Hiya Descendants Fam!

Second update of the week! And only baby Max as a distraction. (But he's an adorable distraction, so please forgive him.)

Ready for some Uma perspective?

And hopefully a little Understanding?

Don't forget to follow us, like our story, and leave us messages. We appreciate and love all the support.

Lots of Love!

-Dark-

She looks up from her book at Gil's contented sigh and smiles. She knew she should probably wake the two up, but with Harry and T off the ship, she was willing to let some things slide. Besides, the sight of her Sweet Boy wrapped protectively around her Baby Girl made her heart melt.

The fact that they'd admitted having feelings for each other at the cove wasn't lost on her. She knew it had been coming, she was just surprised at how quickly the two had realized it, or owned it. She smiles as she shakes her head. She'd noticed their growing feelings over the years. But, they'd grown more intense once Deez joined them.

Her smile widens as she turns back to her workbook.

Deez had joined them.

She was her's. Their's.

She wasn't sure she'd ever get tired of saying it. It had taken years, and a lot of effort, pain, and perseverance. But she finally had what was hers.

Finally had what she'd worked towards since she held Deez to her hip when she'd first discovered she had a cousin. She'd loved the feeling. To have someone to love and take care of. It had been addictive. It was still unbelievable.

She meant it when she told Deez that if it hadn't been for her, she might never have found her true calling. Even becoming a Captain had stemmed from her wanting to provide a safe haven for the people she cared for.

She lets out her own contented sigh as she gets back to work, wanting to get ahead of the others so she could help them when they needed it.

She finishes several more sections without a problem, but then a new concept stumps her.

She narrows her eyes at it for several moments. Like she could will it to make sense before she sighs and stands to find T, or rather Faustina's, workbooks. She grabs the whole set before she returns to her seat.

When she notices loose paper in the science book she grins. Was Faustina that prepared that she knew they were going to need help? Seemed like the Beautiful Girl to her.

She opens the book on the table in front of her before her eyes widen.

Oh, that's what she'd been doing in the hammock. She smiles as she spreads the pages out, easily falling captive to the looks Faustina had managed to capture for each of her family members.

It was beautiful.

It was oddly exciting.

She recognized the looks Faustina had sketched for Deez, Gil, and Harry. She was pretty sure she could even guess when her own face had been contorted with lust or gleaming with a wicked grin.

How had she captured the looks so well? In the dark. With them constantly moving and changing positions. It was astounding.

She runs a finger over Harry's wild-eyed grin. She'd seen that look on his face every time she or Gil agreed to give him attention. But caught on the page, it was more than just sexy as fuck.

Her gaze drifts to the satisfied masculine grin that was just so Gil. Fit everything she loved about that boy.

She smiles at the one of Deez, one that perfectly captured her innocence even when her head was tilted back and her face was enraptured with bliss.

She looks back to the bed, to her still sleeping family. She would have loved to share these, but she already felt like she'd intruded into Faustina's belongings without first asking. So instead she collects the pages together and slips them back into the workbook before she closes it.

She could always ask Yensid for help later.

She smiles as she settles back in her chair. She still couldn't believe Gil's 'angel' had been under their noses this whole time. That she'd never stopped looking out for him. Apparently them.

A hidden gem amongst her family.

She taps her fingers on the desk lightly. It bothered her how little they knew about her. How little they understood how the split personality thing worked. Not that it mattered. They'd figure it out and navigate it together.

Still, she'd love to figure out how the two switching worked. Why it was sometimes T who woke up, and other times Faustina. She tilts her head as she looks down at her science notebook. Wasn't there something about documenting reactions? Maybe she should do that. Yensid said psychology was a science after all.

She flips to the back of her science workbook and writes everything she can remember about T waking up in the room last night.

Maybe if they could figure it out eventually they could help T and Faustina find a better balance. It didn't seem fair that T was out most of the time.

Especially once she saw how much fun Faustina had doing something as simple as swimming. She smiles at the memory of her carefree giggles. At the way she played and entertained herself for well over an hour. It had been one of the cutest things she'd ever seen.

But what had really surprised her about the time they'd spent at the pool was the girl's insights. She wasn't sure what had inspired Faustina to volunteer so many of her thoughts. Or what spurred her to be so talkative. She just knew she had appreciated it.

Faustina wasn't shy about standing up for her Baby Girl.

Arms wrapping around her in a hug from behind break her out of her thoughts.

"Why a frown?" Deez whispers against her ear.

