Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/ works/12101697. Rating: Explicit Archive Warning: Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage Category: F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi Fandom: Descendants_(Disney_Movies) Relationship: Evie/Mal_(Disney), Jay/Carlos_de_Vil, Evie/Jay/Mal/Carlos_de_Vil, Harry Hook/Uma, Gil/Harry_Hook, Ben/Harry_Hook, Harry_Hook/Others, Mal/Uma_ (Disney) Character: Mal_(Disney), Evie_(Disney), Jay_(Disney), Carlos_de_Vil, Uma_(Disney), Harry_Hook, Gil_(Disney:_Descendants), Ben_(Disney:_Descendants), Maleficent_(Disney), Evil_Queen_(Disney), Jafar_(Disney), Cruella_de_Vil, Ursula, Captain_Hook, Gaston_(Disney), Beast_(Disney), Belle_(Disney) Additional Tags: Alternate_Universe_-_Dark, Rape/Non-con_Elements, Underage_Sex, Consensual_Underage_Sex, Child_Abuse, Physical_Abuse, Crimes_&_Criminals, It's_Not_Paranoia_If_They're_Really_Out_To_Get_You, Underage_Drinking, Underage_Smoking, Recreational_Drug_Use, Theft, Homelessness Stats: Published: 2017-09-16 Updated: 2017-09-30 Chapters: 2/? Words: 5007 ****** Forever Is A Very Long Time ****** by AliceWhitmore Summary This is Descendants if it wasn't on Disney Channel but HBO, Showtime or any other channel who I swear is not sponsoring me. Notes This is a very very dark version of Descendants that includes Rape, Violence, Child Abuse, Mental Illness, Trauma, Sexual acts between Children. Also I have only watched both movies and only know bits and pieces about the books so if you've read the books then this is most likely going to be a huge insult and I'm sorry. Just not sorry enough to actually read them before writing this. ***** Ripped Away ***** The creation of the Isle of the Lost was not as seamless or easy as the history books in Auradon would have you believe. One of the biggest problems was raising all the villains from the dead so they too could be put on the island to suffer. The reason the oh so glorious king and queen gave was that death was too easy an end for people who had committed such horrific crimes, especially now that Hades wasn't ruling the underworld anymore and therefore wasn't providing eternal punishment. While it was true, they didn't reveal their fear that the villains would somehow be resurrected and rise to power once again to overthrow the monarchy. So to avoid this the king and queen temporary lifted the ban on necromancy to entice a dark sorcerer to do their bidding, guaranteeing that all villains, previously dead or not, would be locked away. The sorcerer they used had no illusions of being spared from banishment to the Isle, but they figured if they didn't do it it then someone else would and they saw it as an opportunity for revenge against dead enemies. After all the main and resurrected villains were imprisoned the king and queen sent out their armies to round up all known associates to them. This included henchman, allies, and those who were once under the spell of evil magic users. They were considered dangerous and ripped away from their homes and their families. Most in Auradon did not witness the vicious removals except for those in the same villages as the accused. Screams and pleas for mercy went unheard by soldiers as children watched their parents taken away and thrown in the backs of trucks. Some children even had to be held back as the ones who loved and cared for them were taken away, their sobs broken as if wrenched from their chests. The royalty justified this by saying it was all in favor of creating the perfect utopia, which convinced most but not those who had witnessed the cruel acts of the so called good leaders. Still they were powerless and afraid of being labeled evil and sent off to the Isle of the Lost. Once all who were seen as evil were locked away by a barrier created by Fairy Godmother the issue of how to keep the villains alive on the island arose. For the first few weeks those on the island were on their own, starving and without medicine. Then the king came up with the ingenious plan to send a monthly supply of all the discarded items from Auradon. Rusted coins, unfinished food, useless technology and sometimes even medicine. It all came on a ship let through in a weak spot of the barrier. It was another way to punish the villains, making them live on scraps from the tables of their enemies. For the first year it was peaceful, and on the one year anniversary of the creation of the barrier the king and queen took a trip to gaze through to the island to make sure all the evil creatures hadn't killed each other yet. What they found horrified them. The villains had begun having children. Why they bothered bringing offspring into their horrible existences baffled the royalty until they realized the supply ships had never brought any kind of birth control. While they were there some of the residents caught sight of them staring through the barrier. Some even dared to run up to where the king and queen were, holding infants and falling to their knees, silently begging for the others to take their children out of that horrible place. Queen Belle couldn't stand to look, burying her face in her husband's chest who looked back at the people in disgust. That was their last visit to the island, they couldn't stand to think about it, no one in Auradon could, so they didn't.  ***** Without Even Knowing It ***** Chapter Summary Mal and Jay's backstories on the Isle with a more badass Carlos because I'm tired of everyone in this Fandom infantilizing him like he's not a VK who grew up learning bad morals too. Chapter Notes What the fuck guys? So I post a prologue impulsively to a story I don't even have a plot for because a Tumblr post inspired me and in two days it has over 500 hits? GUYS! It was 2am and I was high when I posted this! Why?!? Why are you reading this?!? I am 17 and now have a following to write a Disney Channel original movie fan fiction? Jesus Christ. Sufficient to say I had a little existential crisis those first 48 hours and now that I know this story is going to actually be read by people it can no longer be the plot-less set of idea concepts for a Dark AU that I originally planned. Nope, it's gotta have a plot, I'm going to have to research the books to get a better understanding of the world building and psychology. Then go into how the VKs would really react to being in Auradon and all the new social rules they'd have to learn instead of just learning to be "good". And it's all your faults. Anyway that's the explanation for why this took a while, I literally had to restructure and plan out the entire thing. And I'm not really mad at ya'll, just mad at myself for impulsively posting this and now having a duty to continue. See the end of the chapter for more notes Maleficent disapproved of Uma, thought she was too small and weak to be a proper minion of her daughter. When she told Mal this the young girl had tried to convince her mother otherwise but to no avail. Her mind was set, Mal had to drop her sidekick or risk being a disappointment in her mother's eyes, just like her weak human father was. Mal knew Uma wouldn't except it if she just told her that they weren't hanging out anymore, the girl was too damn argumentative. So she had come up with a plan to humiliate and completely cut off her one ally. If anyone else had done what Mal had in mind they'd be in for a revenge killing like no other, but she was the daughter of the most powerful villain on the Isle, no one would dare lay a hand on her for fear of invoking her mother's wrath. She was surprised at how easily the cruel words came to her after pouring that bucket of shrimp over Uma's head. God it had smelled, Mal would be astonished if the other girl could ever be able to get rid of it. Something about the thought of Uma repeatedly scrubbing her blue braids and never being able to rinse away of the rotten shrimp smell was hilarious to Mal, maybe she'd even have to cut off all her hair. After regaining her breath from the menacing laughs she couldn't help but release, Mal looked down at Uma who was glaring at her with a burning hatred, she'd been successful. Uma was going to hate her for the rest of their lives. Just for good measure Mal made sure Uma knew that she'd never be able to join her and telling her that the name Shrimpy fit her her small, now smelling form. At school the next day she'd be sure to get everyone else to call her Shrimpy too, maybe swing by Serpent Prep as well. Now her mom would really know how ruthless she could be. A couple weeks later she made Jay, son of Jafar, her partner in crime. Her mother was much more approving of this union and the two children kept up a reign of terror over their territory. They stole anything they wanted, destroyed anything they wanted, they had complete and unopposed control. Sometimes Mal tried to convince herself that she didn't enjoy the cruel acts, it was just a necessity to maintaining her reign. It was a lie of course, she didn't enjoy other people's pain like that psycho Harry Hook, she still felt an uneasiness when she witnessed the aftermath of what she'd done. Still, the surge of power she felt anytime she'd brought someone to their knees outweighed the guilt, it was the best feeling Mal had ever experienced and she understood why her parents would dedicate their lives to the pursuit of it. This coupled with the desire to impress her mother lessened all other feelings in the matter. Besides, a lack of mercy was the only way to survive on the Isle, it was standard. By the time they were 12, Jay and Mal had become close, sometimes a little too close. Not the fooling around part of course, they'd been fooling around for months partly out of curiosity and partly because there wasn't anything better to do with their time, most kids on the Isle had started earlier than them so it wasn't out of the ordinary. But there were these nights every once in a while when neither of them really wanted to go home so they'd sit on rooftops and try to catch a glimpse of the moon through the ever present clouds that hung over the Isle. They were rarely successful and usually resorted to talking instead. "I want to be by your side forever," Jay