Hey Descendants,

We're back for another week of updates, so happy Monday.

-Dark-

Back in the boys' room...

Where the fuck was he? And why wasn't he answering any of his damn texts? It had been four hours. Carlos' session had been moved to tomorrow and she'd moved him into her room for the night. She'd already cast a sound-proofing spell. She was ready for whatever Jay came through the door with.

She frowns as the tip of her pencil breaks for the seventh time. She growls as she throws it down on the sketch of Deez reading over one of her tablets.

Damn it. She groans as she lets her back hit Jay's mattress. Seriously, where the fuck was he?

Had he hauled off and punched David?

He had been pretty on edge lately. They both had. She rolls her bottom lip between her teeth. Jay had been so volatile lately. She holds a hand over her eyes. He hadn't gotten himself sent back to the isle, had he? She grabs a pillow and holds it to her face, muffling her screams at the mere thought. She curls around the pillow as her screams morph into wails.

She couldn't lose someone else.

She couldn't lose Jay.

"Mal?"

"Jay!" Mal sits up in relief as she drops the pillow. She rolls off the bed, her feet already running as she launches herself at him before she can think to stop. Her arms wrap around him, hugging him to her.

Jay sighs deeply before he wraps his arms around her in return, hugging her tightly, "Sorry." He whispers thickly.

Mal hugs him tighter. "Good." She ducks her head into his shoulder when the wall begins to blur. "We were all worried about you, asshole." She reprimands.

"I didn't know those could be more than an hour." Jay cups the back of her head as he rests his chin on her head, "And I had to go see the Baymax again."

Oh no! He hadn't actually done something that stupid, right? He wouldn't lose his shit enough to hurt a hero. Right? She blinks away her tears; she tilts her head up to study him, not acknowledging the fact she was still hadn't released him. "You didn't punch him, did you?"

Jay's lips twitch into a small smile, "No, I didn't punch him." He, seemingly absent-mindedly, rubs her back, "It was an-" He takes a deep breath as he tilts his head to the side, "interesting meeting."

Her shoulders drop as her muscles finally relax and she lets out a deep exhale. "Thank you." She squeezes him, "It must've been." He was with his counselor for four hours? Seriously? The whole time? Evie's session had lasted just over an hour, and then her session had run over an hour and a half. At the time she thought they'd taken up to much extra time, but a four-hour session?

She frowns as she looks for the bags under his eyes she knew had to be there. She couldn't imagine how exhausted he must be. She'd wanted to collapse after walking out of Nani's room.

"I-" Jay furrows his brow before he guides his hands to her shoulders, "We're doing things differently here," He says, and it would have sounded like a statement until he followed it with, "right?"

"That was Deez's dream wasn't it?" Mal admits with a shrug, "For us to be able to be ourselves?"

"But do we want this?" Jay questions without being able to make eye contact, "Because I-" He moves his hand, as if to rub the back of his neck, but pauses mid-action, "I think I do. But if we're going to change our minds, I need to know before I- I mean I don't know if I can take David's help and then go back to the way I was before."

Mal reluctantly drops her arms as she steps back, but not before she grabs his wrist to keep the contact. "To be away from our parents and our toxic relationships with them? Fuck yes, I want to that. I really hope we all do." She sighs, "So I mean, I have no interest in going back when I've already committed to so much here. I know neither of us wants to hear it, and it's fucking stupid to think… But, like, big picture we could do so much more for the rest of them here than we could on the isle. We just need to figure out how best to help."

Jay nods before he twists his arm to take possession of her hand and tugs her towards the bed, "I need to sit, maybe lay down." He puts his free hand to his forehead, rubbing just above his slightly puffy eyes, "I want to talk about this, but I've also had a day."

"As long as you don't kick me out I don't care…" Mal admits. Or shut her out. Whatever it was that had happened to him, at least he wasn't punching walls or running for the closest tree.

"I want you to stay." Jay quickly assures her, "I wouldn't mind us all being together, but honestly I was going to ask if you," he sits on the edge of his bed and pulls her with him, "Do you mind staying with me?"

"Sorry," She frowns as she looks up at him, "I wasn't sure what was happening and I didn't want to worry-" Her eyes widen as she scrambles to pull out her phone.

Jay puts his hand over hers, "I'm also okay with not worrying them right now. Go ahead and let them know I'm fine, but they don't have to be here," he explains before he moves his hand away.

"Got it," Mal nods her head before she sends them both a text, summarizing what happened and promising to see them both at breakfast. She drops her phone to the side after telling them to go to sleep, "You were going to have a hard time kicking me out anyways." She adds with a small smirk as she turns to look at him, "I-" She sighs. She hadn't realized until mid-way through her session how much she'd taken Jay for granted. Had accidentally put on him. How much she expected out of him because he'd yet to fail her. She'd just always relied on him. Like a foundation. "I- I appreciate you." She gets out, as she looks down at the comforter and starts picking at a stray thread. "And I'm- I'm sorry I've never said that."