She lifts her arms to hug Deez's. "Was just thinking about a few things." She chews her lip before she looks up. "Come here." She tugs on her arm gently. "Sit with me for a moment?"

Deez smiles as hops into her lap and snuggles against her, "You never notice when you're cold."

She smiles as she nuzzles her in return, the warmth Deez was emitting seeping into her bones. "That's why I have you." She teases as she places a kiss to her temple.

"What's wrong Uma? You've got that line." Deez frowns before she runs a finger over her own forehead, "I'm gonna start calling it the worry line."

She takes a deep breath before she lets it out in a sigh. "I was just thinkin' bout a couple of things Faustina pointed out at the cove…" She pushes a stray hair behind Deez's ear.

Deez rolls her lips over her teeth but doesn't say anything.

"She pointed out several things I don't think I've ever considered before, and I think I might owe you an apology or several."

"No." Deez shakes her head, "I've- I've been trying to think of a way to apologize actually, for stuff from that day."

She chuckles, "I think we're both allowed to have things we need to apologize for Baby Girl." She smiles, as she catches Gil stirring from the corner of her eye. Her Sweet Boy looks around in confusion until his eyes settle on them.

His brow furrows, but he only pulls himself up to rest against the headboard as he continues to watch them.

"I thought Captains never apologize." Deez grins.

She smiles, "I'm more than just your Captain though, aren't I?"

"Well yeah." Deez slowly admits before she tilts her head, "A lot more actually."

"Well, that's the part of me that needs to apologize." She explains as she boops Deez on the nose. "So let me start by saying sorry for not understanding where you were coming from the other day. I hadn't taken everything into consideration when I told you to just show your work. It wasn't fair of me. For two reasons." She sighs.

"The first of which is that I know how hard it is for you to explain how you arrive at certain conclusions. I hadn't considered that your dot connections could extend to math as well. That you might not be able to explain it because your mind just picks up on things that most of us usually miss. It wasn't fair to you even if it's important to me that you learn so we don't fall behind if we ever do make it to Auradon. I was told that Carlos was able to break it down for you in a way that we can't. Though I'm hoping Yensid can..."

Deez frowns up at her before she takes a deep breath, "I don't know why I could talk to Carlos about math. Or what questions he asked that made me able to understand how it all works, he was just really good at keeping me from falling behind even after I left the school. But, I know I need to figure it out. I didn't mean to-" She closes her eyes, "It was, it hurt to connect the problem to how I am about everything. But I wasn't trying to throw a tantrum, and Gil said you weren't trying to be mean, You were just calling me out on it. So I'm sorry too. I just get flustered, and then I was embarrassed, and then I just wanted to be left alone until I could stop crying because I didn't understand why I was crying."

She runs her fingers through her hair. "Yeah, about that…" She frowns, "That's another thing I needed to apologize to you for." She presses another kiss to her forehead. "I never realized the pressure you were under to be perfect… That living under Uncle put so much pressure on you to constantly perform and exceed the rest of us. I think the reason you were crying is because you hate not being perfect. You put a lot of pressure on yourself to perform to the best of your abilities, and you get frustrated when nothing seems to be enough. What do you think about that? Close to the truth? Or far from it?"

Deez drops her eyes down to her hands in her lap, "Gil figured that out too." She admits in a whisper, "That I'm scared of what happens when I'm not what is expected of me. When I'm not perfect."

"I'm sorry that I couldn't see that you were trying." She runs her fingers through her hair again before cupping the back of her head. "I don't expect perfection, Baby Girl. I promise. I just… I didn't realize how similar your dot-connecting and math were for you."

"I do though." Deez emphasizes each word with a tap to her own chest, "I expect myself to be perfect. And I work so hard. Things don't come easy to me, school or otherwise." Deez bites her lip as she shakes her head, "I always have to work at it. And keep working at it. And push myself."

"No one can be perfect Baby Girl. There's always something to improve. Always something new to learn. I don't think you can ever do anything perfectly. You're setting yourself up for disappointment if that's the goal you're setting. Don't get me wrong, I get putting effort into something. To work at it until you get better. To push yourself. But you have to be realistic about it too..."

"I just never realized how good a job I'd done at hiding how much work I put into everything." Deez frowns up at her.

She takes a deep breath and nods, "I'm guessing that's what you worked on whenever you hid yourself away? Trying to perfect something?"

Deez nods, "If I failed at something, I worked on it until it was better." She sighs, "That's why it took weeks and months sometimes. And why I never understood why you guys thought I was being mean to you."

