i was leaving audreys dorm when i ran into carlos. he had a dog with him for whatever reason. he smiled at me and put the dog down before speaking to me.

"hey i was just gonna go to the girls dorm, wanna come along?" i honestly didn't want to but again my mouth spoke before my brain had a chance to interject. "sure why not." great going val, great going. we walked down to the girls dorm in silence with the dog running back and fourth between my legs and carlos' legs. you don't really see dogs on the isle, or pets really. i guess that's because cruella lives on the isle and we all know about her and dogs.

carlos opened the door to the girls dorm without knocking, are they all just comfortable walking in on each other without knocking? yeah i'm not like that, i didn't have a door back home just a curtain but even then i made sure people made their presence aware to me before entering the room. mal didn't say anything to us, but was pretty obvious about her eye rolling. obviously this was aimed towards me and not carlos. evie however did great us. how kind.

i didn't know what to do as i wasn't exactly friends with them, which is why i'm confused as to why carlos invited me to just hang with them. mal was on her bed, carlos on the floor next to mal's bed and evie was doing homework.

"so i see you've made friends with the popular kid, well aren't you quite the catch." evie motioned at the chair next to her as a sign for me to sit down. okay i shall sit then. "how'd it happen?" a miracle i guess i don't know. i didn't think they would be fawn of me.

"i don't know, fairy godmother sat me down next to audrey and we just started talking. we bonded and then she's inviting me to hang out with her." i could've sworn i heard an 'ugh' from somewhere in the room, hmm whoever could it be from. before evie could ask me anymore questions jay burst in strutting like a model. ah a tourney jersey, just like the one princey has.

"did your plan work with jane?" jay asked mal, what plan? we're making plans now? mal closed her book rather aggressively and shot daggers into jay's skull. "do you think i would be going through every single spell in this book if i hadn't completely struck out?" a spell book you say? i am now interested in whatever they're discussing.

"oh someone's in a bad mood. so hearts, hows it going with becoming buddies with ben? any intel on the wand?" hmm? what now? do they think i'm being friendly to princey for them? hey that has nothing to do with the plan. mal looked at me and smirked. no please don't do that.

"hearts you sly dog, become friends with ben to get close to the wand? why didn't i think of that, great planning. mal likes. my moms counting on me, and i can't let her down. if i knew you were as mischievous as us you could've been rolling with us this whole time." i do not like this. i do not like mal being, in anyway, proud of me. yuck. ew. get away from me spawn of maleficent.

"we can do this! if we stick together. five heads are better than one." jay don't encourage this! "and we don't go back until we do, because we're rotten." woah i didn't know the isle taught us how to be motivational speakers. "to the core." everyone except me replied. ah they have their little catchphrases huh? can't relate sadly. actually not sadly, i don't think i want that. seems kinda cringey. well i can see the appeal, it does seem rather catchy.

"hey fyi, at coronation fairy godmother uses the wand to bless ben or whatever. we all get to go, but i of course have nothing to wear ugh." woah evie was assigned so much homework on the first day? unbelievable. before anyone could say anything there was a knock at the door. no one got up to answer it, i guess they were expecting whoever it was to just waltz in. the person knocked again and since no one moved i decided to open the door.

"oh hey valentin, i didn't expect to see you here." princey was at the door, oh and look his cheeks are all pink again. "well i was just wondering if any of you had any questions." i looked back at the four and they all shook their heads no. "okay well if you need anything don't be afraid to ask. i'll see you later val." with that princey waved goodbye and left.

"see you later? you're going to see him later?" evie asked as i closed the door. yes i was? "uh yeah, turns out they found a place for me to stay. that place being with princey." mal groaned in frustration and threw her book back on the bed.

"he was right there! we should've asked about the coronation." mal face palmed and the others also let out small groans of frustration. they're getting real worked up over a wand? okay..

"well what else do you need to know? at the coronation he gets crowned king of auradon. fairy godmother uses the wand, the royal families are all at the front. up close seats are for fairy godmother, his parents and his girlfriend." i take it no one talked about the coronation to them? audrey told me all about it and what she's going to wear and whatnot.

