Shortly after Stefan is done with his chat with Maleficent's wings, Queen Leila dies of an illness, and she never gets the chance to meet her daughter, who on the other hand is unaware of her identity and was not given the chance to learn about her mother due to Stefan's obsession causing him to neglect her as well.
Aurora was never related to Maleficent by blood in the live action movie. She was daughter of King Stefan and Queen Leah. So she was a princess by birth.
When she arrives, Stefan expresses a twinge of sorrow while telling Aurora that she looks like her mother, which confirmed to Aurora - whether she realized it or not - that her mother had died. And so, Maleficent becomes the only mother figure left in Aurora's life.
Maleficent confirms that Aurora will grow in grace and beauty, "beloved by all who know her", but as revenge for not being invited by the kingdom, she curses Aurora so that before the sun sets on her sixteenth birthday, she will prick her finger on a spinning wheel's spindle and die.
Maleficent and Aurora have a close relationship, like a mother-daughter relationship. Even after learning Maleficent's identity and going away from her, after realizing that her father, Stefan, does not show any love or genuine care for her, Aurora sees Maleficent as her fairy godmother.
Emma immediately does some research and uncovers the truth that the woman, Lilith "Lily" Page, is not only Maleficent's daughter, but was once the childhood friend of Emma, who also discovers that fate has controlled her life down to the finest detail, which includes influencing the one friend she ever had.
After Maleficent, an evil fairy curses her when she is only a baby, Aurora is taken to the woods by Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather, where her name is changed to Briar Rose to conceal her identity from Maleficent. Aurora is the third official Disney Princess.
Sometime later, Aurora gives birth to a son who is also given the name Phillip. She goes to parenting classes with Snow White and Cinderella, it is also revealed that she is still trying to understand the ways of the modern world.
After Maleficent undoes her own curse on Aurora, she realizes that her father does not have any feelings towards her, helps Maleficent by freeing her wings. After Stefan died, Aurora became the new queen of both the human kingdom and the Moors finally uniting them.
Angry over not having been invited, Maleficent casts a spell, promising that before sunset on Aurora's 16th birthday, she'll prick her finger on a spinning wheel's spindle and die.
Growing up as an orphan in the Moors, Maleficent believed herself to be the last of her kind. As she grew into adulthood, she became the de facto protector of the Moors. One day, Maleficent suffers a ruthless betrayal and deceit that turns her pure heart to stone.
Even though Maleficent is a heroine, she is still presented as a satanic figure. Her iconic horns (which Disney artist Marc Davis, who designed Maleficent, says were inspired by the traditional look of the devil, to “frighten everybody half to death”) are present even before Stefan's betrayal.
She resents that Briar Rose fell in love with a hansom man, instead of with her. And then later Maleficent hates Aurora, as a reminder of Briar Rose's rejection.
Maleficent (Angelina Jolie) is actually a dark fairy who can control natural elements like roots, plants, and the weather. She can also cause other creatures to shape-shift. And for all means and purposes, Maleficent is also Aurora's godmother.
It's a significant departure that Aurora (Elle Fanning) is awakened not by a kiss from Prince Phillip (Brenton Thwaites), but instead by a kiss from the villainous Maleficent (Angelina Jolie).
But once she is betrayed, “her heart begins to turn to stone and she becomes a more malevolent Maleficent, she hides her hair and horns under wraps,” designed and made by members of Team Maleficent from leather and other materials meant to look like snake and animal skins.
On Maleficent's sixteenth birthday, Stefan kissed her. However, after some period of time after this, he didn't come to see Maleficent. Stefan later betrayed her and stole her wings, so he would be able to become the new king. Stefan later married Leila, Henry's daughter, and she became his wife and queen.
Merida and Pocahontas are the only Princesses to not be seen married, or have wedding dresses in the franchise. Belle and a few others were featured in Disney's Beautiful Brides book.
Another fairy, who had not yet bestowed her blessing on the child, states that when the princess wounds her hand on a spindle, she will fall asleep for 100 years, rather than die. While her parents are away, sixteen-year old Beauty discovers an old woman spinning and pricks her finger falling into a deep sleep.
If you think about it, there's something pretty major missing from almost all your fave Disney movies: mothers! Or more specifically, the Disney princess moms. Just think about it: Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Jasmine, Belle, Ariel, Pocahontas, Cinderella… none of them had mothers!