That certainly sounded like their Baby Girl. "Because we're not dot-connecters Deez… How were we supposed to know that's what you were doing? Working on things, when you didn't ever tell us?"

"I-" Deez looks away, "I thought no one cared. That's what-"

"Deez." She breathes out softly. "How could you possibly ever think that? What exactly were you thinking about me, about us that you thought we didn't care. You're such an intricate part of my life- Of my world." She could feel her eyes burning as her vision mists over. "I'm sorry I failed you so badly that you'd even consider such a thing..." She presses their foreheads together.

"Uma." Deez blinks back tears, "I'm working so hard to be open, but you didn't let me finish."

"Sorry- It was just- It's hard to hear you ever thought that…" She bites her lip to keep her tears at bay. It made her chest restrict painfully and her heartache.

"You didn't do anything wrong though." Deez blinks up at her, causing tears to spill at the corners of her eyes, "I did." She presses a hand to her chest, "I listened to the wrong person, believed the wrong person."

She sniffles as she pulls back, "But I'm the one who never realized that you thought we didn't care about you…What type of family doesn't realize when one of their members feels like the rest don't care?" She squeezes her to her chest tightly.

"How could you?" Deez shrugs, "I always ended up snapping out of it every time I got to come back, always questioned it. I thought no one cared back then," She hugs her back just as tightly, "but I was wrong."

Uma tucks her loose hair behind her ear again. "I should just be glad you're able to see the truth now Baby Girl… But it breaks my heart that I didn't realize that's what the problem was sooner."

"I loved you all so much, I thought if I could be better, then you'd love me too," Deez scrunches her face, "Not that I understood that at the time. I wasn't really sure what love was, because - well," She shakes her head, "But I see what it was I felt now."

She squeezes her so tightly it hurts her arms and chest as she nuzzles into her hair. "Good. Good. I'm sorry you couldn't before, but I'm so happy to hear that. That you can see it now. That you understand what real love actually is, what it feels like. What it means to be loved and cherished. Because that's how we all feel Deez. That's what we do our best to show you. I know we're not perfect- Not by a long shot. But we all do our best." She runs her knuckles down her face tenderly, before she drops her hand to her shoulder and squeezes.

"I'm sorry." Deez frowns.

"It's not your fault Baby Girl." She shakes her head, "I know what it's like to try to earn your parent's love… How devastating it can be to feel like you'll never be enough. But you can't force the impossible." She sighs. "I'm just happy that you see that now."

"Pain and Panic do love me though." She frowns.

She chuckles. She would consider those two her parents in that respect. "But they weren't the ones you were trying to be perfect for were they?"

Deez frowns, "I was trying to keep them from getting hurt."

"I suppose that's one way to look at it…" She frowns, "But you can't control someone else's actions. I'm pretty sure your father would have hurt them either way. You could have been everything he'd ever wanted but he'd still do it. That's just who he is."

"If I was everything he wanted I wouldn't have cared." Deez sighs.

"That's kind of my point Baby Girl." She gently cups her jaw and makes her look at her. "You'll never be able to stop your dad from being your dad. He's the one who's going to have to make the choice to change... You'll never be able to do it for him."

"Gods don't change." Deez blinks, "They're gods."

"Even Gods aren't perfect Deez."

"I didn't say they were, just that they don't change. No matter how much they try to tell you they will. It's always just a trick. And it always hurts."

"Well if they're not perfect that means there's room for growth isn't there? It's their choice. His choice. Uncle can be a real dick, but he can also play sweet. He's a double-edged sword." She sighs, "And double-edged swords always hurt, especially when it's a child playing with it."

Deez sighs before she looks up again, "Can we talk about something else now?"

"I'm going to ask for T's help with the height thing." She breathes out.

"I knew you hadn't already asked," Deez immediately laughs, "I'm surprised he's alive after the cliff diving."

She chuckles, "No shit. It was tempting…" She admits. "I wanted to strangle the shit outta him." She sighs, "But-" She takes a deep breath. "You inspired me. You deal with so many of your fears daily… I just think I try not to think about it. How you live in your own personal hell, between the water, wood, and having to learn how to communicate with us without writing." She admits softly. "I can't imagine how difficult it is for you. How scary it must be. But you do it every day. For us. You love us so much that you're willing to put up with so many of your fears at once… It's incredible Deez, you're incredible."

