Maleficent

Let us tell an old story anew, and we will see how well you know it. Once upon a time, there were two kingdoms that were the worst of neighbors. So vast was the discord between them that it was said only a great hero or a terrible villain might bring them together. In one kingdom lived folk like you and me, with a vain and greedy king to rule over them. They were forever discontent, and envious of the wealth and beauty of their neighbors. For in the other kingdom, the Moors, lived every manner of strange and wonderful creature. And they needed neither king nor queen, but trusted in one another. In a great tree on a great cliff in the Moors lived one such spirit. You might take her for a girl, but she was not just any girl. She was a fairy. And her name was Maleficent.

Maleficent (film), CC BY-SA 4.0

Maleficent: Well, well. [laughs quietly] What a glittering assemblage, King Stefan. Royalty, nobility, the gentry, and... [laughs maliciously] How quaint, even the rabble. [she stares at a nervous King Stefan] I must say, I really felt quite distressed at not receiving an invitation. Stefan: You're not welcome here. Maleficent: [whimpers mockingly] Oh. [laughs] Oh dear! What an awkward situation. [turns as if about to leave] Leila: You're not offended? Maleficent: Why, no. And to show I bear no ill will, I, too, shall bestow a gift on the child. Stefan: No! We don't want your gift! Knotgrass: Stay away from the princess! Thistletwit: Yes, stay away! Maleficent: [begins to cast her spell] Listen well, all of you. The princess shall indeed grow in grace and beauty, beloved by all who meet her. Leila: That's a lovely gift. Stefan: Don't do this. Maleficent: But... before the sun sets on her sixteenth birthday, she will prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel, <big>AND FALL INT

Maleficent (film), CC BY-SA 4.0

Stefan: [After a failed attempt to breach Maleficent's wall of thorns] You failed me. Captain: The wall cannot be burned. It is indestructible! Stefan: [Enraged] NOTHING IS INDESTRUCTIBLE!!! NOT THE WALL, NOT MALEFICENT, NOT EVEN HER CURSE!!

Maleficent (film), CC BY-SA 4.0

Aurora: I know you're there. Don't be afraid. Maleficent: I'm not afraid. Aurora: Then come out. Maleficent: Then you'll be afraid.

Maleficent (film), CC BY-SA 4.0

So you see, the story is not quite as you were told, and I should know, for I was the one they called "Sleeping Beauty". In the end, my kingdom was united not by a hero or a villain, as legend had predicted, but by one who was both hero *and* villain. And her name was Maleficent.

Maleficent (film), CC BY-SA 4.0