said on one of those nights. "You're gonna to be a great ruler when you take over Auradon and I wanna be there when you do." Mal just looked at him for a moment. In the two years they've been partners he'd definitely proven he could be useful and loyal, but loyalty was never something that lasted long here. Everyone had a price. Still she didn't feel the usual desire to tear him down for having said something so childish. Instead she smiled, a small but genuine smile that was still a bit wary. Trust was not a luxury she could afford, but indulging him didn't seem to be of any charge. A feeling in her gut told her that she wouldn't have to worry about Jay trying to take their relationship any further, that he didn't hold any unrequited feelings towards her and was content with their casual partnership. With that feeling she let herself become a little more comfortable with the boy, as long as she was still vigilant about the possibility of his betrayal there was no harm in that. Right? A few months later is when they'd met Carlos de Vil. Mal had seen him around Dragon Hall but never paid much attention to an underweight boy everyone thought was weak. At least until Harriet Hook approached her and Jay during lunch one day at school. The tall older girl just oozed confidence and nonchalance, her dark curly hair and blue eyes were striking. She had an incredible resemblance to her father. "I have a favor to ask," she'd started after sitting across from the two most notorious villain kids. Harriet was not intimidated. "And why would I ever do a favor for you?" Mal had shot back. The other girl had expected this answer and almost seemed bored by it. "Because I can pay you nicely for it. An offer you don't want to refuse," the two underclassmen stayed silent, waiting for her to continue. "I need someone to go to Hell Hall and get tobacco for me. That crazy wench has the only crop of the stuff growing in her backyard. How she got it over here is a mystery but regardless I want it. My father loves his cigars after all and I can sell the rest." "Why doesn't Hook get it himself?" Jay shot back with a bit more venom than necessary, he wasn't fond of pirates, no one was. Harriet's eyes hardened when she looked to Jay, "Don't ask questions you already know the answer to." She was right of course, everyone knew that Hook and Cruella couldn't stand each other. It must be because they were so alike with their manic rages overlapping tales of glory from the past. "You have minions, sorry, a crew," the glint in Mal's eyes said she was anything but sorry. "Why not send them?" Cold blue eyes narrowed at the purple haired girl. "You think I'd be coming to you if they all hadn't failed me already? Endless excuses every time they came back empty handed of the de Vil boy batting his pretty eyes and saying it was a bad time or Cruella chasing them away screaming and threatening to run them down in her car. They're all idiots if you ask me but to be fair they're not with me because of their bargaining skills," she paused to sigh audibly. "I'd do it myself but there's no way that wench would even look at me. Besides, I shouldn't have to do my own dirty work." "What makes you think I'd ever do your dirty work?" Mal seethed and Harriet broke out into a cruel grin. "I already mentioned the pay. If that's not reason enough I'll tell everyone in this gods forsaken school that you were too much of a coward to face Cruella if you refuse. Pretty much the same deal if you fail. Think of your reputation, I bet mommy dearest would be so ashamed if she found out her daughter was a coward, maybe even throw you out. What would you do without her ever present protection?" Every word coming out in that condescending tone made Mal's blood boil and she stood up fast, slamming her hands on the table. Harriet stood up just as quickly with that same cruel grin even wider now, practically begging Mal to fight her, to start a war with her and her crew. The entire cafeteria was silent with a thick atmosphere, every other kid waiting in anticipation for a brawl which would inevitably turn into a riot.  "I'd skin you alive in front of your whole crew then make a flag of the leftovers, just so everyone would know what happens when you threaten me," she stated in a low but calm tone. The pirate seemed even more excited by the words, her hand twitching at her side where her sword hung around her waist. Harriet was the most sane in her family, calculating and cunning, but she still loved a good fight. Mal knew this, knew the other girl was just trying to goad her but it was in no way an empty threat. She stood up straight then, crossing her arms and putting on a bored expression, everyone leaned in to see how she would get out of a fight without looking weak. "I'll go get the tobacco but I'm not giving it to you, I'll sell it to Hook or anyone else that wants it directly. Although I do appreciate the info on this business idea," Harriet didn't seem at all disappointed by her answer, not really caring about selling tobacco as long as her father could get his, the manipulative