A/N: This fic was originally posted to ao3 but I am posting it here as well for those who would rather read it on ff .net

Enjoy!

"Say it."

Her voice was ice, but the squinted eyes and satisfied smirk that resided on her face revealed the amusement that she got from seeing the blue-haired girl squirm in her grasp.

"I won't." Evie spat back, struggling to maintain a stoic exterior as her eyes began to swell with the first signs of tears. She hurriedly blinked them away, desperately hoping Mal hadn't seen the glints of emotion.

"You're weak, Evie. You're not evil and you know it. You're nice."

Blue curls bounced frantically as the girl shook her head back and forth, a low groan slipping past her gritted teeth at the realization that Mal's strength was no match for her pitiful attempt to tug her wrists free from their pinned position on the wall behind her.

"So, say you are." Mal repeated, words sharp enough to cut.

"I'm not!" Evie yelled it louder than she had intended, snapping suddenly as Mal's breath began to fan over her face, only adding to the humiliation she felt.

Mal simply laughed at the outburst. Evie couldn't blame her. Screaming was a common- if not welcome- occurrence on the Isle, and that undoubtedly meant that any no-good citizen wouldn't give the noise a moment of their concern.

No one was going to come to Evie's rescue. There would be no knight in shining armor to save her from danger. No good always winning against evil.

Evie was alone.

And that's when the tears really started to flow, painting her cheeks in mascara stripes and running blush.

Mal only laughed harder.

"You're so weak! Say it. Say you're weak." Her voice sounded like blaring sirens in Evie's mind, surrounding her, surrounding her thoughts, surrounding everything.

And Evie just didn't see the point in fighting against the inevitable anymore.

Through choked sobs, she managed the two words Mal was waiting to hear.

"I'm- weak."

Mal pulled Evie from the wall, tugging her as close to her face as she could without letting them touch. A sickly, twisted smile spread over the purple-haired girl's lips.

"Damn right you are," She clarified, using one last push to throw Evie back against the wall, her fingers finally leaving the crying girl's wrists.

Evie sank to the concrete below without hesitation, pulling her knees to her chest and burying her face into them as Mal turned to walk away, combat boots stomping against the cement as she stalked off triumphantly.

She freely let the cries reverberate through her bones, her chest swelling in anger that burned so hot, it swirled her vision.

Because she was weak. And she wasn't evil. But she swore to herself that she would change.

Because as she sat curled against the side of a dumpster with nothing left to lose, she vowed to seek revenge- vowed that one day Mal would hear her name and shiver at the memories of what sweet, weak Evie had done to her.

"Can you believe you two actually used to hate each other?"

Carlos shook his head at the thought, a short laugh of disbelief escaping his lips as he stared at the two girls whose arms were intertwined as they sat at the lunch table, one head of purple locks leaning against a shoulder cascaded in blue ones.

Mal giggled quietly at Carlos' comment and Evie forced a laugh, too, while her stomach churned at the memory of crying, alone in an alleyway with sore wrists and a bruised back.

"That was our moms' drama. We just happened to get roped into it." Evie covered easily, bringing her empty hand to Mal's arm and running her fingers down the length of it.

Evie had to admit, sitting with the purple-haired girl hugged against her side was an effect of her scheme that she never seemed to mind.

Truly, she didn't mind any of the physical aspects of their relationship. And if anything, she would consider them the only perks that came from the terrible situation that took place a few years ago.

She'd grown used to falling asleep with Mal curled around her and waking up to soft kisses on the nose that always forced a smile to her face.

She started to enjoy walking hand-in-hand with the girl between classes- started anticipating the rushed goodbye kisses that always came as they separated into their own classrooms.

Evie sometimes even stayed up far too late with Mal, knowing that the shorter girl said the cutest things when she was sleepy, and sometimes Evie needed those moments to make waking up the next day seem a little more bearable.

To put it simply, Mal (or more specifically, her plan against the girl) was one of the only things keeping her going during her darkest years.

They all dealt with the pain and uncertainty of leaving the Isle in their own way. Jay had tourney to keep him distracted. Carlos had a dog that acted as his own form of therapy. Mal had Evie. And Evie had Mal in a way that really only made sense to herself.

She could have had Mal in the same way Mal had her- and a large part of Evie wanted the girl- but any time she allowed herself to ponder too long on the idea of forming a deeper relationship, her mind flashed back to a younger, helpless version of herself; one that promised to never show weakness again. And present-day Evie refused to break that promise to the heartbroken girl in the alley.

"Well, whatever it was, we're all glad it's over." Jay chimed in through a mouthful of food, pulling Evie from the whirlwind of thoughts circling her mind.

"What are you guys doing tonight?" Carlos continued, addressing everyone at the table while holding eye contact with Evie intently as if he had seen something of interest in her eyes. Whatever it was, Evie widened the forced smile on her face, masking any other emotion that would have slipped through.

