Chapter 7 – A Change of Plan
"Mmm Harry stop it." Hayden moans as he feels a tongue lick at his neck. "Harry, stop it." He groans and, when the licks don't stop, he grabs the pillow he's lying on, turning to throw it at Harry. There is no Harry. "Cerbie?" He tilts his head in confusion and gets a lick on the nose. He scrunches his nose as he sits up, the pup wagging her tail at him as she watches. He wipes the wet spot on his neck where she was licking and blinks as he looks around. Everyone's already up. Hayden yawns the last bit of sleep away and gets up, walking out into the salty morning air. He rubs his eyes and watches as Cerbie runs further away from him, over to a couple of pirates playing a board game of sorts. She snatches the toast hanging from the plate on the table and ignores their protests as she runs back to Hayden. She offers it to him like a child showing their parent their hard work and he smiles sheepishly at her. "That's alright girl. You eat it. I'll get my own breakfast." Without a care, she starts gobbling down the toast. "Wait, are you even allowed that or oh never mind. It's gone." He watches her as she licks her lips, looking up at him but thinks she'll be okay. She's not a normal dog after all.
"Hey, devil-boy, over here!" Uma calls by the wheel, noticing him. He heads right over to her without protest, curious at what she wants. "Did you touch my wheel?" She asks, surprising him.
"Yeah. So?" He asks, crossing his arms over his chest.
She just smirks at him then becomes serious. "Heard what happened last night."
Hayden keeps his arms over his chest. "And what exactly did you hear?"
"That your mutt interrupted a moment." She says but her eyes show she's teasing.
"That's my dad's fault I bet. He has forbidden me from dating anyone until I'm old enough in his eyes. Probably set Cerbie up to interrupt any moments I have with anyone who catch my eye." Hayden figures.
"And how old is that exactly?" Uma asks curiously.
"Um, about three hundred years, I think." He confesses and she laughs, Hayden joining in.
"Aww. I can't wait that long." Harry's voice calls as he makes his way over to them.
"Then you better not let the devil catch you making a move on his son." Uma smirks.
"Didn't notice me eying him up before." Harry shrugs.
"Wait. You've been watching me?" Hayden realises. "For how long?"
"From the day you caught my eye as you grew into those rugged good looks you have. It's no wonder you're a God." Harry winks, Hayden blushing.
"Does your dad's hair blush like that if someone flirts with him too?" Uma wonders, amused by the boy's pink hair.
"No." Hayden manages, avoiding looking at Harry from the look the boy is sending him, knowing he'd blush more if he did.
"Captain, your mother said you're late." A pirate calls from the docks they're parked next to.
Uma curses under her breath and then walks towards the ramp leading to the docks. Harry smiles at Hayden as he grabs his hand and leads him off the ship. Hayden is confused but also curious at where they're going and allows the pirate to lead him down away from the docks. He resists blushing as people glance over as they past, recognising the devil's boy holding hands with a pirate. Seeing his nervousness, Harry chuckles and pulls him closer, throwing an arm around his shoulders as they walk. They arrive at Ursula's Fish and Chips and Harry waves at several pirates as he passed.
"Got a new lover then, Hook?!" One of them calls, smirking at Hayden.
Hayden blushes and looks away, mumbling about there being no dating on the isle. Harry chuckles at his reaction and pulls him closer so his face is buried in the pirate's chest. He leads him to a table with several other pirates Hayden roughly recognises from Uma's crew. They sit and Harry purposely sits right next to him, staring at the boy who instantly finds the table very interesting, staring at it and avoiding eye contact with anyone. "You're cute when you blush." Harry says out loud and smirks at the boy.
"Woah. His hair changes colour." One of the crew says in awe.
Hayden covers as much of his hair as he can with his hands and Harry chuckles, reaching out to take one of his hands. He lays it on the table, fingers interlaced and leans closer to whisper in his ear, "And your hair turning pink makes it even cuter, devil-boy." His breath sends chills down his spine and he can't help but look up, the pirate catching his gaze. Harry's very distracting at this point and he knows he's blushing this time, his breath stopping at the smile the pirate is sending his way. He jumps when a plate is placed on the table before him and he looks up to see Uma serving the rest of her crew with a hearty breakfast.
"What time is it?" Hayden asks to no one in particular but Harry pulls out a pocket watch and lets it hang by its chain.
