Special thanks to xxdancingwithdemonsxx on tumblr for editing this for me! Please check her out!

Important: This fanfic does use what I call "Book Canon" as in, it uses stuff from the Isle of the Lost books, as well as things I've just made up. But, because I know not everyone has read the books, I will explain anything I think needs explaining in the notes before the chapter! And if you need anything explaining please do leave a comment!

I know most people associate Harry with Harry Hook, however Carlos also has a friend in the first book called Harry who is the son of one of Cruella's henchmen, I will be sure to make which Harry I am refering to very clear.

"You'll be okay if you keep your head down," Mal assured, standing with her back pressed to the wall in their hideout. Her arms were folded over her chest, one foot propped on the wall behind her so her leg was bent. To anyone that didn't know her well it would be a convincing act, they would think she honestly couldn't care less about the current situation; but the rest of the core four could see through it, not that they'd ever call her out on it. "Don't worry about protecting the turf, it can go to the rats for all I give two shits. We'll be off this hunk of rock soon enough, and I doubt some crap-shacks will equate to much then."

Carlos nodded silently, trying and somehow succeeding in keeping up a mask of indifference as the others packed up their things around him.

"We won't be gone long C," Evie agreed, shoving a pillow and blanket into an old leather bag that was barely holding itself together despite all the stitching she had attempted to do, not that Carlos was all that surprised. The best thread she found went into making their clothes, repairs to non-essentials got whatever was left and crappy thread would only ever equate to crappy repairs. "We'll be back so fast, Cruella won't even have the chance to get you to clean half of her furs."

"I'll hold you to that." Carlos teased, a small smile playing on his lips.

"Okay," Jay stated finally, standing up from where he was crouching over his belongings and shoving a torn-up green backpack at Mal before shouldering his own bin bag, "we should go before they come looking for us."

Jay had never been one for words. Carlos nodded at the older boy as he clapped Carlos on the shoulder. His hand lingered there just long enough for the message to be clear: 'Stay safe.'

"We'll put in a good word for you," Evie smiled, pulling Carlos away from Jay and into a hug, "try and bring you over sooner if our plans get held up."

"Yeah," Mal agreed, pushing off the wall so she could face Carlos head-on, "we might need our tech genius over there."

"Might?" Carlos smirked, raising an eyebrow. "You don't honestly think they just have the wand out in the open, do you? There are bound to be security measures."

"Nothing we can't handle," Jay stated, ruffling Carlos' hair and heading for the door. "Now let's go."

"Stay safe pup," Mal said before following after Jay.

Carlos felt his lip quiver as he watched them leave, he hoped Evie hadn't noticed but if the way she pulled him in for another hug was anything to go by she clearly had.

"We'll be back for you, I promise," she whispered into his hair.

"I know," Carlos whispered back.

Evie nodded before pulling away and rushing after the others.

Leaving Carlos alone.

"I know," Carlos whispered into the empty room.

…

"I choose good." Mal's voice was barely audible over the crackling of static from the old TV, but for Carlos, it was all he could focus on. Huddled in his treehouse, pressed so close to the glass his nose was nearly touching it, all in an attempt to catch a glimpse of his friends through the army of ants that paraded his television set. He internally cursed himself for not fixing the stupid thing sooner, he had known it was wonky months ago.

"I choose good, you guys!" Mal was smiling, he could make out that much, and it was enough to make him smile too. If she was happy on the good side then he would be happy for her. He never truly felt he belonged on this side of the barrier anyway.

Jay and Evie clearly felt the same way, throwing their hands into the centre of their three-person huddle, repeating the same sentence Mal had just uttered.

They would be back for him soon, he was sure of it. They had said they would put in a good word for him if their plans got held up, and he trusted them.

…

Trust on the isle was always something people discouraged. Carlos had followed that rule for the longest time, only putting trust in himself. Harry and Jace had been minor exceptions but they barely counted to him, it was obvious the other two would walk through the depths of hell for him from the day they met, even if that was only because they were the children of his mother's henchmen. Carlos still put some trust in them.

No, the first true exceptions to that particular rule was Mal, Jay and Evie. And Carlos was starting to understand why that rule existed. Two months of waiting for his rescue had amounted to nothing, not even a crummy postcard, and he was officially sick of waiting.

He had done as told and surrendered the turf to the first sleaze bags that had shown an interest and, as expected, that had been Uma and her crew of pirates. He heavily regretted that move now. All that he had left was the small patch of land around the outside of Hell Hall, only maintaining that power thanks to everyone being too scared to even look at the crumbling mansion for fear of catching the eyes of Cruella. Having a bat-shit crazy lady as a mother had some advantages.

