Jay came to with a start and fear gripped his chest when he didn't recognize his surroundings. The surface he was on was soft, something he couldn't ever get used to. First, he thought he was in Auradon, but the pain in his bones and on his skin told him it was the Isle, and then the clean smell and softness beneath him told him Auradon once more. After a second of getting his bearings, the memories of what happened slammed into him and he threw off the blanket that was covering him with alarm. He glanced around the too clean room, and couldn't see any of his crew. Where were they? Were they okay? What have they done with them? Panic started to overwhelm him as he bolted from the bed and headed for the door, but then some woman with Fairy Godmother in tow entered the room, and he relaxed slightly. He felt somewhat safe with Fairy Godmother around. It was a foreign concept, but nevertheless he put up his walls just in case.
"Where are they?" he asked, still slightly panicked, but calmer than before they had walked in.
"Jay, Jay it's okay," Fairy Godmother soothed as she slipped past the other woman and towards him. Concern slipped into her mind when Jay flinched, but she still approached. "Your friends are all okay."
"Mal?" he asked in a shaky voice, wanting to know how she was.
"They said that she is going to be fine," she soothed, and tried to rest her hand on his shoulder. He took a step back, so she dropped her hand and tried to remind herself that he had been through a great ordeal. "How are you doing? Are you feeling okay? You collapsed when you got to the hospital."
Ignoring her questions aimed at him, he avoided her gaze and calculated how quickly he could slip passed her and the other lady, and get through that door. This place couldn't be that big, and he bet he could find his crew and get them out of there before they could be caught.
"Jay, no," Fairy Godmother warned, and his eyes snapped up to hers. How had this prim and proper woman known what he was going to do? "I'll take you to Carlos, but then you two will have to wait for Evie and Mal. They are in too rough of condition to be moved at the moment."
"Carlos? Where is he?" he demanded before slipping his eyes back to the floor, not meaning to sound so harsh.
"Oh sweet child, please relax. You are coiled tighter than Mr. Cogsworth's springs."
"Relax?" Jay asked, confused. "Take me to my friends, and then I'll relax. We can be out of your hair in under an hour if you just take me to them."
"What?" she asked incredulously, "out of our hair? No, Jay, you children cannot leave."
Jay's hackles raised then; "can't leave?" he asked her dangerously, and Fairy Godmother pulled together everything she had to remain rooted to her spot.
"No, you absolutely cannot leave until we make sure that you are all okay. Jay, your friends almost died. Whatever happened on the Isle, will not happen here. You are safe, and we want to make sure you all are okay. Do you hear me?" She was almost pleading with him to understand what she was trying to say.
The way she said it served to calm him down for the moment. He realized that his fists were clenched, so he unclenched them and then dropped down into a sit on the bed. She was right...partially. "When can we leave then?" he asked.
"Jay…" she started, not really knowing what to say. It looked like he was battling some sort of inner turmoil, and she desperately wanted him to relax and feel safe. It was killing her that these kids were so untrusting. "Jay, if you really want to leave, then we can't stop you; but Mal absolutely cannot go. Not yet anyways. She...she's really hurt, and returning her back to the Isle is the last thing we want to do." The way Jay then looked at her and tried reading her made her breath hitch. It was as if he was looking for some sort of trick, but when she remembered to breath again, he snorted as if something was funny.
"You know," he started, "as soon as Mal is back on her feet, we are out of here. You say that the last thing you want to do is send us back to the Isle. I see the way you look at me. You are afraid, and you should be. Now," he said with an unnerving edge to his tone, rising back to his feet and walking to the doorway, "take me to my friends."
"Jay, you dont scare me," she retorted sadly, rooting herself to the floor and causing Jay to stop dead in his tracks. He looked back over his shoulder at her, so she continued. "I'm not afraid of you, because I know you. You are the same boy who fell in love with this place, with tourney, and the new friends you made here. I'm not the one afraid here; you are. The only thing I am here is sorry. I'm sorry that something has happened to you and your friends, and I vow to get to the bottom of it when you are ready. Now," she demanded this time as she brushed passed him and stood in the doorway, looking at his shocked face, "if you follow me, I'll take you to Carlos."
Damn, he thought. Fairy Godmother was scary...in her own way. At a loss for words, he followed her, but growled at the other woman closing in the gap behind him.
"I can take it from here, Mrs. Melanie," Fairy Godmother told her.
The other woman stopped, and Jay smiled as her pace quickened away from them in fear. Fairy Godmother may not be afraid of him, but she sure was. "Where exactly are we going?" he asked when the hallways seemed to never end.
"About that..." Fairy Godmother faltered. "Carlos...seemed to snap when you collapsed in the lobby earlier. He attacked a nurse, and it took 4 people to sedate him and pull him away from you. They sent him to Psych, but I'm pulling him out and sending you two up to Observation until Evie and maybe Mal can join you."
