This was so exciting. This was so exciting!

She couldn't wait.

When her mom and dad had suggested college–reluctantly, she knew. And she was too. She'd only been with them for half a year before traveling to Auradon and she missed them dearly–she had to go. Go and see the world and meet new people and learn more and more and more about the world. Eugene wasn't as excited, but when she told him he didn't have to come he'd said, "I'm not that easy to scare off, Blondie. Besides, someone has to keep you away from all the ruffians and thugs."

Neither of them expected the VKs, but she was so excited to have them on campus. They'd be good friends for Eugene and she was curious about what their parents were like. Back in Corona she'd heard whispers about how if Gothel hadn't…died…she probably would've been sent to the Isle of the Lost. Gothel was a Villain and Rapunzel kind of hoped the other Villains weren't like her. Now that she'd met the VKs, she knew the other villains were much worse than Gothel. She hoped she could help. At least a little. Show them that the world wasn't all bad.

Which was why she couldn't wait for Evie and Mal to join her.

"This is wonderful, Pascal," she smiled as she added a light stroke of white to her ocean landscape. The ocean was so big. She couldn't believe it could be so big. "We have more friends. And Mal likes art! Do you think she'll let me see some of her work?"

Pascal, perched on her shoulder, shrugged.

"You're probably right. But I can still try."

"Try what?" a voice asked and Rapunzel turned to smile at Mal as she entered the room.

"Hi, Mal!" Rapunzel beamed. Peering past the shorter woman's shoulder, she added, "Is Evie with you?"

"Nah. Said she forgot to do her homework or something," Mal shrugged. Every step was confident and steady as she joined Rapunzel, dropping her bag on the table next to Rapunzel's easel. Eugene walked the same way. Was it a thing from their pasts? Or just their personalities? She wasn't sure. "She wanted me to tell you she's sorry she couldn't make it."

"That's okay. I'm glad you were able to come."

"No one else usually is," Mal snorted. A small smirk curved her lips to match the spark of pride and mischief in her eyes. It was beautiful. The life and power she had. One day she'd need to try and paint Mal. "Seems to run in my family." Rapunzel laughed and Mal glanced at her with a faint frown before smirking again. "Oh well, I can crash any party I want." As she leaned against the table, Mal turned her misty gaze to the canvas. "Ocean?"

"Yeah!" She smiled at her painting, a hand on her hip, not caring if she got paint on her skirt. It was a simple maroon skirt she matched with her brown vest over a cream shirt. If some paint got on her clothes it'd just make it more colorful. "I saw it for the first time when I came here. It's so pretty, isn't it?"

"I guess so. I like the sky better."

Eyes widening, Rapunzel bounced in place. "Oh I love the sky! Especially at night with all the stars. I mapped them while I was in the tower. They're beautiful." On her shoulder, Pascal squeaked his disapproval and scampered onto the top of the easel to stick his tongue out at her. She patted his head and offered him a grape, most of her attention still on Mal.

For a moment Mal didn't say anything, gaze a bit distant. Rapunzel knew that look. It was the look Eugene had whenever they got close to a painful part of his past. Before she could say anything to change the subject, Mal nodded, "They are. No wonder all those stupid princesses wish on them."

"I don't know. Maybe they are magic," Rapunzel shrugged. "I mean my hair was magic for eighteen years of my life. If hair can be magic, then stars can definitely be magic." Oh that was a beautiful image. She needed to paint that idea. Snatching up her journal, she jotted the idea down.

"Art ideas?" Mal asked.

Not looking up, Rapunzel nodded. "I kind of covered the tower walls and I had to keep painting over them when I had new ideas because there wasn't enough space. I can't remember all of the ones I had there, but now that I can actually paint everything I never let new ideas disappear."

When she finally got to do Mal's portrait she should add magic stars in her eyes. Bright and mysterious just like her. Mal's eyes were grey so a lot of colors would go well to give it that magical look. She had to include green and purple though. They were Mal's signature colors. An important piece of her identity. What other colors could she use?

"I've never tried painting."

Pascal's dropped jaw spoke for both of them. Mal had never painted?

"There was never any real paint on the Isle," Mal continued. "And trying to make it was a waste of time and resources."

"That changes today!" Mal's eyes widened as Rapunzel grabbed her hand, but Rapunzel just smiled before tugging her over to the paints. "What do you want to paint? A sunrise? The courtyard? Oh! Or, or you can paint one of your tattoos or crests!"

"Calm down, damn," Mal huffed, pulling her hand away. But she didn't sound angry so Rapunzel smiled, bouncing in place as she watched the other woman sort through the paint options. Mal's movements were a little too calculated, almost radiating tension, so Rapunzel retreated a couple of steps, humming as she turned her attention back to her own painting.