"Thanks, M." Jay smiles before he pulls her into another hug, easily tucking her against his side, "But, I always knew that. Why do you think I worked so hard for you?"

"Because I'm scary and told you to." She leans against him, arms around his waist as she hugs him back.

"I can be just as scary and you know it." Jay sighs before he tips them back to lay against the pillows, "But seriously, I've always believed in you. And we shared a cause. We're a team." He chuckles before he turns his head towards her, "Did you know humans are pack animals?"

Mal tilts her head to the side, her mouth opening to argue that she didn't need anybody before she shuts it. She did need people, didn't she? They all did. She wouldn't have been able to accomplish anything on the isle if it wasn't for the other people she chose kept by her side. Her cheeks heat up as she looks away. "Not till you just said it."

"I didn't think about it either until David pointed it out. But we are. We like, lean on each other when we need to, and make each other stronger." Jay pulled her closer until the sides of their heads gently bump.

"That's true." Mal frowns, her heart constricts at the thought of how terribly lonely she'd have been without her friends with her on the isle. Her thoughts drift to something that had bothered her since she'd heard it. "I don't know how T survived being locked in a room for so long by himself…"

"He wasn't alone." Jay shrugs and shifts to pull out a slightly crumpled stack of papers, "I haven't gotten to read much of it yet, but at least it talks more about what split a personality is, not just what causes it."

So what? The kid just talked to himself then? Is that what Jay was referring to? Mal drops her arm as she turns towards him curiously, "I didn't get that far in my session before," She lets out a heavy sigh, "Before it devolved into personal bull shit." She admits, holding out her hand. "Can I see?"

Jay passes it to her, "I uh, I went into it not wanting to talk about anything else." He sighs, "He answered all my questions, but apparently I started having a fucking panic attack." He holds up the neon yellow pamphlet.

"You don't panic-" She pulls herself away from the packet, "Do you?" She asks, her brows furrowed as she studies his expression. She reaches for the colored paper. "I mean, anger attacks, sure. But I've never seen you panic like C, unless that was something you only did with…" She was hesitant to bring it up right now but, "Ya know, Harry…" She wouldn't blame him if he did. It might sting a little, but it made sense. She wouldn't come to herself in that state.

"No, it's not like C's." Jay clears his throat, "And no," He furrows his brow, "Actually, maybe. Once. When he and I were putting together some things about T. I think it happened then, but not as bad maybe?" He sighs, "But it's happened a couple of times since we left, and I've been getting angry after it happens."

She purses her lips, "Angry and sick sums up about all the emotions I've stumbled into over it too." That wasn't true, "And… Maybe some fear- But not for me." She slowly shakes her head and lightly sniffs, "Just, ya know, for him. His safety." Her eyes narrow as she lets out a huff, "I mean, what he was fucking thinking. Fuck- If he was even thinking. I don't think I've ever felt that way over anyone but T…" She sighs, "Something to do with control or some shit." She rolls her eyes, mostly at herself, "Because he's too fucking stupid to listen to reason."

Jay frowns, "He's not though. Using reason against him is how I get him to listen to me." He huffs, "But he does love pushing your buttons-" He rolls his eyes, "It's a conversation we've had several times."

"Pain should be enough reason to stop doing something stupid." She purses her lips. "It just took me too long to figure out what type of pain he responded to." She rolls over and rests her head against his shoulder, "If I'd known then, what I know now, I would've told Uma."

"You want to know how I get through to T?" Jay offers suddenly as he turns to watch her.

"Years of training?" Mal lifts her brow.

Jay chuckles, "Maybe." He shakes his head, "But seriously… I learned that sometimes you just have to wait him out."

"Wait him out?" Mal frowns.

"Yeah." Jay bites his bottom lip as he settles more into the bed, "Like, when I could tell he wasn't sleeping. I'd just hang out, talk, ask about what he was doing. Ask if he wanted to train." He shrugs, "Eventually he always fell asleep. And I just stayed with him. Protected him until he woke up."

Mal takes a deep breath before she lets it out. "So pretty much you'd wear him out. Like C has to do with Dude?"

"Thanks for that mental image," Jay snorts, "But yeah."

"I always knew it would involve years of training." She rolls her eyes. But who the fuck had the time or patience for that? That kid was like a wind storm. She frowns.

Jay apparently. He'd gone above and beyond again to see to the needs of their gang. Her lips twitched into a small smile. "I'm drawing T as a dog now, I can't unsee it."

"I didn't do it." Jay holds his hands up as a smile claims his lips, "That's all you."

