(Mal)

The cold rippled through her tiny body as the bite of winter finally plunged its sharpened claws into the small town, the darkness throwing an increased intensity of the freezing weather over everyone currently on the streets. She watched as everyone else hurried through the cramped and dirty streets, desperate to get inside their homes where they could be consumed by artificial heat, thoughts creeping to the front of her mind that threatened to drive her mad. Why can't things be like that for us? It was the question that most often invaded her mind, but one she had learned to never vocalize due to the reaction she received every time she had in the past.

Afraid of bringing herself into a mental state that led her to breaking down into tears she turned her back on the rest of the town visible to her eye, forcing her legs to carry her back to the area she called home. Down a haunted looking alley, through a break in the wall of a destroyed, abandoned building, and under an archway that led into a room that didn't know what a ceiling was. That was her home.

If she had the choice she would run away from that place, find somewhere else with less brutality; somewhere that kept the frost-bitten wind from attaching to her body like a second skin; somewhere that shielded her from the scorching rays of the sun whenever it made an appearance; somewhere that guaranteed she would live without having to put in so much exhausting effort. But she didn't have that choice, she needed her companion, and she knew she had no chance of living without her.

"Mom?" She breathed the question into the air, nearly wincing at the visibility of her breath.

Stepping into the main room she found her mother lounging across the broken stones of the building, appearing completely unfazed by the sting of the winter. The second her mother sent a glare as icy as the streets directly her way she cringed, taking a few steps back to hide behind the pillar of the archway, afraid of her mother's wrath.

"What have I told you about using that name with me?"

"Sorry," her voice was barely audible.

Another pointed look and she added; "Sorry, Maleficent."

Her mother had been great and powerful in the shining point of her life, but after facing defeat she had crumpled into the woman she was today, the only person fearing her being her only daughter. Still, she envied her mother, wishing she had the same powers as her; the unlimited magic, the ability to transform into a dragon, she wanted it all. Though she often found herself wondering whether the ability to change into a dragon was more dangerous than it was helpful, her mother not being able to stop herself from transforming whenever her anger reached limits set in place for it, therefore placing her in danger if she was too close when it happened.

"There you go, child," Maleficent said before muttering the last bit under her breath. "I don't know how such a weak child is my daughter."

The words stung, but she had heard them enough to know how to twist them into meaning something completely different, though she could never manage to believe her own lies most of the time. She was a disgrace to her mother, to everyone, she knew that – she accepted that – but she ignored the venomous words her mother spat at her because she needed her to survive. She supposed that was what made her weak.

"Is there anything to eat?" She asked cautiously, stepping back into the room, her stomach rumbling from two days without food.

"Not anymore," Maleficent cackled, focused more on swinging her staff than her daughter.

All she heard was that there was food, at least at some point. "You managed to get something to eat? What was it?"

"Why does it matter? It wasn't for you," Maleficent spat the pronoun out as if she were something disgusting she had stepped in.

"I just…"

"My god, child," Maleficent waved her over to her. "Come here."

She didn't dare disobey her mother.

The second she stood in front of her mother she found her mind locked in a cage of Maleficent's creation, the familiar pull on her head telling her that she was about to be silenced. Maleficent's eyes began to glow green, and she knew hers looked the same as her mother influenced the way she was thinking, altering her mind completely.

"Go to sleep and stop pestering me, you disappointment."

There was nothing she could do to fight the magic now coursing through her body, and once Maleficent let go of her gaze she made her way over to the corner she was forced to sleep in. Laying down, she curled into a helpless ball, a desperate attempt to keep herself warm through the night that she knew wouldn't work; that didn't stop her from trying, though.

A sound woke her in the middle of the night, alerting her to the semi-frozen state of her body and the ache of her teeth from the way she had been grinding them together in her sleep. Through blurred vision she could see the shape of her mother moving toward the arch.

