Hey!

Thanks to BlueMoon007 for my first review.

So this chapter is like the title suggest how old habits start rising, it will be more clear further in the story. There is a little more language in this chapter, I hope you enjoy nonetheless. Please tell me what you think of it, what I can improve and review.

Now to the story.

"What the fucking hell?!"

"What do you mean 'what the fucking hell?'!" Jay mimicked in an annoyed half screaming way that just furthered irritated Mal.

"Why did you come? What the heck were you thinking? 'Oh, yes let's go to the isle with the fucking King of Auradon!'" Mal screamed getting closer to Jay every time so that he would feel intimidated. It didn't work.

"I could say the same thing! What where you thinking?! You just don't run like that. Not on us!".

"Not your fucking business Jay." She said lowering both her volume and her gaze.

"Yes. Yes, it is my fucking business. It is ours, you don't turn your back on us! Screw Auradon if you want to but you don't turn your back on US"

"Damnit. I don't want to do this now" She said turning around and starting walking.

"No! We are doing it now, whether you like it or not" Jay grabbed her arm and turned her to face him. She pushed him in the chest in order for him to let her go, but he didn't. "Don't give me this crap"

"I. Don't. Want. To. Talk" Jay didn't know if it was her voice or the killing glare she was giving him but he suddenly felt the need to let go, be safe. But he didn't. He was just as stubborn and scary as her. So you wanna play this game huh? I can do it too. He gripped her tighter and walked closer to her in a defiant position.

"I know about the letter," He said, and it was just what he needed to say, he knew, because he caught her attention "We all know about the letter, it means nothing. You shouldn't have left us".

"You don't know how it is. None of you do. So stop looking me like that Carlos" While she screamed the last sentence she pulled her arm and it finally hot free from Jay's grip.

"Don't give me that shit. We've been through hell together. Don't come saying shit you don't want to get into. You don't stand being the center of attention fine, screw them. But you left US"

"So that's what this is about? Because I left you, Jay? Because I hurt your shitty feelings?"

"We both know that ain't true. You couldn't take being the King's girlfriend anymore. You couldn't handle the pressure so you left. You quit. And you told us through a shitty piece of fucking paper" They stayed quiet "You quit, we don't quit, but you did and know we lost Evie and The mother-fucking king of Auradon" They weren't screaming anymore. They just stood glaring at each other, threatening to kill one another (as much as they threatened they weren't capable of hurting each other).

They stayed glaring at each other, silent, looking for the other one to fall apart. Waiting for the other one to make one wrong move. Just like they used to. It was as if for a moment they forgot everything they had overcome. And they were just in the isle again; kids who were never really kids fighting to survive in a place that living was impossible.

Evie woke up in her old room chained to her bed with one hand. Luckily, since meeting Jay, he insisted in teaching her how to unlock anything; call it a door, a safe and to her fortune handcuffs. To her surprise, everything in there was exactly as she left it, a little dusty, but other than that everything was just as the day she left the isle to go to Auradon. So she reached for the box with hairclips (she always kept her makeup and hair decorations close from where she slept just in case she had too quickly get out or meet someone, as she never left her room without looking astonishing). She unlocked herself and turned her head to grab some scissors she used for sewing, something to protect herself with, when she froze. She froze out of pain. Her neck was suddenly boiling. The pain she felt moments earlier, or so she thought, was coming back in a less intense form not enough to make her pass out, but still a tremendous amount of pain.

It took a while to recover from that pain but she managed. She had to. She kept telling herself that she had to be ok, she had to. That she needed to get to the others.

She stepped to her dressing tab, looked into the broken, dusty mirror and saw what her mother had done to her neck or to be more precise, what she had carved into it.

Evie had been marked. As an animal, well thinking about it, everyone in this rotten isle were treated worst than animals so it should've been no surprise. What was on her neck not only screamed Evils Queen Property but it also served as a remainder; no matter how hard she tries, she'll always be a villain kid.

What she saw not only surprised her but make her cry. Despite being the one in the core four that showed her feelings the most it was uncommon to see her cry. They didn't cry, they weren't weak. They were strong. I am strong, I'm not weak, I will not give her the satisfaction… but I'm strong enough, I'm not…

She stood up, cleaned her neck. Grabbed a gauze put it on it covering the mark in there. She took a piece of clothing (the pieces she had from where she used to make her outfits from) and placed it around the gaze and around the neck so it looked like a chocker. That way, or she thought, no one would notice anything weird about it.