"girlfriend? i think it's time bennyboo got himself a new girlfriend." i beg your pardon? "and i need a love spell." we're gonna use a love spell on princey? well if we don't get the wand we're certainly going to be sent back to the isle either way so uh i don't know how to feel about this.

"well this was fun, but i have to go so see you tomorrow." i waved awkwardly and opened the door to leave. i received two goodbyes from the boys, and a 'see ya' from evie. with that i left and headed towards jay and carlos' dorm to retrieve my bag. hopefully rooming with princey wasn't such a bad thing, however i don't really know where his dorm is at so finding it will be fun.

after i collected my items, i began my search for princeys room. it shouldn't be too hard right? it would be easier if the doors had the names of who roomed where. just look for anything that points to princey, maybe a crown?

"are you okay?" hmm? a girl with long brown curls came up to me. is it that obvious i'm lost? "oh yeah, i'm just lost. do you know where the prince rooms?" the girl gave me a weird look before nodding. "can you tell me where?" she nodded again before speaking. "i'll take you." she didn't say anything after that and began walking. why is she being so quiet? am i intimidating?

"here it is. i'm lonnie by the way." why'd she introduce herself after that awkward silence? "thanks, i'm valentin hearts." i think she already knew that though by the way she was glancing back at me now and then as we walked. "son of the queen of hearts right? yeah my moms mulan." why does it sound like she's trying to brag?

"right, well thanks again lonnie, daughter of mulan." she laughed though i wasn't exactly joking. "you're very welcome valentin, son of the queen of hearts." is she mocking the way i phrase my sentences? whatever i could care less if she was mocking me or not. she waved and left me alone outside of princeys door. do i knock or just go in? well if it's my room i don't need to knock right? no i'll knock, i don't want to walk in on something that could be traumatizing.

i knocked like three times before princey finally opened the door. what took him so long to answer the door? whatever at least he opened it. "valentin hey, i didn't expect to see you so soon. again. come on in, make yourself at home." he stepped aside and let me through. woah his room seems bigger than the guys room, and the beds look different too. i take it my bed is the one with the red and black color scheme? ah yes my moms signature colors.

"this ones your bed, the bathroom is through there. there's the tv, where you can put your clothes. if you need anything let me know." yeah his room is bigger, and that's probably because he's about to become king. a room fit for a king. "rights, thanks." i tossed my bag onto my new bed, and woah the pillowcases are better than the other ones. is this silk? oh my gods.

"is there a problem?" oh there is no problem princey, no problem at all. "no, it's just... well you don't really see silk on the isle. this room is just... amazing." i look like a kid in a candy shop don't i? oh let me be excited, i deserve it. i grabbed my bag and began unpacking, though i feel weird unpacking. he's watching me do it too like dude what? i feel likes he's judging me as i take what little clothes i own out.

"didn't your parents teach you it's rude to stare?" i asked as i stopped unpacking, well i finished actually as i don't own much. "yeah, i'm so sorry. i didn't mean to weird you out or anything. you're just.... you just seem to excited to be here. it's cu-" it's what? he cut himself off before he could finish the sentence.

"yeah well we don't see stuff like this on the isle much. it's pretty exciting." he took a seat on his bed and played around with his hands. he wanted to ask about the isle didn't he? "if you want to ask about the isle go right ahead. i don't mind answering your questions." he sighed in relief, i take it he didn't want to ask because he didn't want to seem rude.

"how was it? growing up on the isle and everything." i went and sat next to him, us vk's don't know the meaning of personal space so i'm sorry if i'm overstepping it. he didn't seem to mind though as he didn't move. now where do i start?

"well obviously it's very different than growing up here in auradon. to put it simply, we live in poverty. our houses, if you can even call them that, aren't constructed like, well like auradon prep. it sounds silly, but it's true. i grew up in a broke down house, well more like a shack. we had one door, you were considered rich if you had more. my room was nothing like this, my mattress was old, dirty and on the floor." he feels sorry for us doesn't he? well it's not like feeling sorry for us does anything, we were forced to live like this thanks to your dad princey.