Psych? Carlos wasn't crazy, he was just protecting his crew; but Fairy Godmother seemed to already know that. She just needed him to get Carlos in line. Carlos never did well on his own, but when he sees that he is okay, he will be fine. After a few more minutes of walking and cataloging the route they took to get there, they made it to his room. And damn it if Fairy Godmother already knew what to do. She took a step back, and allowed Jay to go in alone and calm him down.
"Get the hell out of here!" Carlos yelled, half in panic and half in warning when he heard the door open. Jay took in the hunched form in the corner and snorted. He leaned against the wall and softened his features, waiting for Carlos to realize that it was him in here and not some other threat.
"Dude, if you want me to leave, then fine," he teased. "I'll just go room with Evie."
At the sound of Jay's voice, Carlos' head snapped up and the panic in his gaze was chased away by the calmness Jay was exhibiting. "Jay! What the hell is going on?" he asked as he eyed the open doorway as if at any moment someone would come in and punish them for doing something wrong.
"Relax buddy," Jay said, and closed the door softly behind him. When they were completely alone, Carlos bolted from his corner and inspected Jay for any new injuries. "I'm fine, 'Los," he soothed before mischievously elbowing Carlos. "Really though?" he asked, "It took 4 people to bring you down?" He had meant it in a joking way, but betrayal and disgust reflected back at him.
"Yeah, and one of those 4 was Ben. They were all going after you Jay, and I did what I had to in order to keep you safe."
"Ben, huh," Jay said as he contemplated the news. If people were coming for him, it only made sense for Carlos to react the way he did. "Well, we are in a hospital, Carlos. I think they were coming to help me because I just woke up with fresh bandages and my pain knocked down a few levels. Maybe Ben was trying to protect you?"
"No," Carlos said in disdain, "he was protecting his people. He promised no one would touch us, but it's been nothing but touch. Look around, Jay, think of what they could be doing to the girls. Think about what adults do. How different exactly do you think life here in Auradon is?"
Carlos was right, but he wasn't upset about that. He was upset at himself for letting his guard down. Carlos shouldn't have been in this situation at all. If only he had kept himself together and not collapsed, Carlos wouldn't be so freaked out. "I get it Carlos, but all we have right now is our selves, and we have to stay strong if we are going to keep our crew safe. So, no more freaking out, and let's go wherever Fairy Godmother wants to bring us."
"Fairy Godmother?" Carlos asked in curiosity, "What does she have to do with this?"
"She said that we would all be together soon, but we have to wait until Evie is better, and then Mal. We can't see them until they get cleared to be moved."
"And you just trusted her? Just like that?" Carlos asked before realizing that he overstepped.
"Just like that?" Jay repeated dangerously before he uncrossed his arms and balled his fists at his side. "No, Carlos; it wasn't 'just like that.'"
"I'm sorry Jay," Carlos apologized as his eyes grew wide. "I forgot that…"
"You forgot that I'm in charge now that Mal is down, am I right?"
"No!" he protested. "I…"
"Im making decisions for the group, Carlos, and it isn't easy. I wish with everything in my being right now that Mal was here to tell us what to do, but I'm doing the best I can with the information I have." As he towered over Carlos, he hated the fear that looked back up at him. It took everything in him not to falter as leader, but if Carlos didn't fall in line, it could spell disaster for the group. "Am I making myself clear?" he finished.
Carlos' eyes fell to the floor and his head bowed in a silent display of submission once again. He didn't have to like it, but even he knew how dangerous it was to go against the leaders orders.
They had done it once when Jay tried taking the position of Alpha from Mal, and Clayton's son Roan had almost ended their crew with his own gang. Mal had given them strict orders, but Jay thought his plan would be better. Mal shot it down immediately, but Jay somehow convinced Evie and Carlos to follow his lead instead. Well, his plan failed, but Mal had suspected what was up and saved them after they were captured by the crew. If they had followed her plan, they would have gained several more acres of territory, and Roan wouldn't have succeeded in breaking Jay's arm. Mal was almost too late, but once she realized that her own crew wasn't where they were supposed to be, she was forced to rush in. She was forced to take some enemy lives that night, and they never spoke of it again. Mal volunteered herself to set Jay's arm, and he vowed to never put them in danger like that again. He realized that Mal didn't just make plans up, she meticulously picked them apart and scouted ahead for the best course of action. She always led better than he was ever able to do, and he respected the hell out of her. Now, it was up to Jay to do the same; at least for now.
"Come on," Jay ordered, annoyed at the whole situation. "Fairy Godmother is out there waiting to bring us to Observation. She said that Evie might join us soon, but Mal might be a while. She's really hurt."
The moment Carlos saw Fairy Godmother, he fell into formation behind Jay and followed them both to wherever Observation was. Just as Jay was doing, he catalogued the routes they were taking, and stored them in the back of his mind in case they would need it later.
