Jay and Carlos exchange uneasy glances—the weight of Mal's words swiftly and effectively bringing the trio's bickering to a grinding halt.
"Uh, Mal, I don't think that's such a good idea," Carlos says.
Mal brushes off Carlos's objection. She's thought a lot about this. It needs to be done. "Evie will never be free as long as her mother is alive. This is the only way."
"Okay, I get where you're coming from," Jay says slowly, regarding the girl with a look of thinly concealed leeriness. "I want to help Evie too and I totally think her bitch of a mother deserves to die—"
"So what's the problem then?" Mal cuts in, frustrated with the boys' stonewalling.
"EQ is an OG villain," Jay points out.
"So?"
"So she has serious clout. You don't kill an OG villain without disturbing the delicate hierarchy of this hell hole we call home," Jay explains. It's unusual for him to be the voice of reason amongst the crew but he senses Mal's emotions concerning Evie are getting the better of her. He needs to step in and make sure she understands the dangerous and far-reaching implications of her plan. "She has allies, territories..."
Mal scoffs. "Evil Queen has been in isolation for a decade, her alliances are void."
"Says who?" Carlos demands.
"Says me."
Carlos rolls his eyes at Mal's juvenile response. "Mal, as much as I hate to admit it, we're not actual villains. We're legacies. We don't have the power to make a move like that and if we did it without protection, we'd probably all be killed in retaliation. Evie included."
"You can get your mother to sanction the kill. Maleficent has more pull than any of the other original villains," Jay suggests. Because, yeah, killing the Evil Queen without protection would be incredibly stupid, but he's not exactly opposed to the idea of putting that evil bitch out of her misery and sparing Evie any future suffering.
Mal recalls what her mother said about killing Evie herself if she ever found out the Evil Queen was using her daughter to circumvent her punishment. She shakes her head, steadfast in her previous decision.
"I'm not involving my mother. I'm taking care of this."
"We're going to have to come up with another plan then," Jay says.
"So we do what then?" Mal demands irritably. "We hold Evie's hand when she comes to school bruised up and bleeding? Pat her on the head and tell her everything's going to be okay and then send her home to that castle of horrors?"
Carlos frowns at Mal's obvious discontentment. If she didn't seem more sad than angry at the moment he might not be so sympathetic. He's not trying to be argumentative but he's entertained his fair share of ill-conceived schemes born out of desperation in the past and they've never worked out well.
"We be friends to her. When she's ready, she'll come to us."
"That's an incredibly stupid plan," Mal grumbles. Be Evie's friend. Carlos makes it sound so simple. Of course, she wants that. If she's being honest with herself she wants that and more, but they've come much too far from a time when she had any right to call Evie a friend.
Carlos raises a brow, the beginnings of a mischievous grin playing at his lips. "Good thing that's only the first phase of the plan."
"There's a second phase?" Mal asks.
Carlos nods. It shouldn't be long now. He has almost everything they'll need figured out and squared away. He just needs Evie to help him with the finishing touches when she's feeling up to it. "Mmhmm."
"You gonna tell us what it is?" Mal is cautiously intrigued by the boy's shift in mood.
"Yeah, man, what'd you cook up in that big ol' head of yours," Jay chimes in.
"I'm going to make sure nobody ever hurts Evie or any one of us ever again," Carlos says, a look of fierce determination in his eye.
Mal crosses her arms over her chest. If she can't devise a plan to help Evie, she doubts Carlos can. "And how are you going to do that?"
"We're getting off this island. Away from our parents for good."
"Yeah? And how the hell are we going to manage that?" Mal challenges.
Carlos yanks his backpack from his lap and unzips it. After rooting around inside for several suspenseful seconds, he retracts his hand, his fist closed tightly around the discarded radio he's been working on for the past few weeks. He brandishes the reconfigured communicator with pride. "With this."
Evie returns to school three days later.
Mal is about twenty minutes into her newly adopted morning routine of pacing anxiously in front of Evie's locker while Jay naps on the floor nearby when she spots a flash of blue out of the corner of her eye. Her head snaps up at the sight and she spots Evie walking with Carlos down the hallway.
