A/N: Wow! An actual update! I know it's been a while since I updated, but as I mentioned in the A/N from my last "Swords and Shields" chapter, I ran into a problem with this chapter. I came to a point where I realized that the plan that I had originally had for this chapter was not true to Jay's character, even though it was true to everyone else. I managed to fix that, but then I couldn't do some of the other stuff I had planned as well. Finally, I've found a route that I think stays true to the characters, though I had to go a bit into the pasts of Mal, Jay, Evie, and Carlos. I decided to separate from the books for the characters' life on the Isle. It just didn't really fit, and honestly, I doubt that the Evil Queen would be stupid enough to challenge Maleficent. She was smart enough to seduce a prince and kill him to take his throne, so she knows how to act like she has less power than she actually does. Not to mention that she came up with another plan to kill Snow White after she learned that the huntsman did not. I scrapped EQ challenging Maleficent, and I also scrapped all of the birthday party stuff and most of the plot of the first book, simply because it was too idealistic. It was very difficult to decide how they met, since even the first movie has a few contradictory pieces in it about their relationship before going to Auradon, but I think I ended up stumbling on something... well certainly something. I even managed to leave off in a situation where I can use most of my original plan for the story! Yay! Let me know what you think, and happy reading!

Disclaimer: Descendants is property of Disney Channel. I make no claim to own the characters, and have only written this only with love for Descendants and its characters. Thank you.

"Mal!" Ben tried to run out of the room after her, but he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to face Jay. "I have to go after her. I have to make sure she's okay-"

"No," Jay interrupted. Ben stopped and just looked at him. "Mal isn't okay. She will never be okay. That's something that you need to understand." He turned to his other two friends. "I'll go talk to her." Ben looked about to protest.

"I'll come with you," Evie said quickly, still trying to calm down herself.

"No." Jay shook his head. "Stay here. You haven't known Mal for as long as I have, and there are some things that no one else will understand, not even you." Evie and Carlos both looked hurt, and Jay softened. "I didn't mean it like that." With that, Jay turned and strode out of the room. Ben started to follow, but he froze as he realized that Jay was right. Ben didn't know how to comfort Mal. It hurt to think that he couldn't even comfort his girlfriend, but she needed someone who understood what was going on. Ben wasn't blind. He could see that the four of them were really close. They were like brothers and sisters. He had never wondered why, just assumed that they were always that way.

"What did he-" Ben stopped, realizing that his question might touch a nerve, but Evie already knew what he was trying to ask.

"What did he mean?" She paused, glancing at Carlos before she looked down at the floor. "The four of us, well, we hadn't always been friends." Evie paused again, and Carlos nodded in encouragement. "It's not like you can really call anyone a friend on the Isle. You might be a part of a gang, but you never have anything more than allies, and even that's not acceptable." Ben looked surprised. It always seemed like Mal, Jay, Evie, and Carlos had been friends, and when he was on the Isle, it seemed like Uma, Harry, and Gil were friends. Evie had even insisted that they take Jay and Carlos with them to find Mal after she left because there was strength in numbers. How could friends, or even allies, not be acceptable? Carlos must have read Ben's mind.

"Why do you think villains never work together?" he asked. Lonnie, who had been quiet so far, was the first to speak up.

"Maybe they'd be too busy fighting over who was in charge to do anything?" she asked. Carlos and Evie shared a small smile. They'd certainly seen that when they were working on the plan to take Fairy Godmother's wand, but that wasn't the real reason. Ben's eyes widened as he realized how this related to what Mal said earlier.

"They don't want to appear weak," he said in awe of the realization. "Accepting help would be admitting to needing it." Carlos and Evie both nodded.

"But wait," Lonnie interjected "what about Maleficent's goblins? Don't they help her?" Carlos shook his head while Evie responded.

"That's different. The goblins are Maleficent's servants, her minions. They don't help her, she controls them."

"They're like a demonstration of power," Carlos explained.