"no offense... but you're dad is cruel. yeah our parents were evil and deserved to be punished, but bringing them back to life and putting them all together on an island isn't fair. and i don't mean fair to them but fair to us. obviously he was aware of us being born, and he did nothing for us. he left us on the isle, which is full of murderers. the isle is our home but it's also hell for us. we were left alone on an island full of the evilest people to roam the earth. and your father was okay with that? that makes him worse than any of our parents."

oh gods now i feel sad, i didn't think feeling sad would happen again once i left the isle. i quickly wiped my eyes before any tears spilled, i wasn't about to cry in front of princey. then i felt a hand on mine, it was his. "i'm sorry, and i know that probably doesn't mean anything to you. i completely agree with you, my father didn't think things through. i promise once i get crowned king i'll use my power to make things better."

"if you really are a man of your word then i believe you. those kids deserve so much better, they deserve to grow up like you guys did. you guys don't know how lucky you are to have grown up in such an amazing environment. and thank you." he gave me a look that implied he didn't know what i was thanking him for.

"thank you for choosing me as one of the kids that got to come to auradon. there were others that deserved to come, but you chose me. i know it wasn't on purpose and it was probably at random, but thank you." he squeezed my hand before letting it go.

"i have a meeting to attend, i'll come pick you up for dinner. get some rest, you look worn out." did i really? i mean i do feel tired but then again i'm always tired so yeah. "sure, i'll see you then." i got off of his bed and went back to mine, i can't wait to sleep in it. it looks so comfortable. however sleeping in these clothes will not be comfortable.

once princey left the room i grabbed my sleeping shirt and my worn out shorts. i'll get dressed again once princey comes to pick me up for dinner. for now, i'm going to take a nap on this bed that seems to have been made by the gods themselves. as soon as my body made contact with the bed i felt like i was in paradise. this is so much better than the old mattress back home, this one doesn't have springs sticking out of it!

**

i woke up to the sound of someone opening the door, was is it dinner time already? i sat up and stretched, that was an amazing nap if i do say so myself. oh my it's smells good! wait why does it smell good? is there food in the room?

"hey you're up! i brought you dinner." brought me dinner? aren't we suppose to go out and eat in the eating room thing? "i came to pick you up for dinner, but you wouldn't wake up no matter how much i shook you. here come dig in." i slept through dinner? well that doesn't seem like me.

"oh mal and the others were looking for you. you guys seem to all be pretty close, it's nice to know you had some friends on the isle." princey sat on his bed and placed the tray next to him, um isn't that like bad cause like what if the food falls on the bed?

"me friends with mal? as if. i wouldn't say i'm friends with the others, i tolerate them but that's about it. back on the isle we weren't exactly close. i had my friends and they had, well each other." all he could say was 'oh.' was he embarrassed to have made the assumption that we were friends or?

"so what you're a lone wolf? don't need friends cause you're too cool for that?" well no one wants to be lonely and without friends. "of course not, i was able to make a friend wasn't i? your little girlfriend audrey. yeah i don't know how but pretty pink princess and i ended up getting along."

"you think she's pretty?" does he not think his girlfriend is pretty? or is this like a trap? "well yeah, all the people here are beautiful and handsome. including you princey." he smiled and didn't say much for a bit as i ate the food he brought me. that was actually very kind of him to do, bring me food. i would starve if no one ever reminded me to eat.

"do give everyone nicknames or just friends?" princey asked, oh maybe he doesn't appreciate his nickname or his girlfriends nickname. "everyone kind of. why? don't tell me you don't like me calling you princey. if you're not cool with it that's fine, i'll call you... ben." i almost forgot his name there, see this is why i need to stop giving people nicknames. one time i forgot uma's name, yeah never making that mistake again.

"no! i like it actually, the only person who gives me nicknames is audrey. everyone else just calls me ben and that's pretty boring." i offered him some of my food but he declined. suit yourself princey. "well since i came up with it, only i get to call you princey." he seemed to like that as his cheeks went pink again. he does that a lot doesn't he?

"okay, but it's only fair that i get to give you a nickname only i can call you." well he's got me there, that does seem pretty fair. "okay, what do have for me princey." i don't think you can much with valentin, val is the only nickname you get out of it.

"mon chéri." what the fuck did he just say? "it's french for my friend." oh okay, it's kinda basic but since it's in french that takes away from the basic meaning. "okay, ma poule is my nickname now. a nickname only you get to call me. happy now princey?" this time he smiled and showed teeth, pearl white teeth. nice.