In a rather un-chill display of excitement, she kicks at Jay's crossed boots and gestures to the approaching pair with a flailing arm and eager eyes. Jay grouses at the disturbance, clamoring to his feet to observe the reason for the abrupt wake-up call.
"Oh, shit! Evie's back!" Jay says, perking up at the unexpected sight.
Mal envies the way Jay grins and waves at the girl, unabashed in his excitement. She could never be so free in her expression of emotion, so open and demonstrative, her mother would never stand for it. Still, she can't help the way her feet move of their own volition and carry her down the hallway to meet Evie.
"You're back," Mal greets, blinking slowly as if she can't quite believe the sight. Her eyes rake over the girl in front of her, searching for new injuries and trying to make out the familiar tracks of old ones.
But Evie's skin appears perfectly unblemished as if the ghoulish cuts and bruises that had littered her delicate skin the last time Mal saw her were all a figment of Mal's imagination. But Mal knows Evie's flawless skin is a simple illusion, that under smooth powder and tinted creams, Evie still carries the physical reminders of her pain.
"Hi," Evie says softly, offering Mal a shy smile and a coy glance. Another illusion, Mal thinks. Mal knows that beyond soft fluttering eyelashes and strained smiles, Evie is battling a world of unimaginable demons darker than any corner of the Isle.
Mal had expected to exchange more than three words with the girl she has been waiting weeks to see, yet for all her plotting and preparing, the actual sight of Evie is enough to steal the words from her lips. She doesn't think to ask all the questions that have been clawing at the back of her mind, she can't find the words to incite a long over-due call for action on Evie's behalf —she's just relieved to see Evie standing in front of her in one piece.
And it's only in the lingering absence of conversation does Mal realize how tightly Evie is clinging to Carlos's side.
Mal's initial instinctual reaction is white-hot jealousy, burning quick and unexpected from just under her skin at the sight of the two pressed together like lovers.
Mal wants to be the one standing in Carlos's place, yearns to be the anchor Evie clings onto to keep from drifting into the dark open sea. Mal knows she has no right to desire such a privilege, not after all she's done to hurt Evie, but it doesn't stop her from selfishly craving it.
Carlos appears to catch on to Mal's questioning glare almost immediately and Mal sees the muscles in his face strain and his jaw clench as if his mind is at war with the unspoken words on his tongue. Mal knows people tend to underestimate Carlos, dismiss him as weak or afraid because of his size and intellect, but Carlos has never looked more imposing than he does with Evie tucked against his side and his hardened watchful eyes sweeping the halls. If Mal wasn't so envious of his current position, she'd be impressed with the boy's open display of hostility.
Mal can't quite make sense of what Carlos is trying not to say, all she knows is that he's on edge and appears overly vigilant, a particularly concerning combination on the Isle, but she's honestly too distracted by the unfamiliar feeling of longing that pangs deep in her chest at the sight of Evie's delicate hand wrapped tightly around Carlos's forearm to attempt to further decipher the boy's tense expression. She notes the way Evie's navy-painted nails clash with the cracked red leather of Carlos's jacket and can't help but think blue would go much better with purple.
Carlos clears his throat to regain Mal's attention and she jerks her head back up to see him shake his head ever so slightly and narrow his eyes. Mal knows how to read her crew, how to communicate without words when need be, and as much as she wants to press Carlos for information on the spot, she can tell from the grim look on his face that this isn't the time.
Thankfully, Evie's eyes are busy sizing up the other occupants of the crowded hallway and she fails to notice the silent mental sparring taking place between her companions.
Carlos moves them forward with a commanding sense of authority, Mal and Jay quickly falling in step with the pair as they make their way through the busy corridor.
Earlier, Evie had rushed out of her castle with wild eyes and grabbed onto him like she was afraid he might disappear. He had been so caught off guard by the sight of her, not yet expecting the Evil Queen to grant Evie's return to school despite his faithful passage by her gate each morning to wait just in case, that his feet remained rooted to the ground in surprise until Evie pushed at his shoulder to urge him to walk.