"Where are you going?" She asked, figuring her mother was going to search for food as she often did during the night.

"Somewhere better," Maleficent spat, glancing over her shoulder as a wicked smile re-shaped her lips.

Her chest tightened. Somewhere better? Why wouldn't she wake me? And then, as Maleficent swooped from the room with her robes dragging behind her, reality crashed into her. Somewhere better. Somewhere without me. An unbearable pain that beat everything else she had felt tore through her chest, making her completely forget about the way her body was halfway to freezing, and she pushed herself to her feet robotically. She moved slowly passed the arch and through the broken wall before her body finally gave out on her, sending her body crashing to the frozen concrete.

"Mom?" She could see her mother, back turned to her as she retreated.

Maleficent stopped, turning to meet her gaze with a dangerous glint lighting her eyes. "You're not my child. You are weak and you are useless. You're a pathetic excuse for existence."

Just like that, her mother turned and disappeared into the streets as if she hadn't spent six years in the same broken building; as if she hadn't seen that alley before in her life; as if she had never had a daughter. And she was forced to watch her leave, her frost-bitten body unable to follow after the one thing keeping her alive.

The bland ceiling of the infirmary revealed itself to Mal as she woke from her haunting sleep, a memory that had been blocked from her mind for years finally breaking from its cage to squirm its way back into her. Maleficent? My mother is Maleficent. She knew the stories; she knew the tale of Sleeping Beauty. She had just never thought she was distantly tied to it.

Typically, Mal would question what had brought the memory crashing back into her mind after so many years of her not being able to recall anything about her mother no matter how hard she tried to, but she was well aware of what had done it. She remembered everything that had happened earlier that day; every action, every thought, every feeling.

Though she wished she didn't, she remembered the horrid feeling that had iced over her heart when she had been forced to stare at Evie's back while the girl made to leave her alone, a feeling she had experienced before – though she hadn't known that until after she had felt it with Evie. She had been terrified of the idea that Evie wouldn't return to her, terrified that she was about to be left on her own for the second time in her life. She had been terrified that the door of the infirmary had held a portal that would rip the girl from her life once she had stepped through it, and the thought of losing Evie had filled her with the worst feeling she had ever experienced; even worse than when she had watched her mother leave.

Blowing out a heavy breath she cursed herself silently, hating the fact that she had allowed herself to become so vulnerable. She hated how weak she had seemed when calling Evie back to her, despised the fact that one girl she barely knew was capable of breaking her down with such simplicity. Weak. Useless. Hopeless. Forgotten. Unloved. She shut her eyes tightly, willing the words to disappear from the front of her mind. Weak. Useless. Hopeless. Forgotten. Unloved. She wouldn't allow herself to be weak. There were more things she could do than most other people. She didn't need hope because it was a sign of weakness. Those who had forgotten her weren't worth her time. She didn't need love because it was the ultimate weakness.

However, those words didn't reassure her as they did every other time she recited them to herself. Still, as she relived the moment Evie had been leaving the infirmary, she couldn't stop the invisible knife from slicing through her chest. She couldn't help view it as though Evie had been walking away from her forever while giving her one last chance to prove herself, and she had found herself fearing that she would never be enough for the girl. It hadn't been until the dream that Mal realized it was because it had been what her mother was doing, giving her one last chance to prove that she could be something other than a disappointment, something other than a disgrace. Her mother had wanted her to be cruel, she had wanted her to be vicious and malevolent. She hadn't understood that then, she had been nothing more than a vulnerable and broken child without a home; but she could see it with perfect clarity now. Am I the person you wanted me to be now, Mother? Or am I still nothing more than a disappointment? She thought those words bitterly, unsure as to why she was – after all these years – effected by her mother's abandonment.

