(Evie)
The sound of Mal's laugh had the corners of Evie's mouth stretching upward and her lips parting to show her radiant teeth, the melody more beautiful than any song she had ever heard – at least in her opinion. It was a sound she hadn't gotten to hear too many times, one she wanted to listen to for the rest of her life, and one she had been hearing all week. Honestly, she hadn't known she was so amusing.
I could get used to this.
With the first week of school after winter vacation at its end, Evie was looking forward to hearing that laugh for the entire weekend, especially considering her plans would have her cooped up in her room with the girl both days; funnily enough, it hadn't been her idea either, it had been Mal's. Mal wanted to teach her more about magic, and they couldn't exactly do that out in the open with others watching, so it had been decided that they would remain in their room, keeping everyone out unless they felt it safe to let them in. The entire idea had Evie's chest constricting as her heart seemed to grow with every beat against her ribcage, and she wasn't completely sure if it was due to excitement that she would be alone with the girl she had grown to adore more than anyone else, or if it was the result of the nerves she felt because she'd be trying to perform magic. She figured it was a little of both.
As she turned the corner that would bring them to her locker she shifted her heavy textbooks to one arm, readying herself to put in the combination that would unlock the door. Coming to a stop, she checked that the textbooks were balanced in her left arm before lifting her right up for her fingertips to grasp the knob.
"Here," Mal spoke softly as she reached out to take the textbooks from Evie's grasp.
"Oh, that's really not…"
But Mal shushed her, and Evie decided it felt strange being on this side of it. Still, as she paused to watch Mal lean her shoulder against the lockers next to her, the textbooks held to her chest, she knew that she could definitely get used to the girl being by her side.
"So…" Mal rolled her bottom lip around inside her mouth, clearly wondering if she should continue. "What was it like where you grew up?"
"On the Isle of the Lost?" Evie asked for clarification as she popped open her locker. "It was… different. Not then, of course, because it was all I knew, but it wasn't anything like it is here in Auradon," she brought her gaze to lock with light-green eyes, finding the curiosity inside of them. She turned her body to face the shorter girl, gripping the edge of her locker with one hand as she continued. "We lived off Auradon's leftovers. Food, clothes, make-up, books. Everything on the Isle is the stuff deemed unfit for Auradon. It's difficult to remain healthy and nourished when living off rotten and stale food, so it was definitely a shock to see the amount of fresh food here when we first arrived, but it was all we knew. None of us really thought there was anything wrong with the way we lived, and some even enjoyed it, but now that I've lived here for a year I just…" Evie trailed off, unsure if she should admit her true thoughts and feelings right now, the fact that Auradon kids were close enough to easily overhear making her question if it was the right time. She decided she didn't care. "It all makes me wonder who the real villains are, you know. The heroes live here in complete luxury, not even batting an eyelash as kids starve on the Isle, and they act as though it's utterly ridiculous that us villains want to see their glory come to an end. I mean, is it really so hard to believe that we could despise the people that have kept us locked up our whole lives, starving and fighting, all because of what our parents did?"
When Evie brought her gaze back to Mal's she found nothing but understanding and anger swirling around the girl's eyes, and the fact that the girl always knew and accepted how she felt only further solidified how she felt for her. She had never felt this comfortable with anyone; not with her mother, not even with Carlos or Jay. It made her feel as though she had found a missing piece of her soul, and it didn't matter whether their relationship was meant to be romantic or platonic, she knew they had been meant to find each other.
"Do you sometimes wish you still lived on the Isle?" Mal questioned, handing Evie the textbooks she held when requested.
Evie blew out a light breath. "Yes, I do. I know it wasn't really living, that it was more like surviving, but sometimes I find myself wondering if it's better even with all of its flaws. But I also know that I'd miss Auradon if I left, and I really don't want to live with my mom again."
The idea of having to live with her mother again haunted her whenever she found herself wishing she could go back to the Isle, and she closed her eyes and breathed evenly in order to push the thought away. However, when she felt warm fingertips brushing against her skin as they tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear she found the entire vision dissipating as if she had never created it, and she lifted her head for red-brown to meet a startling bright-green.
