(Evie)
Approving cheers and manic arguments stretched wildly to cover the tourney field, the announcer's voice seeming to echo irritatingly through the area, repeatedly restating that the Fighting Knights were currently losing. Evie let her voice join the roar of the others when the blue jersey with the large printed number of eight got possession of the ball, watching her best friend as he traveled through the kill-zone with such simplicity that one – if they didn't know any better – would believe he did it every minute of his life. The team had been struggling through the beginning of the new season ever since Auradon's Prince had been crowned King, effectively keeping the seventeen-year old too occupied to continue playing; and Evie felt sorry for Ben, knowing just how much he loved the sport. However, despite their string of losses Evie had quickly come to prefer the new season because Jay had been voted to be Ben's replacement for Captain, the title making him happier than she had ever seen him.
Pushing up from her seat on the blistering bleachers – the heat of the sun setting them ablaze – she cheered obnoxiously when the ball flew from Jay's tourney stick and into the net behind the other team's goalie. He had just tied the game. Once the ball was hurled back into play she anxiously watched as the other team made their way swiftly down the field, the ball never staying in one place for an extended period. When Chad went down for the first time that game from his collision with an opposing player, Evie felt a hand gripping tightly onto her left arm, and she didn't hesitate to place her own over it comfortingly, turning to offer Lonnie a reassuring smile.
The closer the opposing team got to the goal the more anxious Evie became, but she soon felt an audible sigh of relief passing her lips when Jay managed to secure the ball in his possession once again, passing it to another player sporting blue and yellow. Shifting her eyes over the field she located Carlos, letting a quiet plea slip as the small boy headed toward the player keeping the ball from being passed back to Jay, her hand tightening around Lonnie's. Just as the guy with the ball attempted to rocket the tiny object over the body blocking his path, Carlos slammed his shield into the opponent with full force, sending him spiraling to the ground and freeing the path the ball needed to take to reach Jay's tourney stick. She kept her gaze on Carlos for a moment longer – already knowing that Jay would go untouched through the kill-zone – her impulse to make sure the boy was okay taking over.
Carlos was like a younger brother to her, even back on the Isle when they were expected to think of caring as a weak emotion. When she had first met him, Carlos had been terrified of just about everything – Jay being a major reason – and she had promised herself that she would watch over him because she had found something endearing about the way he acted despite his mother being Cruella de Vil. Since then they had become a family along with Jay, despite his original distaste for both of them. For a while, Jay had managed to convince Evie that he was far worse than his father, Jafar, and she and Carlos had kept away from the boy the best they could; however, once they came to Auradon for school that perspective had changed significantly. Carlos grew close to Jay first, then Evie noticed the shift in his behavior, only to find that he had only acted the way he had on the Isle in a desperate attempt to impress his father; they all had been desperate for their parents' attention. Now, it was one of the last things they desired.
When the sight of the ball reshaping the back of the net appeared before the crowd's eyes everyone rose for the second time that game, drowning out the buzzer that signaled for the end of the game; the Fighting Knights had won their first game of the season. Evie cheered ecstatically along with the crowd as the team blurred together around Jay and Chad, becoming a large mass of blue and yellow. Turning to her left she bounced in her spot, Lonnie's fingers clasping around hers tightly.
"And the Fighting Knights of last year return to take this game away with them!" The announcer's voice floated over the roar of the crowd. "Undoubtedly, the Most Valuable Player for this game was Chad Charming, who set up his team for victory with great blocks whenever they were needed!"
A smile curled the corners of her mouth when she heard the announcer's words, feeling that Chad definitely deserved the game title, especially considering he had only gone down once through the entire game. At the mention of Chad's name, Lonnie steadied herself on the bleachers to look over her shoulder at the blonde prince being lifted onto the shoulders of his teammates. Evie couldn't stop the involuntary action of her mouth curving even further upward as she watched Lonnie and Chad exchange bright smiles, their eyes locked on one another through the distance separating them as the team carried Chad across the field.
Squeezing the hands in her own gently, Evie got Lonnie's attention. "Go."
"Go where?" Lonnie questioned with a quiet clearing of her throat, the girl once again hiding from others.
"Go wait for him," Evie clarified anyway, nodding in the direction the boys had disappeared in. "Ask him if he wants to get something to eat."