Something moved delicately against her left arm, pushing the frantic and bitter thoughts from her mind and replacing them with confusion and curiosity. When she turned her head to glance down at her uninjured arm her heart accelerated to a beat that had her chest throbbing, what she found creating an overwhelming confliction of emotions. She stayed? Evie remained seated in the chair stationed beside her bed, the only difference being that the girl was now sleeping, her head resting on Mal's upper arm while her fingers bent around the tattoo printed into her forearm. She stayed. Now that she had registered the girl's body-heat radiating onto her she felt a pleasurable warmth spreading through her body, slowing her heart until it was no longer pounding against her ribcage – though its beat still remained faster than normal.

However, this pleasurable sensation didn't last long enough for her, the feeling instead being forced out of its settlement by a harsher, less welcome one. Her mind flooded with the thoughts she had somehow heard from the girl earlier when they had been locked in each other's eyes. Tearing her gaze from the sleeping girl she found her teeth digging painfully into her bottom lip as she tried desperately to fight off the thoughts, pleading with herself to not care as much as she did. It seemed to be a hopeless battle on her front, her mind continuing to remind her of everything she had felt coming from Evie during that time, the thoughts bombarding her with a relentless force. She didn't want to stay with you. She wished she hadn't been roped into helping you re-bandage yourself. She didn't even remember why she had come to see you in the first place. She doesn't care about you. She wouldn't care if you had died in the attack. Remembering that Evie had felt these things set an alarm off in her head just as it had during the vulnerable moment, except this time she couldn't cover her pain in venomous words. The thoughts bombarded her with a relentless force, forcing her to squeeze her eyes shut as she felt a prickling heat. No! She shouted at her own mind. It was her idea to be the one to change my bandages. She said she cared about me, and that no matter how hard I try to deny it that it wouldn't change the fact that she still cared.

When she managed to pry her eyes open she couldn't stop herself from glancing back down at the sleeping girl, and she found that the longer she stared at the girl the more the violent thoughts dissipated. Eventually, she was left with a clear mind, and she quickly went to wipe the tears from her eyes, wincing when pain shot up through her shoulder and down through her arm. For fuck's sake, Mal. You don't cry. What has gotten into you lately? She had no idea, but she hoped it would end soon.

Breathing deeply, she allowed herself to continue staring at the girl using her arm as a pillow, finding that she wasn't capable of looking away. If she hadn't wanted to stay earlier, why would she still be here with me when she could have easily left when I had fallen asleep? Still, she had felt the thoughts and emotions coursing through Evie when she had been looking into her breathtaking eyes, searching for something that would let her know what the girl was thinking only to figure out that she hadn't wanted to know. No, that can't be… she paused, growing even more confused; I may not know her that well, but I definitely know she would never think such cruel things.

Just then, as if commanding her attention, a low throbbing inside the mattress caught her attention, drawing her gaze from the girl's face and to the bed directly beside her own wrist. There, the necklace encasing Evie's neck rested, a small light blinking to the same beat as the throbbing of the bed. That's when a baffling idea crashed into her. The necklace… could it have something to do with the things I heard? Could it have possibly been tricking me into believing Evie didn't like me? It would sound utterly ridiculous if she didn't already know the background of the necklace, its ancient roots. How powerful are you?

Once again, Evie stirred against her arm, and she quickly brought her gaze back to the girl in fear that she was waking, however, she remained sleeping. As she took in the peaceful expression on the girl's face her mind wandered back to the idea of the necklace tricking her into doubting Evie, only this time it somehow managed to take a more pleasant turn. Could the necklace be telling me the exact opposite of whatever Evie's thinking and feeling? She immediately tried not to let the idea excite her, but it was to no avail. Something inside her fluttered at the thought of Evie feeling the exact opposite of everything the necklace had told her. But the opposite of hatred is… no. No, she doesn't feel that way for me. No one ever will. So maybe the necklace wasn't telling her the exact opposite, but she still wondered if it had been purposefully lying to her about how the girl felt about her, and she couldn't help but question why an ancient artifact would lie in a way that would force her to hate the girl. Though part of her quickly took to reminding her that she probably wouldn't be capable of hating the girl even if she did the worst imaginable thing to her; there was just something about the girl that lured her in, something that made her wonder if the world was different from the way she had perceived it her entire life.

