Author's note: Welcome back everyone ! Okay, so I know I said we would focus on Mal from now on, but... it's not entirely true haha. We still need to know what happens to our favorites pirates, right ?

Anyways, this chapter is a flashback, and goes hand in hand with the next one so (yep you've guessed it) I will post chapter 23 tomorrow !

Enjoy !

Chapter 22 - The sea witch and the pirate

"Yeah, sure little girl. You know I'm way better with a sword than you'll ever be" bragged Harry.

Uma clicked her tongue and answered with a sassy voice:

"Boy, shut up. I can handle your skinny ass whenever I want to."

She was sitting on top of a table, her feet on a chair, while Harry was mopping the floor of the Chip Shop. She was the one supposed to be doing it, but Harry always claimed that he liked doing her chores and so Uma had the habit of letting him do it for her. She suspected him to use that as an excuse to have some alone time with her - without Gil, customers or anyone around. And since she liked being alone with him too, but had too much pride to admit it, she pretended to be oblivious to his real intentions. They usually spent hours like this - cleaning up the restaurant, teasing it each other. But not tonight.

As soon as Ursula entered the shop, Uma knew that something was wrong. She jumped on her feet and snatched the broom away from Harry's hand. But she couldn't trick anybody. The pirate even had an apron on. Already, Uma had stiffened. Her body was shaking. She could tell, just by the look on her face, that her mother was furious. If Ursula was furious, Uma was scared.

"Go home Harry" she whispered to the pirate

But he did not move. Ursula had closed the door behind her, and was staring at her daughter with dark eyes. Uma gave Harry a begging look and with his fists clenched and visible regret, he finally snook off by the back door.

And so, Ursula finally spoke. She didn't yell. She didn't need to. Her voice was harsh, cold, poisonous. With just one word, she could make Uma tremble. Especially, when she was like this.

"Do you know who I am ?" hissed the dangerous sea witch

Uma nodded in hurry, and started stepping back. But at every step she took, Ursula took a step forward. Already, she had one of her tentacle wrapped around the girls wrist - stopping her from fleeing even more.

"Really ? And who do you think you are to disobey me, uh ?"

But Uma did not get the opportunity to answer - or to even ask what her mother was referring to. Already, Ursula had slapped her and the girl was falling on the cold floor.

"After everything I do for you ? That's how you thank me ? Don't you forget Uma, that you're nothing. Nothing but a piece of dirt. Useless. Pathetic. Distusting…"

With every word, Ursula's tentacle were whipping and the lashing the poor girl. But she was not listening anymore. Whenever Ursula took out her wrath on her daughter, Uma's brain shut down. It was a defense mechanism. She only felt the pain in her body. She stopped thinking, listening, talking. She didn't hear all the horrible things her mother spit at her. She didn't see the anger and the hate on her face. She didn't react to any of the insults, or any of the threats. Because even though her legs and ribs hurted like hell, it was still less painful than the emotional pain. Less painful than her desire for a normal and loving mother. Less painful than the shame she felt to be so weak. Less painful than her worry about what people would think of her bruises and scars. Less painful than the sight of anger and pain on Gil and Harry's faces. So, Uma focused on the physical pain and stopped thinking.

She was like an empty shell. After her mother had hit her, she usually went two to three days without pronouncing a single word - sometimes even up to a week. While it was happening, Uma usually cried in silence and waited for the storm to pass. For Ursula's anger to fade away. Minutes seemed like hours. She would lose track of time. And when it was finally over, she would stay on the floor - crying and wailing - for hours before having the strength to get up.

However, that night, things happened a little bit differently. After Ursula was done, and the silence had fell again on the Chip Shop, Uma heard the back door open again. She was curled up on the floor - tears rolling down her face, blood coming out of her nose. The first thing she saw was his boots. But then, Harry slid his arms under her tights and shoulders and lifted her - with no effort, as if she was the weight of a baby. Uma did not open her mouth. She didn't even try to say a word. Her eyes were open but it was as if they were closed. No information could reach her brain. She had shut down.

She was vaguely aware that Harry was walking, but it's only when they entered the boat that she recognized where he was bringing her. At the time, the pirates' boat was still a small barge - for it was the only thing they could afford. But for Harry - who lived there - it was real update from his days in the streets, and Uma sometimes envied his freedom and his life without parents.

The boy brought her inside her cabine and laid her down in his bed. Then, he left before coming back with a bucket filled with water. With care - but still in silence - he started cleaning her wounds as she observed him quietly.

"You don't wanna talk?" he said. "Not even a little bit ? Make fun of me. Annoy me. Nothing ?"

Uma did not react and Harry sighed. He stood up and - out of frustration - punched the wall with his hook. Uma jumped back in her seat - by reflexe.