He glanced around his treehouse, mentally taking note of what supplies he had. He could start trading he supposed, although he would have to do so from his front lawn so his clientele would be limited to the few people that dared wander that close to Hell Hall. But he needed food, and to get that he needed some sort of power. He couldn't keep living off of the scraps Cruella gave him from her own food, food which he had salvaged he bitterly remembered. Scraps had done him well enough until now, but they wouldn't last him much longer.

"Carlos?" Harry's voice called from under the treehouse.

Carlos huffed, moving towards the hatch and opening up so he could stare down at his henchman. Yes, henchman. He didn't do 'friends' anymore.

The two were a comical sight, especially from directly above them. Spitting images of their parents Jasper and Horace, Jace towered over Harry, and was far skinnier than the other, although both were relatively skinny and bony. Just like nearly every other kid on the isle. Carlos had tried hard to understand how Harry appeared so much plumper than the other despite eating just as little, but he ended up settling on him just having bigger bones since it sure as hell wasn't muscle.

"What?"

"Uma wants to meet with you!" Jace cut in, craning his neck back so he could make eye contact with Carlos.

"Tell her I told her to fuck off," Carlos responded dryly, "just like the last twenty times she 'summoned' me."

"I don't know Carlos, Hook looked about ready to march down here himself last time we took that message back to them…" Harry muttered.

"Let him, Carlos stated. "I won't let him up and I have a bunch of pretty dangerous chemicals up here and a great aim if he tries anything."

"Don't you think you should at least talk to her?" Jace asked, lip slipping between his teeth as he worried. "We're kind of backed into a corner here… we're out of options."

Carlos hummed, looking towards the house where his mother was undoubtedly sleeping off her last drinking session. It was getting late, it was already dark, the rest of the Isle would be alive and bustling with people, he could probably risk sneaking out and blending in with the crowd. He glanced back into the treehouse, taking in his depleting supply of functioning motherboards. He nodded to himself, a plan already forming in his head.

Grabbing the broken rope ladder from the side of the hatch, Carlos hastily lowered it down towards his henchmen.

"Harry, get up here and watch the treehouse. Jace, you're coming with me."

Harry hesitated for barely a second before starting up the ladder, Carlos stepping to the side so the shorter boy would be able to get through the hatch easier.

"Where are we going?" Jace asked nervously. "You're finally going to meet them?"

"Fuck no!" Carlos scoffed. "We're heading to that little bit of turf controlled by those minor league guys."

"Like us?" Harry asked as he heaved himself through the hole and onto the solid floor of the treehouse.

"Not for long." Carlos stated, not bothering to elaborate as he took Harry's place on the ladder and climbed down. "Don't let anyone up Harry," Carlos ordered, "and don't leave the treehouse for even a second."

"Okay…" Harry looked like Carlos had just put far too much responsibility onto his shoulders but Carlos ignored his obvious worry.

Carlos led Jace around the side of Hell Hall and out into the street, glancing around every so often to make sure no pirates were hiding themselves in the shadows. It was risky, what Carlos was about to do, but it was necessary. He didn't have anyone else protecting him now, he had to cover his own back, protect himself and get whatever he needed his own way. Even if that meant underhanded tricks, risky moves and exploitation. There was a reason he had skipped two years of Dragon Hall. It sure as hell wasn't because he was dumb.

"Not to, uh, question your plans or anything," Jace muttered after walking in silence for evil knows how long, "but, you do have a plan don't you?"

"Of course." Carlos nodded, keeping his head held high as he spared Jace a side glance. "I don't rush into things without thinking."

"I know, I know, but like, how long have you been planning this? Just for my own peace of mind."

"About half an hour." Carlos replied honestly, smirking at the way Jace momentarily froze. "Don't worry, if things start going south you're welcome to run for the hills."

"You…" Jace bit his lip, eyes darting all around as he scoped out the few people that were starting to flicker around them as they got closer to the central plaza. "You really do know how to scare me, you know that?"

"Good," Carlos stated, "no one ever gets anything by being friendly and pleasant." He had learnt that the hard way.

The conversation lulled as they got into the more populated parts of the Isle. As expected, everything was loud and busy. A perfect atmosphere for blending into the background, shocking white hair or otherwise.

Carlos easily slipped into the crowd, Jace hot on his tail. The taller of the two clearly stood out more, his height an obvious disadvantage when trying to blend in with the malnourished and thus generally short population of the Isle, but that would eventually work to Carlos' advantage. At least, that's what he hoped. Matching the pace of a girl with a black beanie, Carlos made sure to stay close to her, not caring if he was noticed. He occasionally glanced back at Jace, making sure he was keeping up.

