A/N Drugs are a theme here, so there is your warning. I don't own any of the recognizable places or characters. This story is part of a series that is called Descendants A-Z and is cross posted (always under "IvyNyx").

Carlos had been through abuse his whole life. Now that he has friends his life is better than ever. They had turned down the opportunity to go to Auradon, despite how badly their parents wanted them to go. The kids had pointed out their own flaws, accepting the beatings and starvation that followed. No matter how bad it was, it was better than what would have happened if they'd gone to Auradon and failed. In school they slowly regained their popularity, apparently being evil enough to not jump into a plan they were unprepared for was a acceptable to the other villain kids. It was the exact opposite of what their parents had done, hence they learned from their mistakes.

"Carlos party on Hooks' ship tonight, coming?" Diego asked his cousin in the hall.

"Yeah, everyone or just me?"

"The more the better" Diego said before heading off.

That night they were all on Hooks ship, this made Mal's last howler look like a toddler birthday. Diego and his friends played music while a large group of kids danced, wreaked havoc and generally acted like the evil teens they were.

"Hey Carlos, Diego wants me to drag you back stage to hang" Yazmine said. Carlos quickly followed her.

"Hey C, got a way for you to chill out a little!" Diego said, him and his friends sat around a table, a pile of white powder in the middle. Carlos sat next to his cousin, drugs were common enough on the isle, but Carlos usually didn't hang out with anyone but Mal, Jay and Evie and the worst they did was drink and smoke marijuana. Carlos watched the kids around him make neat lines of the powder and snort them. His first instinct was to bow out, but when his turn came Diego was watching him. He always wanted his cousins approval, and this seemed like a good way to get it. Besides what could one line hurt.

Carlos smiled and chatted, he was happy. Everything in his life was perfect, nothing could ruin this feeling. Diego laughed alongside of him while they danced around the area behind the makeshift stage.

Later that night alone in his tree house the depression came back. He doubted himself, questioning if his friends really liked him or not. In his mind everything was wrong again. That stuff Diego had given him made him feel better, a little more wouldn't hurt. So he climbed down and went to find his cousin.

Diego laughed and gave him a small baggie, with the warning that he'd have to buy the next supply on his own. Carlos went back to his tree house holding his powdered happiness.

"Have you guys noticed Carlos is, well not himself lately?" Evie asked one day at lunch a couple months later. Carlos was once again missing from their little group.

"Yeah, he's been really unpredictable lately." Jay said.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm worried about him." Mal admitted.

"It started after that howler on Hooks ship" Evie said.

"I'll be back, I'm going to bug Diego, maybe he knows what the hell is happening." Jay said.

"Diego!" Jay yelled catching up to the taller boy.

"Sup?"

"I wanted to talk about C."

"What about the runt?"

Jay fought the impulse to tell him not to call Carlos that, "He's been acting odd since Hooks Howler, I was wondering if you had any idea what's up with him?"

"No clue, he did a couple lines with us, but I haven't hung with him since."

Jay didn't even think when he slammed the taller boy against the wall. "You did what with Carlos?"

"It's not a big deal, sheesh what are you, an Auradon brat?"

"It's fucking Carlos, he's one step below suicidal, you think drugs will help that!"

"Coke cheers you up, he was practically the life of that party"

Jay just stared at the boy in front of him, "And when it wears off, then what captain know it all?"

"You get tired, itchy, and bitchy."

"Maybe you do, a lot of people get depressed anxious and paranoid!" Jay snarled.

"What the hell do you even care, it's runty little Carlos."

"He's my partner in crime, he can't partner with me if hes drugged out!" Jay didn't want to think about how much he wanted to kill the rodent in front of him "You better hope there is a good reason no one has seen him in two days, because if he is hurt from your stupid drugs I will kill you."

Jay gave the boy a rough shove, hoping he at least bruised his shoulder blades before heading off to Carlos's tree house. He'd really wanted to go there first, but now he at least knew what he may be dealing with. The core four had always avoided drugs, for the most part, now this crap. Jay thought up creative punishments for Diego while he walked.

Jay climbed up into the tree house, the sight before him made him curse. Carlos had clawed his skin open, he was covered in dried blood, laying on the floor unmoving.

"Carlos." Jay said, hoping he didn't startle the boy too badly.

"No, get away from me!" Carlos moved to sit against the wall, putting as much distance between himself and Jay as possible.

Jay stared at his friend. Sure him and Carlos hadn't always been friends like him and Mal, but the small boy had grown on him. Jay moved slowly, dropping to his knees to be less threatening.

"Hey, buddy, I'm not gonna hurt you."

Carlos looked up and his eyes widened, "Jay?"

"Yeah it's me"

"Go away. I'm not worth anything."

"Like hell, who else blew a hole in the dome."