She found herself mentally thanking her mother in that moment for teaching her how to smile, no matter what she was truly feeling.

"Mal and I are celebrating our three month anniversary." She flicked her eyes down to the purple hair on her shoulder, hoping a diverted gaze would further distract Carlos from whatever he was trying to decipher in Evie's expression.

"That means none of you are invited." Mal mumbled immediately, sitting up straight and leaving the cool air to sweep over where her head had been resting moments before. Evie already missed the sudden lack of warmth.

Jay rolled his eyes, dipping his fork back onto his plate to scoop up another mouthful of food.

"Fine, I guess that means you won't be getting any gifts from us, but congratulations anyway." The tone was disinterested, but both girls knew Jay well enough to understand that he was just teasing.

Still, the content of the joke felt like a punch to Evie's gut as she remembered a particular present tucked neatly in the corner of her own nightstand, waiting to make its temporary appearance in Mal's possession.

Again, Carlos must have noticed her sudden change in behavior, because his eyes were glued to hers as the lunch bell rang, signaling for all students to proceed to their next class.

Evie untangled her arm from Mal's out of necessity as she grabbed her tray and followed the hoard of students to the trash can, before dumping her tray and beginning her walk to the final class of the day, Carlos and Mal walking beside her.

Mal was the first to split from the trio, wrapping her arms around Evie in a quick hug with a kiss on the cheek and a whispered "see you tonight", leaving just Carlos left to follow her to class.

"Are you okay, Evie?"

She saw the question coming long before they had finished eating, but it somehow still sent a wave of panic through her.

"Yeah, of course. Why do you ask?"

"You just seemed off when we were talking about you and Mal." Carlos' nose scrunched as he emphasized his words; his statement rekindling the dull flame of anger in Evie that had never gone out since the day in the alley.

Evie hummed and shook her head, thinking her tone might betray her if she tried to speak. Not until her emotions were under control did she reply.

"I feel fine. Maybe you're just paranoid." She finished the answer by playfully shoving Carlos with an elbow, to which he laughed and returned the favor.

"If you say so."

It was the last thing he said before veering off in his own direction, leaving Evie with her thoughts and fears as to what would unfold later that night.

The sight of Mal in an outfit other than leather jackets and heavy boots never failed to take Evie's breath away, and this particular occasion was no exception.

When she stepped into the dorm room to find Mal in a deep purple dress just formal enough to inch past casual, an involuntary smile tugged at her lips, the air seemingly sucked from the room.

"You look beautiful, Mal." Evie found the confession spilling from inside her, the sudden influx in her attraction towards the girl souring her stomach as she realized what danger loomed in the way her heart was beating a little too fast at the sight of the girl.

The faintest of blushes creeping up Mal's cheeks didn't help the situation in the slightest.

"You should get changed, too. I don't want to miss our reservation." Mal pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, twirling a loose strand of violet hair in her fingers.

It wasn't hard to recognize (or perhaps Evie had just grown incredibly skilled at reading Mal's intentions) that Mal simply wanted Evie to change so the shorter girl could see what she had planned to wear, and Evie started to reach out towards the bathroom doorknob before she stopped abruptly, a pit of some emotion telling her to change plans.

And it took a moment for her to contemplate the feeling before its meaning became clear to her.

Fear.

Fear because she could feel a spark of excitement igniting inside her where anger should have been.

Fear because her eyes were staring a little too hungrily at the girl across from her, when she knew such staring could be the demise of her long-awaited revenge.

And because suddenly the idea of having to sit through a romantic dinner with the girl that she was trying not to develop anymore feelings for felt impossible.

"First," Evie began, making her way towards the nightstand beside her bed. "I want to give you something." She pulled open the drawer, reaching in to find a small box, right where she had left it.

Mal's eyes lit up in surprise, her mouth falling open in a barely audible gasp.

"Evie, you shouldn't have," she spoke softly, the wide-eyed, grateful expression on her face making Evie wonder how someone with such a warm smile had once used that look for evil and evil only.

The shorter girl stepped closer, taking a seat on the bed beside where Evie stood.

"It's not much, but," Evie's voice trailed as she moved onto the bed beside Mal, handing over the small, purple box in her grasp.

Mal pulled open the top slowly, her bottom lip back between her teeth, bright green eyes widening at the silver necklace that rested inside.

Evie couldn't help but smile, too, knowing just how impeccable her gift buying skills were.

Mal's fingers grazed over the chain, tracing down the length of it until her thumb and forefinger lifted the heart-shaped dragon charm from where it dangled off the end, her smile widening noticeably.

"It's beautiful. I love it." Mal finally brought her gaze back to Evie's, reaching a hand out and snaking it behind a neck covered in blue curls, pulling them together until their foreheads fell against one another's.