As they treaded through familiar dirt paths, Carlos noticed an eerily quiet Evie begin to shake beside him. He offered her his jacket to make up for her lack of one, but Evie just shook him off and urged him to walk quicker. Only as more and more distance mounted between them and her mother's castle did Carlos realize Evie's trembling was not due to the cold. The Evil Queen may have allowed Evie to return to school but Carlos imagined the permission came at a steep price for his oldest friend.
Carlos isn't sure how long it's going to take Evie to regain her bearings and adjust to being back at school and out of her mother's reach, but he doesn't mind being her crutch until then.
They've only made it a few yards down the hall when Mal notices Evie flinch ever so slightly when a locker is slammed shut behind her, and how she presses herself even closer to Carlos when a group of rowdy boys passes—shouting and shoving each other as they go by. And then just as quickly as it came on, the burning is gone and all Mal is left with is lingering regret—regret that she's not the one who can make Evie feel safe amongst the noise and the chaos.
And if she secretly thinks she'd be better at the job than Carlos, well, it's not her fault she's stronger than the boy.
"It's good to have you back, Evie," Jay says with a genuine smile. He swings his arm out like he's going to wrap it around Evie's shoulder, the one that's not currently pressed against Carlos, that is, but Mal reaches behind him and tugs sharply at the back of his sleeve to stop him.
Jay turns quickly to see Mal shake her head, hardened emerald eyes conveying a silent command. It only takes a quick glance at a noticeably rigid Carlos for Jay to catch onto the tension rolling off of the girl pressed against him. He quickly reverses course, tousling Carlos's hair and giving Evie an exaggerated wink instead. She offers him a half-hearted smile in exchange.
Jay remembers when he and Evie first met, the way she would sometimes fidget nervously when he poured the flirting on a bit too heavily, or how'd she'd stiffen up whenever he got a little too close. Jay had initially chalked it up to her being a bit of a prude and assumed he'd eventually wear her down. But now he knows the reason for Evie's discomfort with unfamiliar guys and suggestive innuendo, and it makes it suck so much more to remember how she had just started to relax around him a bit before all this happened.
The changes were small but Jay noticed—like how Evie stopped looking to Carlos for assurance whenever he neared. Or how she'd start to laugh and roll her eyes at his silly pick-up lines instead of tensing up. Or the way Evie would swat at his arm or push playfully at his chest whenever he said something a little off base like they were old friends. He knows he's only known Evie for a few weeks but he was really starting to grow fond of her, and maybe he's not the most sensitive of guys, but he thinks Evie had been coming around about him, as well.
If he could go back in time and tell Mal to screw off when she suggested he steal Evie's necklace, he'd do it in a heartbeat if it meant undoing the pain Evie suffered as a result. But time-travel's not really his thing so he'll have to earn back her trust the old-fashioned way.
"It's good to be back," Evie replies. Her bashful gaze shifts side-ways, moving on from Jay to find Mal's eyes once again, pinning her under gentle examination until Mal feels her lungs run out of air and she's forced to look away to catch her breath.
Evie's eyes are darker than Mal has ever seen them, the familiar flecks of gold and amber that have always captured Mal's fascination have dimmed to a deep rich mahogany. Mal is struck by a feeling of loss at the lack of brightness that usually radiates from Evie's gaze, and she can't stand to think of what could be responsible for the look of despondent vacancy that has replaced it.
"Where are you going, Carlos? Isn't the lab that way?" Jay asks when Carlos leads them past the main corridor and towards the school's back staircase. "You have Weird Science for blocks A and B today, don't you?" Jay elaborates, failing to pick up on Carlos's warning glare.
Carlos cuts his eyes towards the boy and speaks through gritted teeth. "I'm not going."
"You never miss Weird Science."
"Jay, why don't you worry about your own classes," Mal snips, picking up on Carlos's intention.
"Why would I care about my own classes?"
Evie cranes her neck to look at Carlos, a curious look softening her features. "Carlos? What's going on? Why aren't you going to class?"