It looked good. It needed some more lighter blues and greens though. And more floofy clouds. Oh and maybe a seagull! Yes a seagull would be perfect. That was exactly what she needed. A happy seagull flying over a wave.

Retrieving her palette, Rapunzel set to work, humming one of the songs she'd learned from The Snuggly Duckling crew. It was probably something a princess shouldn't know if Pascal's expression and the other princesses at the university were anything to go by. But she wasn't a princess like them. The tune was bouncy and fun and…well, she didn't need to worry about the lyrics.

When she heard Mal set up an easel with a few creative swears, Rapunzel waited a minute or two before glancing over. The daughter of Maleficent was staring at the paints, arms folded, looking like she was ready to give orders to tiny paintbrush soldiers. She didn't give orders, though, just stared.

"Any ideas?" Rapunzel asked and Mal's grey eyes snapped over to her, guarded. Right. This was her first time painting. It probably felt really different and weird to her.

"Not sure yet," Mal admitted after a moment.

"Hmm." Then her gaze drifted to the green and purple bag on the table and the corner of a sketchbook just peeking out. "What do you usually draw? Maybe we can find an idea in your sketchbook?" Slowly, she took a step towards the table, fingers hovering above the cover. In all honesty, she really really really wanted to see Mal's sketches. Art was her life and the chance to see the world through Mal's eyes felt like a rare gift. This way she could help and sate her curiosity at the same time. Of course she'd respect the other woman's privacy if she said no. It was Mal's after all. It was her choice whether or not Rapunzel was allowed to look.

Mal hesitated, eyes narrowing, and Rapunzel simply nodded as she pulled her hand back and moved away from the table. Finally, Mal walked over and picked up the sketchbook. "Maybe," she conceded and Rapunzel couldn't contain a squeal of excitement.

When Mal raised an eyebrow at her, Rapunzel gave her a wide smile. "Sorry. I'm just excited to see your drawings. Your crest designs were amazing and I've been so curious to see what else you've done."

"It's really nothing that amazing," Mal shrugged, rolling her eyes and opening the sketchbook.

"I'm sure that's not true," Rapunzel disagreed. Rocking on her heels, unable to stay still, she peered over Mal's shoulder, Pascal clambering onto her head for a better look.

The Isle came to life on the pages, lines and shading giving it form and depth. A rundown market of shabby stalls and limited wares. Piers crusty with salt and debris and populated with grubby fisherman. As realistic as they were, there was an emptiness to them. Melancholic and lifeless. Nothing but pieces of a story that had no happy beginning. Let alone a happy ending.

But there were two subjects that felt different. Small almost havens with a little more life. A ship, old and creaky and proud, though there was a mix of anger and envy in the strong and elegant lines. A small little shack filled with little odds and ends and a single saggy mattress, a tiny space with personality and a spark of life.

There was a story hidden in the charcoal, a story Rapunzel wished the world could see. The Isle was Mal's home and, even though she clearly had no love for it, it would always be a piece of her; the details were too intricate for the subjects to be anything but part of the artist. The daughter of Maleficent was scarred and hurt, but Rapunzel couldn't see a villain in the art. A villain wouldn't see the individual barnacles living on a dock post. A villain wouldn't take the time to include small little scraps of cloth stacked on a table next to a pincushion.

Mal hesitated halfway through the book before slamming it shut. "This is stupid," she hissed. "I don't want to paint the fucking Isle."

That made sense. She should've thought of that. "Okay," Rapunzel smiled as Mal shoved the sketchbook back into her bag. "Maybe just take inspiration from the colors you chose."

For a moment Mal just gave her a strange look, like she couldn't quite understand Rapunzel. Rapunzel didn't mind. She got that reaction a lot so she just kept smiling as she waited for Mal's answer.

"Maybe."

"What colors did you pick?" Curious, Rapunzel went to Mal's easel and studied the colors she'd chosen. Black. A deep, rich blue. Wine purple. Silver. Turquoise. "You like the sky right? This is perfect for a night sky." Picking up a clean paintbrush, Rapunzel mimed swiping paint across the canvas. "Streaks of different colors blended together. I love that about paint. It doesn't care if you make a mistake. All you have to do is let it dry a little and then put a new layer over it."

"Huh," was the only reply she got from Mal. But she nodded and Rapunzel helped her set up her paints then watched as she began to experiment. Slowly, Mal relaxed, the strokes of her brush flowing easily, almost elegantly, as she created a sky of unknown dreams and magic. Still dark. Still fragmented and fractured. But still stunning. Rapunzel shared a smile with Pascal before losing herself in her own painting again.

The rest of the afternoon passed in multicolored companionship.