As expected the girl darted off of the main road and into a seemingly random back alley. Carlos smirked and shot out a hand behind him to grab Jace's wrist, pulling him after her.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Jace squeaked.

"Good to know your instincts about danger are working. Don't jump." Carlos warned.

"Don't wha-"

Carlos froze at the feeling of cold metal hitting the skin of his neck, an arm roughly wrapping around his upper body to hold him in place. Jace gave a tiny squeak next to him and a glance to the side found the other boy in the same situation.

Good. They were in the right place.

"You're a little far away from Hell Hole de Vil," the girl from the main street stepped out from around a corner, moving to stand in front of the trapped boys. "Why the fuck are you following me?"

This was fine. This was what he expected. He just had to hold his cool, just do what Mal had taught him to.

"You're hard people to get hold of," Carlos answered honestly, shrugging as much as he dared to when a sharp object was touching his skin. "We just wanted to talk to your boss."

"Oh yeah?" The girl asked. "Then start talking, I can pass on the message."

"Well," Carlos began, "not that I don't trust you or anything, although I'm sure you understand why I don't, but I'd rather talk to someone higher up directly. And I'd rather not have a knife pointed at my throat whilst doing so."

The girl scowled, making eye contact with the two boys currently holding Jace and Carlos. A silent conversation appeared to take place before her eyes, before finally settling back on Carlos.

"No games?"

"None at all, I have a proposition which could benefit both parties here."

She stared at him for a minute longer before nodding and turning on her heels. "Fine. Let's go."

The arms holding Jace and Carlos dropped immediately, and the weapons that had been held uncomfortably close to their windpipes were quickly stashed away. Carlos tried not to show his relief.

They followed at a rather fast pace, and for a second Carlos was hit by just how quickly things were moving considering he had only just started planning this. Carlos briefly wondered if this was how Mal used to get things done when she was in charge, quick planning and quick execution, or if she just rushed in.

He shook all thoughts of her out of his head instantly however, the only thing he even remotely wanted to remember about her was her lessons in seeming calm and collected. Straight back, head held high, indifference. You care about nothing and no one, you're here for their sake and not your own, you don't care how this turns out.

Evil this was going to take some getting used to.

He was led through the maze of back allies that seemed to go on forever, twisting one way and another, so much it was hard to keep track of where they had come from. Eventually, they were brought around the back of a metal building that looked in worse shape than most other buildings on the Isle, which was really a polite way of saying 'it looked like shit'.

The 'door', if it could be called that, was a curtain covered in sloppily patched holes and the 'walls' were flimsy at best. But it had a roof and was sheltered, and that was far more than what most of the Isle's population could find. Carlos couldn't criticise them for finding the place and managing to keep it in their control.

The inside was one large room with a floor laden with ripped up sacks and blankets, makeshift beds to the few children that laid sprawled upon them. Carlos turned away from them as the girl from before pointed at a spot on the floor.

"Sit." She instructed. "I'll get Halina."

Jace moved to follow her instructions but Carlos quickly intercepted by clicking his fingers and shaking his head the second Jace's attention was on him.

'Stay standing, you're more intimidating standing, don't get comfortable.' Mal's voice rang in his head, accompanied by a quiet version of his own telling him if he was standing he could escape faster.

The girl eyed them for a second before walking out of sight. The two from earlier that had held Jace and Carlos remained, an unfriendly reminder that they weren't welcome guests.

Carlos waited, arms folded across his chest, resisting the urge to shift from foot to foot or play with the dog tail attached to his belt to settle his nerves. 'Don't show nerves, don't show weakness.' Jay's voice joined Mal's in his head.

"This better be good de Vil!" A voice breached the silence as a girl with blue hair swept into the room, the girl from before right behind her.

"I promise it is," Carlos stated. "Halina, I presume?"

"Cut the small talk, my time is valuable. Why are you here?" Halina turned, facing Carlos head-on, eyes shining with menace. Carlos resisted the urge to gulp at the noticeable height difference between the two of them and instead focused on mirroring her posture. The same way he had seen Mal mirror Uma's many times before. He hoped Jace was standing behind him, and that the taller boy was at least trying to look intimidating, but he knew that was a long shot.

"I have a proposition for you and your group, I think you'll like it."

"How about you let me decide if I like it or not. Last I checked you aren't exactly the most popular person on this junk heap right now and me forming deals with you might drag me down to your level."

Carlos chewed the inside of his cheek in a way he hoped wasn't noticeable to anyone else. He was already at a disadvantage enough thanks to his lack of manpower or turf to stake his name to, being one of the most hated people on the Isle simply because he used to be associated with the rogue daughter of Maleficent and her lackeys didn't help his standing.

"What if I could promise you tradable goods?" Carlos asked. "Working televisions, fixed TV remotes, whatever you want."