"I'm coming to Intro to Scheming with you," Carlos answers. He attempts to shrug off his response but the look of mild annoyance he tosses Jay's way for bringing his decision to Evie's attention betrays any attempt at indifference.
Jay looks confused about the source of Carlos's ire but a not so subtle elbow to the ribs curtesy of Mal stops him from asking about it.
"Carlos, no," Evie starts with a shake of her head. She extracts herself from Carlos's hold, reluctant but determined. "You're not skipping your favorite class to babysit me."
Jay's mouth forms a distinct "O" shape as he catches onto what's happening, earning a second elbow from Mal for the delayed understanding.
"I don't need to go. I'm way ahead in that class," Carlos insists. "We're supposed to build a string machine today, but we did that in my tree house a couple of years ago, remember?"
Evie presses her lips together as she considers Carlos's excuse. She knows she's being annoyingly clingy and she hates herself for it.
Evie had practically run from her castle that morning, crashing into an unsuspecting Carlos at the end of her castle's worn pathway and holding tightly to his arm as they made their way out of the tower's ominous shadow.
Her mother's permission to finally leave the confines of her castle and return to school had been granted suddenly and unexpectedly, coming only minutes before Carlos was due to arrive to wait at her gate. She had just endured an agonizingly nerve-racking breakfast, where she was made to decide which foods to eat and in which amounts under her mother's scrutinizing eye, when the suggestion to "run off to school" had been made somewhat flippantly.
Evie gaped disbelievingly at the Evil Queen, unsure if her mother's words were genuine or just another cruel trick designed to further break her spirit. She had endured so many confusing and tormenting mind-games over the past several days and was still anxiously awaiting her mother's grand act of punishment. She had expected it to come before she would be allowed to return to school.
With her mother's sneering face following her every move, Evie decided to seize the opportunity to escape before the Evil Queen could rescind her decision and pull the tiny scrap of hope from Evie's tenuous grasp.
So she left in a careful hurry, backing out of the foyer as if her mother were a wild animal she was afraid of spooking into action. Once her mother's eyes were no longer on her, Evie turned quickly and flew through the door without stopping to retrieve her coat despite the chill she knew would be in the morning air.
Carlos had attempted to coax an explanation for her shakiness out of her as they walked, asking if she was okay with so much undeserved concern it made her stomach hurt, but all she could offer him was an unconvincing nod of her head and a firm grasp on his arm.
Evie steps back, putting some space between herself and Carlos as she frowns. She feels cold and exposed without the heat of his body against her side and she wraps her arms around her midsection to steady herself. "You're going to class. Your class," she says pointedly.
Carlos begins to protest but Mal is quick to interrupt. "Carlos, just go. I got this."
She finds Carlos's loyalty to Evie admirable now that her jealousy has mostly subsided. The display of fierce protectiveness from the typically timid boy inciting something akin to pride in Mal's chest, but she's the leader here. She'll do the protecting—even if she's not entirely sure what she's protecting Evie from at the moment.
Jay clasps his hands on Carlos's shoulders from behind, urging him in the direction of the science lab. "Yeah, man, go be a nerd. We'll watch the princess."
"I am not a child! I do not need to be watched!" Evie snaps.
Despite taking exception to Jay's words, it's Mal's eyes Evie seeks and for the third time this morning, Mal feels herself pinned under the heat of Evie's simmering gaze. She's not sure what it is about the way Evie looks at her that makes her feel like the air in her throat is running out or like her feet are rooted uselessly to the floor, but every time she finds herself staring back at the rich darkness of Evie's eyes she feels like she's staring directly into the heart of the earth. She feels grounded.
"Evie, I didn't mean it like that," Jay is saying as Carlos shrugs his hands from his shoulders with a disgruntled huff.
Evie's eyes remain fixed on Mal.
"You two, go," Mal orders the boys.
Carlos looks conflicted. "Evie?"
Evie snaps out of her trance-like staring contest with Mal and turns her head to Carlos. "Go, Carlos. I'll be fine."
Mal gives him a pointed look as if to say "see I told you" and Carlos reluctantly turns with one last glance at Evie.