And, almost as if some unseen force was controlling her, she lifted her right arm and slowly brought her fingers to slide over unusually soft blue hair, finding that she enjoyed the feeling more than she probably should. Threading her fingers gently through Evie's hair a small smile forced its way onto her face, her heart fluttering unfamiliarly.

"What is it about you, huh?" Mal found herself whispering, the words slipping from her lips before she even knew what was happening.

Eyelids fluttered and fingers wrapped around her forearm, but Mal continued combing through the girl's hair, her fingers only coming to a halt when red-brown eyes appeared to meet her gaze. Panic seared through her and she quickly freed the girl's hair from her grasp, dropping her arm back to her side and ignoring the fact that the quick movement increased the pain traveling through her arm. Despite the fact that she had decided the necklace was at fault for the things she felt radiating from Evie earlier she found herself terrified of what would happen next, fearing that the girl would react poorly to waking with her fingers thread into her hair.

"What time is it?" Evie questioned, her voice deeper from just waking.

Mal opened her mouth to say that she had no idea, but those words got lost on the way to her mouth. "You stayed."

Evie didn't seem to mind, though; she simply nodded. "I stayed."

"Why?"

"I just… well, I just think that no one should be left to deal with something like this by themselves," Evie answered honestly, pressing her cheekbone into Mal's arm. "I want you to know that you're not alone here in Auradon."

Every ounce of panic drained from Mal's body after hearing the girl's response, her heart reacting in ways she was extremely unfamiliar with. The small smile returned to her face as she kept her gaze locked with Evie's. Something shifted inside her and it was as if she only just realized that Evie was being completely honest with her; and somehow – despite any doubt that remained swirling through her mind – she understood that Evie wasn't only staying with her because she was injured. There was something more to it, something that Mal didn't quite understand.

(Evie)

Something felt incredibly right about everything in that moment; the way the girl's arm felt underneath her cheek, the way their eyes were locked together softly, and the way they spoke to each other. It was almost as if they were both at their most comfortable in each other's presence, which – strangely enough – seemed extremely possible to Evie despite the fact that they had only met on Saturday.

The doubt she had been feeling about her situation with the girl when Mal had first gone to sleep had completely vanished the second she had opened her eyes, the feeling of Mal's fingers gently stroking her hair being the thing that had woken her. Though she thoroughly enjoyed feeling certain about the girl she wondered if it would last, well aware that every other time she had believed she had made progress with the girl she went directly back to acting as though she could barely stand her; and all she wanted was for Mal to trust and like her. Despite her surety that she wanted to be close to the girl she still had no idea why she wanted it so badly, and she had to wonder if it was simply because of how unnaturally beautiful Mal was. But at the same time she knew that attraction wasn't all it was, there was something else present, something between them that made her feel as though they were meant to find each other. And here they were; her head resting on the girl's arm while their eyes remained locked together, and she wasn't going to easily forget the brief moment where Mal's fingers had been tangled in her hair.

"Did you stay here the entire time?" Mal questioned, the softness of her voice nearly surprising Evie.

Evie nodded in response, not wishing to say anything for fear of scaring Mal back into her closed-off, venomous behavior. Lifting her head so that she could glance at the clock she rested her chin on the girl's arm instead of her cheek, not yet ready to interrupt the contact between them. 6:34PM. It's still Monday? She released a heavy breath through her nose; wow, today has been a really long day.

"You haven't eaten anything," Mal stated more than asked.

This time, Evie shook her head.

"You need to eat something."

"So do you," Evie retorted gently, bringing her gaze back to meet Mal's and finding the girl chewing on the inside of her lip; she always seems to be doing that. "I could go get us something."