"Now," Fairy Godmother announced when she pushed open a door, leading them into a large adjoining room, "you have a change of clothes on the ends of your beds, and the bathroom is just beyond those doors," she motioned. The room was spacious, and held two beds and a small couch, Through the bathroom, was another room that would most likely be for Mal and Evie. "I suggest taking a short shower, your...stitches...shouldn't get too wet or they could become infected."
When Jay suddenly became self conscious, he realized that someone had touched him...seen him. Carlos realized the same thing, because he started shifting and fidgeting. Jay then felt bandages and what he guessed was salves covering his wounds. He kicked himself for not noticing it as much earlier, but he knew that whatever pain relief they gave him numbed a lot of what he would be feeling. They both became terribly uneasy at the thought of what they could have done to them, and of what they most likely had found. He shifted a dangerous but uneasy gaze to Fairy Godmother, but she only looked at him in concern, and opened her mouth to say something before losing her words. Instead, she offered him a kind smile and then left them alone to settle in.
"Well," Carlos voiced, "what now?" He swallowed his unease and sat down on one of the beds. He picked up one of the shirts and looked at it before throwing it to Jay and grabbing his size from the other one instead.
"Now, we wait for Mal, because I have no idea where to go from here," he admitted. He joined Carlos at the foot of the bed and grabbed his pile of clothes before scoffing at the lameness they held.
"How long is that going to take? Shouldn't we think of something beforehand? She can't exactly go home."
Jay shot him a warning look and shuffled towards the bathroom. "Let's just wait for Evie before we do anything rash," he said, leaning into the doorframe for a moment. "No matter what though, Mal needs to be a part of this decision. We make no moves until she is here with us. Until then, we keep our mouths shut around the Auradonians." At that, he slipped through the doorway and closed it behind him, leaving Carlos with time to check all the doors and formulate escape routes before switching off to shower.
Evie
The sharp, strong smell of antiseptic was the first thing that she noticed when she groggily came to. The second thing she noticed was that she couldn't move. No! Alarm coursed through her veins and served to bring her out of her grogginess. The softness beneath her cheek did nothing to calm Evie as she realized that she was laying on her stomach on some sort of soft surface. Her bones felt like lead, and she sensed that someone had given her something to keep her still. Her eyes darted around the room, and what little she was able to see told her that she was alone, but that seemed to frighten her even more. Where was Jay? Where was Carlos and Mal? Where was...Mal! And then it all came rushing back to her.
Mal had given up; she had died. A shudder ran through her and she flinched at the pain it caused, but pushed it to the back of her mind as the events of the previous morning replayed in her mind. Mal had told her and the boys that she had loved them before letting go. That word, 'love', was such a foreign thing to hear from Mal and it broke the dam that had been building behind Evie's eyes. On the Isle, it was only 'safe' and 'not safe.' There was no 'love'; it was a word that they had learned here in Auradon. Of course they knew what that word had meant, but to actually say it and feel it would be admitting weakness, and weakness would get you killed.
Again, Evie tried to move, and she finally managed before a searing pain shot across her back. A tiny yelp slipped past her lips and she squeezed her eyes closed again in regret while the images of Maleficent coming at her thrusted its way into her mind. They flew open once more when a door quietly opened out of her line of sight. She forced herself to swallow the panic rising in her chest and tried to remain calm. There was no way she could defend herself, so she instantly submitted and braced herself for the beating that she knew was coming.
When the pain didn't come, she started to panic a little more. She could always count on the pain, but when they drug out the inevitable, it always made it so much worse. The tiny sounds of shuffling behind her was being drowned out by her pounding heartbeat in her ears, and she knew that her quickened breath was giving away her emotions. Small footsteps then circled her, rather quickly, and finally she saw a woman dressed in a white coat clutching a clipboard with an equally panicked look on her face. The woman's features then softened when she met Evie's gaze, but Evie knew it had to be a trap. She determined she was right when the woman seemed to dart forward, reaching for her. Before she knew it, Evie went on the defensive and found that she could now control her limbs as adrenaline seemed to chase the lead from her bones. She pushed herself up and kicked at the woman, smiling in triumph as her foot collided with the woman's side and sent her sprawling across the room. Ignoring the pain in her back, she leaped from the bed and grabbed the pole that seemed to be standing guard next to her. Confusion flooded her mind when she realized that there was tiny tubing coming out of her hand holding the pole, but when the now panicked woman picked herself up off the floor, Evie ripped the tubing from her hand, and threw the pole at the woman before skirting around the bed and heading for the door. She made it all of three steps when she sensed something coming for her head, and she turned just in time to catch the woman's hand, which was gripping a needle aimed for her neck. Using the skills she learned from the Isle, she expertly twisted the woman's hand back into herself and managed to have the woman inject herself with whatever poisons the syringe held. She then headbutted her and watched triumphantly as she hit the floor, unmoving.