She then grabbed the rusty scissors she had intended to grab earlier an headed to the dungeons, with extreme caution as every movement hurt like hell, she headed where she thought Carlos, Jay and Ben where.

It has taken a great strength out of Carlos to take the two teenagers to behave and stop trying to kill each other.

When they finally agree that rescuing their friends was of more importance at the moment than seeing who would kill who, they stood discussing a way to get them, they didn't got to settle in anything when they heard squirrel like scream from down in the street, so they decided to look what that was about.

Ben was in a state of shock. He didn't know what to think. It had all happened too fast. It was supposed to be fast. Although it was him who insisted on coming. Now he was standing alone in a cell, filled with rats and cockroaches and minions and villains and loneliness.

Mal did say she was coming back for him, but even if she did, she would need to trade 3 powerful dark magic objects to the Evil Queen for his life. He understood the term of greater good but right now all he could think about was getting out of there. Was that selfish? Am I selfish?

"What did I get my self into?" He whispered to himself with sorrow.

Almost on cue, Evie walked out to the dim light of the dungeons. "I have an idea of what you got yourself into but I rather tell you what you are getting out of"

"Evie!" Ben shouted in excitement. "Where were you?"

Evie was unlocking the door with… keys?

"And how did you get the keys?"

"I have my ways," said the girl throwing her hair backward in a seductive way, though despite her attempt to cover how weak she was feeling Ben noticed she seemed to be a lot lighter.

"O…kay? You look…"

"We should get out of here before anyone notice we are gone" she said cutting Ben before he could realize anything was wrong "Faster Ben! C'mon".

They got out of the castle, but Evie was stumbling with almost every wall in their way out. Fortunately for her, Ben did not notice this, as he was to busy worrying for his life. However he also failed to notice at least 5 henchmen coming their way, it was thanks to Evie's great knowledge of the dungeons and its passages that got them out of there.

They were getting near the place they first approached when getting to the isle, where they found Mal, with Evie, somehow, alert and standing. She was starting to get all dizzy, after all, she had lost a lot of blood. But regained all senses when she heard a squirrel like scream.

Ben shouted for Mal. Not a minute passed when Jay, Carlos and Mal were already running towards them. Mal hugged Ben and Evie simultaneously, but immediately let them go as it would be to easy for anyone to attack them under those conditions.

"Up" She ordered.

No one hesitated, nor complained at the command given. All 5 of them went upstairs.

"Explain" Mal demanded

Both Evie and Ben hesitated before speaking. Evie wasn't feeling like talking and Ben hadn't just fully processed what just happened.

"I don't know. It was, I was in... Well, in the dungeon, just where I was left after you were taken out and it seemed like an eternity in there. I was going mad. But the Evie showed up. She rescued me. And now we are here" The young king explained. Mal turned her head to Evie, who seemed to be... Paler?

"Yeah, that about sums it up. A short quick explanation. But it works" Evie answered in response

"Ok, I think we all can agree on discussing this in Auradon. So boys, be ready we're leaving in a moment" at this announcement Jay and Carlos nodded in agreement and Ben simply followed them to the next room. Evie was about to go after them but Mal stopped her.

"Are you going to tell me?" Mal asked in the sweetest voice she has yet it had a sense of command and firmness while pulling a chair for her friend to sit.

"Ben just explained it" The blue haired princess answered avoiding at all time visual contact.

"Yeah…" Mal started "So that swollen neck of yours. It's just, what, a hickey?"

Evie lowered her gaze

"You know you can tell me. You now that"

Evie looked directly at the floor not daring to move an inch. Probably also because of the pain.
Mal stayed quiet. She didn't want to pressure her friend, but damn it, they didn't have a lot of time. She stayed still as she, even now, had a hard time expressing her feelings or consolating her best friend.

"At least eat something, you are going to faint. You look like death" She handed her friend an energy bar, they had packed on their way to the Isle. Evie ended up eating at least 4 of those as a little color came back to her. "See, that's better. Now. We are not leaving until you say what the fucking hell happened to you?"

"Not now Mal, we need to get out"

"No. If we go, you'll figure out a thousand other excuses not to tell me. So now"

"Just like you didn't tell us about leaving?" The other girl asked in a defiant way.

"Not you as well…"

"What were you expecting to happen?"