"You've done enough for me already," as Mal spoke she averted her gaze, beginning to manipulate the material beneath her with the fingers of her bandaged arm.

"Don't be silly," Evie smiled brightly at the purple-haired girl, squeezing the area of the girl's arm beneath her fingers. "It was my suggestion. Besides, I'd be getting food for both of us, therefore I wouldn't be going out of my way for you. It'd be for the both of us. And either way, I don't mind doing things for you. I kind of like it, truthfully."

It wasn't a lie, but she was babbling.

Mal arched her eyebrow, glancing back at her. "You're strange, you know that, right?"

"Isn't everyone strange in their own little ways?" Evie questioned, arching her eyebrow as well; a sort of challenge. "I bet you have quirks that other people would find strange."

"Nope," Mal shook her head, and although she clearly attempted to hide the way the corners of her mouth quirked upward, Evie still saw the smile. "I'm perfectly normal. Nothing strange about me."

"And I'm sure you truly believe that, but of course you'd find yourself completely normal," Evie couldn't stop herself from smiling, the sight of the other girl doing the same tempting it from her. "You're used to yourself, therefore you find the way you act and dress normal, however, others, dare I bring up Auradians? They probably find you completely strange because you don't dress nearly as formal as them."

"You say it as though you're not one," Mal pointed out, something in her eyes giving away that she'd heard something about her not being from Auradon, but hadn't been given any further information.

Evie moved her head so her cheekbone was pressed into the crook of the girl's elbow, never taking her eyes from the girl for even a split-second, utterly unable to remove the smile from her face. "I'm not from here. I know, could have fooled you with the way I dress, right?"

"Not at all," Mal surprised her by saying, her bright-green eyes seeming soft – at least, when compared to the usual warrior look she had blazing in them. "You dress much better than all the prissy, pink princesses I've seen around."

"You think so?" Evie could feel her cheeks heating due to the flattering words, and though there had been a point in her life where she had believed blushing was unattractive – thanks, mother – she didn't mind even in the slightest. In fact, she kind of favored the idea of Mal knowing the effect she had on her.

"Would I lie to you, Princess?"

Probably. Pulling her gaze from Mal's she glanced down where her fingers still lightly grasped the girl's forearm, beginning to nervously trace the tattoo staining her skin. Although she wanted to believe that she wouldn't lie to her the logical part of her told her that she more than likely already had. Just then – as that thought floated through her mind – a steady pulse from her necklace begged for her attention. Deciding to ignore the necklace for once she focused more closely on the image inked into the girl's skin, finding that it was an extremely intricate design of two dragons forming a heart. I wonder what dragons mean to her.

"Where did you get this done?" Evie asked curiously as she continued tracing the beautiful design with her fingertips.

"I don't remember, exactly," Mal answered, and it worried Evie just how sincere she sounded. "Some guy I knew from the streets did it. I don't remember where I was living at that point, though it was only a few years ago."

"That sounds highly unsanitary."

The response hadn't come from Evie, and both her and Mal turned to find Ben standing in the doorway, his usual brilliant smile present on his face. His voice had startled her, causing her heart to race, however, the sight of him calmed her back down; she enjoyed the boy's company, and although she wished she could have more alone time with Mal she had no issue with him being present. Mal didn't appear to share the same feelings as her, though, and she found this out by the quick shift in the girl's posture, her muscles tensing under her touch and her shoulders pulling back.

She could feel the pinch of something unsettling inside her chest, almost as if someone had taken the sharpened tip of a pencil and decided to slowly twist it into the area directly in the middle of her chest until it was fully submerged. It was radiating into her from somewhere else, and she couldn't tell if it was from Mal, or from the necklace; but she definitely didn't like the way it seemed to burn her blood, making it feel as though it took a strained effort for it to pump correctly in her veins.

