Evie shrieked in surprise when a grin appeared out of nowhere. Her exclamation startled the rest of the group out of their sleep, Hades falling gracelessly out of his chair. The blue-haired fashion designer glared at Cheshire as the cat fully materialized. "Cheshire," she admonished, "Remember how we talked about warnings?"
"Warnings doesn't belong here nor there nor up or down," the cat replied, "I'll have you know that cards fall down very easily and that's why you should always build houses with them."
They all stared at the floating cat, perplexed. Shaking her head, Mal waved him off. "Quinn said she would send Cheshire when we could get Ben, remember?" She couldn't for the life of her figure out why it had taken so long. She had seen Ben and Quinn shake hands, he should've been back with them hours earlier.
The air was chilly as they stepped out of Hades' cave, the sun barely peeking over the horizon. It was still strange, Jay thought, to see sunlight on the Isle. The perpetual cloud that had hung over them during their childhood had blocked it out, after all, and seeing its rays create shadows where golden light couldn't reach made the Isle seem strangely beautiful. Ahead of him, Harry wrapped an arm around a shivering Evie, who smiled gratefully at him. Not for the first time, Jay found himself wistfully hoping that Quinn would let him be that for her again. A safe source of warmth and love.
He was stunned to see her smiling with Ben when they reached the House of Cards gates. Even more so when Ben bowed courteously and received a curtsy in return. Clearly, Ben's stay with the blood-haired princess hadn't been an unpleasant one, contrary to all of their expectations. Quinn's gaze swept over the group, skipping over Jay, and landed on Harry. After several tense moments, the pirate seemed to read something in her eyes that the others missed and strode up to wrap his arms tightly around her.
"I love 'er," he whispered, holding Quinn tight, "She's… everything." Harry pulled away from her, ocean meeting ice. "He loves ye," he promised lowly, ensuring that no one could hear the exchange, "Give 'im a chance." For the briefest of moments, Quinn's eyes flickered to Jay, before she looked back up at Harry. Rather than replying, she sighed heavily and stepped back.
"The cure should be enough," she said, turning to Ben, "No more than one drop, Your Majesty, no matter how tempted you are to use more." The king nodded seriously, sliding the vial into his pocket. While he had asked her to administer the cure herself, she couldn't leave the Isle. If the people in Auradon had been affected, Quinn's Quid Pro Quo wasn't likely to be slow in business either. She needed to stay and help the islanders, make sure that there was no one left to spread the disease. Facing Harry, Quinn pushed a lock behind her ear. "Could you make sure that all VKs and villains report to my shop," she asked quietly, "They'll need the cure too, even if they aren't directly affected." He nodded, kissing her forehead and Evie's cheek before leaving.
Ben turned to his friends. "Maybe we should start with you guys," he said, glancing at Quinn for confirmation, "Everyone's a carrier, right?" His newfound head healer nodded, wrapping her arms around herself. Under her careful scrutiny, Ben used the dropper in the vial to place a single drop under each of his friends' tongues, like she'd shown him when she gave him his dose. "We'll see you in a few days," he continued, capping the vial again as he faced her, "You'll check everyone who had the symptoms and meet your new colleagues."
"As you wish, Your Majesty," Quinn replied with a slight nod, "Now you should get going before it's too late." She snapped her fingers, summoning the entire Suit of Clubs. "See to it that His Majesty and his entourage make it safely to the other side," she ordered, "When you're done, I expect you to take care of my gardens until I return from my shop." They saluted her and marched alongside Ben and the others as they left the Isle. Looking after them for a long while, Quinn shook herself in an attempt to forget what it felt like to have Jay's eyes on her.
Several days later, Harry escorted Quinn to Auradon. Gil was happily skipping along behind them, excited to see his Auradonian friends. He'd made an astonishing amount of them, shocking all of his pirate friends. Even Quinn, wary as she was, had been disarmed by his genuine kindness. Harry kept glancing at his beloved friend as they walked, taking in her expressions as she laid eyes on Auradon for the first time in her life. He noticed how she carefully steered away from food that was offered and was carefully polite whenever someone stopped to thank her for her aid in the morphilogus outbreak. "Ye're allowed te enjoy yeself," he whispered to her when she delicately turned down an offer for tea as they waited for Ben to arrive, "They ain't enemies anymore." Looking up, he realized what had her so tense. Ally, daughter of Alice, was crossing the courtyard, talking animatedly with Aziz, son of Aladdin and Jasmine. The blonde looked up and saw them and Harry could tell that she knew who she was seeing. After all, no matter the efforts Quinn took to avoid being associated with the woman, there was no denying that Quinn was Queen of Hearts' daughter. Several strained moments passed before Ally tore her gaze away and hurried after Aziz.
