Author's Note: This story is just flowing now, its kind of nuts. Expect the regular updates to continue since I've got 20 chapters written at this point. Harry and Melody have me writing like crazy and I've even started to finish the last two chapters of my star wars fic, Haunted now. Finally, the words are coming back to me. Hallelujah. Anyway, thanks for joining me on this journey, and as always, say hello to let me know you're out there :)


Melody's blood turned to ice in her veins and she lost her grip on the rope ladder, falling down a rung, only saving herself with a last ditch grab. Was Sparrow talking about her? How could he be when she'd never seen this pirate's face before in her life?

She hauled herself back up to peek through the railing, now gripping the ropes so tight her hands began to ache as she waited for someone to respond to Sparrow's question.

The only immediate answer Sparrow received was the violent scrape of Harry's hook against the blade of his sword and a glare that spoke his intentions loud and clear. Harry was seconds away from taking another swipe with his hook, despite his orders.

Uma, however, didn't show even a flicker of emotion. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I think you know exactly what I'm talking about." Sparrow turned from Uma to offer Harry a pointed look. "I'm here to ask nicely. I don't want anyone hurt. I just need to speak with the mermaid."

"If you didn't want anyone hurt, you shouldn't have turned your guns on us!" Uma gestured to the ruined section of deck nearby and Melody could feel the tension growing.

"That was me playing nice, beautiful. And if you think otherwise, we can finish this right now."

Uma's fists clenched and unclenched, but she kept herself silent.

"Now. The Mermaid." He cocked his head at Harry and smiled sweetly. "I'm sure you know the one, Hooky. Ariel's daughter? Long black hair, talks to fish, a real pain in the ass, legs for days? Or maybe I should say fins for days, eh mate?"

Harry's grip tightened around his sword and his voice was more snarl than speech. "She isnae here."

"I doubt that's true. I have eyes everywhere. And these eyes tell me otherwise."

"What do you want with her?" Uma said, her voice as smooth as a summer breeze. And Melody had to give her points for getting herself back under control.

Just then, two of Sparrow's goons appeared from behind him. "She's not here, Captain. I forced one of the young lads to talk." The grizzled old pirate held up his dagger, indicating how he'd accomplished such a feat. "Told me he saw the mermaid dive into the sea during the pursuit."

Sparrow's nose wrinkled in disgust at this information.

"You lot are hopeless. No wonder you're still stuck here trying to salvage this disaster of a ship," he spat. "Tell the Mermaid I'm looking for her. And I'll be back. And next time, if she doesn't come when I call her, you'll have bigger problems than a hole in your deck."

With that, Zach Sparrow snapped his fingers and his crew came running after him like a pack of trained dogs.

Scowls and growls were exchanged, but no more swords were crossed, as the crew of The Black Pearl strutted back to their ship. They pulled their gangplank back to their deck and sailed off the same way they had come.

What was that all about? Why did they want her? And then to just leave like that?

Once The Black Pearl was nothing more than a dark shadow on the horizon, she gave Gil the all clear, swung a leg over the railing, and climbed over.

The crew of The Lost Revenge were in shock. No one was talking yet. And it stayed that way for some time, eerily quiet save for a few harsh whispers and the sounds of the waves lapping at the sides of the ship.

Melody planted two boots on the deck with a wet thud and Harry looked up at the sound, the worry line between his brows softening as he realized who it was. But his face wore a silent question next, a scrunch of his brows and he mouthed a name, "Gil?"

She gifted him a wide smile in answer, and he ran to her. His stride was a little uneven, but before she could ask him whether he was hurt, he scooped her up in a hug. He set her down and peered over the edge of the ship, down the rope ladder slung over the railing.

Gil was already near the top and Harry leaned over, offering his hand to pull his friend up the rest of the way up. They embraced next, Harry slapping him on the back, grinning his broadest grin.

Uma barked some orders to the rest of her crew to get the ship headed back, closer to shore before she crossed the deck to check in on Gil. "Good to have you back, Gil," she said and when Uma met Melody's gaze, the unspoken thanks in her eyes was plain to see.

"Trust me," Gil said. "I'm glad to be back on solid ground." He looked down at a splintered section of deck and shrugged, correcting himself. "Semi-solid ground?"

Harry put an arm around Melody's waist, tugging her closer and whispering into her ear. "Yeh did it, lass. I knew yeh would, but yeh took so long I was feart yeh didnae make it."

The way his tongue rolled each syllable had her leaning into him, wishing he would just keep talking into her ear like that. Uma was right, his accent did thicken up when he got excited.

She hid the breathless feeling in her chest with a dose of sarcasm. "Well excuse me. But dragging a man twice my size to the surface, reviving him, and then finding a way to tow him a mile back takes a bit of time."

"A real mermaid could've done it in half the time," he said, giving her a wink.

Jane, Carlos, Jay and the others crowded around as they were talking, to hear the conversation. Meanwhile, Jane had begun to hover close to Gil, taking a good look at the lump that was forming on his head.