"Didn't hear you arguing with me over it." She grins.

Jay smiles before he pulls her into another hug, "I've learned how to pick my battles with you."

"I step down when you make a good point." Mal wraps an arm around his stomach and squeezes. "I can't help that they're rare." She teases.

"I'll remember that," Jay smirks.

"You should." Her smile uncharacteristically soft, "You've always seen and heard so much, shouldered so much, for us, for me." She drops her eyes to study their shoes as Jay rubs her shoulder.

"I mean it. I know I can get pretty stuck sometimes- But you're always the one pulling me out. Pulling us out. Of our thoughts. Of our parents' fucked up shit. Out of our hell. I don't even think I'd have a gang if it weren't for you always smoothing shit out with C and E. And the shit you did when it came to Deez. I'm pretty sure if it wasn't for you I wouldn't even be friends with her. Especially after the well." She closes her eyes as she lets out a sigh before slowly relaxing into his shoulder.

"Like it was your job to fix my mistakes, to apologize for my temper or something. Like it was your job to smooth shit out when I was the one who pushed them too far. Went off on them too hard." She curls into his side as she hugged him tighter. "And you've been like that since we first started chillin'. And never complained. Not once. Not enough for me to remember anyway. And I'm sorry it's something I'm just realizing." She frowns, "So I just- just want you to know I value your opinion."

Jay smiles, and though he covered his face in the crook of his elbow, she didn't miss the tear that ran down his temple, "That means a lot M. A lot." He pulled her closer with one arm while he wipes his face with his free hand, "And it's nice to hear you say it." He adds before he slips his phone from his pocket and starts fiddling with the screen, "I've always known it though. You're the kind of person that says more with your actions than words. But still," He tosses his phone on his nightstand as the sound of lightly crashing waves fill the room, "I'm glad you told me too. Being uncomfortable, and trying new ways to do things is totally worth it if we can have moments like this, where we can just," He shrugs and slings the arm not under her over his head, "Chill. Talk and chill."

Mal feels her cheeks heat up as she turns and hides her face against him but doesn't argue. "It is pretty wicked to just be chill and not worry about who's listening isn't it?"

"It's going to take some getting used to," Jay chuckles lightly, "But I desperately need this."

"I think we all do…" Mal sighed as her eyes dart to the other bed. "Think it would be weird if we all just started sleeping in here?"

"Pack animals." Jay shrugs as he lightly rubbed his thumb along her arm, "Not weird."

What was left of her tension drains as she lets out a sigh, surprisingly at ease for having just bared so much to someone.

Her eyes grow heavy with the comfortable silence between them as the waves in the background soothe what was left of her unease.

Evie groans as she turns over in her sleep. She didn't remember leaving a glass of water on her bedside table, but her sleep-addled mind couldn't conceive of another reason her hand would feel cold and wet.

Her brow furrows as something tugs against her blanket before a sharp whine has her sitting up in concern.

Dude was trying to wake her up. She grimaces as she wipes her hand on the blanket. Dog slobber. She takes a deep breath before she looks at the ground beside her bed, "Yes?" She blinks prettily at the dog sitting in the glow from the nightlight.

When he turns on the spot before running off she frowns. Had he woken her up to show her a new trick? She hesitantly slides out of her bed. Something told her he wasn't that attention crazed.

"What's up, Dude?" She calls out softly, only to hear a whimper in response. She looks around in concern before sudden movement by the bed draws her eyes, even in the soft darkness.

Her breath leaves her in a whoosh as she walks over to the bed Carlos was sleeping in only to find him struggling against the blankets, trying to free himself of some unknown assailant.

"Carlos!" Evie chokes before she slides into the bed next to him, easily turning him in her arms until his head was resting on her chest. She slides her arm under him as she rubs her hands up and down his arms. "Carlos! C, come on, wake up honey," she sternly coaxes him before the whimpers can turn into full-blown screams.

"It's okay, I'm here. I'm here and I won't let anything happen to you. You're safe. You're with me." She begins to repeat calmly, continuing for several moments before Carlos begins to squirm and fight against her harder.

"Letmego! Letmego! Letmego!" Carlos struggles against her, her eyes catching the reflection of light off his cheeks from the tear tracks. But she just hugged him tighter even though she knew that they were both going to be bruised from this in the morning.

"Carlos, baby, it's Evie." She hugs him tightly to her chest keeping him taught. "I've got you. You're safe. You're safe. You're safe." She nuzzles her face into his hair. "Nothing's going to hurt you now. I won't let it."

Carlos struggles falter as the gentle, caring notes of her soft tone finally begin to penetrate his sleep.

"That's right baby, I've got you, you're safe." She continues, as her hands begin to slide up and down his arms slowly. "It's Evie. I won't let anything get you."

