(Evie)

Immediately after realizing she had fallen asleep in Lonnie's room, Evie felt her chest tighten. Mal… was her first thought, and though her mind was still hazy from sleep she found her way to the door quietly, sending a blown kiss in Lonnie's direction when the girl stirred in her bed. She knew she wouldn't feel nearly as terrible if she had mentioned that she wouldn't be returning, but since she hadn't given any clue – having not known herself – she felt it necessary to check in on Mal, while letting her know she was alright as well.

However, as she walked passed the stairs that would lead to the breakfast buffet always open in the dorm kitchen, she found her movements slowing as an idea pushed into the front of her mind. I should surprise her with breakfast. Changing her direction – now with a bright smile gracing her features – Evie descended the stairs and traveled the hallway that led to the kitchen, passing several people already heading back to their rooms with full trays. Despite the few people heading out of the kitchens she wasn't surprised to find the tables nearly full as other dorm residents chatted animatedly with their friends. Offering other residents a warm smile, Evie placed two plates onto a tray and filled them both with the basics, thanking the workers like she always did as she left the large room. It didn't take her long to arrive outside her own room, and she carefully balanced the tray between one hand and her hip in order push the door open so she could enter. Before she could turn back around to shut the door she found herself stopping abruptly, her heart fluttering frantically in delight at what she saw.

Mal's bed was completely empty, the sheets having been tossed carelessly to hang off the side of the bed, which would have worried her if her own bed wasn't being used. Mal was turned away from the door, but the side of her face was still visible to Evie, and she had never looked more beautiful. She looked almost peaceful, her face all but buried in the blue pillow underneath her head, her body completely obscured by the comforter that reached to just under a sharp chin.

A smile more radiant than ever now settled into her features, Evie quietly closed the door behind her before making her way over to the table where she carefully set the tray down, making as little noise as she could. With her heart flipping relentlessly she lowered herself to a crouch beside the bed, never once taking her gaze from the sleeping girl as she reached out to brush her fingers delicately through purple hair, not being able to talk herself out of it; she needed to touch her. Continuing to stroke the girl's hair she brought her arm to rest on the mattress and leaned her chin down on top of it, her smile never fading even in the slightest.

"It's time to wake up, M," Evie whispered, brushing her thumb over a prominent cheekbone.

Eyelids fluttered and Mal shifted, her hand emerging from underneath the sheets until her fingers were sliding over the back of Evie's hand, flattening her palm against the girl's cheek in the process. Evie tried not to see it as anything other than a dazed reaction, but it became increasingly difficult when a warm thumb gently caressed her knuckle. She wondered why the girl was always so unnaturally warm to the touch, but her train of thought immediately changed when green eyes appeared and she found herself putting all her restraint into not leaning forward to kiss the breathtaking girl in front of her.

That became a whole world more simple when Mal's eyes widened in panic. Letting go of her hand, Mal shot into a sitting position, pushing at the sheets frantically in attempt to untangle herself, her panicked movements only causing her to slip from the mattress and onto the ground on the other side of the bed.

"Mal?" Evie questioned in worry, getting to her feet and hurrying around the bed until she could drop to her knees beside the smaller girl. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

"I… I'm… I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…" Mal couldn't seem to get a full sentence out without stumbling over her words. "I shouldn't have…"

A light laugh of relief escaped Evie's lips when she realized what was happening, and without thinking properly she reached forward to grab hold of both sides of the girl's face, gently prompting green to meet red-brown. "Would you please calm down? It's fine, I don't care."

"You… you don't?" Mal questioned, eyebrows reaching toward each other with concern and disbelief.

"No, I don't," Evie confirmed her statement, her mouth still curved into a smile. "You can sleep in my bed whenever you want, I really don't mind."

She watched as the fear flashing through green eyes slowly dissipated, shifting into confusion, however, she didn't give Mal another chance to speak, worried that she would only ask her why she didn't mind; and she knew she wouldn't be able to lie to the girl. So she avoided that path by getting to her feet and offering her hand to the girl who looked up at her in wonder.

"Come on," Evie smiled radiantly, arm still extended. "I brought you some breakfast."

After a moment of staring at her hand as if it were completely foreign to her, Mal slid her hand into Evie's and allowed her to help her to her feet. However, Evie didn't let go of Mal's hand once she stood on her own, instead lacing their fingers together and guiding her to the table, and again, Mal let her. She was well aware that Mal could easily refuse any contact with her like she had when they first met, so she relished the fact that she felt fingers grasping tightly onto her own, almost as if she didn't want her to let go.