In her wild state of panic, she was about to 'finish the job' until the door behind her opened once again and two men in blue scrubs entered holding syringes just the same. She allowed the panic in for just a moment, and it served to recharge her adrenaline when she pushed it back out and went on the defensive once again. The guys gave no warning and rushed at her. Evie expertly ducked the first one and pushed him hard as she slinked around the second one. The first one hit the bed and tumbled over while she took on the second one, who whirled around when he discovered that she had somehow curled around him, and was now between them and the door. His first mistake was when he lifted his syringe containing hand as a means to stab her with it, and his second mistake was hesitating when she flinched and froze in response. In that tiny second, she regained her emotions and lunged forward, grabbing his arm and somehow used her smaller frame to wrench it behind his back. He was forced to drop the syringe as pain pricked into his shoulder as she expertly dislocated it.
At this point, the first guy was charging back towards her, so she rammed her foot into the back of the second guy's knee, and he hit the floor with a yell when she released her grip. Not even having a chance to brace herself, the first guy rammed into her and they both hit the floor, an agonizing scream letting itself free from Evie's throat as her back hit the cool tile. The guy who had tackled her froze and grimaced at the pain he had caused her, and that was all Evie needed to grab the syringe that had somehow made its way to her spot on the floor. She swallowed back another scream as she rolled on top of the guy, and aimed the syringe right above his heart. Just before she followed through with stabbing it deep into the guy's chest, a woman's yell across the room broke her attention and all of her resolve faltered. Her mothers terrifyingly smug face flashed into her mind as the yell reminded Evie of her, and terror grabbed ahold of her body.
"Child! What are you doing!?" Her eyes darted to the door, and several more menacing faces seemed to stare right into her soul. Evie became so startled and confused that the guy beneath her managed to shove her off of him, so she backed her way into a corner as he, along with the others in the room seemingly advanced on her. The first woman who had entered was still unconscious on the floor, but the two men and three more women all started advancing on her slowly.
Evie just knew she was dead. She allowed her knees to hit the floor, and she hung her head in defeat, waiting for whatever punishment they were going to give her. She shouldn't have fought back, it never ended well. Based on what she had just done, she probably wouldn't even wake up from the beating for several days; at least that was the outcome of the last time she fought back against her mother and her goons.
"No one move!" The voice from the doorway called out.
Evie jumped at the voice and hid her face in the corner, but it seemed familiar and not at all like her mothers. Her eyes remained glued to a spot on the floor, but she squeezed her eyes shut when her mental block broke and the pain she had locked in there burst forth once more.
"I want everyone out...now!" the familiar voice demanded.
It sounded so sure, and so full of pain. Evie was tempted to peek, but that would require seeing all of the looming faces that were hell bent on getting her with whatever was in those syringes. So, she kept her eyes shut and focused on trying not to throw up from the sheer terror and pain she was feeling. Where was Jay? Carlos? She wanted Mal and her crew. She only hoped that they would find her before it was too late.
"Evie?" a voice called so close, that she felt the breath on her face. She jumped in alarm, and rammed her back into the wall behind her before sliding down and curling into herself; white, hot pain exploding into her senses as silent tears carved paths down her face.
"Evie, relax," the voice soothed. "Everyone is gone, and it's just you and me." The woman sounded so sweet, and Evie immediately felt comfort. She knew that voice, but she was still caught too deep into her Isle mindset to pin a name to it. A hand then found her shoulder, and she violently flinched again, the breath in her lungs vacating its home. "Honey, relax," the woman said again as her hand stayed. The hand didn't hurt, but Evie didn't dare open her eyes or turn to look at who it belonged to; it could still be a trap. "Shhhhhh," the voice soothed again. The woman had realized that Evie couldn't breathe, so she risked her safety and gently pulled the terrified girl into her arms. The blue haired girl gasped in pain, but at least oxygen entered her lungs at the motion. Evie allowed herself to be pulled out of fear of retaliation, but she tensed her body so tightly that she didn't immediately sink into the woman's arms.
"You are okay," the woman tried promising again as she soothingly rubbed Evies arm. Evie jerked in response, but she felt the young girl start to relax her body. "No one is going to hurt you, it's just me and you in this room." She knew that Evie was beginning to relax because the girl was now taking tiny gasps of air as she tried to calm herself down. She couldn't tell if the girl had her eyes open yet, but she didn't want to risk moving to find out when she had already gotten this far. She then tried switching tactics and giving the girl something to cling to. "I've already been to see Jay, and Carlos. They are both doing wonderfully well," she whispered into the girls ear as she held her. She knew her tactic was working when Evie relaxed even more, and her breathing became more even. She risked a glance down, and became nervous when she noticed that Evie had ripped her IV out of her hand, and that it was steadily bleeding. Not thinking, she reached down and gripped it with her free hand to staunch the bleeding. Evie startled her when she closed her fingers around her own, and tightened her grip. She noted the way Evie started to cling to her then. The need seemed more than physical, there was an anxiety, a nervousness that was driving Evie to try to trust what she was hearing. Evie was trying, so she would let her take her time in coming out of this panic attack.