"Is that what the gangs are like?" Ben asked. Evie and Carlos shared a skeptical look.

"Well…" Evie started. What could she say? "The gangs are powerful, but they're different. You don't worry about anyone you can overpower or manipulate. They're beneath you, and aren't in your gang, but controlled by it." She glanced at Carlos before looking back at Ben. "At least most of the time." She paused in thought. How could she explain this? Even though people in gangs had more power, they relied on trust, so they were only adopted by the villains' kids, and never intentionally. "You don't go trying to create a gang. It just happens. Just because villains don't work together doesn't mean that they never make deals. That's how gangs are formed. Deals." She paused again, taking a deep breath to try and stop the flashbacks. "That's actually how I met Mal. Even though there are two castles on the Isle, my mom's is the only one that has a dungeon."

Worried about where her story was going, Doug stepped to wrap his arm around Evie's waist for support.

"My mom made a deal with Maleficent that Maleficent could use the dungeon in exchange for ingredients to her… potions. Mal and I were down there at the same time, and we made a deal of sorts." The deal, that day, was still fresh in her mind. Evie stiffened as the flashback overtook her.

Drip. Drip. Drip. Her head felt hazy, as her mind started to recognize where she was, and the pain. Evie winced and gasped as the burning on her stomach registered in her brain. It was hard to breath in the musty, stone dungeon, and the sores across her front didn't make it any easier. Her wrists ached from straining against the chain manacles, which dangled just above her head. She tried to lift her arms to release some of the tension, but it was too difficult. The new potion must not have worn off yet.

"So the princess is awake."

Evie tried to raise her head towards the voice, but it was too much. Her head pounded from the small movement.

"Who-"

Evie took another breath to stop the flashback, and stood up straight, as she had started to subconsciously lean back into Doug. She looked at Carlos, who raised an eyebrow in concern. She shook her head. She was fine. She raised her chin again and cleared her throat, to give off more confidence. "Anyway, that deal, or deals, forced us to depend on one another, and I at least began to trust her. Eventually, well…" Ben watched her expression harden, as she tensed again before jolting herself back to speak with a strong voice. She wasn't going to succumb to another flashback, not that one. "I learned that my trust wasn't for nothing, Mal introduced me to Jay, and I introduced her to Carlos. " Carlos eyed her wearily, and continued before she could. He knew what was going on, even if she tried to hide it.

"We each had our strengths, and our gang became powerful. People learned not to mess with us, and we ruled our part of the Isle, though Mal was the obvious leader." Ben and Lonnie both gave slight nods.

"How did you guys become friends?" Lonnie asked. "You're all pretty close now." Carlos responded again.

"We started to trust each other, built the hideout not too long before coming to Auradon. We started to care about one another, in little ways." Evie interrupted in a quiet voice.

"We helped each other out when our parents were… difficult." She looked at Carlos and did a small shake of her head. That should be enough information about the Isle for now. They didn't need to talk about how their parents reacted when they found out. No stranger to manipulation, she turned the conversation away from the Isle. "Then we got even closer when we came to Auradon." No parents to hide from, she added in her head. "We talked a lot more, and didn't have to be secretive about our friendship anymore, since you all expected it of us."

Ben scratched his head nervously, thinking over everything he'd heard today. "We expected a lot, didn't we?" Carlos raised an eyebrow at Evie, who seemed just as confused. She hadn't expected him to say that. What did he mean by it?

"I'm sorry for everything that you guys went through. I'm sorry for being so naïve." He looked at Evie. "I'll try to speed up the process for the next group of kids, maybe add some more of the younger ones into the mix." She nodded, surprised. "I'm so sorry for everything."

"No." Everyone turned to look at Carlos. "No," he repeated. "Don't be sorry. We knew that you didn't know. We should have told you sooner."

"But that wasn't just your decision to make." Everyone turned again to face the voice coming from the door. Mal's voice.