"Of course it would to you," Mal shot back, fingers clasping tightly around the material of the infirmary sheets. "You grew up in a castle where everything was done for you by servants."

Ben chuckled as he approached the bed. "Bringing that up again, are we? But I'm pretty sure having a strange man on the streets stick a needle in your arm would be considered unsanitary to more than just Kings and Queens."

"Well, not everyone has it as easy as you," Mal replied, the venom finding its way back into her voice.

Why do you act like this? Once again, Evie was left utterly confused, and she started feeling hopeless when it came to figuring Mal out.

"That's precisely what I'm trying to change," Ben spoke honestly, hands clasped together in front of him. "And it would be much easier if you told me where you grew up. I can't change a place if I don't know what that place is."

"You have no power over there, you wouldn't be able to do shit about the fucked up things that happen," Mal spat, the anger coursing through her causing Evie discomfort. "Why don't you give up this whole charade of being a benevolent ruler, it's not fooling me."

"You've had terrible experiences with those believed to have more power than you," Ben said, reaching down to fix the crinkled edges of the sheet. "But not all of us are like those you've previously known, I promise."

Mal watched Ben warily as he took a few steps closer, and Evie watched – in bewilderment – the scene unfolding before her. How does she do it? How is she one person one minute, then a completely different person the next? Thinking about how it was possible made her head hurt, and paired with the unsettling and unfamiliar burning slowly spreading through her veins it was almost too much for her to handle. What is even happening? She had no idea, but she hoped it stopped soon. Just as she thought that, though, a whispering voice started persuading her mind.

"I don't believe in promises, Your Highness," Mal spoke through a clenched jaw, her body still completely tensed; which Evie didn't think was good for her wounds. "It's just a way to manipulate people while you get everything you want."

"I'm sorry you see it like that," the honesty was thick in Ben's voice, his gaze flickering down to the tube resting on the ground. "You should really put your IV back in. Shall I go get my mother to give you another?"

"If it'll make you leave," Mal replied, her eyes glowing a shade of green that was abnormal for an eye-color.

"Alright, I can take a hint," Ben chuckled awkwardly, reaching up to scratch the back of his neck. "But please, don't hesitate to get my mother's attention if you change your mind."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Evie could tell she was lying.

The unwelcome feeling and relentless whispers suddenly intensified as she watched Ben exit the infirmary, and for a brief moment she grew acutely aware of the harsh pulse throbbing against her chest where the crowned heart rest. And something inside her snapped, her distaste for the way the girl treated Ben getting the best of her in a way she never thought anything ever could. She pushed herself to her feet, releasing her hold on Mal's arm as she moved away from the bed the girl lay in, feeling as though something else entirely was controlling both her body and her mind.

"Are you leaving?" Once again, Mal sounded panicked, afraid even.

The smallest part of her broke at hearing the girl in that state again, but even if she wanted to she couldn't seem to bring herself to care whether or not the girl was in pain. It was a sudden and unwanted change in feeling.

"I need to discuss assignments with my teachers before they leave the school," Evie answered, she felt like someone else entirely, but still as though this was who she truly was all along.

"Wait, E, please don't leave like this," Mal begged, sounding completely unlike herself as well.

A small ruffling sound let Evie know Mal had slipped from the bed and made to follow her, and a sudden yelp of pain seconds before a thud let her know that the girl had fallen to the ground, unable to move on her own. She stopped, but only briefly, glancing over her shoulder to find the girl crumbled on the ground, her eyes desperate and pleading.

"P-please, stay… with me," Mal pleaded, out of breath and looking as though her entire world had just been torn apart.

Evie's gaze flickered to where Mal held her side, fresh blood making a quick appearance to completely contrast with the pale skin of her fingers. She lifted her gaze to Mal's again, no sympathy coursing through her body for the girl. "I'll tell Belle you need her."

"Evie, please…"

But she ignored the girl, walking through the doorway and leaving the girl lying there, wounded and helpless.