"I hate this."

He punched the wall again.

"I hate this ! I hate this ! I'm your first mate, aren't I ? I'm supposed to protect you ! It's my job ! My duty !"

He punched the wall a third time - tears overflowing in his eyes.

"So how is it that I never know what to do ? I'm always fucking useless. I was right behind door ! I was telling myself every second that I would open it, stab that bitch with my hook and save you. But I couldn't do it ! So I just stayed there…. Just a fucking coward!"

"It's because you knew that if you tried to stop her it would only make things worse."

Harry stopped moving - his fist held in the air - and turned himself towards Uma. The girl was staring at her hands resting on her thighs, but she was not crying. So Harry wiped his tears too.

"You talk" he said.

"You're already pretty insane, we don't need you speaking to yourself."

And they smiled at each other. Harry let himself down on the bed next to her and sighed again. Uma's hands were shaking and she tried to clench her fist but nothing could stop it. Already, she was remembering the scene. The tone of mother's voice. The look on her face. The way she…

Harry put his hands over hers to stop them from trembling and tears started falling down her face again.

"I'm sorry" she whispered

He frowned and spoke with strength:

"Don't you ever apologize to me. It's that fucking bitch who should be begging at our feet !"

Uma wiped her cheeks with her sleeves, with an annoyed gesture. She hated how weak she was. She hated to cry in front of people. She hated the way Harry felt bad for her. She hated how she wasn't able to stand up for herself.

"One day" she said with bitterness "We will have her begging at our feet."

Harry gained his smile back. A psychotic, somewhat insane, smile.

"Yes…" he whispered, with an hypnotic tone "That's how I like you. Determined, dangerous… You can trust me, I'll make you the most respected girl of the Isle. People will fear your name. We'll be powerful, and the moment will come - we take the Chip Shop and throw Ursula out. Even she will stared of touching you."

Slowly, Uma smiled too. She liked how he described their future. As if everything had already been planned. As if everything he said would become true, only because he had decided so. Uma passed a hand in his hair, as if she was petting him.

"You really think you can do that, Hook ?'

'Yes. And if I can't, I promise you I'll die trying.'

Uma laughed a little and let her back fall on the bed. The boy lied down next to her - on his side - playing gently with her braids. For a while, Uma felt peaceful. There was something about Harry that always made her calm. The boy was crazy for sure, but funny as well - he had a gift for making forget her worries. But she would have to get up eventually and go home. Back to her "momma".

"You can stay here tonight."

He knew her so well, sometimes it seemed like he could read her thoughts. But Uma didn't want charity or pity - even from him. Especially from him.

"It's okay I can go home" she said "She's not gonna hit me twice in a day, I'll be fine."

But that's not what Harry meant.

"Please. Stay here tonight."

She gave him a surprised look and the boy did not look away. He was staring at her, without blinking, with a weird expression on his face - and is she was the beautifulest thing he had ever seen. Without even realizing it, Uma blushed. It was not the first time she surprised such a look on Harry's face but usually, he would try to hide it away. Not tonight thought. Tonight, he was looking right at her, like he wanted her to know how he felt. And how hard he felt it. With his eyes, he was daring her to look away. But she couldn't. And so the boy smiled.

"Okay" she whispered "I'll stay."

Slowly, with a tenderness that was unusual for the eccentric pirate, Harry reached out his hand and softly caressed Uma's cheek. With the tip of his finger, he traced a line on her face - ending right on her bottom lip. He licked his lips, his face only centimeters away from hers. And a second later, the space between them had disappeared.

That's how Harry and Uma kissed for the first time. It was not really romantic. There were no fireworks, no big declarations. But somehow, it was even more precious.

They were only fifteen, they didn't know anything about love - especially not after growing up on the Isle. They started dating in secret - on and off for three long years. Everything about them was complicated. Harry already had his reputation of playboy and girls fanned at his feet. Uma had trust issues, and if he was not the one messing everything up, she was the one pushing him away, right when she should have held him close. It felt like they could only have moments of happiness. Only small crumbs of it. Moments - here and there - when their walls fell down. Like when he was mopping the floor of the Chip Shop and she was watching him. But deep down, Uma was convinced they were bad for each other. Their friendship was beyond everything, his loyalty undeniable, but romance always complicated things.

That's why, when she left the island with Mal's spellbook - she did not tell Harry about it. She told Gil, she even went to visit him at his uncle's house to say goodbye. But for Harry, she couldn't do the same. She wanted a new beginning, away from of all her traumas. She knew that if she told him, he would have tried to come with her. And although he could be the literal the sunshine of her life, Harry was also part of the hurt she was trying to runaway from.