Evie found herself lost in Mal's eyes, a small part of her wishing she could see past the dark memories connected to the striking green. Her gaze flicked down to parting lips- ones that were on their way to forming a sentence to break the silence that had engulfed them- but Evie had already decided that she was done listening to Mal speak, and she tilted her head just far enough to feel the shorter girl's arm brushing against it before closing the distance between them in a kiss that felt like a hot dagger to Evie's gut.

A dagger that only twisted as the kiss deepened, not because she wasn't enjoying the kiss, but because she was, and therein the danger lay.

But as the soft lips moved slowly against her own, the pain began to subside, like a wave receding back to the ocean, leaving a new, warm sensation in its wake.

And for a moment, Evie wondered if revenge was what she truly desired, when the possibility of spending the rest of her life enveloped in a strawberry-scented kiss stared her directly in the face.

You're weak, Evie. You're not evil and you know it. You're nice.

Evie sensed the thought before it surfaced, and the brief flashback was all it took for the blue-haired girl to revert back to age thirteen, when hatred had been rooted so deep inside her, she seemed to forget that she was ever a secretly kind-hearted little girl with good intentions and a genuine smile.

I'll show you who's evil.

As if something entirely new had taken over, Evie pushed the kiss one step further, using one hand to press against Mal's shoulder, coaxing her to fall against the pillow behind her.

And, like it was second nature, Evie moved her legs to straddle the girl, sliding her hands up Mal's arms until her fingers were locked around her wrists, pressing them into the soft mattress below.

Mal gasped against her lips at the drastic change in the mood, but didn't protest as Evie peppered kisses down one side of her jawbone, stopping just before she reached her earlobe.

"Do you love me, Mal?" Evie asked, her voice dripping with sweetness that she knew Mal was defenseless against. She had to stop herself from laughing at the irony that the one thing Mal used to hate about her had become the one thing she now couldn't resist.

The purple-haired girl was slightly breathless as Evie watched her comprehend the meaning of the question.

"Of course I do, E." Mal replied, the slightest of grins painting over her lips.

Evie would have stopped there- would have taken the answer as enough of a confirmation to say she had succeeded, but greed and a particular past grudge overtook that previous intention.

"Say it, then."

Mal's eyebrows furrowed momentarily, and Evie forced her best hurt expression, which wasn't hard to conjure considering it seemed to always be at the forefront of her mind. And obviously, Mal took the bait, softening her eyes and offering a sad smile.

"I love you, Evie."

The honest confession was all it took to send Evie's eyes squinting into slits, her teeth showing in what must have been the widest, malicious grin she could muster.

She wondered what thirteen-year-old Mal would say now- wondered if her mother would grandly applaud how evil she was growing to be- wondered how if Lady Tremaine could see her now, she would unquestionably tremble in her presence, easily awarding her as Dragon Hall's Evilest of the Year.

She wondered if sweet-turned-sour, little Evie would be proud of what she accomplished and if all those dark days had somehow been worth it to get back at a girl that ruined her life, no more than three years ago.

And somehow the answer to all those questions felt like the icing on the rotten cake of a scheme she had pulled off.

"Don't you love me too?" Mal broke Evie from her internal celebration, speaking meekly at the sight of the unnerving look on her girlfriend's face.

Evie leaned back in, stopping just before Mal's ear, as she had moments before, and parted her lips as she prepared to send the smaller girl's world crashing around her.

"Nope." Her voice was ice. "And I never did." She continued, words sharp enough to cut.

Mal tensed noticeably below her, eyes suddenly devoid of any emotion other than confusion.

Evie used Mal's frozen state as her chance to move herself from on top of girl, grabbing the opened purple box as she stood from the bed.

And that must have been when things clicked for Mal, because the violet-haired girl shot up in the bed, propping on her elbows and staring her acid-green irises into Evie's red-brown ones.

Evie leaned towards the girl one last time, biting her lower lip before she spoke.

"Who's the weak one, now?"

Something about the word 'weak' sent her heart lurching, and something about the crestfallen look on Mal's face sent it jumping to her throat.

The look was confused and broken and scared and lonely and just the way Evie always figured herself to look on the same day it happened to her. But somehow, seeing that expression in front of her now only strengthened the unresolved emotion that still resided in her own heart.

She turned away before Mal saw her villainous facade slipping, swallowing the lump that grew in her throat as she stalked off, channeling every last bit of malice still inside her to feel triumphant.

She turned her head to take one final look at the girl in the bed, knowing long before she turned what new emotion would be coating Mal's visage.

Anger.

And as their eyes locked, Evie swore she could see hatred gripping at the jilted girl's chest, rooting itself deep, deep inside, probably around the exact same place where Evie's own resided.

She weakly forced a smile as she pulled open the door and slammed it shut behind her, hoping the new, incessant tugging that had appeared in her chest was only temporary.

The tears that unexpectedly slipped past her eyes as she walked told her that was wishful thinking.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Reviews are greatly appreciated!