"Fair enough, we'll talk. But you go first"

There was a moment of silence before Evie started to speak.

"She... She just reminded me that... She... She marked me" Her voice was breaking, and Mal had the sudden urge to hold her friend tight and never let go, protect her, but she knew perfectly well Evie didn't want to be touched. Not right now, it wasn't the time. She also knew who SHE, that Evie kept saying, was. And right now, she felt as powerless as years before when she had to watch her friends get tortured by their parents and could do nothing because she wasn't supposed to care. Because love was a weakness.

Mal stood behind her friend and with extreme caution, she took the blue ribbon in her friend's neck showing the mark. Evie just let her friend uncover it, she wasn't feeling like discussing against it. She wasn't feeling like fighting back.

"It's a…" Mal wasn't able to finish the sentence when her friend started speaking.

"broken crown, because I'm a disgrace. I'm a princess that will never be just enough for her mother. I'm broken and useless"

"I'm going to kill that fucking old hag" said Jay who just entered the room where the blue and purple haired girls were. He was followed by Carlos and Ben.

Almost in instinct Evie turned and covered her neck, but it was too late as everyone had seen it. Everyone, including Ben. Ben who had, until that moment, seen none of their scars. Ben stood there, unable to move or react.

Carlos raced towards Evie and helped her keep the few bleeding in. He then cleaned the surrounding area and put a gaze on her neck, wrapping it with the same ribbon that she had worn moments earlier.

"You're getting better" said Evie with a dim smile.

"I had the best teacher" he answered. Evie was the one who cured all of them after a big fight, either with an other section of the isle or with their parents. She normally took care of both their physical and emotional scars and could normally get care of her own; however, there was a time she got badly hurt and Carlos decided he, too, should learn how to help in a time of chaos. But to be honest, Evie was the 'doctor' of the team.

Jay took a very large knife and was headed out of the room.

"Jay!" Mal screamed.

"What?!" he turned pointing the rusty old knife at the girl. Though she wasn't intimidated. She knew he wouldn't hurt her, it was merely an instinct for him "You saw what that whore did to Evie. She deserves to die"

"And you are just going to march into the castle and kill her?! While you're at it you can kill Cruella and Jafar. They're all fucking assholes as well" the girl screamed back.

The older boy understood what Mal was trying to say and it just helped infuriate him more.

"Don't you think I don't want to kill them? make them suffer the way we have suffered for so long? We've been through this time and time again. They are too powerful to be touched and now that Grimhilde has taken my mother position…"

Jay threw the knife to the wall hitting a target in the wall, most likely painted by Mal to improve their, well, their target.

"We need to go, Evie needs to be properly checked" Carlos said

"No! No doctors. Please" Evie begged at the team. Mal couldn't stand seeing her friend in that position. It made her feel powerless. They all perfectly knew none of them liked showing their scars, that is considered an act of weakness. And now that they were back at the isle... Well, there are things that are too deep down skin that can't be changed. As for doctors, they all hated them. Truly, the only 'doctor' any of the core four trusted was Evie and her experience was limited, perhaps less than a few months ago now that she had access to books about human anatomy and take care, but still limited. Doctors in the isle made more harm than good and that… they couldn't see pass that, not even in Auradon.

"But, Evie? It could be infected" Ben finally spoke breaking his state of dumbness.

"I get you are just trying to help, but if she doesn't want doctors we won't force her to see one" Carlos said trying to reason with him. Before anyone could speak further about the subject, Mal spoke.

"Let's move, Carlos, Jay and Ben go first. That way we won't attract so much attention. Evie and I will found you at the docks"

When Carlos, Jay and Ben were gone Mal picked some stuff from the room and was ready to go.

"Mal. You still owe me an explanation" Said Evie who even hurt was able to make anyone feel scared or uncomfortable.

"I know"

After a moment they were getting out of the room when Carlos and Jay ran towards them. Before the girls could ask anything they answered.

"We were ambushed by Uma's crew. They took Ben"

"Your majesty, they got away"

The Evil Queen, who was unsurprised by the otiosity of her minions slapped the man across the face.

"Plan B is being executed, your majesty"

While cleaning her hand with what used to be a white handkerchief she said "Make sure they don't screw this up" With that the man raced towards the exit, not before bowing at the queen.

She then sat in her throne, waiting for her plan to go as it was supposed to, after all it had to be, it was flawless, just as she was.