Though he was curious, Ben didn't comment on the way Quinn's hands trembled when he arrived. Harry had a strange look on his face, both of them looking in the direction of the library. "Are you ready," he asked instead, "They have a lot of questions but if you feel like it's too much, I'll be there to hold them off." He glanced at Harry, eliciting a weak laugh from the Isle medic. Well, if Ben couldn't contain them, the pirate's presence certainly would. Since telling his medical staff that he had found a head healer, the king had been bombarded with questions. Who was it, what medical experience did they have, did they find the cure that healed the king, and so on. He was aware that the introductions would get… rocky, and had secured a secret weapon.
Jaws dropped when Ben opened the doors to the main conference room at the Auradon Hospital. Fairy Godmother was there, of course, as well as Mama Odie, Merlin, and Geppetto. All of them stared incredulously at their king as he led Quinn and Harry into the room. The pirate didn't take his eyes off the girl as she lowered herself into a chair, declining a seat of his own. It made Ben a smidgen envious to see how Quinn let Harry hover, let him take a place that allowed him to sweep her away at the slightest sign of trouble. He sometimes wished Mal would let him be as protective as he sometimes felt like being. When she declined his help, he sometimes felt like she didn't trust him to keep her safe. He shook his head to clear it of unreasonable thoughts and focused on the task at hand. "Quinn, these are the other healers in Auradon," he introduced, sitting down beside her, "Guys, this is Quinn, daughter of the Queen of Hearts."
"But… she's just a girl," Fairy Godmother said delicately, glancing worriedly at Ben, "Surely she is far too inexperienced to be a head healer?"
A pale hand rose into the air, halting Harry in the middle of a snarl. "I assure you, madam," Quinn replied cooly," That while I may not have your… aged wisdom, my business has me working with more sick and wounded than you have in a lifetime." Even Ben's lips quirked at the appalled look on Fairy Godmother's face at the quip. Mama Odie chortled indelicately, grinning at Quinn, who gave a hesitant smile in return.
"I like this one," she pointed out, her snake Juju directing her finger in the right direction as she pointed at Quinn, "She's funny."
A throat cleared in the doorway and Ben lit up. "Evie, I'm glad you could be here," he greeted happily, "Please, have a seat." With a little help from Harry, the king had convinced Evie to be present as an ambassador for the Isle. As someone who knew Quinn and her medicinal magics, Evie was well-suited to convince the other healers to accept the redhead's place among them. Secretly, Ben hoped that Evie's support would at least prompt Quinn to talk to her. He turned back to Fairy Godmother. "Quinn has been single-handedly responsible for the health of everyone on the Isle," he announced, seeing in the corner of his eye how Evie hesitantly smiled at Quinn as she took the seat beside her, "It was thanks to her that we could cure those who were affected by morphilogus."
"You did that?" Merlin studied the girl, who met his gaze steadily. There were many outward similarities between her and her mother, a woman Merlin would happily forget existed. "How does a girl from the Isle, with no resources or experience, create a cure for such a disease?" The pirate behind her reacted immediately, only to once again be silenced by the red-haired girl. Evie stared at him in disbelief and Ben gave him an exasperated look. The respect that Quinn was given was not lost on Merlin at all. His gaze turned to Evie. "She is important, I take it?" The blue-haired Isle-girl nodded, glancing at Ben and their visitor before she spoke.