Carlos just continued to stare at him

"Come on, talk to me. Whats up with you lately"

"Nothing"

"Bullshit, I talked to Diego."
Carlos drew his knees up, trying harder to make himself invisible. He didn't want his friends to know he had yet another weakness.

Jay scooted forward so he was knee to knee with the smaller boy.

"Talk to me, please?"

"I did a line of coke at the howler with D." Carlos mumbled into his knees

"That was months ago, keep talking" Jay promoted when Carlos stopped talking

"It made me happy, so I kept doing it, but I ran out of money and stuff so I couldn't get more. I can't do this." Carlos said sounding every bit as pathetic as he looked.

"What exactly is this?" Jay asked, no one had asked anything of Carlos that the knew of.

"I can't keep pretending to be evil, I'm not. I should have just went alone to Auradon. I couldn't though." Carlos let his head drop to his knees, he had nothing left to lose, but Jay had come to find him, so maybe he did still have one thing to lose.

"You could have gone, none of us would have stopped you."

"Not on purpose, but you did." Carlos said

Jay was taken back at how broken Carlos sounded, as if he'd admitted something that would make Jay hate him. Then it registered that he was what kept Carlos here.

"Why me? I didn't ask you to stay, at that point I really didn't care much at all." Now he'd have begged the boy to stay with him. The small pale boy had grown on him, love was unheard of on the Isle, lust existed but what Jay felt was deeper than that.

"Couldn't leave you, you protect me." Carlos said, his voice still small and broken.

"And now I'm protecting you again. Let me clean your wounds, and get you something to eat. You're in for a rough time, but I promise I'll help you."

"Why? I have nothing left to give, I traded everything but my soul." Carlos admitted.

"Maybe I'm breaking the rules again. Maybe I did the unthinkable and made a friend." Jay moved to grab the first aid stuff Carlos kept in the tree house, grateful the boy hadn't traded it off. He reached out and waited for Carlos to put his arm out. Jay carefully held his wrist and cleaned the cuts, lucky none of them were too deep.

"I just wanted to get rid of the bugs, they were all over me, didn't want to hurt." Carlos said.

"There weren't any bugs, it was the drugs. One of the many reason Mal and I don't mess with them."

"I know I'm stupid. I just wanted Diego to like me."

"Yeah, I remember you saying the same about your mother. You seem to have trouble with wanting people to like you that just want to hurt you."

"You don't hurt me, only one that never hurts me." Carlos said still not looking at Jay.

Jay let that sink in, Carlos had just admitted he liked him, but there was no way it was the same way he liked the slim boy.

"Yeah, I'm not good at abusing my minions, that's more of a Mal thing."

"'m not your minion, never was. Friends." Carlos said, he was sleepy but he didn't want to nightmares to come back.

"There are no friends on the Isle." Jay said, despite telling carols just a minute ago they were friends.

"Yeah, no love either. More proof I don't belong here." Carlos mumbled. His head hurt, one minute he felt like himself, then he felt like he was the most useless person on earth, he couldn't take much more of this.

"Love some one do ya? First reasonable explanation I've heard for using drugs. Who's the lucky girl?" Jay asked, he knew the answer would hurt him, but maybe he could help Carlos find happiness that didn't ruin his life.

"Not a girl, not straight." Carlos said, he thought Jay would have guessed that by now. Carlos spent exactly zero seconds staring at Mal or Evie.

"Lucky guy then." Jay conceded.

Carlos lifted his head, if he was going to sink that far, he at least wanted to enjoy Jays expression before he killed him. After all, Jay would never love a worthless little runt like him. "You. Always you." Carlos said, he could feel his pulse, this was worse than any drugs, his heart felt like it was vibrating as he watched shock flit across his friends face, then a smile. That wasn't right.

Jay felt his lips quirk into a grin, Carlos had just admitted he loved him. He looked as if he expected Jay to hit him, or at least call him something.

"Love you too." Jay admitted, watching surprise register in the pale boys eyes, before they turned hard.

"Don't be that much of a villain, please. Just hit me and get it over with." Carlos said.

Jay was surprised to see tears in his friends eyes. He reached out caught Carlos' chin gently forcing the smaller boy to look at him. "I'd never hit you" He said before leaning down to press his lips to Carlos's. A second later he pulled back

"But you're not gay" Carlos tried to argue.

"I don't like any other guys, but there is something about you."

"Yeah a worthless little runt." Carlos said with venom. Jay was reminded of Diego calling him a runt and wanted to punch the older De Vil even harder.

"You're not worthless, not to me anyway. I may have to admit you're small, but your not a runt. You're the perfect height to be a moving arm rest" Jay said with a smirk, grateful that Carlos gave him a small smile before letting his head fall back to his knees. The next months were going to be hell for both of them, but at least they'd have each other.