"It'll be nine thirty am." He smiles.
"That says nine twenty." Hayden deadpans.
Harry looks at the watch then shrugs. "Was close enough though, weren't I?"
Hayden shakes his head in amusement and begins eating his breakfast. It's rather nice, though he's not used to the spoilt food of the isle again. "So, what's a devil-kid like you doing with something like this?" Harry asks, holding up Hayden's medallion that he didn't know was missing. Harry smirks smugly at him as Hayden double checks it's not on him then glares at the pirate, trying to grab it only for Harry to lift it higher out the way.
"You got balls, Harry." Hayden rolls his eyes and smiles darkly at him. "Keep stealing from me and you won't have them for much longer." Everyone but the two laugh and Hayden snatches his medallion back in his distraction. Harry chuckles and leans closer to whisper something in his ear that causes Hayden to choke on what he was eating, his hair firing pink higher than ever and his cheeks blushing. He downs some water to clear his throat and glares at the pirate who smirks back at him.
"His dad my just kill you for what you said to him, Harry." A boy says, looking worried for his friend.
"Ha. Let him try." Harry smirks, leaning back in his chair.
"Don't tempt me, mortal." Hades says behind him and Harry jumps, gulping as he turns to see the God stood right behind him. If looks could kill…
"Dad!" Hayden exclaims, standing in surprise. "I er…"
Hades turns the glare on him, and Hayden sits back down, looking sheepish. "Cerbie's already told me everything. I trust sleep is the only thing you two did last night?" He raises an eyebrow.
Harry smirks and opens his mouth but cries out in pain. "Ow. Hayden." He glares at the boy who regrets nothing after having kicked him under the table.
Hades narrows his gaze at the pirate. "Ooo, sorry Harry. Nice knowing you." The same pirate who warned him before says. His name's Gil, not that Hayden knows this.
"Son, come." Hades orders and Hayden knows better than defying him. He stands as his dad walks to the exit. He stops as the pirate dares steal another kiss from his son on the way out, smirking flirtatiously at him. Hayden blushes at it before hurrying after his dad, walking past him. He stops when he realises his dad isn't following and sighs, waiting a minute before his dad walks out, smiling darkly at nothing.
"Dad?" Hayden calls but Hades keeps walking, heading back to their caves. "Dad, will I be finding Harry in the underworld when we get back there?"
"Oh, it's Harry now?" Hades asks.
"Dad!" Hayden exclaims.
Hades rolls his eyes. "No, the pirate lives, for now." He keeps walking, though his face scowls at the mention of said pirate.
"Dad, Ben's still a prisoner on Uma's ship." Hayden recalls. "Could you maybe, you know, do something?"
"Not allowed to intervene with human lives unless they're on their deathbed when I can allow or stop the Fates from cutting their thread." Hades denies.
"Right, no interfering unless it goes against your plans, right dad?" Hayden points out.
"Silence, brat. You're already grounded until you're fifty for letting that pirate come near you." He warns and Hayden moans but knows protesting will be pointless. "He's a guy, Hayden, and their minds are only set in one direction and it's not a friendly 'hello', I'll tell you that now."
Hayden scowls, knowing Harry wasn't like that with him…not all the time. "Like you and Persephone?"
Hades stops dead in his tracks and Hayden instantly regrets saying that, but it's too late to take it back now. Hades slowly turns to his son, a haunted look in his eyes. "One day you'll meet someone so special, so incredible, so beautiful everything looks faded in comparison. They're the reason you get up in the morning and the reason you keep going. They're your air, your power, your everything and more. And for her you'd change the world, you'd pull down the moon, you'd…give her up just to save her from the fate you suffered." He sighs out sadly, looking down.
Hayden puts a hand on his arm, feeling guilty about bringing "Dad, sorry, I didn't think and…"
"I know. I loved her son and, to save her, I had to let her go or she would have been trapped on the isle with me." He looks right into his son's eyes as he says, "I have done so many bad things in my life and made so many mistakes. Letting her go and saving her from a worse fate wasn't one of them and neither were you or Mali. But nightmares and terror have always haunted me though all the eons of my life. I don't want your to be the same." He reveals and puts on a sad smile before leading Hayden back to the caves, back to their home. Hayden just follows, not putting up a fight but knows he has to get away again. He just hopes it won't be too late when he does...
Descendants
"Dude?" Hayden asks, confused by the dog's presence.