When he stills in her arms, her coaxing trails off. "C?" She finally asked, wondering if he'd fallen back into a restful sleep.

Carlos twists in her arms, curling around her as his grip tightened to near bruising. "Evie!" He breathes out shakily. "Evie, they were going to take them!" He sniffs. "Jay and Mal." He hides into her further. "They were trying to take them back." His fingers twist into her shirt. "They were trying to take them back, and wouldn't let us go with them." He shakes in her arms.

Evie's heart skips a beat before she shakes her head, "That won't ever happen C." She carefully slides back to the edge of the bed, cooing softly as she takes him with her, "But I bet you'd feel better if we went to see them, right?"

"Can we?" He asks hopefully. "Mal won't be mad?"

"Of course not." Evie smiles before she presses her lips to his forehead, "Come on, let me grab clothes for me and Mal, you grab your little night guard," She smiles as Dude jumps up on the bed and shoves his head under Carlos' hand, "then we'll head out." She pecks his forehead again before she hugs him close.

Carlos agrees with a shaky nod. "O-Okay." One arm wrapping around Dude before he scoots him closer.

Evie puts a gentle hand in his soft curls to lightly massage his scalp, "We're okay C, we're not going to get separated again. If one of us goes back, we all go back. No one is leaving anyone."

Carlos whimpers as he leans against her, "I can't E." He shakes his head, "I can't take it happening again." He pulls Dude to him before he rolls fully against her, shaking and clinging to her tightly.

"I can't either." She assures him. "Even our fearless leaders can't." She tenderly kisses the top of his head. "Never again."

Jay cracks one eye open, half alert when he hears the door squeak as it's closed. He was a little surprised he'd been able to hear it over the beach sounds still playing on his phone. Maybe he wasn't as relaxed as he thought.

No need to get so chill things start successfully sneaking up on him though.

"Wha-" He could hear the disbelief in the pup's tone. "No fair." Then the pout. "Jay never lets me share the bed."

Jay smiles before he lifts the arm above his head and pats the space next to him, "Things change pup." He whispers, careful to turn his head away from Mal's ear.

"Really?" Carlos asks as if it were a trap.

"Are you sure?" Evie asks hesitantly.

Jay pats the bed again, smiling when he hears their hurried steps before the bed sinks on either side.

"Counselling, am I right?" Jays chuckles as he rests his hand on Carlos' back once the pup and his pup settle in a comfortable position.

"Right." Carlos shifts to look up at him with a wide smile.

"He didn't get a chance to go today," Evie explains at the same time.

"Right," Jay sighs and nods, "sorry about that C."

"Why? I'm not. We've never done this before. I'm not complaining."

"We're a pack, why not sleep like one every once in a while." He chuckles sleepily as he rubs Carlos' back, absently switching between pats and scratches as if he were petting Dude.

"A pack?" Evie whispers doing her best to keep from waking Mal up.

"Yeah, didn't you know humans are pack creatures?" Jay grins as he lets the waves lull him.

"I do hate being alone." Evie breathes out.

"I like that." Carlos grins as he snuggles further into him and the blankets.

"Good. I'm glad." Jay sighs contentedly, "Because we all need each other. And we'll figure the rest out later."

"Sounds perfect." Evie sighs and the bed shifts slightly as she makes herself comfortable.

Jay carefully stretches the arm under Mal out until he can find Evie's hand. He doesn't say anything as he takes it, just runs his thumb along the back of her fingers.

"Thank you, we really needed this." She breathes out as she squeezes his hand in return.

"I guess not all changes are bad," Carlos whispers.

"Remember that tomorrow when you're talking to David and you'll be good." Jay chuckles before he pulls Carlos closer.

All three of them pause when Mal stirs, letting out a rush of relieved sighs when she just turns and scoots closer to Jay.

Sup Peeps!

So what did you think of this chapter? Fluffy AF right?

What did you guys think about the interaction between Mal and Jay? Did it make you squee a little bit? Mal was completely terrified that Jay had gone off and popped David in the face, and after her conversation with Nani she realized how much she needed him.

We know, we know. We suck for not writing the scene between Nani and Mal, but after writing the scene between Jay and David we agreed to focus on David's sessions.

That leaves us more scenes for Mal and Ben, which is the relationship we're focusing on.

Don't worry, everyone else is still going to be there, and relationships are still forming, they're just moving a little slower.

What about the scene between E and C? Did it give you the feels? Or did it fall flat? It's kind of difficult writing characters suffering from night terrors, or in this case nightmares. What did you guys think? Yay or nay?

Pack. Jay got really stuck on that but wasn't it adorbz?

We loved the four of them coming together like a real family unit to support each other. We really hope you guys did too.

Let us know

in the comments below

Much love and appreciation

-Twisted-