Ghosts of Old Chapter 20: One More Chance, a lxg fanfic

Author's Note: I'm not even going to bother apologising… you already know why. Sorry it's a tad short, but… that's the way the cookie crumbles O.o

Angel-flame: Wait no longer XD Here's the new chapter.

Drakena: Lots of people always lusting after Mina in one way or another XD 'Lucky' woman.

funyun ::snorts:: Something tells me you don't agree with Huck charging off…

Capt. Cow: Go Huck, indeed! And what DO you have against Joe? I'm curious.

Marcus Lazarus: It's all going to hell in a hand basket! Easiest way of explaining it.

Graymoon74: XD Don't you worry. Huck has a plan up his sleeve ;)

Leigh S. Durron: Surprises are fun. We all know it. Here's where you find out if your worry is justified…

Sethoz: O.O I didn't stab Tom! (And neither did Serpent, so no loopholes :P) He just… hit him quite hard o.O

And now, the new part of Ghosts of Old…

Huck knew very well that what he was doing could get him killed. The man – the Serpent – knew what he was doing in terms of blades and combat, not to mention ambush, and Huck Finn had been out of action for a while following his getting shot. He was a little rusty. If he was ambushed, there was a good possibility he wouldn't make it out… at least not intact anyway.

Swallowing his doubt, with his guns in his hands, he crept – if you could call a quiet jog 'creeping' – down a long passageway that he couldn't fathom. From outside, the building hadn't seemed capable of holding such inner space. He cast this out of his mind when he saw a light up ahead. Bracing himself for any danger that might await him, he paced silently up to it, his brown and keen eyes boring into the door, before he nudged it with a boot. It creaked ominously, but only slightly, as it swung on its hinges, and he stared into the opening, lowering and levelling his guns instantly the moment the barricade had slipped out of the way.

His heart racing in his chest, Huck found himself barrel to barrel with the Serpent, who had a large rifle pointed squarely at the American's chest, not a flicker of uncertainty in those dark, dangerous eyes. His face was set as if in stone, and he did not look amused. His hands never wavered, and his expression was grim.

"I don't take well to people followin' me…" Serpent growled quietly, irritation lacing his tone.

Huck steadied his nerves, never moving an inch. His eyes and limbs were locked, and only his mind was in constant motion; always trying to think two steps ahead, lest he get caught off-guard. Forcing his voice to lose its slight inevitable tremble – he remembered having a barrel pointed at his heart all too well – Huck said, "I have somethin' you might be interested in."

Serpent narrowed those near-black eyes, and angled his face a little more to show his intrigue. "Is that right?"

Pushing forward one of the hammers on his guns… and then the other, Huck carefully suggested, "Let's talk."

His heels tapping lightly on the cold floors of his makeshift home, he travelled down the gloomy corridor to the locked room at the end of it, his cane absent from his grasp for a change. It felt odd not to be carrying it, but he felt no need for it at this present moment. He was, after all, in the company of more loyal men than Nemo's mutineers, and he knew he could trust these 'gentlemen'. He had called upon their services many times in the past, and they hadn't failed him yet.

Dorian came to a stop before the door, where a single guard was standing, seemingly unarmed. There was a pistol on his person though, Dorian knew for a fact, and also a cross, which would intimidate Mina should she try and break free. He doubted that, though. She didn't seem the type to throw herself against the bars.

Of course, Dorian was proven wrong as he stepped up to the small opening at face height, peering into it. He actually jumped back a little – albeit with a hearty chuckle – when a set of fangs flashed into view with a savage growl for accompaniment. It seemed Mina was feeling the effects that came with the denying her blood. Dorian grinned wolfishly at her through the bars.

"My dear Mina… you see, we could have avoided all this unpleasantness, had you just agreed with me." His grin wavered, and was replaced by a sly smile instead, with a flash of cunning in his eyes that would make any fox green with envy. "We shall give you just a couple more days… and then, if you've been good…" He chuckled. "You can have something to eat, hmm?"

Mina growled fiercely, but slinked back into the shadows of her cell, the only thing not swallowed by darkness being her eyes. Dorian stood there watching her casually until the eyes waned and faded into the shadows as well, no longer visible by their bloody hue. Satisfied that she was – if only bestially – complying with his demands, he turned on his heel, and walked away, nodding lazily to the man on duty. Of course, he did feel some regret in caging Mina as he was… but only a little.

Coming around slowly, the first thing Tom became aware of was the intense; near blinding pain in the back of his neck and skull. He groaned, unable to hold back the noise of discomfort, and winced, lifting a hand. He heard someone tell him to take it easy, and he forced his eyelids to lift somewhat, seeing the fuzzy outline of Skinner leaning over him as he lay flat on his back on… something.

