Evie toyed with a lock of her long blue hair and fiddled with her pencil as she tried to focus on what her teacher was saying. But inevitably her eyes wandered towards the window, past the churning whitecaps in the Strait of Ursula, to the dark cloud-shrouded Isle where she'd grown-up.
It had been that way ever since Mal had decided to stay on the Isle after they'd rescued Ben from Uma and her pirates. Evie and the boys had tried to talk her out of it but despite their best efforts their purple-clad leader had sent them back to Auradon with their tails between their legs and now Evie felt as if she'd abandoned her best friend to a life of solitary confinement.
"You okay, E?" Doug whispered, bumping her with his elbow, "I thought you liked chemistry."
"I do." she hissed, jumping to attention, her face turning red as an apple as she grabbed her textbook, "What page are we on?"
"Same." he answered, studying her sadly, "Don't worry. The bell is about to ring."
Right on cue the first few notes of "Whistle While You Work" chimed through the halls and the teenagers jumped from their seats.
"They played, "Hi-Diddle-Dee-Dee" at Dragon Hall when we changed classes." Evie mused reflectively, as they pressed their way into the hall hand in hand.
"You want to talk about it?" he asked, swallowing the lump in his throat; until recently, she'd never liked talking about anything associated with her former home but now it seemed to pop up all the time.
"What's there to talk about?" she gave him a dark look.
"I haven't seen you much lately…" He changed the subject, hoping to get her talking.
"Well, I've been busy, you know." she answered, flipping her hair off her shoulder as she stopped at her locker to change books, brightening for a moment as she thought about the business she'd started.
"I know." he answered, leaning against the wall with a sigh. Taking in her figure, he thought about how lucky he was, "Business is booming. You're a working girl now."
"Jane's birthday party is coming up." she shrugged nonchalantly, a tiny smile teasing her rosy lips upward as she turned towards him; having a guy in her life who understood her as well as he did was more than she'd ever hoped for on the Isle, "All the girls want new dresses. It'll be a trendsetter for the new season."
"I'm sure it will be,"
"You gonna make it to the house for dinner tonight?" he continued after a pause, feebly hanging onto the idea that she might open up, "Pop and the uncles love it when you come over. It reminds them of when Snow White lived with them."
"Well, we are sisters." She took his hand again and squeezed it as they headed down the hall. "I know I've been preoccupied lately," she continued, dropping her gaze to the floor, "and I'm really sorry, Doug. I just—I just feel so..." Her voice died away and she shook her head, mumbling, "Never mind..."
"Hey, I'm here for you, okay?" He swung in front of her, blocking the way just as they reached her next class. Squeezing her hands, he pleaded with his eyes, "If you need to talk, I—"
"Like I said, there's nothing to talk about!" she snapped, suddenly yanking her hands away and flouncing around him into the classroom.
"What just happened...?" he muttered, feeling amazed, shocked, confused, hurt, and a little frightened as he shook his head and turned away.
"Evie?" Fairy Godmother caught up with the blue-clad girl at her locker after the final dismissal, "You got a minute?"
"I always have time for my favorite fairy godmother!" the teenager's cloudy face immediately brightened, feeling genuine affection for the school's headmistress. She swung her book bag over her shoulder and slammed her locker shut, "Does Jane like her new dress?"
"Oh, she loves it, dear; the color is absolutely perfect!" Fairy Godmother assured, wrapping an arm around her, "It'll be a wonderful party. I just can't believe my baby is gonna be seventeen!"
"Well, I do know my blues." Evie beamed, allowing herself to be steered down the hall.
"Yes, you do," the headmistress returned the smile then sobered up significantly, "Um, ah, my dear...Doug came by my office today. He is very worried about you."
Evie skidded to a stop, suddenly feeling like a captured villain.
"I know I haven't been much of a girlfriend lately," she sighed, turning pleading eyes on the headmistress, "All the new orders have me working extra hard."
"But, it's not just your work, is it?" Fairy Godmother coaxed, gently steering the blue-clad princess into her office and closing the door.
"Well, nooo…" No one could lie to Fairy Godmother's face.
"Doug told me how much you've been missing Mal."
"I never told him that."
"Boyfriends don't need to be told everything, dear."
"Boy friends don't either," Evie grumbled, her lips twisting into a sad smile as she recalled all of the little things that Carlos and Jay had been doing for her and with her lately. She'd been too upset to even remember how much they were hurting too or be grateful she still had them.
"No, they don't," Fairy Godmother's lips tweaked upwards too.
"I do miss Mal" Evie suddenly blurted out, amazed by the relief the admission brought.
"It's alright, my love," Fairy Godmother reached for her with one hand and wiped tears from her own eyes with the other, "You and Mal have been through so much together; It's natural to miss her now that…" Her voice trailed away and there was a long pause before she could continue.
"But, we want you to know that we all understand and if you ever need us we'll be here for you anytime, day or night."
"Thank you!" Evie choked back a sob with difficulty, "I just wish—"
Suddenly, her eyes widened in horror and she clamped her mouth shut like a blowfish. Her face turned scarlet.