"Hey Hayden!" Dude says in perfect English.
"Okay…I'm guessing something's happened to you in my six-month absence." Hayden realises.
"This is new actually." Dude informs.
"It's nearly noon. Where are the others?" He asks, noticing Dude is all alone.
"They've gone to give the fake wand to Uma." Dude says then whines, "Carlos told me to stay."
"Oh, that isn't going to end well." Hayden groans.
"Not it's…oh, you got a puppy." Dude says excitedly to Cerbie. Cerbie lets out a playful growl to the dog and his tail wags back at her.
"Oh, come on, you two before my dad finds out I ran off again and sends me to an early grave." Hayden calls and they run to the ship.
"And then brings you back just to scold you, right?" Dude checks but Hayden doesn't answer, and they reach the ship.
"You always were quite the drama queen." Mal's voice reaches their ears and they see her facing off Uma, both sides having back up. Ben is on the plank and Mal has the fake wand in her hand. Hayden knows its fake after what Dude had said. Plus, it has no magic flowing through it. He can sense it. Or rather can't sense it to be more accurate.
"Oh, and nothing too big or else Ben is fish bait." Uma warns, Hayden clueless at what's going on.
Mal looks stuck at this and Hayden's finally decides to ask. "What's going on?"
"Uma wants proof that they aren't tryin' to trick us with the wand, pretty boy." Harry informs, holding his hook to Ben's back on the plank, ready to push him off if need be.
"Pretty boy?" Evie repeats, curious as she looks between the two.
"Aye and quite the kisser." Harry winks at Hayden.
"Hayden." Mal groans and they all look surprised of him fraternising with the enemy.
"Hey, it's not my fault. He distracted me!" Hayden protests, pointing at Harry.
"Oh, I regret nothing." Harry smirks, winking at Hayden who blushes again.
"Hades will kill you." Mal smirks at Harry who shrugs.
"He'll kill me first. You're welcome by the way for the backup, especially when I'm not even supposed to be here. I got grounded until I'm fifty just for sleeping with Harry last night." Hayden admits and Mal raises an eyebrow. "Not like that."
Harry smirks widely at him. "It could be like that." He winks.
"Oi, keep your sword away from me, pirate." Hayden warns. "Unless you want to lose it." They all know what code he's using, and Harry just smiles at him.
"Enough stalling. Show me a small bit of magic with the wand or your boy's gonna be a crocodile's lunch." Uma cuts off the retort that Harry was about to say.
All eyes go back to Mal who then turns to Dude. "Okay. Although it seems absurd, turn your bark into a word." She swishes the wand as she finished. Nothing happens. Hayden, realising what she's doing just stares at the dog in confusion, crouching down next to him. He whispers 'stay' to Cerbie so softly that only the two dogs can hear him, already knowing what he has to do next. He then waves a hand in front of Dude who tries to look around his hand before letting out a huff.
"Um, Hayden, you're in the way. I can't see what she's trying to do." Dude says and Hayden plays his part perfectly.
"What?!" He screams in what sounds to be genuine surprise, jumping back and accidently falls off the docks and into the water below. He had to leave their line of vision just so they won't catch on that he's acting with his hair not lighting up. He hears laughter from everyone and treads the water, calling up to them, "I'm fine! I'm a little bit wet, but I'm fine!" Harry chuckles softly at this, shaking his head in amusement, hearing Dude talking some more as if to prove the 'spell' worked. Hayden smirks, glad they can't see the grin, and frowns when he sees a crocodile swimming nearby but tilts his head at it when it stops, seeing him. It then turns and flees as his tail's on fire. With a shrug, Hayden quietly swims the short distance to just below the plank. He catches Ben's eye and puts a finger to his lips. Ben gives a nod so small that Harry misses it, too distracted by Uma demanding the wand.
"Give me Ben!" Mal orders.
Without warning, Hayden springs up from the water, surprising them by how the crocodile is clearly not biting. He climbs up the side of the ship very quickly, right by the plank and holds his hand up to Harry who's smirking at the drenched prince. "Do you mind?" Harry smiles as he ignores Ben who doesn't risk moving and helps the boy up. Any excuse to touch him and he won't mind at all. He even is so kind to shove him over the bannister but does so by pushing him by the butt over the railing, everyone noticing how he's intentionally behaving around the boy.
