"See Me Now"

She knew all too well how others perceived her. They thought she was some evil, monstrous being that'll turn them to stone from a mere glance. She was either feared, hated, ignored, or a combination of the three, and such feelings only increased when she refused to sign the Storybook of Legends. They called her selfish, but was she really selfish for wanting her own happily ever after? They might not know or care, but she knew exactly what would happen if she pledged to her destiny. She'd be hated and scorned, destined to a fate filled with desolation and dread. Why in the world would she sign to such a fate?

Raven took a deep breath, eyes glazed over with tears that hadn't yet fell, her heart beating painfully. Her breaths were ragged, and her body trembled. She felt overwhelmed and completely, utterly alone. She loved her friends dearly, the few she had, but they could never hope to understand how she was feeling. Sure, their destinies might be unsavory to them, but none of them compared to the fate thrusted upon her.

They weren't the daughter of the Evil Queen. They weren't destined to be the greatest evil cast upon their world, and they weren't destined to be trapped inside of an enchanted mirror for all of eternity, which was honestly the best-case scenario. Worst-case scenario… There were several of those, and she didn't really want to think about them.

Honestly, she hated being at Ever After High. She got stuck taking classes she didn't want to prepare for a destiny she didn't choose. Almost all of the entire student body and teachers feared her or lumped her in the same category as her mother, and while she certainly didn't see eye-to-eye with her mother on a lot of things, she loved her dearly and hated it when people talked down about her. Whenever the Good King, who people tended to forget was her father, talked about how her mother used to be, he always described her as this enchanting, kind, warm young lady who was headstrong, thoughtful, and intelligent. He said that she wasn't always the way she now was, and she actually challenged her destiny and tradition itself, but ultimately followed it because she felt that there was no other way out of it.

And that made her wonder what kind of future her mother could have had if she didn't follow her destiny. Maybe she wouldn't have done what she did, eventually leading to her current imprisonment inside that enchanted mirror prison of hers. Raven took a shuddering breath, finally allowing salty tears to spill from her eyes and drip onto her pale cheeks. Burying her face into the palms of her hands, she finally allowed herself to cry. Everything was too much, the bullying, the taunting, the teasing. Everything hit her in waves, and despite what many people seemed to think of her, she did have feelings.

She almost jumped out of her skin when she felt a hand on her shoulder, and reluctantly, she looked up, staring at one concerned Dexter Charming. She knew she looked a mess: violet eyes rimmed red from crying, cheeks wet with tears, hair a frazzled mess. But Dexter didn't seem to care. Instead, he opened his arms, offering her the support and comfort she so desperately needed, and she fell into his embrace, sobbing into his shoulder while he held her.

He didn't offer her words of comfort, mainly because he didn't want to say something that could offend her but mostly because he knew she needed to do this. While he knew she was a strong, independent young woman, he also knew that she could only take so much of the negativity before it became too much.

Slowly, but surely, Raven stopped crying. Once the last tear she could muster up fell, she shrugged out of Dexter's arm, putting a bit of distance between them so she could gather her thoughts. Her breathing was harsh, and her eyes hurt, but she felt better to some degree. Wiping her face with the back of her hand, she met his gaze once more. His eyes, she noticed, were a gorgeous ocean blue, and they burned with concern for her. She wouldn't deny that she was flattered. A Prince Charming trying to comfort the Evil Queen was nothing short of odd, but she appreciated him being here with her. Their destinies were different, and he could get into some serious trouble being around her, but yet here he was.

"Hi," she managed to say, cringing with how hoarse her voice sounded.

"Hey. How do you feel?" he asked, and they were both surprised by how he didn't really stammer when he spoke to her.

"I could be better. I guess having people despise me for wanting to be happy took its toll on me." Dexter couldn't help but flinch from how bitter her voice sounded, but Raven didn't notice. "And why can't I have a happily ever after, huh? Do you know what happens at the end of my story, Dexter? Best-case scenario, I'll be imprisoned forever after. Worst-case scenario I'll be hunted down like a monster and killed." Her words were blunt, her tone tinged with both anger and hopelessness at her situation.

"I had no idea," was all Dexter could say, and he really didn't. No wonder she chose to flip the script. He really hated how defeated she looked with her shoulders slumped and a frown on her face. She deserved to be happy ever after, and he wished he knew what to say to make her feel better.

"I know. Maybe I need to madden-up and accept my unhappily ever after. That's what everyone else wants me to do," Raven sighed.

"Maybe that's true for most people, but not me. You going off script certainly freaked out a lot of fairytales, but it inspired a lot of us, me included. If you want to write your own destiny, then you should. Give 'em hex and never stop being true to yourself." Dexter's heart was beating fiercely within the confines of his chest, and he knew without looking that he was blushing like crazy. Raven stared at him, violet eyes wide in surprise from his passionate, sincere speech. And then she was hugging him, burying her face in chest. He hugged her back, hoping that this wasn't just some kind of dream and that he really had the girl of his dreams hugging him.

"Thanks, Dex. I needed to hear that. I won't stop writing my destiny. Hex, we should all have the freedom to choose our own paths, and I'm definitely going to choose my own path for myself."

"You're welcome, and I meant what I said. It may be hard now, but you deciding to pull the strings and do your own thing was both unhexpected and spelltastic. A lot of people didn't think you could do it, but you did. Keep proving them wrong, and show them that Raven Queen is the master of her own destiny." He was once again surprised by how easy it was talking to her, and thanked the gods that he sounded less of a nervous wreck and more like he really wanted to talk to her. He was even more surprised when she kissed him. Yeah, it was a kiss on the cheek, but it was still a kiss, and from the girl who effortlessly held his heart in the palm of her hand, it meant a lot.

"Aren't you the charmer?" Raven joked, her smile widening when she saw his blush deepen. Their destinies were certainly different: he was expected to be save a princess and be her Prince Charming while she was expected to be the greatest evil known and plunge the world into darkness. However, with her writing her own destiny, maybe it didn't have to be different. Maybe their paths could cross.

"I try to be. May I walk you back to your room?" He offered her his arm, and, smiling, she took it, linking their arms together.

"Lead the way, Prince Charming." Dexter snorted, rolling his eyes but smiling. He knew his parents, his father, in particular, wanted him to uphold traditions and fall in love with a princess, but to hex with traditions! While he couldn't openly rebel against them, he would support Raven in any way that he could. Besides, he wasn't completely breaking the rules. Raven was a princess, and he'd choose her over all the other princesses in the school any day. He'd gladly be her Prince Charming.

Hey! This is my first Ever After High story, so I hope you enjoyed it! I love, love, LOVE Dexven, so expect to see more stories of them, and other pairings too, in the future!