"If you want to talk, you can tell me anything," Fairy Godmother repeated firmly, surprised that the blue-clad girl had opened up so quickly. With her heart in her throat, she added, "But if you don't, that's okay too."
"I wanted to stay with her!" Evie suddenly lost control as the tears started to flow, "but she wouldn't let me! She said I was an Auradon girl!"
"Shh, shh," Fairy Godmother folded her arms around the Isle's princess, holding her tightly even as she fought down the feeling of being punched in the gut, "It's okay, it's okay. She's your best friend and she always will be. No matter what."
"That's what I told her!" Evie sobbed, "But now she's over there all alone and I'm here. I've abandoned her!" Suddenly, she gasped and pulled back, "Wait, what? Yo-you're not mad?"
"Of course not!" Fairy Godmother shook her head vehemently, "Wanting to live on the Isle so you can be with your best friend is as Auradonian as you can get! Mal's right; you are an Auradonian!"
"I do love it here," Evie spoke hastily, not wanting to sound ungrateful, "And I'm so glad that Ben let us come! Everyone is so wonderful! But, I-I, well, Mal doesn't have anyone on the Isle now and I can't let her go through that for-for the rest of her life."
"You know..." Fairy Godmother trembled as she came to a sudden realization and made a snap decision, "If you really want to go back; I can make it happen."
"What?" Evie was shocked, "Really?"
"Meet me outside the museum tonight," the headmistress nodded soberly, fighting the tears that welled up in her eyes. She forced herself to take a deep breath, then deliberately finished her sentence, "And I'll send you back to the Isle with my wand."
"What? Oh, thank you!" Evie trembled with shock, joy, and heartfelt gratitude. She laughed through flowing tears, "Thank you so much!"
"To-tonight then," Fairy Godmother's voice shook as she gripped the teenager's hands tightly and finally let go of her tears, "Because we love you too much to make you stay."
As she crept through the shadows on her way to the museum, Evie's emotions swung like an out of control pendulum.
She was beyond relieved that Fairy Godmother had understood, without penalty, how important it was for her to stick by her best friend and she was looking forward to seeing Mal again.
But she was also grieving.
Her biggest hang-up was Doug. Thinking about her boyfriend almost made her lose her nerve to go through with it. She knew deep down that he was her true love and she couldn't even make herself accept the fact that she might never see him again. She also knew that he could never completely understand why she had to do this and she desperately hoped that Carlos and Jay would contain any crazy plans that he might come up with to "rescue" her.
Carlos and Jay…
She knew they could at least understand her motive, but she knew they'd be angry and she didn't blame them. They'd been just as hurt by their purple-clad leader's decision to leave the group as she was, but they'd set aside their feelings to be strong for her and now she was going to repay them by devastating them all over again. She was sure that they would come and try to convince both girls to return to Auradon, but that was okay; she and Mal loved them like brothers and she hated the idea of being forever separated from them.
Then there was Ben…
Mal's boyfriend had been just as inconsolable as she was during these last few weeks and she knew her departure would bring all those emotions back to the surface. Her heart truly went out to him because it was his idea to bring them to Auradon in the first place and she didn't want him to ever think that he'd failed. She only hoped that the Auradonians would surround him with loving support and that he would eventually be able to move on.
"You ready?" Fairy Godmother asked nervously, wringing her hands as the teenager stepped into the glow of the streetlamps.
"Uh, yeah..." Evie suddenly realized how much her decision was affecting the headmistress and she threw her arms around her, "Are you sure about this...?"
"Yes, yes," Fairy Godmother nodded, closing her eyes to steady herself, "I can see that it's what you want, so I want it too. I love you, Evie. And I love Mal and Jay and Carlos. I'll do anything for you guys."
"W-will you tell them?" the blue-clad princess' voice trembled, "I-I couldn't bring myself to do it this afternoon."
"I understand...yes, I-I'll tell them."
"I couldn't even tell Doug or Ben," the teenager wept openly again, "I feel like such a wimp!"
"No, no, I understand," Fairy Godmother grasped her arm, then hugged her tightly, "Goodness knows, I understand. I didn't even go home after we talked for fear of losing it in front of Jane. Don't worry, I'll tell your friends. It's probably best that you didn't tell them. Just send Mal our love. Tell her that she is welcome back anytime. You too."
"You mean—" Evie gasped, "I didn't think—"
"Yes, yes, of course!" Fairy Godmother interrupted, waving a hand, "If you ever want to come back, just tell Yen Sid. I'll talk to him in the morning and we'll work out the logistics."
"Oh, I will and thank you!" Evie clasped her hands together and almost squealed, "Oh, thank you! I didn't even dream of that!" She threw herself into the headmistresses' arms one last time, suddenly feeling as if everything would work out. Then she pulled back with a trembling sigh, "I'm ready now."
"Alright," Fairy Godmother's arm visibly shook as she raised her wand, "Bibbity, bobbity, boo!"
Author's Note: Happy New Year, folks. Blessings to all in 2021. Be sure to have a look at my new Descendants poll!