"You're eighteen, aren't you?" Mal asked, her voice quiet and her touch gentle.
Evie nodded, finding that she was leaning subconsciously into the girl's warmth, finding the heat almost unnatural but more comforting than anything else. Her breathing slowed and evened out when Mal brought her palm to caress her cheek, seeming to understand what she wanted.
"Then you don't have to live with your mother, even if you do decide to move back to the Isle," Mal stated, dragging her fingers down Evie's jaw and tapping the underside of her chin, scrunching her nose adorably as she did so. "Just because you're still in school doesn't mean you're not an adult. No one can tell you what you can and cannot do."
"So since you're still seventeen, does that mean I can tell you what to do?" Evie asked playfully, the right corner of her mouth curving upward into a smirk as she stepped closer to the shorter girl, leaning her own shoulder against the lockers.
An amused glint flashed through green eyes, and Evie found herself watching the largest smile she had ever seen gracing Mal's features form, her stomach flipping around ecstatically at the sight. However, she never got to hear the girl's response because the second those mesmerizing plump lips parted a less pleasant voice sounded from behind her.
"Hey, Evie, can we talk?"
Evie didn't even have to turn around to look at Doug to figure out that he wasn't in good spirits, and she already found hers lowering because she knew the boy was most likely upset about her being with Mal. As she straightened she watched the way the glint in Mal's eyes immediately disappeared, and she wished she could bring the spark back, but she knew it would be impossible with Doug around, the boy having never been timid of letting everyone know how he felt about the purple-haired girl.
"I meant without her," Doug announced, his blue eyes only briefly flickering to where Mal now stood behind Evie.
Evie's eyebrow lifted, her features settling into an expression that let the boy know she wasn't the slightest bit amused. "Whatever you have to say to me can be said in front of her."
"No, that's fine," Mal cleared her throat, pushing off the lockers. "I'll leave."
"Mal, you…"
"I'll see you back at the dorm," Mal interrupted her before she could really even begin, offering her a small smile that didn't come close to reaching her eyes.
Though she wanted to argue further, Evie respected the girl's decision to put distance between herself and Doug, so she returned the smile, reaching out to brush her fingers over Mal's briefly before letting her go. You don't deserve to be treated this way, Evie thought, prepared to let the other girl know later; no one does. When she focused on Doug again she found him already opening his mouth to say something, but she wasn't ready to let him off that easily.
"What is wrong with you?" Evie questioned angrily, her features hardening.
But he didn't seem to want to discuss anything other than what he had on his mind, and so he answered with his own question.
"Did you break up with me because you like girls?"
The question shocked Evie, and she found herself forgetting about everything that had just happened as it echoed in her mind multiple times. She couldn't believe it. This is what he wanted to talk about?
"I broke up with you because I didn't have feelings for you, Doug," Evie replied, well aware that it wasn't a lie. She felt she would have ended things with Doug even if she hadn't realized around that same time that she was interested only in girls.
"Then what was all that about?" Doug questioned, waving his hand around the area behind her; around the area Mal had been. "The way you were acting with her wasn't normal."
Evie scoffed, resisting the urge to roll her eyes as she reached into her locker to grab the textbooks she would need over the weekend, shoving the ones she could fit into her bag. Closing the locker door, she turned back to the boy. "And what exactly is normal? Girls tripping over themselves to bow at the feet of boys?"
"No… that's not what I'm saying," Doug shook his head, obviously astounded by her question. "I'm just saying that…"
"That it's not normal for girls to find love in each other?" Evie raised the last word in a question despite it being more of a statement. "It's a well-known fact that girls like boys, and boys like girls, isn't it?"
Doug huffed furiously. "Do you like girls, or not?"
"Yes, as a matter of fact I do," Evie answered, wrapping both her arms around the textbook she still held as she pressed it into her chest, moving to walk passed the boy. "And I don't care what's considered normal. That's not who I am, so I'm not going to live by it and pretend I'm someone I'm not."
"Would you just listen to me?"
Before she could get even three steps away from him a hand gripped her elbow, pulling her back around to face the owner. Her eyebrows furrowed and she yanked her arm from his grip, but she kept her words to herself, allowing him the time to speak.