Never in her entire life had Fairy Godmother experienced trauma the way she had with these kids. These kids had never once shown such fear and distrust when they first came over to Auradon after Ben's proclamation. It was as if they had put on a mask before, but they were also always together. Something had happened to them on the Isle a few days ago, and them all being apart had caused them to retreat into themselves and process their traumas alone. They found strength in each other, and Ben had somehow seen that when he ordered them all to stay together. No wonder Evie had clung to her when she mentioned her friends. They were her sense of comfort, and she would try her hardest to convince Evie to follow the doctors orders and allow her body to heal some before she could join the boys. She still couldn't help but wonder though, what had happened to them to cause them to react so violently towards others? And then to utterly shut down like Evie had? She had just taken down a nurse, who was only trying to give her pain relief, and two other male nurses. Granted, those two came at her when she was already panicked, but they were only trying to sedate her to keep her from hurting herself.
"Evie dear," she called out quietly about 30 minutes later. They were still in the same position as before, but Evie had totally relaxed her body into hers. Fairy Godmother wasn't sure if she was even aware of who she was, but she wanted to take it slow and allow Evie to feel safe before moving her. "Ev-"
"Thank you," Evie said finally, but cutting Fairy Godmother off.
So she did know who she was. "Evie, I've got you, okay dear? And I do promise you that you are safe here." Evie seemed to scoff then, still a deadweight in her arms, worrying her to no end.
"I want to see my friends," she stated. At least, it was supposed to be a statement. It came out more of a plead, and she winced at how stupid she sounded; but, she didnt care as much as her body felt like it was on fire.
"Oh dear, I promise you will. Honey...we need to get you a little better first. Could you maybe allow the nurses back in to take a look at you?" Fairy Godmother asked hopefully. Her hope was shattered when Evie tensed again, but she knew why. "Dear, they aren't here to hurt you. Although they do tend to act like fools and rush in before announcing their presence." Evie stayed tense for a few moments as she contemplated Fairy Godmother's words, but then she relaxed again as she no doubtedly started connecting the dots in her head. To further assure her, Fairy Godmother continued. "I can be here every step of the way...how about that?" she asked.
Evie was still terrified; she didn't know these people. She did know Fairy Godmother though. She had been kind to them from the very first moment they had met. But...Fairy Godmother was also there when they were sent back to the Isle. Granted, she didn't know what they were being sent back to, Evie knew that if she didn't listen or play along now, she could get sent back immediately and she knew she wouldn't make it in this state. The quicker she played along, the quicker she could regroup with her crew. "Fine," she allowed. She was still hurt and rattled, but she had to stay strong and trust Fairy Godmother...for now.
"Well okay then," Fairy Godmother said triumphantly as she braced herself to move, "let's get you back into bed first, and then I'll get a nurse or doctor to help us out. How does that sound?"
Panic slipped into her mind again as she pictured her mothers goons advancing on her, but she had to squash it and to play along. "Yeah, whatever."
Fairy Godmother moved first, and then helped Evie up. Each time the young girl winced, Fairy Godmother knew that she was holding back more pain than what she was letting on. By the time she got her to the bed, her bandages were soaked through, and her clothing was now tinged with red. It was a color she was beginning to associate with this group of kids and she desperately wanted to wish it all away for them. "Okay," she announced when Evie was sitting rigidly on the side of the bed, "I'm going to call a doctor in to get you taken care of."
After a few moments of being alone, Evie still managed to jump when Fairy Godmother re-entered with a doctor in tow. "Hi, Evie," a new woman called sweetly, no trace of fear or nervousness evident on her gorgeous face. She was very pretty; she had jet black hair with eyes the color of Mal's hair it would seem. She had never seen someone with purple eyes before, but this woman was definitely rocking it. She was also pale, but that only served to make her eyes and hair pop even more. She crossed confidently across the room, but not too fast as to appear threatening. Evie knew that she was studying her, but somehow, she felt comforted in this woman's presence. "Im Doctor Ravenna Drake, but you can call me Ravenna. How are you feeling?" she asked as she ran her eyes over Evie's body. She looked as if she already knew what lies beneath her clothing, but Evie determined that her eyes lingered on the spots that had taken the worst of her mothers punishments. A guilty sense of nervousness flooded Evie's senses when she realized that this doctor had already seen her and her disfigured body. This angered her, but also terrified her at the same time.
"I'm fine," she said, still offended at those lingering eyes. She allowed Fairy Godmother to sit beside her, but she flinched when Ravenna got too close.