Lonnie looked as though she were about to deny that she wanted to be with Chad – like she often did – but after a moment of internal debate she merely returned the light squeeze.
"You sure?" Lonnie asked, looking caught between two equally appealing options. "I mean; we usually get dinner together after the game."
"I am absolutely positive," Evie confirmed, smiling brightly at her friend. "I'll get something with Carlos. Now, go on."
With a lasting smile, Lonnie nodded and let go of Evie's hands to make her way down the bleachers and over to the small building, meeting with the other girls waiting just outside the lockers for a specific player. That group was one Evie strayed from joining considering it was structured of girls dating a member of the team, and despite having spent the majority of her life being constantly lectured by her mother about finding a handsome prince to take care of she found herself completely uninterested in having a prince. Not only did she want to allow herself the luxury of finding a true, undeniable love in any ranking – royal or not – but she also wanted something her mother had never made an option for her; a princess, so to speak.
Shortly after Auradon had finally accepted her, Carlos, and Jay as more than the children of their enemies she had started dating Doug; however, it hadn't been much longer after then that she realized why she had never been capable of finding pure joy in any of her relationships. At first, the idea of being interested in girls the way she was supposed to like boys dangled just out of her reach, her mother having always taught her that her only option for love was in a wealthy prince. It took a lengthy conversation with Lonnie for her to understand that her options weren't limited in any way, and that she could be attracted to whoever, whether they were a prince or a citizen, a boy or a girl. And paired with the realization that she didn't need a romantic relationship to be worthy she found an oversized weight had been lifted from her aching shoulders. She didn't have feelings for anyone, so she remained single, and despite her mother telling her she needed to be with someone constantly she found that it was better to be single than to be with someone she felt absolutely nothing for. She had stopped letting her mother control her mind and realized that there was more to people than just the way they looked, more to her than just her looks. Attraction was merely the first step to falling in love, and it was followed by so much more.
"Alone again? What a sad life you live."
Evie didn't have to meet the new arrival's eyes to know it was Audrey. Not only had she gotten far more familiar with the girl's voice than she would have preferred, but she was also the only person in Auradon who still refused to give her a real chance. She tried not to worry too much about it though, knowing there were even those among the 'good' that disliked each other, often thinking of Jane, and the way everyone had treated her solely because of her hair. Still, the thought that Audrey didn't like her because of who she was bothered her; no one here had any valid reason to hate her outside the things she had done in fear of what her mother would do to her if she hadn't. And in that case, Audrey should still refuse to accept Jay and Carlos along with her; but she didn't. It was only her Audrey didn't like.
She ignored Audrey, keeping her gaze locked on the door she knew Carlos would appear from as if she hadn't heard the girl. It wasn't left to simmer from existence though, Audrey would never let that happen. The smaller girl stepped up to the bleacher she stood on, making a show of following the trail Evie's gaze created.
"Jay's not going to go out with you," Audrey started, misinterpreting who she was waiting for. "He and I have plans for tonight's dinner."
That was more than likely Evie's least favorite thing about Audrey; she was dating Jay. Some people – mostly only Audrey – thought it was because she wanted to be the one with Jay, but that theory strayed far from being fact. A major portion of her warned her that there was a lurking explanation for Audrey's abrupt romantic interest in Jay, mainly considering she had previously despised the thought of him before they became an item. If Audrey had immediately shown interest in Jay when they had first arrived than she would feel differently, however, the fact that the girl had committed everything in her power to get them banished back to the Isle drew the suspicions from inside her. Evie didn't trust Audrey's true intentions with her best friend, and she never would.
"Sounds sweet," Evie replied, flashing Audrey her most convincing smile, well aware that she appeared whole-heartedly delighted by the news. "I hope you two have a great time together. I was planning on getting dinner with Carlos."
Audrey seemed stunned by the sincerity in her voice, clearly having expected her to lash out in a fit of jealousy. The next words she spoke though caught Evie off guard, the girl's attempts to break her having never ventured from the topic of her nonexistent feelings for Jay.
"So, what then? You realized you had no chance with Jay and moved onto Carlos?" Audrey questioned, desperately grasping for a rise from her. "Or… you've always been into Carlos."
