Restless, Jay paced the room. He checked the windows first. It was the easiest way for Diablo to spy on them, and he was fucking sick of that damn bird watching his pack. And just like the first twenty times he'd checked, the curtains were closed and the windows behind them locked. But he couldn't be too careful. Just because they were in Auradon didn't mean they were out of Maleficent's reach. Something they'd all been reminded of yesterday.

As he walked the perimeter, he glanced at his pack. Their youngest was on the bed, picking ruthlessly at the hem of his shirt. Later, Jay knew Evie would do her best to restitch the thing. The princess herself was going through her stash of plants and making notes of what she needed to restock. Mal paced past him and he moved over to stay away from the sparks flying off her.

Stopping at the door, Jay made sure it was locked. It was, and he resisted the urge to push one of the wardrobes in front of it. The last thing they needed was someone barging in. None of the other students had done it yet, but he saw them just go into each other's rooms all the time and if any of them grew a pair big enough to try his pack's room he didn't want them getting in.

Once he was convinced the room was as secure as he could make it, he grabbed a stale roll from the stash under the second bed and went to sit by Carlos. They would need to grab extra food over the next few meals to replace the food they'd gone through over the weekend. This was the first time they used any of their stashes since arriving, none of them were willing to leave the room after Maleficent's summons. That didn't mean they could be lazy about restocking though. Jaw tight, Jay tore a bite from the bread. If they weren't careful they'd go soft like the mainlanders.

"This fucking sucks."

As Mal threw her hands into the air, sparks flying everywhere, Carlos shrank back, hyper aware of their leader's mood.

"This fucking sucks," she repeated.

Carefully moving her ingredients away from the green sparks, Evie said nothing. Jay didn't say anything as Carlos moved closer.

"How the hell does she expect us to find anything useful in a place like this? We're constantly being watched like a bunch of rabid rats and the library is a godsdamned maze even with their stupid system."

"As long as we keep looking, we'll find something," Evie replied.

Mal snorted and Jay agreed. There was no chance they were going to find what they needed. None of them even knew what to look for. Let alone how to use the information.

"Something useful enough to not get killed?" Mal retorted. Evie froze, expression going blank. "Face it, E. We're fucked. We're beyond fucked. We're so far past fucked that not even Zeus could fuck that much."

It took all his self-control not to laugh. Because she was right. Sure Maleficent had said she wasn't "so unreasonable" or whatever, but she also said that she wasn't going to wait forever. The longer they found nothing, the sooner Maleficent would decide they were useless and kill them. If he was honest, it was almost a miracle that he and Mal were still alive when Ben decided to summon them to the mainland. Both of them were already close to worthless. Carlos was worthless to Maleficent except as an example or a way to threaten them. Only Evie had some sort of protection and even then her mother couldn't do anything if Maleficent decided to kill her. Did Maleficent know Ben would summon them? Was that why she kept them alive? So they could go on a useless hunt for something that didn't exist?

A solid click snapped his attention back to Evie. Slowly, the princess put away her box of ingredients and turned to face Mal. "And we never thought we would see the mainland," she said, voice too even, expression too blank.

"Fuck," Carlos breathed.

"Yet here we are. The Mal I know wouldn't just roll over and give up. We'll find something. As long as Maleficent thinks we're making progress we have time."

Green eyes narrowing, Mal folded her arms and Jay subtly moved both him and Carlos away. Neither of them wanted to get caught between their female pack members. All it took was one time for them to learn better and Jay refused to repeat that experience… Especially when Mal's magic was so active. Normally, he and Carlos just left until the girls sorted everything out. Or at least until a temporary stalemate was reached and it was safe to return. That wasn't an option right now. Carlos wasn't ready to deal with people and Jay refused to leave him alone with the girls.

"Time to what, E? Find a better way to die?" Mal demanded. "Because my mother isn't going to be so merciful next time. We got lucky."

"Whether she likes it or not, your mother needs us if she wants to get off the Isle," Evie snapped, lifting her head higher to stare down their leader. "We are her best chance right now. She won't kill us that quickly. We just need to keep looking. We'll find what we need."

Stunned, Jay exchanged looks with Carlos. What was Evie talking about? No way Maleficent actually needed them. That was insane.

"Are you fucking crazy?" Mal laughed. "My mother doesn't need anyone. Since when did you start giving hopeful speeches like a hero?"

"Since I realized we can live instead of just survive, Mal!" Evie shrieked. "Because we have a chance to live here. So would you please fucking fight for a chance to do more than survive?!"

Oh no. Not that fight again. Next to him, Carlos went absolutely rigid before grabbing a pillow and bolting for the bathroom. For a split second, Evie watched him go and Jay hoped it would be enough to stop the fight. But Mal ignored their pup as he locked the door. Fuck. More fucked than Zeus could ever fuck. This was going to be a mess. Just getting Carlos to come back out was going to take forever. And only after Jay somehow managed to get the girls to stop.

"Seriously, E?! There's no 'living' if you can't fucking survive. You want to live? Then we have to survive my mother first! Which won't happen because we have no way of doing what she wants!"

"Not if we don't try! And you need to try, M!"

"I am trying!"

"No you aren't!"

"Yes I am!"

"If you were trying, you wouldn't be giving up!"

"If I can't find what my mother wants, then she'll kill us."

"Are you forgetting that we can help you?" Evie pointed out. "You aren't doing this alone."

Jaw clenching, Mal rolled her eyes. "I know that."

"Then what the hell is your problem?" Evie demanded, lifting her head to stare down her nose at Mal.

"I don't want to lose you!" Mal shouted. "You'll die if I fail!"

"You aren't doing this alone!" Evie repeated.

"But I'm the leader! It's my job to keep you safe! It's my job to make sure you don't die!"

The room went silent, Evie and Jay staring at her as she stood trembling, chest heaving, eyes glowing. That… That… Jay didn't know what to do with that. Yeah they all knew they were pack, and that they would do anything for each other. Yeah they knew Mal was protective as hell of them. But he never knew it was like this. And she never admitted it unless… unless she was truly scared that she was going to lose them. He could only remember two times: when he was stabbed and when she rescued Carlos from Jasper and Horace.

Expression softening, Evie took Mal's hand. "Oh, M. We're a pack. We take care of each other. Let us help. Together we can get your mother what she wants." When Mal arched an eyebrow, Evie continued, "Once we've broken the barrier, you'll claim our territory and keep us safe. We'll live because we survived."

"E-"

"We'll figure it out. We always do."

After a few moments, he was satisfied the worst was over and carefully nudged Evie. As she met his gaze, Jay nodded towards the bathroom. Carlos needed her more than he needed Jay and Jay needed to make sure Mal calmed down. Giving Mal's hand a quick squeeze, Evie left and Jay took her place beside their leader.

"So that was something," he said.

With a snort, Mal rolled her eyes and flopped onto the bed. "I don't understand her."

"Me neither."

"I just want us safe."

"You'll keep us safe. And I'll help. We'll make sure they survive. Evie can worry about living. We'll worry about keeping them alive. Even if we have to read every damn book on the mainland."

Green eyes locked onto his and Mal sighed. "Even if we have to read every damn book on the mainland."