"You took quite a hit," Jane said.

And that was all Gil needed in the form of encouragement before he launched into his version of recent events at breakneck speed. "Sure did. Knocked me clean out and when I woke up I thought I was dreaming."

Gil was now adding gestures to his little tale, miming waking from a dream and seeing something shocking. "But nope, Melody's tail was real and then she talked some fish into helping us. But first, we dove down to hide from that ship and she had to give me mouth to mouth to help me breathe and…" Gil's eyes widened and he sent Harry an apologetic look. "I'm so sorry, mate. I didn't mean to kiss your girl before you got a chance. I mean, you'd almost done it hadn't you? Before the attack and all, it looked like you two were about to – "

"Gil?" Harry warned.

Both she and Harry finished the thought in unison. "Shut up."

The group shared a nervous laugh of relief while Harry grabbed for her hand, interlacing their fingers again and she exhaled a long, ragged breath.

Then Jay spoke up, asking the question that was on everyone's mind. "Why does Sparrow want you though?"

She shrugged. "I have no idea, I've never seen him in my life."

Uma and Harry exchanged a look.

A long, tense look.

"I don't think it's Melody he wants," Uma finally said.

She narrowed her eyes at the other woman. "What you do mean?"

"It's the locket," Harry said. "He wants yer locket."

Melody shook her head. "That makes no sense. He couldn't want the locket. There's no way he could use it. You need to be of mer blood to harness Triton's magic inside."

Harry looked down at her and tucked a wet lock of hair behind her ear. "Yeh have to be of mer blood to use the locket by itself to transform yeh into a mermaid. But in combination with other sea magic…" He trailed off and looked away.

She squeezed his hand, pressing him to continue. "Are you saying that Zach Sparrow has access to magic?"

"I cannae say what magic that bilge rat has. Or what magical items he may be plannin' to nick in the meantime."

Uma stepped forward and Harry backed up to give her room. "Melody," she said, "there's something you need to see."

A muscle in Harry's jaw ticked but he didn't say a word.

"When I give you the signal, you need to open your locket," Uma said, clutching her own necklace, the one that had belonged to Ursula. "Okay?"

She nodded. Her mother had told her the story of how Ursula's necklace captured her voice a hundred times. And now, Uma clutched the nautilus shell in her palm until it began to glow. A nervous shiver crawled across Melody's skin as she watched the wispy tendrils of its magic reach higher, and when the energy had expanded beyond her palm, Uma gave her the signal. "Now!"

Melody obeyed, opening her locket's clasp. Light poured from the sapphire at the center and Melody was worried the magic would wrap around her legs and transform her again. But then, Uma began to chant. "By the power of both sea and storm, return this ship to its proper form."

And the blue wisps of magic in Melody's locket began drifting toward Uma. Like vines growing toward the sun, the tendrils of light snaked through the air.

"Speak the chant with me," Uma said.

And Melody spoke the words, in unison with the sea witch's daughter. "By the power of both sea and storm, return this ship to its proper form."

White and blue energy twirled and danced in the air between the two necklaces and a low rumble began from somewhere way below deck. The wood planks below their feet groaned, growing and stretching, filling in where the deck had been destroyed by cannon fire. The foremast seemed to regenerate like a supernatural tree trunk growing straight up, right where it had snapped off, until it was a perfect replica of what it had been when they first set sail. Lines repaired themselves, rigging re-set and everyone on the crew turned to stare at them.

"This is only a taste of what Sparrow wants," Uma said. "And if he has magic from the sea that is stronger or more compatible with your locket, who knows what else he could do."

They were silent for a while, all staring in awe at the ship which was now suddenly back in pristine condition.

"We'll figure it out." Jane was at her side, wrapping her in a protective side-armed hug. "There's got to be someone in Auradon who knows what he's up to. Don't worry, Melody. He's not going to get a chance to come back for you."

"He'll have to come through us, first," Carlos promised.

"There's one thing I don't understand. Why didn't Sparrow take hostages when he had the chance?" Jay asked. Melody had to remember that Jay was raised on the Isle of the Lost, too. He knew how to think like a villain. "He could have forced Melody to go with him today couldn't he? All he had to do was…" He strutted toward Harry and held a fake knife to his throat. "Right? Just find the right hostage and Melody would have come swimming and forked over the locket."

"I think he was feeling something out," Uma said. "I don't think he knows exactly what the locket is capable of. Maybe he got a small idea when he saw this ship had been restored. But most importantly, I don't think he wants to risk Triton's wrath by messing with his granddaughter until he's gathered everything he needs."

Uma stared off for a moment, thinking.

"No way is he going to start a war," Uma said with more finality, "at least not until he has whatever else he's hunting for."

"He's gotta have summat magical already, or he wou'dnae have been able to sail here from the Caribbean." Harry had grown tense again as they discussed all of this, she could see it in the set of his shoulders.