"It's really not." Deez frowns, "Hell was being so afraid of the docks, of the water, of your mom, that I couldn't get to you when I needed you. Needed you. Needed all of you. And you were so close, but I couldn't make me work right." She shakes her head as she shivers, "That was Hell, this, this is a reminder of what my priorities are. I'd rather work on not burning the ship, swimming, and figuring out my words than never be able to see you guys again."

She blinks away another round of tears as she buries her face into her silky hair. "You know I- We need you too right? That you're ours. Our Baby Girl. Our Compass. Our Treasure. That if it wasn't for you, that there wouldn't be an us. That I never would have tried to create what we have now. That watching you that day, unable to do anything to help save you- That day was the lowest in my life. I've never felt so-so, I'm not even sure- I still can't put it into words, but that was my hell. Thinking I'd lost you. That I'd never be able to hold you again..." Her tears roll down her face freely, tangling in both their hair.

"I'm sorry I believed lies." Deez frowns when she looks up and starts trying to wipe her tears away, "I'm sorry I've always been so confused about everything, and I'm sorry I never told you."

"We all believed the lies," She takes her hands in hers and holds them tight in hers. "And we were all confused." She promises. "What matters is that you've seen the truth, that despite never mentioning it to me, you were able to reach that conclusion on your own. It speaks so highly of you. Of how smart and brave you are."

Deez wraps her arms over her head and presses her face to her neck.

She wraps one arm around her waist and cups her head to her shoulder. "We love you so much Deez. So much it hurts sometimes. I've never been so happy as the day you finally said yes to joining us."

Deez nods against her throat, "I'm sorry for being so stupid and complicated, and not talking about it."

She sighs, "You were scared of being rejected. Scared of being misunderstood. Scared of being lied to again." She runs a hand over the back of her head.

"Scared of ruining whatever it was that made the three of you special."

"There wouldn't be a three of us without you though. We wouldn't be special if it weren't for the feelings I felt the first time I held you."

Deez sighs before she pulls back and wipes at her face, "So to be clear, we're both sorry?"

She smiles as she nods her head, "And I don't expect you too, but I just want you to know I forgive you for all of it."

"If you've ever done something that needs to be forgiven," Deez frowns as she runs a braid through her fingers before she smiles, "then duh. I do too."

She chuckles as she hugs her to her chest. "I love you so fucking much. Thank you." She lightly reaches for her jaw and rubs her thumb along it. "For explaining. For listening. For understanding."

Deez smiles, "Thank you too. I feel a lot better." Her smile falters slightly, "Now I just need to figure out how to do this with Gil."

Uma leans forward and steals a kiss. "Pretty sure it'll be easier than you'd think." She smiles at her Sweet Boy who'd sat so patiently through their whole exchange. Like a silent sentinel.

"I really hurt him." Deez frowns.

"And I really hurt you." Gil points out gently as he slides out of the bed and softy pads over to them. "I should've known better… I knew you'd never mean to make me feel like an idiot. I'm sorry I didn't understand at the time." He adds as he picks both of them up with ease and squeezes them to his chest tenderly before he carries them back to the bed. "But it's going to happen. Hopefully less and less as we learn to communicate better with each other… But we're still learning…" He nuzzles Deez's hair. "Hurt or not I'll never stop loving you- And you'll never stop being my missing piece."

Deez smiles before she nuzzles her face against Gil's chest, "Never."

She smiles as warmth bubbles in her chest. She liked that. They all felt like they were parts that had been missing from her. It was the reason she fought so hard for each one of them. So she loved hearing all over again that Gil and Deez also felt like they were the missing part of each other.

She doesn't even complain when Gil slips them both into bed with him. The two of them curled around him as they used him as a pillow. Always amazed by how soft he could be despite the muscle he'd put on.

Her Sweet Boy-

Her eyes meet Deez, smiling when they lace their fingers together.

-and her Baby Girl.

Sup bitches!

What did you guys think?

Uma had some interesting musings at the start of this one. What did you think of her reactions to the pictures? And about wanting to start her own experiments on how the switching works to help them balance their time better? Any of you have your own theories? We'd love to hear them!

What did you guys think of Deez's and Uma's conversation? The apologies and clarifications?

So, what do you think about Senior? Everyone enjoying their mixed feelings? Assuming they are mixed... It's weird writing such distinctly gray characters. On one hand Senior is an incredibly abusive narcissistic prick. On the other hand... Well, it's fucking weird ain't it? Do you think the God can change? That even for a person so powerful it's progress, not perfection?

And boom! Some understanding.

Much love and appreciation

-Twisted