Hayden somehow manages to land with grace as he rolls into a standing and hears Uma call, "Harry, bring him over." Hayden purposely butts in and gets between the two, smiling at Harry who smirks right back. "Oh, for the love off…" Uma sighs out in annoyance. "Get a room you two, and someone bring Ben over!" Hayden grabs Ben's arm and leads him over, glaring at the pirates, silently daring them to try anything.
Gil catches them as they walk, following them as he recalls, "Oh Ben, before you go, uh, tell your mum that Gaston says hi and also tell your dad that my dad wishes he finished you're your dad when he had the chance."
Hayden stops next to Uma and puts his hands on the ropes tying Ben's wrists together. He focuses hard and manages to heat them up enough to snap them apart. Ben lets out a small 'Ow' and rubs his wrists as Hayden then does the same for his ankles.
"Woah. He's hot in more ways than one." He hears Harry whisper to Uma who rolls her eyes at him.
"You got your boy now give me the wand." Uma orders and Mal finally hands it over, shoving Ben back behind her.
"Ben go." She insists, but he resists and unintentionally giving Uma enough time to try out the wand.
Realising it doesn't work, she cries out, going to snap it when. "Wait! It does work, just not here." Hayden skilfully lies and everyone stills, watching him.
"But the dog…" She begins.
"That was small magic. Look at my powers. I can use them but only in small doses because I used the wand last year to open a gateway into the underworld." He's thankful his dad gave him those acting classes as they actually look to be buying it. "The wand will only work fully outside the barrier."
"Then what's the point of having it?!" She cries in anger, chucking it at him and he catches it.
"Because I have a way. My powers work in the underworld and so will this." He lies, holding up the wand and she looks tempted.
"So, we have to go to hell, literal hell, to use it?" Uma asks.
"Unless they open the barrier on the other side which they won't do if their king is injured by you. The only thing that harming Ben would bring is Auradon's rage back on you. You really want that?" He points out.
"You will take us to the underworld so that we can use the wand." Uma orders.
"I could, but why? Why should I?" Hayden asks.
She growls in annoyance and draws her sword on him, but he shows no fear, raising an eyebrow at her. Seeing this, Uma then gestures to the group with her wand. "I'll send them over board where they'll be…"
"Fish bait? Good plan except the crocodile saw me and ran. Seriously." Hayden confesses and Harry looks down at the water, double taking at no sign of the crocodile. They others, but Uma, do the same, frowning with confusion.
"It's gone, captain." Gil informs.
"I can see that, Gil!" She exclaims in anger and takes a calming breath to cool her down.
"Also my friends won't stay dead for long if you actually managed to kill them. My father is King of the Underworld, remember? He brought back most of the original villains of this isle. Bringing by friends back would be just as easy." He smiles smugly at her and Harry seems torn between being impressed by him and being irritated at not having freedom.
"What do you want?" Uma asks in defeat.
"Only you and Harry can come with me to the underworld. Your crew stays behind." He bargains.
"That's it? Too easy." She says.
"Not when you realise that you'll have to convince my dad not to throw you into the Rivers of Lost Souls as my dad calls it long enough to use the wand." Hayden admits.
"I'll let Harry deal with him." Uma smirks at Harry. "He'll probably be dying to see him after grounding you for being near him."
"He's a bit over protective of me." Hayden shrugs, smirking as he knows it's more than this.
"So, that's it? Me and Uma come with you to the underworld and you'll give us the wand back."
"Well, there is one more thing now that I think about it…" Hayden admits.
"Argh!" Uma growls out in anger, pointing her sword at him. "What else do you want now?"
"Just a small thing really, don't worry if no one has but," Hayden then asks everyone around, "Has anyone got a towel? I'm soaking wet."
Uma's face instantly turns from anger to a smirk at the memory of this and Harry moves away to return seconds later. He carries a large black towel which he wraps around the boy, smiling mischievously at him as he does. Hayden pretends not to notice the simple, hand embroidered hook symbol in the corners of it as it's wrapped around him. He stays in front of him, smiling at Hayden who slowly begins blushing back, but Harry is pulled back by Uma who takes his place. "Lead the way then, your majesty." She insists, daring him to resist, but he just smiles at her, shifting the towel so it's more like a cape. He leads her and Harry to the caves, Cerbie chasing after them as she sees her master leaving, Hayden just hoping this will work without any complications…