"I don't care that you like girls, Evie, I only care that you like the wrong one," Doug explained in exasperation, his blue eyes pleading with her.
"Excuse me?" Evie spoke with a deadly calm, her voice quiet.
"You're… you go around acting as though Mal is the greatest person to ever exist when she's so far from. She's worse than the villains in the stories. She's worse than your mom, Evie," Doug stressed, his eyes glowing with hatred and worry. "There's something wrong with her, Evie, why can't you see that? She's dangerous, and you're too fixated on her good looks to see that. You're so caught up in her that you're becoming blind to the truth. Evie, you're lost because of her."
"Then I love being lost!" Evie shouted, not caring that the people around them were now watching their argument as if it were part of a TV show.
Those last five words had taken hold of the last strand of her patience and snapped it clean in half. You're lost because of her. She couldn't believe anyone would ever dare say something like that to her.
"Do you want to know why I fell for her? Do you want to know why she makes me feel as strongly as I do? Because she understands. There's almost something cruel about just how much she understands me. She feels everything. She embraces both the good and the bad, something everyone here has yet to figure out," Evie's voice shook with anger as she spoke, with frustration, her eyes beginning to water. She hated that Doug was acting like this, like he knew exactly what she was thinking and could make decisions for her based off what he believed. She hated that everyone acted like this. "I love her because she doesn't try to control me. I love her because she understands. I love her because she accepts me for who I am. I love her because she understands what it's like to go through the shit I went through, and she still accepts me. So, Doug, if you're right, and I am lost, then stop trying to rescue me because I don't want anyone to find me."
With that, Evie turned around and walked away from Doug, completely ignoring every pair of eyes that followed after her. Her blood boiled in her veins and the necklace pulsed against her sternum, the fury traveling through her creating faint blue sparks that crackled from the crowned heart.
(Mal)
"You know you have to actually try, right?"
"I am trying. I just… don't know how to pronounce it?"
A wave of pure joy and amusement erupted from deep within Mal as her head tilted back with her laughter, the girl's argument just about the worst excuse she had ever heard. The idea that Evie didn't know how to pronounce something amused Mal by itself, but the fact that the girl had raised the end in a question seemed to make it that much better because it only made it seem as though the blue-haired princess wasn't truthfully putting effort into anything she was doing.
"Maybe you should think of some better excuses first," Mal suggested, shifting so that she was sitting on her leg.
"If I did that I wouldn't get to hear that beautiful laugh of yours as often," Evie replied smoothly, red-brown eyes bright with undeniable adoration as she leaned the slightest bit forward, closer to Mal.
Heat reached up Mal's neck, lashing at her cheeks as she averted her gaze to the blue sheets underneath her. Beautiful? It was a word she would often use to describe Evie – though it didn't seem to do the girl justice – but she would have never considered that someone else might use it to describe her, or anything about her.
It had taken her a few days to untangle the mess of emotions she had felt Monday evening when her and Evie had accidentally gotten too close, breathing almost as one, but she had finally settled into the feelings Evie coaxed from her and even realized the pleasure she found in them. After that, she had realized that she felt something stronger for the princess, she had accepted that she craved something more than friendship with the girl despite not entirely knowing what that was. And now the things she did, the things she said, weren't completely in her control. She would speak her mind without even thinking about it, telling the girl how unbelievably gorgeous she was, how amazing she was; she would reach out to touch her before her brain even processed the movement, brushing the girl's slender fingers and caressing blue hair. She didn't know what was happening to her, but she found she wouldn't want it any other way because she loved the way Evie made her feel, inside and out.
However, one thing she could never figure out was how to respond to the things Evie said to her, the compliments and the playful teasing. It was like both completely powered down her brain and body. And so she manipulated the blue sheets with her fingers as she cleared her throat, laughing lightly.
"I know you know how to pronounce every word in this spell," Mal stated, her voice quieter than it had been before as she lifted her gaze to meet Evie's again. "You just don't believe in yourself."
"You're right, I'm sorry," Evie nodded, holding her hand out in front of her. "I'll do better, I promise."