bitch. "One more thing," Mal smiled before the other girl had fully turned to leave. "If you ever try to threaten me again I'll burn down your ship and kill everyone in your crew," her eyes glowed green. "I'd expect nothing less from you, daughter of Maleficent," and with that Harriet walked away, her open red leather coat flowing out behind her. Pirates always had a flare for the dramatics. That's how Mal and Jay ended up standing at the front door of Hell Hall, patiently waiting for the sounds of crashes and screaming to subside before knocking. When there was a good solid minute of silence Mal proceeded to bang her fist against the door. She wished she could've just snuck around back and stolen the damn plants but someone in that house had been smart enough and lucid enough to surround the crop in barb wire, not to mention had set a few booby traps. Mal was wondering if her hair had stopped smoking when none other than Carlos de Vil opened the door. He didn't look particularly happy to be having visitors, managing to scowl at them both despite holding a rag, presumably filled with ice, to the left side of his jaw. Then another crash was heard upstairs followed by a string of cuss words and Carlos barely glanced at the stairs behind him. She thought she saw him briefly smirk before immediately going back to glaring at the two kids on his doorstep. "Now's not a great time," he managed to grit out as politely as he could with how obviously annoyed he was at their presence. "I don't care if it's a good time," Mal pulled out a dagger bigger than her forearm and shoved Carlos back into the house, leaving Jay to close the door behind them while she pushed the younger boy against the nearest wall. His rag of ice fell out of his hand and went sprawling all over the floor but she didn't pay any attention to it, staring down the boy instead. For an 11 year- old with a knife to his throat, he was surprisingly calm. "We want the tobacco," she made the threat clear with the tone of her voice. Jay hung back, knowing Mal could handle this on her own.  "You and everyone else on the Isle," he muttered almost too low for her to hear. A little added pressure on the knife and the kid was leaning his head back against the wall to avoid getting cut. He dropped the attitude after that. Looking a little more scared but just as defiant he says, "Well either I hand it over to you and my mother kills me or I don't and you kill me. I like the last option because it means you never get what you came here for. I rigged those traps myself, you'd never make it to the wire alive without me." Carlos wasn't as weak as she'd thought, he had the balls to stand his ground around her of all people. There was something respectable in that, if not incredibly dumb.  Had she not witnessed the traps herself she would've slit his throat right then but the boy had excellent handy work, she knew he was right about never making it to the crop alive. He had made himself indispensable. Mal pulled the knife away from his throat and let go of his shirt which she had been using as leverage. As she backed up she kept the knife trained in his direction, obviously he was more clever than she had anticipated. When she was a good few feet away he decidedly took a step away from the wall, hands up and palms open in surrender. They could see the dark red mark on his cheek now, it was most definitely going to bruise but it looked like the ice had helped with the swelling.  "I'll sell it to you if you want, the tobacco," Carlos started after a minute of silence, he had a thoughtful look on his face. "You're gonna need someone to roll the cigarettes, I doubt you either of you know how and I've been doing it since I was four so I'm pretty good at it." There wasn't an underlying insult beneath the words, he had just been stating facts. "You said Cruella would kill you if you gave it away," Mal stated and he shrugged in response, the hint of a self-congratulatory smile on his lips. "Not so much if I sell it though. She probably wouldn't notice but if she does she'll just take all the money I made and punish me for not telling her sooner," so he'd exaggerated earlier to make it seem like he had nothing to lose. She wonders if she should be mad about that and looks over to Jay who shrugs indifferently. "We could always just torture you til you give up the tobacco for free," Mal took a step towards Carlos who looked determined not to step backwards in response, he put on a good facade but she could see the underlying terror in his eyes. "I think you'll find I have a very high pain tolerance," he stared back at her. "It wouldn't make any sense either. If you take everything then I can't grow anymore for you to sell later." Carlos probably didn't expect the kids who broke into his house and tried to rob him to know anything about growing plants but Mal had learned a few things from Mad Maddy about her mother's herb garden so she knew he was right. She hadn't really been planning on a long term money making opportunity but now that it was in her head it sounded like a great idea.  "Seems like you've got this all sorted out, you could've started selling it yourself years ago," she let her voice trail off and Carlos frowned before gesturing to his small frame with his hands. "You think anyone would take me seriously? I don't wanna run the chance of being robbed," He smirked at that. "Besides, I'm too busy here to be going into the market place everyday," he waved his hand dismissively and Mal finally lowered her weapon but didn't put it away. She sized him up, a skinny kid like him would be easy to overpower if called for, he didn't have any friends at school or gang affiliations to betray her to but that didn't mean he wouldn't anyway. He was a bit too smart for his own good. Even so, Mal would be an idiot to turn down his offer, she'd be risking being seen as a coward and it really did have the potential to make her a lot of money. "Alright De Vil, you've got a deal," Jay went to stand beside Mal once she'd said those magic words, following her lead in giving him one final warning glare. "I don't have to remind you what would happen if you ever sold to anyone else, do it?" Carlos shook his head. "If you come back at dusk I'll have plenty of cigarettes, ready to sell." "Don't forget cigars for Hook and Hades," she told him before turning to leave. He didn't move until they had closed the doors behind themselves.       Jay and Mal got along well, ever since they started hanging out together he realized how ambitious she was. He truly believed she could rule the world someday and he intended to be at her side when she did. When he told her that on the roof one night he could tell it kind of freaked her out but he didn't regret saying it. It was the truth, nothing more, nothing less and nothing else. They'd gotten closer after that, somehow becoming even more loyal to each other. Loyalty was a rare thing on the Isle, everyone was looking to back stab anyone else, it was just the way things were. But it was different for them, when you grow up together and save each others lives as many times as they did fierce loyalty just came naturally.   Then Carlos came along. At the beginning he was just a business partner to them, a necessity to keep making money. Over time he proved himself to be more, smart and manipulative, sarcastic and cynical, his endless inventions and traps became too much of a benefit for them to ignore.  So when Jay noticed that Carlos got beat up a lot at school Mal was plenty willing to grant him protection. His skinny frame just screamed vulnerable to anyone looking to inflict the same pain they probably got at home but with Mal and Jay behind him, no one dared to mess with Carlos anymore.  Jay was happy about that, Carlos got enough of that shit at home. Eventually Carlos managed to worm his way into their group. Hanging around them silently at first but then getting comfortable enough to start conversing with them. He started joining in on the fights and torments Mal and Jay kept up to hold on to their power over the whole school. His inventions came in handy as weapons when anyone dared to cross them. Soon it started to feel like Carlos had always been there, like it wouldn't be the same anymore with him gone, without even knowing it they had formed a clique.   One night Jafar was drinking. This wasn't unusual, he'd drink and the back table and count his coins he never intended on spending, it calmed him. Jay still didn't like when his father drank, he made a point to stay away from the shop until it was late enough that he'd be passed out before his son got home. Sometimes he'd had to sneak out, like tonight, the air always felt charged when he'd walk behind Jafar's back soundlessly, hoping he wouldn't turn around and be furious. It wasn't like his father ever hit Jay but he'd seen too many bruises on kids who were dumb enough to get noticed when their parents were drunk in the house.  He'd made it outside successfully but that didn't mean he was safe. It was the first time in a long time Jay had been out at night without Mal and the danger was lurking in every corner. Of course the Isle was always dangerous but something about the darkness always made the villains nastier and more violent. The bent steel with a cloth handle that passed for a knife in this place weighed heavy in his pockets. Mal was at her house sleeping soundly, she didn't know he was out without her and he really didn't want to wake her. Besides, if Maleficent found him trying to crawl through her daughter's window he'd be dead for sure. After wandering aimlessly for a little while Jay decided to head towards Carlos house. The boy was up late constantly, trying to cram in time to work on his contraptions after all the chores Cruella made him do. Before Jay could get to Hell Hall he was cornered by the Gaston twins. "Well well, it's been a while Jay. Did you finally get tired of being Mal's lap dog?" Asked one of them, Jay didn't bother to look close enough to tell them apart. "You used to be so much fun before you started chasing after her tail," said the other. Slowly they were walking forward, knives pointed