"Evie," Doctor Ravenna started, a sorrowful look now clouding her lavender eyes because she just knew what Evie seemed to be thinking, "I'm so sorry for having to do what I had to without your permission. Just know that I did it in the interest of saving your life. I have no wish to exploit any weakness you may think that you have, because trust me girl, the way you handled Grant and Asher just now… that was amazing. I only wish I had that on video!"
Evie watched as her eyes shifted from sincerity in her words, to dancing in laughter at the thought of her taking those two nurses down. This woman was starting to feel safe as well, but she still didn't trust her as she did Fairy Godmother...and she wouldn't even call that trust. Again, it was either 'safe' or 'not safe.' Doctor Ravenna laid somewhere in between while she considered Fairy Godmother 'safe.' She only used the word 'trust' when it came to her crew.
"Now," Ravenna started as she held out her hand for Evie's, "can I re-start and IV? I can give you a little something to ease the pain as well. How does that sound?"
Evie thought about it for a second, but then offered her uninjured hand to the dark haired woman. Ravenna took it, and then reached over and drew a rolling cart and stool closer to them. She sat on the stool and then dug through the cart, all the while holding Evie's hand and no doubt feeling for her pulse. "Now, I usually have my nurses do theses, but I guess I could use the practice," she joked while her eyes danced in the light. When Evie saw the needle, panic flooded her senses once again and she looked to Fairy Godmother for help.
"Oh!" Fairy Godmother gasped in realization next to her, "Evie, an IV sends fluids and medications into your body by that line Doctor Drake will insert into your hand...Have you never seen an IV before?"
Evie shook her head no, and Fairy Godmother shared a look with the doctor before sighing. Didn't they have a hospital on the Isle? Doctor Ravenna then shared each step that she was going to take with her before she did it. Once she pushed some pain relief, Evie finally began to relax.
"Now, this next part probably won't be very comfortable for you," Doctor Ravenna said with concern. "I need to close up your wounds better as you no doubt have opened them while being a badass." Evie shifted her uneasy gaze to the doctors, but then gave a tiny smile when she saw admiration staring back at her. This woman wasn't mad at her? She had just beat up several of her people, and she wasn't even being punished. Her smile then faltered and she bowed her head once more when a tiny voice echoed into the back of her mind. She wasn't being punished...yet.
"I do have to inform you though," the young doctor began, "there is something here called doctor/patient confidentiality. This means that whatever happens between me and you, I'm not allowed to share with anyone."
This piqued Evie's interest. If this was true, then maybe it would be okay to let her guard down around this woman. She contemplated it for a moment, but then decided that she would remain on the cautions side and still not say a word. This could be some trick for the doctor to uncover what had happened to her and her friends on the Isle. Stick to the plan, she told herself. Jay said to keep it to ourselves. No matter what though, Doctor Ravenna had to examine all of her injuries, thus uncovering her weaknesses; but, it wasn't as if she hadn't seen them before...and she was still alive. She was alone, and her crew wasn't here to protect her. There was no way she could fight back again like she had just done, her energy was gone. All she could do now was wrestle with her mind and trust in her instincts that she had judged Fairy Godmother correctly, and that she would be safe with her there. When Fairy Godmother put her hands on either side of Evies arms as if she was saying goodbye, Evie started to panic again. She was leaving her with this strange woman, and suddenly she wasn't okay.
"I'll be just on the other side of that door," Fairy Godmother promised as she got up and started to move away. She wasn't a doctor, so she couldn't be here.
Doctor Ravenna took in the sheer terror that was now filling the once calm girl. For some reason, Evie was calmer around the fairy, and each step away that she took, Evie's breathing and pulse got just a little bit faster. "Fairy Godmother?" she called. "Could you come back here please?" Evie remained tense, but she didn't know how the girl would feel about another set of eyes on her. Ravenna knew how to deal with trauma; her and her sister hadn't exactly grown up like the rest of Auradon had. "Evie?" she called when Fairy Godmother had taken a seat right next to the blue haired girl, watching as her body still remained tense, but also softened just a bit. "Evie if you want her to, Fairy Godmother can stay, but you have to say that you are okay with it. Are you? If not, I promise to take the best care of you that I could possibly…"
"Can she stay?" the girl whispered immediately. "I mean, if she wants to." Evie hadnt meant to say it so pathetically, and she almost took it back as soon as she said it. If she were really being truthful though, she didn't think she could allow this strange woman to touch her without someone she knew being there. This doctor was her best chance at healing and getting back to her friends. And the sooner she was healed, the sooner they could get out of here.
"Of course I'll stay sweetheart," Fairy Godmother promised. If this girl needed her, then she would be there every step of the way. She felt pretty proud of herself that she was able to get through to Jay, and now Evie. Carlos would still need some work, and then there was Mal.