But she didn't, and Mal couldn't help but laugh when the girl purposefully mispronounced the spell again, a single red-brown eye cracking open the slightest bit to note her reaction before both appeared entirely along with a radiant smile.
Mal smiled at the girl, shaking her head. "You're annoying."
"So are you," Evie replied, the corners of her mouth twitching in desperation to reach higher.
Mal couldn't believe how much had changed since the last time she had said those words to Evie, and she knew that they meant something completely different now than they had then. Before, she had actually meant them.
"That's your favorite shirt, right?" Mal asked, gaze dropping to an area of the girl's body it probably shouldn't. However, the bright-red of the glass jewel stole her attention through the way it contrasted with the dark-blue of the shirt, and it almost felt like the necklace was staring back at her.
"Yes," Evie's gaze dropped to her shirt as well, her fingers brushing lightly over the delicate fabric.
The proud smile gracing Evie's features almost made Mal feel guilty about what she was about to do, but she ignored that feeling, knowing she could easily set everything right if the plan didn't work. Flattening her palms against the mattress she moved closer to the beautiful princess, well aware that Evie was now watching her closely.
"May I?" Mal lifted her arms until her hands extended toward the girl's shoulders, making her intention perfectly clear.
"You know, if you wanted to touch me you could have just said so," Evie replied, a teasing smile curving her lips as she pushed her hair over her shoulders. "You don't have to pretend you're helping me with my magic."
Choosing to ignore the girl, Mal gently grabbed hold of Evie's shoulders while keeping her eyes focused on red-brown, hoping that it would distract the girl and keep her from looking at her shirt. Fortunately, it seemed to work. Unfortunately, Mal found herself forgetting what she had been doing because of the way Evie looked at her. Okay, bad plan. Maybe I shouldn't have tried distracting her with a staring contest. With a deep breath she forced herself to focus on the task she had set herself, and by the next time she blinked the color of the fabric beneath her fingers had turned to orange, the one color she knew Evie didn't like.
"It's a really nice shirt," Mal announced, letting her hands slip from the girl's shoulders and into her own lap. She was doing her best to hide the smile that would give it away.
"You did something to it, didn't you?" Evie released a heavy sigh, not even glancing down at herself.
Mal snorted with laughter, crying out in surprise when the shove Evie gave her nearly resulted with her on the floor. "You're too smart for me."
Finally, Evie dared a glance at her shirt. Mal lost every ounce of control she had held over herself with the cry of horror that sounded through the room, and it only got worse when Evie closed her fingers around the front of Mal's shirt and tugged her until their noses nearly bumped together.
"Fix it!" Evie demanded in a low voice, one that almost scared Mal as much as it amused her. "I'm not kidding, Mal! You know I hate orange!"
Mal nodded, still snorting with how hard she was laughing. "That's why I did it."
"This is the worst thing you've ever done to me," Evie huffed, letting go of her and narrowing her eyes.
"Oh, I'm not so sure about that," Mal replied, perfectly aware that she hadn't exactly treated the girl well when they first met. It sickened her to think about.
Evie dropped the glare, instead shifting her features to fit with the way she stuck her lower lip out in a pout, clearly hoping to trick Mal into changing the color back by being adorable. Not going to… Mal's thoughts stopped; okay, maybe it'll work. No one could blame her if she caved, no one sane at least. The expression Evie was giving her pulled in opposite directions on every centimeter of her heart, and she didn't feel she should be held accountable for the things she would more than likely do for the girl in the future when faced with this look.
"No," Mal shook her head, making herself believe the word. "You've got to do it yourself."
Evie only pouted more. "Please, M."
Oh my fucking… she knows exactly how to get what she wants. But Mal held strong, even though it meant she had to look away. "I would really appreciate it if you would stop that."
"Stop what?" Evie asked innocently, but the rasp in her voice told Mal that she was now smirking.
"Being so abnormally beautiful," Mal answered before she thought about what she was saying; again, she had little control over herself when it came to Evie. She had, however, meant to only think that answer, and now she had to bring her gaze further away as Evie's stare pierced through her heated skin.