"It might be a little cold, I'm sorry for that," Evie said, though she wasn't entirely sure why she felt her cheeks heating as Mal watched her closely.

"Thank you."

That was all Mal said before letting go of her hand and dropping into one of the chairs, reaching forward to claim one of the plates and beginning to eat. Evie watched the girl for a moment before joining her, and together they sat in a comfortable silence while enjoying their breakfast – which wasn't actually that cold, surprisingly. Trying her best not to glance up at Mal too much she focused more on her food than most people normally would, but she found herself unable to keep her gaze cast downward when the prickling sensation of the girl's stare lingered on the side of her face, and so she lifted her eyes to find Mal's.

"You know," Mal started, clearing her throat as she watched herself push the remaining food around her plate. "I've never actually thanked you before."

"You never had reason to," Evie replied honestly, well aware now that all she had done was pester the girl constantly.

"You're wrong," Mal retorted, shaking her head.

Evie's eyebrows knit together in confusion, and she parted her lips to speak, but Mal beat her to it.

"You came to visit me in the infirmary when you didn't have to, you didn't even have to worry about me, but you did, continuously," Mal spoke quietly, bringing her gaze back to Evie's as she swallowed thickly, obviously finding it challenging to say these things. "You got rid of Belle when I asked you to. You bandaged my wounds despite being seconds away from passing out. You healed me when it was unlikely that I would ever wake. I have an endless list of things I should have thanked you for, and yet I never did."

Having been too caught up in the moment, Evie nearly missed the last moment Mal had listed, however, nothing would have been able to keep her from registering it. Healed her? What's she talking about? She couldn't help but wonder if it tied into other confusing things Mal had said, and in that moment – since they seemed to be admitting things – Evie didn't stop the words from flowing from her mouth, her gaze averting to the table as her mind spun too quickly for her to even attempt to keep up.

"You once said that… you suggested I use my powers to do something, what did you mean by that?"

Mal let out a light, somewhat forced laugh. "I'm surprised this didn't come up sooner."

"You don't have to answer if…"

"It's a shame, really," Mal interrupted her, rolling the inside of her lip around her mouth as she always seemed to do when in the middle of a thought. "You're probably the most powerful sorceress I've ever encountered, and you have no idea what you can do."

The most powerful sorceress? That can't… I must have heard her wrong. "I'm sorry, I must have heard you wrong."

"I knew you would doubt my words, after all, there's little reason for you to believe someone like me," Mal laughed almost brokenly, eyes locked on where Evie's hands now played with the table drapery. "The thing is… I really don't know how to say this. I shouldn't be saying this, but…" another pause while her bottom lip disappeared inside her mouth briefly. "I can feel the magic in you. It hates me, electrifies me. That's why I nearly died when I touched your necklace."

Evie figured she must look utterly terrified because Mal's cheeks reddened as she reached up to cover her face. She wanted to tell Mal she was wrong, but she was frozen from the inside out, her chest constricting painfully as she attempted to absorb everything the girl was saying to her. I shouldn't be saying this. I can feel the magic in you. It hates me. Nearly died. The words were chopped apart in her mind, echoing repeatedly until she found curiosity and disbelief flooding from her body.

"That can't… I can't… you're lying, you're joking. There's absolutely no way I could be magic, it just doesn't make any sense."

"Your mother is the Evil Queen, isn't she?" Mal questioned, completely taking her by surprise by knowing who her mother was; I never told her…

"Well, yeah, but that doesn't mean I'm a sorceress," Evie nearly choked on the word, her heart beating erratically in attempt to suffocate her.

Mal blew out a breath, but didn't say anything, clearly unsure how to continue this conversation. But Evie wasn't finished, she still had far too many questions jumbled together in her mind, all of them waiting for answers.

"What did you mean when you said you can feel my magic?" Evie asked, not the least bit surprised that it was the first question that made it out of her head.

"May I?" Mal reached for her hand hesitantly, seeming tired and unsure of herself.

Without hesitation, Evie slid her hand into Mal's, loving the warmth and feeling of security that flooded into her body from just a simple touch. Green eyes were soon covered by delicate eyelids, but red-brown remained locked on the girl's face, watching, waiting for some sort of explanation. Her attention was diverted and her gaze snapped down to her hand – now held between both of Mal's – when she felt a sudden burning sensation enveloping her hand. It didn't burn, but it was hot enough that it should have, and she nearly panicked and yanked her hand from Mal's grasp, having to tell herself to relax and remember that she trusted the girl. However, when green smoke began seeping from between their hands she couldn't stop herself from pulling away from the girl in panic, only to find that her hand was now surrounded by electricity as bright and blue as lightning.