TW: there will be mentions of abuse after this! please skip if you're not okay with reading that type of stuff. stay safe babes!

after i finished eating, princey ser the tray aside and we just sat there. is this what friends do in auradon? i mean on the isle, we would be running around doing whatever we wanted right about now. hey princey is starting again, does he just like space out at random moments? he's always just staring at me without saying anything. then i saw his arm reach forward towards my arm.

"who did this to you?" i looked down at what princey was looking at, oh my bruises. i take it you don't see those around much unless they're caused by a sport. "did your mother do this to you?!" he sounded angry, i mean there's no reason to get angry about it. i am angry he'd accuse my mother of doing such thing though.

"of course not! mother would never, i'm her little miracle." yeah mother didn't sound like much of a villain when she was with me, always praised me and cared for me. "well then who? you're father?" pfft of course not. "i would need to have a father for that to have happened." princey wasn't liking my response was he?

"val this is serious, who did this to you? are there more? do you need to see a doctor? your wrist... val are you okay?" wait does he actually care? like does he genuinely give a fuck about me? okay val maybe stop being a smartass and realize princey is trying to be your friend.

"it was my mother's boyfriend, and no she doesn't know he did this to me. yes there are more, and no i don't need a doctor. the bruises will go away with time, you don't need to worry much." he shook his head and lifted the sleeve up more, why'd i choose to have a short sleeved shirt as a sleep shirt.

"these seem old, and these seem new. val, how long has this been going on?" when did mother meet that scum of the earth boyfriend of hers? can i trust princey with this sort of thing? how do i know he won't ever try to use it against me? "you can tell anything, we're friends okay? i'm not here to judge." yeah but we just met, wouldn't i be over sharing? his hands traveled down my arm to my hand, he held it tightly and it was sort of comforting.

"i was around four years old when he moved in. it started of with him yelling at me as soon as mother left me alone with him. it seems like whatever i did only made him angrier, he would yell at me about things that weren't my fault. at one point he even blamed me for him being on the isle. then when i turned five he began to hit me. first he would just use a belt, but after a while i didn't cry anymore because i got accustomed to it. he would throw things at me, and slap me here and there. he'd use anything that was big and heavy, to make sure it really hurt." i don't know how or when but my legs went from hanging on the side to being on the bed with him. he must've pulled me closer and i hadn't realized.

"he didn't stop using words to hurt me though, he always told me that i was a mistake and that i somehow ruined my mother's life. he always told me to... well to kill myself. he didn't just tell me to do it, but he told me how to do it. he would say i was the reason my dad walked out on mother and i, he would lock me in my room without having eaten. and that says a lot since i didn't have a door. he found a way to boarder up my windows, but i was always able to escape. when i turned ten, he became even more physical. punches and kicks is what i grew up on. i know what you're thinking, why didn't you tell your mother? he would threaten to not only kill me but mother as well. i couldn't risk it so i let it continue. all the things i did on the isle, or well the evil and mischievous things i did, were all fueled by anger. even my wrist are covered with the lines of my anger. i would talk back to teachers and be an ass, even though it was expect, but i found ways to 'go too far.'"

princey didn't say much. he rubbed my hand and arm, he was trying to comfort me. i didn't even mean to unload so much on him, i guess i just didn't get to express my feelings like this back on the isle. with uma, harry and gil, i expressed my emotions by being angry. i fought with the people that crossed my path, i'd punch things, etc.

i thought i broke princey, and i was about to leave thinking i made things awkward when he hugged me. his hug felt like my mother's hugs, those overprotective bear hugs. it felt like home, because mother is my home. was he crying or was that me?

"val i'm so sorry, you're here now with me. i promise i'll protect you from any type of danger that might come your way. you don't have to worry about scum like that here okay? if you ever need someone, i'll be here for you. i promise i'll be here whenever you need me. i'm here for you ma poule."

ma poule, i like that. thank you princey, i guess i've never really had a shoulder to cry on. i would typically find this weird and off putting but i like it. princey felt warm, and the whole thing made my stomach and heart ache. not in a bad way, it felt weird but it also felt nice.

"thank you ben, thank you princey."