So, Sparrow had known there was magic in her locket beyond the ability to turn those with mer blood into mermaids. There had been more to the locket all along.

Magic in the locket that everyone seemed to know about… except for her.

Melody felt heat rising in her chest. She was already breathing faster now as anger began to boil in her veins. Anger at being left in the dark. Anger that someone had lied to her again.

She turned to Harry with a hardened glare. "You knew!" she hissed. "You knew my locket could do this from the beginning. That's why you tried to take it from me that first day."

She was seething now, gritting her teeth and forcing herself not to pounce on him again, fists flying.

"Och nae, I didnae know it could do that at first." He had his hands facing her in a sign of surrender. "There isnnae any way I could have known that."

"If you didn't know it had power beyond transformation, then how did you fix Uma's ship? How did you know which words to use to make the spell work?" She glared at Uma this time who had obviously played a part in this.

Uma shrugged. "Once Harry told me about his suspicions that the locket might have other powers, I asked my mother. She knew the spell."

Then understanding washed over her, along with a deep, burning fury at being used. She crossed her arms and glared at Harry. "Uma's ship was wrecked, so you decided to befriend the mermaid with the locket so you could use it to fix The Lost Revenge. Well played."

Gil was frowning at Harry. "Is that what happened? That's not what happened is it?"

"Nae, Gil." Harry's voice had grown cold as his own anger began to surface. "That isnae what happened."

"Then why don't you set the record straight for us," Melody prompted with an unimpressed eye roll.

Harry sucked in a tense breath. "Aye, I'd heard tales of yer locket. They said it had a rare gem at its center, infused with Triton's magic. A treasure it is to be certain. But I promise yeh, becomin' friends had naethin' to do with the locket. Well, at first it did, aye. But now… it's…"

Melody did not have the patience for his bumbling response. He'd either known or he didn't. And obviously he'd known and he'd hidden it.

"I've heard enough. No need to pretend anymore." She twisted the word as she sent a glare as sharp as a knife in Harry's direction.

Then she glanced at the sea witch's daughter. "Uma, if you needed the locket for anything, you could have just asked."

Using the locket to repair the ship wasn't what had her insides turned in knots. It was the fact that she'd been stupid enough to think there might have been something more between she and Harry. Something more than just a thieving pirate trying to find a way to steal a treasure.

And typical gullible Melody had just given it right to him. And she'd almost kissed the smarmy bastard to boot!

A tense silence blanketed the deck, until the ship lurched and Uma turned to give more orders to keep the ship on course.

Jay shot Carlos an uncomfortable side-eyed glance and the whole group took the opportunity to creep away slowly, leaving she and Harry alone in silence.

Harry broke the tension first, coming closer, his boot sloshing in a puddle on the deck as he leaned in to speak with a voice as soft as she'd ever heard it.

"I know yer mad, but I want yeh to know that I wisnae tryin' to hurt yeh. I should have been straight with yeh from the start."

"You think?" She had her arms still crossed over her chest, her fingers digging into her skin to keep from saying more.

"I wanted to see if yer locket would interact with Uma's necklace, both bein' sea magic and all. At first, it had naethin' to do with yeh. But, then, I got to know yeh and… " He paused, biting the inside of his cheek and twisting his hook in his hands.

"And you figured you'd keep me in the dark about everything. Borrow my locket for weeks without bothering to mention that you and Uma were using it without my permission?"

"That wisnae what I was gonna say."

"Then what, Harry?"

"I was gonna say, that I got to know yeh and I like spendin' time with yeh. Yer as difficult and stubborn as they come, but yer smart and yer heart is as golden as that locket 'round yer neck. I was gonna say that I didnae expect any of this." He gestured between them with his hook and Melody was again forced to try to interpret what he was saying.

"What are you trying to say, Harry?"

He was beginning to look very pale as he struggled to respond. "What I'm tryin' to say is that I'm sorry, lass."

Harry was quiet after that, standing tense in the way he was holding himself.

Good. Maybe she'd let him sweat for a bit. It served him right for leaving her in the dark about the locket.

She glanced at him again, noting that something was just not right. Her eyes traced him over from head to toe, picking up on his uneven stance, tension in his hand as he gripped his hook tight, knuckles white from the effort.

Something was definitely off. She looked behind him to the puddle he'd walked through, then to another puddle below Harry's boot. A puddle that suddenly seemed much too dark to be water…

She came closer, bending down to inspect the unidentified spill. Red. It was blood red. "Harry! What in the stormy seas?" She traced the stain back up his boot, following the thick crimson trail up the exposed skin on his lower legs and to a dark stain seeping through the upper thigh of his breeches. The fabric was black and masked the stain, but now that she was staring right at it, she wondered why she didn't see it before. "You're bleeding all over the place!"

"It's just a scratch. Naethin' I cannae – " But when he looked down, his eyes widened a bit. "Well, so yer right. That may be why I'm feelin' a bit peely-wally at the moment."

"Harry Hook, you idiot! Were you just going to stand there and bleed to death?"