"What did you do?" Evie questioned, less afraid of Mal than she was of herself.

"I can feel your magic because I have my own," Mal finally answered the question that had led to this entire scene, her green eyes pleading as she turned her palm to the ceiling, only for a smoky green ball to hover above her hand. "This is what my power looks like."

"Then…" Evie shifted her gaze to where electricity still rippled around her hand, creating an almost pleasurable tickling sensation.

"That is what your power looks like."

"Why is this happening? I'm not doing anything!" Evie was terrified still, not wanting to believe she had magic of her own.

"Your magic is protecting you," Mal explained quietly, her voice calm enough to send a sliver of security down Evie's spine. "I just attempted to burn you, and instead of it hurting you, it hurt me."

That's when Evie finally looked at the skin beneath the glowing green to find fading burn marks, but her emotions turned abruptly down a completely different road when the green light went out and she saw the skin around Mal's wrist. All the worry she had held about herself disappeared instantly. Oh my goodness.

The blue light of the electricity flickered out quickly as Evie reached forward to grab hold of Mal's hand, pulling it closer to her so she could inspect the girl's wrist. The skin was scarred and wrinkled, almost as if she had been terribly burned, and the idea that the girl had ever felt such horrid pain sickened her. Eyes glazing over with stone, Mal yanked her hand out of Evie's grasp, moving over to her bed and grabbing something black from off the mattress; her gloves, the ones Evie had never seen her without. Now she knew why.

Evie choked over her own words. "Wh-what happened?"

"Something that's in the past," Mal deadpanned, pulling the gloves until they covered her wrists, and the horrid scar.

"But…"

"Just forget about it, Evie," Mal interrupted, green eyes flashing dangerously when they met red-brown.

There were so many emotions coursing through Evie's body; horror, pain, disbelief, and anger. She wanted to know how Mal had gotten a single thick scar that traveled her wrist as if it were a bracelet; she wanted to know if her other wrist looked the same given the fact that she wore two gloves; she wanted to hurt anyone who had been involved. But she shoved down the questions that threatened to spill from her, respecting Mal's desire for her to remain oblivious to her past, and she didn't chase her when she locked herself in the bathroom, the slamming door echoing through the room and leaving behind an unwelcome ringing in Evie's ears.

However, when she heard a light scraping she was standing outside the bathroom before she even knew what she was doing. Her stomach twisted and an ache settled deep inside her chest when she heard a muffled sob from the other side of the door, and she dropped to her knees to press her forehead into a specific area of the hard surface, somehow knowing that Mal was doing the same.

It was Mal's voice that was heard first. "E?"

"I'm here," Evie whispered brokenly, wanting nothing more than to possess the ability to stop the girl's pain, to erase everything that haunted her.

Tears burned the corners of Evie's eyes at the pain evident in the girl's voice, and she allowed them to escape as she brought her hand up to rest against the door, closing her eyes as she focused on keeping her breathing calm. She wasn't expecting Mal to say anything else, but she didn't need her to, she just needed the girl to understand that she was here for her, even if she had to live the rest of her life outside the barrier placed between them. Before she could calm down enough to say anything without choking on her tears the door disappeared from beneath her touch, and she opened her eyes to stare into the ones that invaded her every thought.

She opened her mouth to say something, anything, but instead she found her arms wrapping around a petite body as Mal fell into her, and she held onto the girl as though it was the last thing she'd ever do. Fingers gripped the back of her shirt desperately as tears stained her shirt, and she fit her chin on the top of Mal's head as she brought her fingers to thread through purple hair, exhaling deeply as her eyes fell shut again so that she could focus only on the feeling of the girl in her arms.

"I'm here," Evie whispered again, pressing her lips to the girl's head. "I will always be here."

Suddenly – as though it had never been there – the barrier keeping her from Mal shattered around them, leaving them to become hopelessly tangled in each other in every sense, both physically and mentally, as that same barrier surrounded them both so that others couldn't touch them. She wondered if it was meant to be this way, and somehow knew that Mal believed they had been created to fit together as one.

"Thank you," Mal breathed out shakily, her touch alone warming Evie's entire body while her mind and heart filled every crevice her touch could not.

And she believed, too.