"Well okay then!" Ravenna said happily. "I need you to lie back down on your stomach for me, okay? I want to look at your back first." Ravenna went to help her, but Evie flinched away before sighing. Ravenna took that sigh as Evie fighting through her emotions, and then delicately returned to helping her, with no more flinching. Once Evie was in place, Doctor Ravenna began untying the back of her hospital top.
Internally, Evie was panicking. She felt so exposed lying on that bed, and as the doctor undid her horribly ugly top, Fairy Godmother grabbed her hand and she immediately felt calm. As the last of the bandages came off, she tried looking at Fairy Godmother for comfort, but all she saw was her horror stricken face as Fairy Godmother wasn't looking back at her, but was instead looking at her back. She watched as several tears escaped the older fairies sorrowful eyes, and tears filled her own as she realized that maybe Fairy Godmother really was in it for them. Maybe she really did care. Pain rippled across her back when Doctor Ravenna began pulling and tugging at her sutures, and Evie buried her face into her pillow to keep from screaming out.
Fairy Godmother couldn't believe what she was seeing. It wasn't so much the long, bleeding gash across the young girls back, it was the other smaller ones that littered her skin in such a precise way, that most seemed intentional. Some were ragged, and stitched together either perfectly or imperfectly, as if different people had attempted to close the marred skin. She couldn't believe that this girl had gone through this much pain, but still remained as sweet as could be when she was attending Auradon.
The whole ordeal was torture for Evie. It wasn't so much the pain, it was the helplessness of exposing her deepest secrets to these two women. She knew what they must be thinking, and she didn't want their pity. Each wound Doctor Ravenna touched, Evie was thrust back into the memory of when she got it. The one near her side was when she was slammed into her dresser, cutting it on the already broken wood from the last time she was thrown into it. The one on her shoulder blade was from the shard of mirror her mother had lying around. There were other, tinier cuts from that night, as well as countless other days and nights of tortures. She was not at all proud of those scars, but she was proud of the ones she earned when she was fighting alongside her crew. Some of those scars were victory scars, and she knew exactly which ones those were. If she could have, she would have been the one to close herself up, but she could never reach. She mostly went to Mal to help her; her hand was steadier, but the times when Mal was on a scouting mission, or locked in her mothers basement, it was Jay or Carlos who was left to close her up. Evie herself was usually the one who stitched up the others; her stitches were legendary on the Isle.
After some time, Doctor Ravenna had redone some of her sutures, and then bandaged up her work. As carefully as she could, Fairy Godmother helped Evie roll over, and she winced when Evie winced. When it came time for her stomach, Doctor Ravenna promised to work fast so that the unnecessary pressure wouldn't be on her back or lungs for too long. A folded blanket was draped across Evie's chest, but bared the rest of her battered body. This time, Fairy Godmother couldn't help it and gasped when she saw the damage. These healed and not so healed scars looked deeper than the rest, but they were stitched so professionally that she couldn't help but wonder why they differed so much from the ones on her back. It hit her suddenly when she recalled Evie's love for sewing, and realized that she had stitched herself up. Why in the world wouldn't she have gone to the hospital? And then...she saw something she wished she hadn't, and was forced to reach out and touch the disfigured skin, just to be sure that it was really there. In perfect writing, and hiding under a scar that attempted to poorly mark out the word beneath it, was the word 'fairest', carved into Evie's rib cage. And above her blanketed chest, a gruesome, ragged scar over her heart.
The moment Fairy Godmother touched that word, Evie's head snapped to the side and she closed her eyes as tight as she could to block out her mothers face glaring down at her. She was thrust so suddenly into a flashback, that her entire body started to shake in fear as that night from two years ago was suddenly all she could think about.
It had already been a tough night, and Evie had stayed out longer than she had supposed to. Both Jay and Evie had been in hot water with their parents after Jay had unknowingly stolen Grimhilde's magic mirror. Grimhilde didn't know that Jay had stolen it; she had thought Evie had been the one to swipe it. She went crazy trying to find it; tearing Evies room apart and threatening her with her life. After one tough night, she had retreated to their safehouse to recover, and Jay realized what he had stolen and admitted to swiping the mirror. To say that Evie was angry was an understatement, but Jay didn't know what it was; he just knew that it would look good in Jafar's shop. Besides, he lifted things from his friends before, and they never seemed to care.
Well, Jay was forced to tell his father what the item now on display in his shop was, and Jafar was not happy. The Evil Queen was a powerful figure on the Isle, and Jafar punished Jay severely for what he had done to tarnish his name. Jay returned the mirror to Evie, and Evie gave it back to her mother, but refused to say that Jay had stolen it. For that, Grimhilde still blamed Evie, and was on the edge of insanity at being without her magic mirror for so long. Evie fled the house in fear, and was forced to return the next night because she just knew that the longer she stayed away, the angrier her mother would be.
Anger was an understatement. Grimhilde had never really used the mirror on the Isle, because it never worked. After sitting up for so long though, it had recharged some of its magic, and Grimhilde thought to give it one last try before putting it back in its place on the mantle. Poor Evie had walked in the moment she gave it that one last try, and it would scar her forever.