"Where are we?" he asked groggily, landing the hand on his face heavily and breathing deeply against it to try and clear his head… though he wasn't sure how such a stupid method would work. Groaning again, he dropped the hand back beside his head as Skinner spoke.

Tom sat upright at once, nearly losing his balance as he did so, and wobbling slightly. He looked with alarm to the thief and blurted, "Where did he go? What happened?" He remembered everything up until… thinking that Serpent might release him, and seeing the look of alarm on Skinner and Huck's faces. Then he'd blacked out, obviously from a blow the back… he remembered that now too. A sharp strike had landed against him, and he'd cried out, before losing consciousness only moments after. Tom suddenly had a bad feeling, and looked to the thief with concern etched into his features. "Oh, don't tell me…"

There was a pause, in which the two stared at each other tensely, before Tom grumbled, "… I'll kill him. The idiot."

Skinner looked relieved he wasn't about to get punched, and let out a low breath.

"Just what the hell did he think he was doing, running off after that guy? It's obvious he doesn't want to help us," Tom pointed out, and with Skinner's help, rose slowly to his feet. He was reaching to grab a pistol as he continued heatedly, "He's gonna get himself killed." Looking fiercely to Skinner, he added with worry in his voice, "And I nearly lost him once… I'm not going through that again." He knew he sounded overly-protective, but with very good reason. Huck had always been more of a brother to Tom than Sid could ever have been.

Skinner sighed. "He'll be all right. I know he's not the biggest spy I've ever seen, but he certainly seems to know what he's doin', I'll give 'im that." The tone of voice the thief used was weighed down with sincerity, but that didn't improve Tom's heavy feeling in his stomach. If anything happened to Huck…

The voice caused Tom to whirl a little too quickly, and Skinner grabbed the spy before he toppled himself. "Huck!" he cried at the sight of his friend walking, seemingly unharmed towards them, his pistols in his hip holsters under his long coat. He snatched the hats off the rack, where it seemed the stoic young man from before had left them, and flashed a grin.

"Don't worry about me, Tom, I usually know what I'm doin'," Huck quipped, rolling his cap in his hand before planting it firmly on his head at a mischievous angle. As he was walking out the door after looking his taller friend up and down curiously, he said simply, "And Gray's at Park Lane. Place called 'Royal House'."

Tom and Skinner stared at the door as Huck disappeared through it, and hastily pushed out of it as well, onto the dark street, where the shorter American was waiting for them, a sly smirk on his young face. Tom gaped at him. "How did you…?"

"Find out?" Huck finished, shuffling on his feet, but not awkwardly. His hands had found his pockets in his coat, and settled there snugly, and his breath curled from his face in a cloud of cool steam in the night chill. "You know me, Tom… I have my ways." Nodding towards the street suggestively, he said, "Shall we?"

Skinned led the way, the only one capable of finding the way out of the labyrinthine corners of London, and the two spies followed like shadows. Before long, Tom couldn't hold back his burning need for answers any longer, his hat in his hand, and his head pounding with the biggest migraine he could remember since having his skull slammed into the floor on the Nautilus. "C'mon, Huck… don't hold out on me. I wanna know how you got an answer out of him. He was ready to stab me before. He doesn't seem the kind to change his mind to me."

Huck angled his head upward a little, facing his friend and partner, before he narrowed his eyes. "Really bugging you, ain't it?"

Huckleberry Finn sighed in resignation, and slowed his pace discreetly. Tom mimicked, and though Skinner moved a little further ahead, it wasn't enough to worry about getting separated. "All right, I'll tell you. No need to get all pleading on me." Shrugging, Huck glanced back ahead as he offered simply by way of explanation, "I gave him my watch."

Tom froze, even ceasing in walking for just a handful of moments before he remembered the need for urgency, and jogged to catch up again, shock still plastered clearly on his face as he looked down at the shorter spy. "Your watch? You mean… your pocket watch?"

"But…" Tom stumbled on his own words, and pulled a confused expression. "But you love that watch."

Huck looked to his friend, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his mouth as he laughed quietly. Then he said frankly, "You love her more."

Tom fell silent at that, but still felt as though he had been slapped in the face by a good solid palm, or dunked into a vat of ice. Huck had given away his pocket watch, the only true possession of value he'd ever had. Tom couldn't even really remember where Huck had gotten the watch, but a part of his brain explained it away as belonging to the father of his friend. True, Huck had never been too fond of his drunken father, who had died mysteriously and been washed down the river, but… Huck had given away his watch… just so they could get an address.

Tom had always known Huck was a valuable friend; one he would never be able to replace. And this only emphasised that point.

Huck had selflessly given them the means to advance in this pathetic and dangerous game.