towards him until his back hit a wall. "Too scared to fight me without hiding behind those pathetic knives?" Jay shot back with a mocking smile. Long story short, he'd gotten his ass kicked. Two against one wasn't really fair but he hadn't expected it to be. Jay still got in a few good hits to their faces and managed to elbow one in the stomach, jabbing upwards so the other had to fight to catch his breath. Despite all his efforts they were still a year older and stronger than him, Jay ended up a limping the rest of the way to Carlos' house having barely gotten away thanks to some bum scaring the Gaston twins off. His long hair was sticking to his neck, shoulders and face with blood and sweat. A couple of his ribs were bruised judging from how painful it was to breathe, maybe they were even broken. Sufficient to say he was in bad shape when he arrived on Carlos' doorstep. Still, Jay hesitated, would this late night visit be taken as him asking for help? He knew there was no one better to patch him up than the younger boy but that didn't change the fact that no one asked for help on the Isle. It was a sign of weakness. That wasn't even what he'd come here for in the first place, he'd just been looking for some company.  He decided he didn't care, he still wanted company and home was a long walk without at least a rag to clean up with, so he knocked on the door. Carlos was there almost immediately, confused at first but after taking a look at Jay he just scowled. Not in an annoyed way but in anger directed at whoever had hurt the bleeding boy in front of him. "Come on," he said simply and Jay didn't hesitate this time to follow.  By the time Jay was seated on the kitchen stool he was shaking, all the adrenaline had left his body and he couldn't seem to control the tremors racking through him. Carlos pulled out a box from under the sink and frowned again when he saw him. Wordlessly he walked over to an old rusted jewelry box and opened it, grabbing something from it and heading back to Jay. It was cigarette and lighter. "You're going into shock. This'll help you calm down," there was a professional tone in Carlos' voice that Jay had never heard before. He figured it was important and did what he was told. Jay would be lying if he said he was never curious about the product he and Mal sold to pretty much everyone but he'd never gotten the chance to try it.  Carlos left again as he took the first drag, he almost coughed but managed to breath in the smoke much to his ribs' protests. After a few more lungfuls he started to feel a lot calmer, he stopped shaking and his mind cleared. When the other boy came back with a bucket of water and a rag he took the half cigarette left from Jay and put it out in an ashtray nearby. "Too much will make you start shaking again. Now hold still," he started cleaning Jay's wounds. Carlos looked different, his hair was messier and he didn't have on his usual black, red and white leather jacket. The circles under his eyes were also darker than they were in the mornings at school, it made him look paler and his freckles stood out more.  "Are those yours?" Jay asked looking towards the metal box. "Cruella's, she won't notice if one goes missing. Cigarettes aren't really my thing," Carlos kept a straight face and continued to clean away the blood as he talked. Jay looked down and saw the circular burn marks littering the other boy's arms, he didn't really have to ask why. "Mal's gonna be pissed." Jay looked down, "I know." They were silent for a few more minutes after that except for the occasional sharp intake of breath as Carlos rubbed alcohol in the other's wounds. Then he broke out the sewing kit, "For the big one on your forehead," he explained when Jay's eyes widened. He nodded in response.  "Not just about you, you know? I heard a rumor that Mal is gonna be pissed about when she hears it," if Jay didn't currently have a needle in his head he would have looked up questioningly. "That girl who lives in the broken down down castle on the edge of town, the one that's only a few miles from here. I overheard that she's going to be attending Dragon Hall soon," that comment made Jay's eyes go as big as saucers. Which he immediately regretted when his cut moved because of it.  That was insane, Mal had told Jay what happened about not being invited to that girl's sixth birthday party. She was going to go ballistic when she found out that Evie, daughter of the evil queen, was about to start school with them.  Chapter End Notes Next up Evie and Carlos' backstories, warning they're fucked up but I think that's a given with the tags. Also, seriously? I'll post some stories that did this AU much better in the next chapter, ya'll deserve better. I can't believe this thing has over 1000 hits already. Here I am again, half assing this at 4am. I'm not good with Jay's personality, the next chapters will be better. Probably. (If you can't tell I'm kind of a self-deprecating asshole so just expect all my Notes to be this way) Please drop_by_the_archive_and_comment to let the author know if you enjoyed their work!