When she felt the girl leaning closer to her she stopped breathing, holding her breath as she felt hands sliding over her knees. She wanted to lean into the girl, but she fought everything inside her and leaned away instead, bracing her hands behind her so she didn't slip off the edge of the bed, her eyelids falling to cover her eyes when the girl's breath coated her ear.
"I'm abnormally beautiful, huh?" Evie questioned in a low purr, and Mal decided she was about to have a heart attack. "I don't know about you, but I would do just about anything for an abnormally beautiful girl. Don't you agree?"
"Mmhm," Mal hummed, forcing herself to inhale.
"Then will you please change my shirt back?"
Disappointed with herself for having not seen that coming, Mal brought her hands up to the fronts of Evie's shoulders and shoved the girl away from her, a scowl reshaping her features as a raspy laugh sounded through the room. This isn't amusing, Princess.
"Stop messing around and fix your own shirt," Mal grumbled, trying her best not to laugh along with the girl. Okay, so maybe it's kind of funny. But overall, she was flustered.
Evie stuck her lower lip out in another pout. "You're no fun."
"I'm not paid to entertain you, E," Mal hissed, green eyes still narrowed at the girl.
"Oh? What are you paid to do?" Evie questioned, arching her eyebrow in a way that made Mal wish she could wipe every ounce of playfulness from the girl.
"Punch you in the throat," Mal answered, well aware that it wasn't far from the truth if considering the mission that had landed her in Auradon; it wasn't that different from killing someone.
"Okay, okay, calm down, grumpy," Evie reached forward to tap the tip of Mal's nose, which caused her to scrunch it. "No need to get violent."
"There's always a need to get violent," Mal retorted dishonestly.
Evie watched her with curiosity and amusement, a smirk playing on her lips, and Mal wondered if the girl was completely sane given the fact that she had only ever seemed intrigued by her violent nature. Maybe she has a death wish. It fascinated her that Evie only ever seemed spurred on when she threatened or insulted her, and seeing the look dancing around her red-brown eyes right now only confirmed her first suspicions of the girl. There's definitely something wrong with her. However, Mal loved every bit of Evie's insanity.
Once Evie finally diverted her attention Mal tried to get her breathing under control from the girl's earlier close proximity, still irritated that she had leaped directly into Evie's trap. I'm literally trained to avoid traps. She pushed the thought aside as Evie closed her eyes, watching the girl as she closed her fingers around the material of her shirt in attempt to change the color back to its original mix of dark-blue and white. A spark shot from the girl's necklace and Mal found herself its victim as it landed on her arm, shocking her lightly. That necklace has it out for me. It felt ridiculous to accuse an inanimate object, but she knew better than to think it was an ordinary piece of jewelry.
"I did it!" Evie exclaimed, drawing her attention from the blinking red light from the crowned heart.
She had been too focused on the necklace to realize the color surrounding it had switched back to the contrasting dark-blue, the edges of the sleeves fading back into a perfect white. Worried that the girl would think she had been staring at her chest, Mal quickly brought her gaze up to meet Evie's ecstatic one, finding that a smile tugged at her mouth due to how delighted the girl appeared.
"Noted; violence works on you," was all Mal said.
"Shut up," Evie playfully furrowed her eyebrows and shoved Mal lightly.
"Okay," Mal shrugged, gaze falling back to the necklace despite how much she tried to ignore its rapid blinking.
"I didn't mean that and you know it," Evie shook her head, smiling brightly.
However, Mal could tell that Evie's smile faded when she followed her gaze to the flashing necklace because she reached up to close the crowned heart in her hand, and when Mal glanced up to find that a worried and saddened expression had taken over the previous joyous one she understood why the girl had covered the unusual jewel. She would do anything to put the girl's radiant smile back where it belonged.
"I don't think your necklace likes me very much," Mal spoke hesitantly, hoping it wouldn't make the girl feel worse.
Uniquely colored eyes lifted to meet her seemingly basic color, and the first thing she saw was surprise. She's surprised that I know the necklace is unusual. How have others made her feel about this topic? It pained her to know that Evie believed herself insane for thinking her necklace was anything other than carved glass.