Evie watches Carlos walk back towards the lab, Jay trailing behind him.
"Why are you following me? You're not even in this class," Carlos's voice can be heard as he and Jay move down the hall.
"So Scheming?" Mal asks.
It takes Evie a moment to realize what Mal is asking. "Oh, yes, that's my first class. What about you?"
"No clue."
"You don't have to do this, you know," Evie says after a moment. "Carlos just worries but he's not here now. You can go do your own thing." Carlos worries because she's acting like a needy child. She must get herself under control if she's going to make it through the school day.
Mal tries not to look too hurt at Evie's attempted dismissal of her. "You don't want me here?"
"No! I do," Evie protests, maybe a little too urgently. "I just mean I can get to class on my own." Evie hates that Mal, Jay, and Carlos think her too fragile and too damaged to be left on her own. She hates it even more that she doesn't want to be alone—that she wants Mal by her side.
"I know you can," Mal says easily. "But I just so happen to be going in that direction."
"You don't even know which direction I'm going in," Evie points out. They had come to a stop at the end of a hallway that splits into two wings, Mal couldn't possibly know which wing Evie's class is in. Yet Mal's answer makes Evie's lips twitch with a genuine smile and her shoulders lower from their previous upright position. She rolls her eyes fondly at Mal and reminds herself it's okay to smile. She's in school and safe for now, her mother can't get to her here. She still has no idea what her mother has in store for her for later, but right now, she doesn't have to be so afraid.
"Not like I have a class to be in."
"You most certainly do have a class to be in," Evie laughs.
Mal shrugs, trying hard not to smile too wide at the way Evie's whole face seems to relax at the playful banter. She wants to make Evie's face look like that all the time. "Yeah, well, not one I'm actually going to attend."
Evie relents with a shake of her head and begrudging smile. "Fine."
"That's settled then," Mal confirms, her face lighting up with an idea a moment later. "But let's go this way! I want to show you something first."
Evie considers mentioning that the way Mal is pointing is in the opposite direction of her class, but she'd much rather wander the halls with Mal than attend Introduction to Scheming without her. She supposes she could be a little late.
As Mal turns on her heels her shoulder brushes Evie's, her fingers instinctually flexing to find Evie's own as she starts back towards Evie's locker. There's something so natural about the act she had done so often as a child—lacing her fingers through Evie's and excitedly pulling the other girl along as they ran through the Isle with mischievous grins on their tiny faces—that she doesn't realize what she's doing till she hears a sharp intake of breath from beside her.
Mal looks down to see her fingers intertwined with Evie's and freezes. When she looks up again, Evie is staring back at her with dark curious eyes. Mal starts to pull away in panic, certain she has inadvertently crossed a line, but Evie tugs her hand back and tightens her grasp on Mal's hand. Mal feels a calming warmth bloom from her fingertips to her toes at the touch.
Evie offers Mal a small smile and squeezes Mal's fingers again. Moments later Mal is leading them down the hallway till they come to stop in front of Evie's locker.
"Do you like it?" Mal asks, watching Evie's reaction out of the side of her eye. Their hands are still intertwined and Mal doesn't want to risk losing the contact by turning her body.
Evie stares contemplatively at the freshly painted locker she had been avoiding for weeks. All traces of the word "slut" are gone and the door has been carefully painted over with black paint and adorned with a beautifully painted crowned heart sprouting blue flames in the center. The piece is beautifully detailed and perfectly captures the essence of Evie's storied lineage. Below the heart, the words "Long Live Evil" are written in bold cursive with green and purple paint. Evie recognizes the words as Mal's signature tag, the one she's seen around the school and on the walls of the hideout, but her mind is too preoccupied to consider why Mal chose to write it on her locker.
"Hmm?" Evie hums.
"Your locker. Do you like it?"
Evie has been quiet since they came to a stop in front of the freshly painted locker door and Mal is starting to wonder if tagging the girl's locker door with her own signature might have been too presumptuous. She hasn't discussed it with the boys yet or mentioned it to Evie, but she wants Evie to join the crew. Beyond that, and perhaps more pressingly, she wants everyone at Dragon Hall and beyond to know Evie is under her protection now.
