.
Once inside the kitchen Uma’s nose was full with smells she hadn’t experienced in years. On the old stovetop was a large black pot with a big dent on the side. Ursula had sniffed at the wastefulness of land people when she got it from the delivery boat years ago. With lots of cleaning it worked perfectly well and was where most of the soup dishes were made. More often than not Uma wouldn’t get any and this used to grate. Until one day she was stuck in the kitchen and realized Ursula herself didn’t eat any of it either. Sure, that could have been a clever trick, but this was something Uma felt was fine to let go. Ursula’s cooking had many villains owe her favors so why waste a deal on themselves? On those times they did get to enjoy the gumbo the pair would sit in as close as a normal mother-daughter did.
Maybe it was the memories tied to it, but the smell nearly made her mouth water. Uma moved as close as she’d dare to the pot and stared at the floating bits. If her nose didn’t fail her she was looking at seafood gumbo, a dish she couldn’t remember the last time having. Ursula would always say she couldn’t make something out of nothing after all. A good gumbo needs the right ingredients and those were very hard to come by on the Isle. Ursula was scooping some into a cracked bowl with a ladle and pointed to a chair with an extra limb. Not wanting to set her mother off, Uma sat down.
“Here.” Ursula said gruffly as she slammed (but not hard enough to spill) the bowl in front of Uma. The lopsided table wobbled a little but neither remarked on it. Moving back to the pot Ursula poured herself a bowl and sat on her own chair. Without another word she dug in with an old bent spoon. After a few tense moments and a few more than Uma usually dared, she grabbed a random spoon from the drawer closest to her and started to eat as well. Her eyes hardly moved from her mother. If her gaze wasn’t on her face for signs of anger it was on the tentacles slowly moving on the ground.
“You're foolish coming back here, girl.” Ursula finally said after Uma had finished half her soup, knowing to move just fast enough to fill her stomach for a time and in case something was off enough to make her sick.
Ah, something normal. Uma looked up slightly with a lazy sort of hum. “Why, didn’t you miss me?”
“Oh yes I missed you, as much as a pain in the fin you and your little crew are, you bring in business.” Ursula said casually with a lazy flick of her tentacle. “Mostly I missed the excuse to yell at someone with half a brain.”
“Oh so I’m your soundboard, is that it?” Uma sassed with narrowed eyes. This was normal, the pair would typically use half or outright insult each other when by themselves. It helped with Uma’s quick responses with other adults and was why Mal never could outsmart her on a deal. Well, until recently. Who knew being in Bordon could actually win that half Fae a brain. Even though Mal did know how to get under her skin, Uma actually played up the Shrimpy thing. Made things easier to let Mal stick to an insult that only stung half as much as she thought it did.
“More than those spineless layabouts I'm stuck working with.” Ursula answered leaning back in her chair and fixed Uma in an unreadable gaze that had Uma’s muscles tense. “Now, I’m gonna ask you something and you better be honest with me for the first time since you were a minnow.”
“Or what, you’ll kick me out of house and home?” Uma snarked with a eyeroll.
“Or you’ll never find out what happened to your sea treasure.” Ursula said in her calm long drawl that held the power to sway gods, merfolk and man alike. That answer had Uma’s mind racing in confusion then dawning remembrance. When she was a little girl she had a string of pearls given to her by her mother. It was so long ago now that she thought it was a dream as while she remembered having that string of pearls, she had no idea where they went. The string was just...gone. And while her memories from that age were old and buried she always felt that her mother changed around that time. But as she got older Uma had moved past what must have been a dream of a child. Afterall, who would throw out a string of pearls or allow a villain to bring any into their prison?
Uma outworldly seemed uninterested as she leaned back on her chair, legs crossed under the table and her bowl in hand. “What is it then?”
“Tell me how the magic felt for you. Explain to me the best way your unknowledgeable brain can.” Ursula said with a lazy hand wave, narrowly missing a tentacle.
Uma didn’t expect that to be the question. She’d be asking a ‘we both know the answer I just want to see you squirm’ question if Uma was in her mothers’ shoes. Er, hair wrap. But Uma also didn’t feel like this was a trap. For once, her mother was being direct. So she decided to cross the river.
“...At first it happened so fast I didn’t have the time to think about it. I transformed and tried to sink a boat right afterwards.”
“Remind me to show you some actual technique, that was pitiful . Not even one tipsy party guest knocked into the water, even the weakest siren could get one human.” Ursula said with a chuckle around her drink. Uma narrowed her eyes at the jab. But to be honest she was annoyed that not even one person on the boat ended up in the water. Seriously, they must have had magic on the boat which is another delightful bit of hypocrisy. That dumb slogan she saw in town about them ‘not needing magic, we have technology!’ was clearly a lie.
“When I was fighting Mal, I never felt so alive. The water wasn't so much ‘controlled’ by me as it worked with me. It was like when my crew and I are in perfect sync. Hell I would have won that fight if not for the crazy Beasty Jr.”
“Now that is debatable,” Ursula said with a raised eyebrow. She pointed a finger at Uma. “That cocktail of magic had 6 months on you. That stank in the air isn’t just the garbage here, it's the lack of magic itself. If you had a few days, hell, at least one out there then you’d be talking.”
“Oh…” Uma looked at her mother with a new light enough though she tried to tone it down. That was actual useful information. This was either a trap with a lot more effort in it or her mother, the feared Sea Witch, wasn’t angry at her. It felt crazy but maybe it was the long day, the magic used then blocking, but Uma relaxed enough to finish her gumbo. “So why the 20 questions?” she asked after finishing, leaning back on the chair lazyly.
Ursula rolled her eyes then got up from her spot, Uma following. The pair cleaned up the kitchen as best they could, leaving the gumbo pot last to put away. For someone not seen as a ‘big time’ villain, Ursula was one of the very few on the Isle with a working refrigerator and freezer. A matching pair was in Hades restaurant as gifts for good behavior. Mainly just not breaking out in the first year.
“You’ve gotten a mere taste of your potential on your little vacation. And once you’ve had that taste, it’ll never leave. Don’t be surprised if your body feels like it's squeezed into a bottle, human forms usually do. And that’s when switching is still a choice,” Ursula tossed a dull wash rag into the sink and gave Uma a lazy lookover. A hand, oddly hesitate, brushed some hair behind Uma’s hair. Then she turned around and headed for her room, “You know where your room is. Don’t sneak out, I have somewhere to take you at dawn. Tap water is drinkable today.” With that the Sea Witch disappeared to her room, leaving a tired and conflicted daughter behind.