Evie let Audrey believe she was talking herself into an answer, figuring that, if the girl needed to believe she fancied someone, Carlos would be the most tolerable rumor. Carlos was easily her favorite person to be with, and she loved him more than she loved anyone else, so she didn't see an issue with Audrey thinking she felt something further than friendship for the younger boy; she was tired of trying to get her to see the truth.
"If you say so," Evie shrugged, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth when she spotted Carlos exiting the team building, Jay's arm draped over his shoulders. "Look, our boys are ready."
She meant it sarcastically, but she wasn't the least bit surprised when Audrey leached onto her words.
"Our?" Audrey blinked a few times; Evie couldn't tell if it was due to confusion, or surprise. "So it's not just a hopeless one-sided thing, you two are actually together?"
Evie couldn't suppress an eye-roll as she made her way down the stairs of the bleachers and in the direction of the boys; Audrey following after her.
"So that's the kind of boy you're interested in?" Audrey questioned, falling in step beside her. "Wow, and here I thought you actually had good taste when you've been chasing the pathetic ones."
A sudden, powerful feeling ignited from directly inside her chest, a scorching heat traveling at a relentless speed through her veins and making her feel as though Audrey had set her on fire. She knew she was angry, she knew the feeling well since arriving in Auradon, but she had never felt this intensity before. The power of her fury raged freely throughout her, filling every crevice of her body with surging energy and seemingly releasing it through her pores to mingle with the oxygen surrounding her. The fury felt rooted to her at the same time it felt disconnected from her.
"Excuse you," Evie arched her eyebrow and placed her hands on her hips, silently challenging Audrey to continue.
The emotion was definitely inside her, the idea that anyone would even dream to fire a single shot at Carlos infuriating her; and although she knew the gun from which the bullet was released from was aimed to pierce her she couldn't believe anyone would sink low enough to drag Carlos somewhere he didn't belong. But she still felt different, she felt stronger; unbreakable even. Inside her was an unwavering fury that forced the urge to connect her knuckles to Audrey's nose onto her, making it an urge she barely managed to control.
It was as if something was intensifying her emotional response and urging her to physically respond in ways she normally never would; no matter how much she thought of doing so. And though she had never been the slightest bit violent there were definitely times where she had wished she could smack Audrey onto the Isle of the Lost. More often than not, the emotions driving that wish weren't even built from anger but from self-conscious thoughts that Audrey purposefully placed in the front of her mind because, despite her constant denial, she was acutely aware that Audrey had a talent for draining every ounce of progress she had made toward accepting herself for who she truly was.
"What's your problem?" A victorious smile crept its way into Audrey's features; she had gotten what she had wanted. "Did I strike a nerve reminding you that your boyfriend is nothing more than a useless puppy that cowers from everything?"
As Evie's eyes narrowed the crowned heart resting against her chest pulsed viciously, searing her skin through the material of her shirt, and she found herself taking a small, surprised step back when her mind registered the scene that had begun unfolding in front of her.
Before either of them could ever part their lips to verbalize another thought the ground directly below them had shaken violently, a blinding burst of light burning through the lenses of Evie's eyes. Her eyes reflexively squinted in self-defense, but the light was gone as quickly as it had appeared, and instead she found herself staring at a shrieking Audrey, roots that looked as though they belonged deep in the earth wrapping tightly around nearly every inch of her body. Through her shock, Evie felt another pang of anger for Audrey course through her chest, and the roots yanked the girl harshly to the ground, snaking around her midsection, almost like a threat. After that, Evie felt the anger draining from her body as shock took over completely, and she could only remain where she stood, her own feet feeling as though they had been rooted to the ground beneath them. She glanced around frantically, searching for any plausible cause for the unexplainable roots, finding that it was exactly that; utterly unexplainable. Even the area the roots had broken through the ground appeared completely undisturbed.
Then the heat from her necklace slowly faded.
Jay rushed into her view, quickly dropping to the ground beside Audrey to begin tearing and unwinding the roots from around his terrified and perplexed girlfriend. And then Carlos was by her side.
"What just happened?" Carlos asked in bewilderment, fingers clasping the end of the leash attached to Dude's collar.
But Evie barely heard him, her mind hazy from the sudden switch in her emotions; fury shifting to confusion, an edge of fear hanging tightly onto it. Mindlessly, she reached up to clasp the crowned heart cooling against her chest, an unsteady breath leaving her lips when she found it pulsing to the same rhythm of her heartbeat.