Halina cocked her head, looking Carlos up and down as though to scrutinise the reliability of his offer. "You don't have that kind of stuff. Nothing around here washes up working. And if it did there is no way a runt like you would be able to get your hands on it."

"Maybe not, but I've got a pretty great understanding of how stuff like that works, all I need is a few working parts to replace broken ones and I can mend anything. Within reason of course."

"And I suppose you don't have anything you can show me right now to prove that, do you?" Halina asked, eyeing him again.

"And risk someone taking it from my pockets before I got here?" Carlos scoffed. "Fat chance. But if you want proof, you're welcome to walk back to Hell Hall with me so I can show you."

"I'd have to be insane or stupid to go anywhere near that place."

"Or have a death wish," the other girl piped up from where she had taken a seat on the floor.

If looks could kill the glare she received in return for her comment would have killed her a hundred times over.

"Yes, thank you, Piper." It was dripping with venom, a clear warning for the younger girl to keep her mouth shut. 'Thank you' only ever meant a threat, on the Isle.

"Then you'll just have to believe me, won't you?" Carlos smirked as Halina's attention flew back to him. It might have been well hidden but there was definitely some shock there, that wasn't the response she had been expecting.

Good, the momentary distraction had thrown her off balance.

Carlos could get used to this, it felt kind of good to throw people off like that. It felt powerful, almost.

"Suppose I did believe you," Halina started, slipping her mask of indifference back into place, "what's in it for you if I take you up on the offer?"

"Simple. I want the freedom to trade around here too. Without the risk of one of your people coming after me for it."

"You think I'm stupid? If you're trading around here then what's the point of you giving us things to trade, huh?"

Shit. He hadn't thought of that.

"Fair point," Carlos began, desperately trying to hide the panic going on in his head, "how about-"

"We're done here." Halina turned, moving back towards the exit. "I'm not wasting my time on some half thought out plan. Show them out!"

"I'll just do repairs!" Carlos called quickly.

Halina froze. She paused for a second before looking over her shoulder at him. Carlos quickly schooled his features, internally cursing himself for the momentary slip-up caused by panic.

"Come again?"

"I'll just do repairs in this area, in exchange for food, money, or whatever. That way I won't be treading on any toes."

Halina turned to face him again.

Okay Carlos, seal the deal.

"If something can't be repaired for any reason I'll send them directly to you for new ones, so long as your lot tell people where to go if things break." Carlos waited for a second to allow his offer to settle in. As soon as Halina opened her mouth to respond he quickly added, "and any electronic parts your people find when they do barge runs come to me. I have to have those supplies if I want to make your things."

Halina raised an eyebrow at him, stepping forwards as she did so. She removed one of her fingerless gloves before spitting into the palm of her hand, holding it out to him.

"You have a deal, De Vil."

Carlos quickly hid his smile behind a smirk before taking her hand. He was immediately pulled closer.

"If you're bullshitting me I will not hesitate to slit your throat." She hissed into his ear.

"Same to you." Carlos hissed back, keeping his cool despite his heart hammering madly in his chest.

They both pulled away, Halina turning immediately to the girl on the floor.

"Make sure they know how to get to us." She instructed before turning back to Carlos. "You can pick up your parts here in two days, you can drop off whatever you've got for us then as well."

Carlos nodded and Halina mimicked the action before turning on her heels and walking out.

Piper got to her feet, gesturing to the door for him to leave and after a glance at Jace he did so. Piper showed them the easiest route from the 'HQ', as she called it, to the outskirts of plaza closest to Hell Hall.

"I'll be waiting here Wednesday, so you don't get... lost." There was a barely hidden threat there, and Carlos could tell she was serious with it. He nodded, still putting all his energy into keeping up his facade of indifference.

She left the way they had come and Carlos and Jace started the trek back to Hell Hall.

It hadn't been the best deal Carlos would have liked to get, but it was quite possibly the best he would have gotten considering the current circumstances. At the very least he had brought himself a steady supply of parts, more than he would be able to find on his own, free movement in that area, and likely some form of protection if he proved himself a valuable enough ally for them. After all, they wouldn't want their supplier getting hurt or mugged.

"I thought we were dead men," Jace finally whined, breaking the silence. He was noticeably shaking now that Carlos got the chance to properly look at him. "Why'd you have to bring me along?!"

"You were supposed to be the intimidation factor!" Carlos snapped.

"I don't know if you've noticed this, Carlos, but I'm not exactly intimidation material. They'd snap me like a twig!"

"Then I guess that's the next thing we have to work on."

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Once again, special thanks to xxdancingwithdemonsxx on Tumblr for editing this for me! Please check her out!