"Half the Isle would be dead without her," Evie said seriously, "I can't remember a time before Quinn became the go-to for medical help, I don't think anyone of us does." Sitting a little straighter, she gave a dazzling smile to the adults, pulling a piece of paper out of her bag and placing it on the table in front of her. "This is a list of Quinn's accomplishments in the last five years," she said, sliding it over to Geppetto, "She's helped with births, pains, and several severe diseases." As accomplished as Evie felt seeing the stunned and admiring looks on the adults' faces, it was nothing compared to how she felt when she glanced at Quinn and found her old friend with the slightest of smiles on her lips. "I would honestly trust her over any of you," Evie continued, "I've seen her work, and she always ensures that her patients are fully recovered."
Geppetto nodded absently, looking at Quinn. "So, how did you do it?"
"I grow herbs in my personal gardens," she replied, "I spent a lot of time locked in a tower and reading was one of the few things I was allowed to do." Shaking the image of her mother's furious gaze out of her head before it could fully form, Quinn smiled wryly. "I applied what I learned to make medicine," she explained, "And the Horned King always had a cauldron ready for me when mine rusted beyond repair." Before she could fully process what was happening, she was stuck in an onslaught of questions. Looking helplessly at Harry, Quinn shrank back in her seat. The pirate glared at the nosy healers, who quieted immediately.
Mama Odie spoke up again. "Ya don't happen to have a cure for blindness, do ya?"
"I'm afraid not," Quinn replied, "But I've often admired the blind." She tossed a vial in the woman's direction, the pet snake catching it to give to Mama Odie. The voodoo priestess uncorked it and sniffed its contents. "The removal of one sense usually forces the strengthening of the others," she continued, watching as realization flitted over the woman's face, "Which makes you a hell of a lot better at sniffing out ingredients."
Cackling happily, Mama Odie pocketed the vial. "How'd ya know I ain't sleepin' well?" At the silence, she rolled her unseeing eyes. "Girlie's given me a real good sleep serum, with lavender and chamomile and peppermint," she told them gleefully, reaching out to grab Juju's head, "I need to inhale this stuff as steam."
"I noticed how your breathing is labored," Quinn explained, smiling at the old lady, "I imagine it's difficult to sleep when you can't breathe properly."
Ben was pleased with how the meeting was going. He'd seen the slight interactions between Quinn and Evie, and it seemed his healers were willing to learn from the Isle-girl. He chuckled as Mama Odie spoke animatedly with her snake about the spa night she would indulge in, the large animal catching the vial when the voodoo priestess missed the table. "I think that's enough for today," he interrupted, standing, "We could all do with some air."
Swallowing thickly in an attempt to suppress her nerves, Evie turned to Quinn. "If… if you're okay with it I would love to give you a tour of Auradon," she offered, a sheepish smile on her face, "I know that we have things to work out and—"
"Okay."
Tears welled in Evie's eyes. It was just one word but it was spoken without any hint of anger or malice. Her grin was watery and wide and genuine and when Quinn gave her one in return, the blue-haired fashion designer let the tears fall freely as she hugged her friend. It didn't take long for Quinn's arms to wrap around her and Evie sobbed into her shoulder. "I'm so sorry," she hiccuped, ignoring the bewildered Harry beside them, "I should've tried harder, I should've talked to Ben about you and what you can do and I—"
"I'm sorry too."
Mouth agape, Harry was certain that he'd somehow waltzed into an alternate universe. In all the years that he'd known Quinn, he could count on one hand the number of times she had apologized to someone. Scratch that, he didn't need a hand. It hadn't happened before. He was happy for them, of course. With their relationship on the mend, he wouldn't have to divide his time between them. It was just strange to hear words of apology from his childhood friend.
"I'm actually supposed to check on the people who were affected by morphilogus," Quinn said quietly once Evie pulled away, "Could you show me where they are?"
Evie immediately jumped into action. "Of course," she said, voice still a little scratchy, "Follow me." She led Harry and Quinn through the halls of the hospital, to the wing where the morphilogus patients were recovering.
Just as they turned a corner, Quinn walked right into someone, falling to the floor before Harry could catch her. There were several gasps and worried exclamations. Regaining her senses, Quinn accepted the hand that was held out to her, allowing it's owner to pull her back up on her feet. Stood at her full height once again, she looked up into hazel eyes.
"I'm sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going," the strange boy said kindly, "What's your name?"
"I'm Quinn, Princess of Hearts."
"Nice to meet you, Quinn," he greeted, "I'm Riley Radcliffe."