"Slave in the magic mirror, come from the farthest space," Evie had heard in her mothers voice as she walked into the living room, "through wind and darkness I summon thee."
"Mother?" she had asked, "What are you doing?"
Grimhilde ignored her wretched daughter, and finished her chant. "Speak! Let me see thy face."
To both of their astonishment, a faint, ghostly face appeared in the tarnished glass and answered its old masters call. "What wouldst thou know, my Queen?" it asked as it faded in and out of focus.
Grimhilde was ecstatic! She just had to know who the fairest of them all was, for old times sake. As for Evie, she knew something bad was about to happen.
"Famed is thy beauty, Majesty" the mirror answered as Evie backed away in fear, "But hold, a lovely maid I see. Banishment cannot hide her gentle grace. Alas, she is more fair than thee."
Evie could see from her place across the room that the grip on her mothers mirror had tightened at the news. Grimhilde looked at her dangerously, and Evie knew that she would be the subject of many tortures that night when the mirror named someone other than her mother as the fairest of them all.
"Alas for her!" Grimhilde screeched, "reveal her name!"
"Lips red as the rose. Hair blue as sapphires. Skin white as snow," it related...all the while Grimhilde slowly advanced towards her now frozen daughter. And simultaneously, both the mirror and Evil Queen named the young girl in the room, "Evie."
Evie knew why she was named. After years of being trapped under the barrier, there was no way that the magic mirror could reach far and wide like it used to. It couldn't even reach outside of this room! And she just knew that in her heart, but her mothers own mind had slipped into a dark place at not being named, once again...and she snapped.
Her mother yelled for her goons to grab Evie, and for most of the night...well she couldn't really remember. What she did remember was being held down as the word 'fairest' was carved into her skin by her own mother. The way mother smiled at the pain she was inflicting was worse than what was being done to her. The Evil Queen crossed the word out, a reminder to Evie that she would never be fair in her eyes, or anyone else's for that matter.
As she screamed that night, her mother laughed, but stopped when her eyes found the mirror that had fallen to the floor. She would never be the fairest as long as her Evie was alive. She was going to have to take care of that. A knife appeared in her hands, and Evie's weak gaze turned to terror when she realized that history was about to repeat itself. The sheer agony that followed the knife plunging into her chest hurt less than the pure excitement gazing at her from her mothers eyes.
Blood coated their clothing as the knife moved through her chest in an effort to carve out her heart, and the scream of torment shook The Evil Queen's goons to their core. Even they knew that Grimhilde had gone entirely too far. So, they let go of Evie and the blade wrenched itself from her chest as she fell to the blood covered floor. Her mother was left hovering above her as Evie desperately choked on the blood filling her lungs. She gripped her chest, trying to staunch the bleeding that was just coming entirely too fast. The crazed look in the Queens eyes started to fade as the sound of her daughter's struggles carried on beneath her, until it was gone and disgust replaced it. Grimhilde scoffed, and snapped for her goons to help Evie, before disappearing from the room. Her goons didn't know what to do, but they grabbed Evie and headed for the hospital, which was now under the control of the Huns. They knew that adequate help wouldn't be received there, but they also knew that if they didn't try and Evie died, then Grimhilde would turn her torturous ways onto them.
Jay and Mal intercepted them halfway there. They were scouting right on the edge of their territory when they came across three men carrying an unconscious girl in their arms. They didn't know it was Evie right away, but they also knew that three men and an unconscious girl spelled trouble for the girl. They had seen it too many times, and both Evie and Mal had been in those scenarios at various points in their lives. Once they got close enough and recognized the goons, they realized that it was Evie that they were carrying towards Hun territory. They intercepted the men, and they gave her to them willingly, knowing that the kids had connections on this Isle, more connections than even some of the adults had.
Mal and Jay enacted Sanctum for the first time ever, and Ursula with Uma's help was able to save Evie's life that night.
"Evie, it's all over," Fairy Godmother promised as she held the shivering girl. She knew that Evie had slipped into her mind for a moment, but she soothed her as Doctor Ravenna worked. Evie opened her tired eyes, and realized that she was clothed once again, and that Doctor Ravenna was fooling with her IV line.
"I'm going to give you something to sleep now," she promised.
Soon after that, Evie closed her eyes and drifted back into her nightmares.
Please, please, please let me know what you guys think! I want to know your theories, your hopes, and your dreams! Has anyone found the clue Ive hidden in an earlier chapter about what might be coming? Any new characters that you think might become huge?
In the next chapter, expect to see some more Ben, as well as their VK's friends from Auradon! Evie may reunite with Jay and Carlos...and Mal will make an appearance! And maybe, just maybe ill throw that twist in there...one of them at least... Mwahahahahaha!
But really, drop a review!