"You think so?" Evie questioned, slowly pulling her hand away and revealing the obnoxious glow of the red jewel.
"I know so," Mal confirmed with a nod, her gaze flickering back to the necklace. "Don't you remember when it knocked me on my ass for weeks?"
Evie let out a light laugh at that. "Not really. I barely remember any of what happened after Ben left. After that, the first thing I remember is you collapsing."
"I don't remember anything after that."
For some reason, Mal couldn't stop herself from reaching forward and slipping her hand underneath blue hair to press her finger into the chain resting against the side of the girl's neck. It was a terrible idea, she was well aware of that, but nothing seemed to be capable of stopping her as she trailed her finger down the part of the chain that rested against the tan skin stretching over a prominent collarbone.
"I caught you. I held you in my arms and called out for help," Evie's voice was barely more than a whisper, and Mal realized just how close they were because of the fact that she could hear every word with perfect clarity. "I was worried that you were dead. I had no idea how it happened and I could tell that you were breathing, but I couldn't stop myself from worrying that you were dead."
The evident pain lacing every word the girl spoke cracked something inside of Mal, and – somehow knowing it wouldn't end the same way – she slid her hand down the rest of the chain to grip the glass heart in her fingertips. Powerful electricity traveled up her arm and quickly coated her entire body, but she focused on the eyes that held everything she loved the most about the girl, anchoring herself to reality.
"If you really think you can get rid of me that easily, Princess, you're going to be extremely disappointed," Mal whispered affectionately, her knuckles lightly grazing the girl's chest through the material of her shirt. "It's going to take a lot more than anything this world could sustain to keep me away from you."
There were words itching at the back of her throat, words she didn't even know or understand, but she couldn't rid herself of the urge to express them because of the way Evie looked at her as if she had been craving her for her entire life. No one had ever looked at Mal in a way that didn't scream disgust or disappointment until she had arrived in Auradon, and even though some people still viewed her through those emotions she no longer cared about what any of them believed because of those that looked at her as though she were wanted. And while she valued each person who didn't see her as a disappointment or a threat, it was the way Evie viewed her that she knew she couldn't live without anymore, it was the way Evie treasured her that she knew she could never let go. There was something different about her, there always had been even though she had tried to ignore it at first.
When she felt fingers curling around her wrist she wondered if she had been staring for too long, and before she became hopelessly lost in the girl in front of her she forced herself to bring her gaze to the window, only to find nothing but black covering the forest outside. Dropping her hand from the necklace she glanced at the clock, her heart leaping into her throat when she read the time. 3:17AM.
Clearing her throat, Mal fidgeted in her spot briefly. "It's uh… it's late, I should probably…"
However, the very second she placed her feet on the ground beside the bed a hand grabbed hold of hers, keeping her from moving any further away. She turned back around to face the girl, finding nothing but love and desire swirling through red-brown eyes.
"Stay with me," Evie breathed out, her honey-laced voice nothing but inviting and sincere as she laced their fingers together and gently tugged on Mal's hand.
Without even thinking about what might possibly happen because of it, Mal crawled back onto the other girl's bed, leaning back into the pillows as their fingers slipped from each other's grips. She watched, her stomach flipping relentlessly, as Evie lifted her left arm around her shoulders and rested her head on her chest just beneath her chin, snuggling into her side. Mal subconsciously dug her fingertips into the girl's shoulder where her hand now rested, afraid of letting go.
Her body basked in the warmth Evie's body provided, in the comfort and security that came with holding the girl, and she allowed herself to be completely consumed by the blue-haired princess, not caring what consequences there would be from letting herself depend on someone again. Needing people doesn't make you weak, Mal. Evie's words from the first time she had admitted to needing the girl passed through her mind, the memory tugging on her heart. You are not weak just because you need someone to help you escape the demons that haunt your mind. You are strong for recognizing that need and not distancing yourself from them. For the first time, Mal believed those words with every broken piece of her heart, and it was only now – with Evie curled into her side, her head on her chest and her slender fingers reaching for her pale ones – that she realized those fragments had been sewn back together. Not only by Evie, but by Carlos, by Ben, and by Jay. It was simply fate that Evie had mended the largest part.