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 Moors¹ 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 majestic²," 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 stiffened³; 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 bonded⁴ 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, albeit⁵ 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 fleeting⁶ moment, it all felt right again.

 

一周后，玛琳菲森在高空飞翔时，发现有个熟悉的身影在森林的那片空地上闲逛。

她笑着加速地飞过去，然后轻轻地落在了斯戴芬的身后。他一转身，她的突然出现让他吓了一跳。

“哈，哈，看看是谁回来了。”她说。

“我想这个冒险是值得的。”

玛琳菲森脸上泛起了红晕，这时树丛后面出现了一只小鹿。

斯戴芬指着小鹿说道：“如果我带着弓，就能为你做一顿丰盛的大餐。”

玛琳菲森对此不置可否，朝小鹿走去。这是只漂亮的小家伙。她伸出手打了招呼，在它面前跪了下来。小鹿用鼻尖蹭着她的手掌。

“魔力。”斯戴芬看着这一幕低声说道。

玛琳菲森纠正他：“不，这只是示好。”她继续看着小鹿。

她身后的斯戴芬向她走去，小鹿便走开了。玛琳菲森站起身来，转向他。

她问：“当我们见面的时候，你说‘你是她’，是什么意思？”

“人们看见过你。你在飞。摩尔森林里的女孩看起来和我们差不多……只不过你有翅膀。”他凝视着那双翅膀，显然想近距离看一看。玛琳菲森就朝他伸出了一只。

“你确定？”他问。

她点了点头。他轻轻抚摸着它：“它们可真好看。”

“谢谢。”玛琳菲森往肩后看去。“它们很特别，不是吗？”

然后，斯戴芬抬头看向玛琳菲森的犄角，问道：“它们锋利吗？”

精灵感到自己的脸变红了，她低下头，突然觉得有些难为情。

斯戴芬继续说：“它们看起来很高贵，就是这个词。它们是我见过的最最高贵的犄角。”

玛琳菲森十分感动，毫不犹豫地拥抱了他。他的身子僵住了，显然没有预料到她会这样做。但很快她看到他笑了。

玛琳菲森说：“我们可以成为朋友，为什么其他人不能？”

“说不定他们也可以。也许我们可以做给他们看。”

就这样，玛琳菲森和斯戴芬为了和平的希望而在一起了，这让玛琳菲森觉得和自己的父母前所未有地接近。斯戴芬来到摩尔森林的边缘，这是他们俩秘密私会的地方。他们畅聊着彼此的生活和未来。之后，在玛琳菲森十六岁生日那天，他们亲吻了—那个吻是如此纯洁，如此诚挚，如此真实，那是一个真爱之吻。

随着时间一年年过去，斯戴芬来摩尔森林看玛琳菲森的时间越来越少，他正忙着兑现那个住在城堡里的承诺，尽管现在他依旧只是个佣人。他对人类和精灵族之间的和平越来越不放在心上，反之，他对自己在城堡中的生活事务越来越上心—对此他还守口如瓶。不管玛琳菲森是多么真心地想了解，他都避而不答。

一天，玛琳菲森在空中翱翔，看见斯戴芬站在悬崖边上。她已经有好几个星期没见到他了。

她朝下叫他：“斯戴芬。”

“你好。”他答道。

“你好。”玛琳菲森重复着。她突然觉得在他身边有些尴尬。

他问：“你去哪儿了？”

玛琳菲森眯起眼睛：“我一直在找你。”

“真的吗？”

“是的，”她回应道，“你近来总是看不见人影。”她俯身亲吻他。他们紧紧地靠在了一起。几乎是一瞬间，他们又恢复如常了。

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