Mal begins to grow worried with Evie's muted response and she hopes Evie can't feel how clammy her hand is right now. "I couldn't decide if I should go with royal blue or maybe something brighter for the flames but I think this color looks best with the red and green," she adds with a nervous shrug.
"It's lovely."
Evie looks pensive again, not as skittish or frightened as she did when she first walked in but something is clearly on her mind and the trace of a smile that had graced her beautiful face mere minutes ago is gone. Mal rocks back on her heels and runs her teeth over her bottom lip as she looks from Evie to her latest handiwork. Maybe this was a bad idea.
"Can I ask you a question?" Evie asks, her quiet rasp interrupting Mal's silent spiraling.
Before Mal can nod her head in the affirmative, Evie is pulling her hand away and turning to examine concerned green eyes with a face full of apprehension. As bothersome as the question has been to her, she's not so sure she wants to hear Mal's answer. She can feel them making progress, slowly rebuilding the frame of their friendship from the pulverized bones that had remained and she doesn't want to jeopardize that. But Mal must know and she needs to understand.
The feeling of loss as Evie retracts her hand from hers is immediate and suffocating and Mal wants to reach out and grab onto Evie once again and not let go. But then Evie is speaking with the most serious expression on her face and Mal can't deny the blue-haired girl her full attention.
"How did you know?"
Mal's brows pull together at the question. "Know what?"
Evie gestures to the locker with a faint nod. "How'd you know what I am ...a slut...a whore... how'd you know?" she asks, her voice so incredibly small Mal has to strain to hear her words.
Mal falters at the question, wishing she hadn't been able to hear those particular words leave Evie's lips because she swears she can feel her heart crack inside her chest at the sound of them. She starts to shake her head furiously, horrified by the question and the broken needy way Evie asks it. She needs Evie to know she's not either of those things, that she doesn't think of her like that at all, but her throat constricts at the sight of Evie's anguished expression and words evade her.
"How were you able to tell?" Evie presses with a painful sort of urgency that further fractures Mal's resolve. "You hadn't seen me in years but somehow you still knew."
Now Mal does reach out to reclaim Evie's hand, overwhelmed by the need to touch, to comfort, to claim. "Evie, I—"
"Is it something I did? Some way I'm acting that gives it away?" Evie interrupts, her voice becoming more desperate as Mal's grasp on her hand tightens. "Because I can feel people's eyes on me in the halls. I know they can see it. Like I'm marked somehow."
Evie had received her share of attention from the boys in school upon her enrollment, not all of it dignified or befitting of a lady, but her mother told her to expect as much. Her cheeks often flushed at the crass attempts of her peers to get her into their beds or the unapologetic way they leered as she walked by. But it went beyond bad pick-up lines and rudimentary flirting from her classmates, those boys looked at her like they knew something, like asking was only a formality to them. The attention had gotten significantly worse after Mal marked her locker but she can't deny the looks had been there from the start.
She had briefly entertained the thought of Gaston being the originator of any sort of sordid rumor concerning her reputation, but she couldn't picture an arrogant jerk like Gaston publicly admitting to paying for sex. No, it had to be something about her, something innate and undeniable that people saw in her.
Mal shakes her head again, earnestly and empathetically, wanting nothing more than to quiet the awful intrusive thoughts that seem to be running through Evie's head.
"E, no! That's not—I was just being a jerk, okay? I didn't mean anything by it," Mal asserts. "I had no idea what it's like for you at home. I should have never painted what I did on your locker—you're not that word or any word like it. It didn't mean anything! I swear! I was just trying to hurt you."
Mal's ears burn at the admission. She hates thinking about the way she treated Evie when she first showed up at Dragon Hall. And she's an absolute idiot for thinking a fresh coat of paint could fix things between them.
"I really am sorry, E," Mal offers sincerely.
Evie nods like she's accepting Mal's word but her face maintains a haunting sheen of sadness. "Thank you for painting over it."