Chapter Five
A/N: I do not own anything other than my OCs when they come out to play. Everything else belongs to the Greek Myths or Disney.
Gah! Sorry for the delay you guys—this would have come out so much sooner if the most recently posted chapter for Half and Half hadn't been screaming to be written. That plus work practically pelting stuff at me equaled my brain refusing to write when I wanted it to. I'm hoping the work part calms down soon so I'm able to have energy to write after work as to not cause delays in postings. No promises though!
AmethystDragon14: Oh yay! And yeah, go Hook! He might not be the best guy in the world but he's got a point here! And yep, someone's on their way! :D And thank you so much, I couldn't have written this much (or the Choosing Series or the help you've provided with Truth or Fiction) without you. I know you don't do it for the thanks but you're getting the thanks! And I hope you enjoy this chapter! :D
miranda88: You're just going to have to wait to find out! :D
danifan3000: Oh wow that's a weird thing to think about, Hook as one of Peter Pan's lost boys. Wait…Serena Valentino…is she the one who does the Twisted Tales books? If so, I'm definitely going to have to get that one!
OceanBlueSeaEyes: Well Claudine/Jess' parentage has changed, with her being raised by the Hooks. Generally most parentages will stay the same but another character might end up having a different parent than in canon.
Katt Kiki: Oh I'm so glad you like it so far! And that's a good point, the changes happening happen on the Isle. If I wrote a story that took place in Auradon going through changes, it'd make more sense to have Auradon be the starting point.
SixUnderOneXSix: Oh I'm so glad you're enjoying it! Yeah there's about 70 chapters planned so far so there'll be some time to get the plot to shine through. And you're very welcome, honestly I enjoy writing these stories. Very relaxing after a long day of work. :D
Guest: It's quite alright, no apology necessary but appreciated. I hope you continue to enjoy the story!
Anonymousnette: …how is it I completely forgot about the Holy Roman Empire? You might have just saved me years of anger toward Descendants for Beast being 'elected' King!
SnowWhite45: I think the reason why they picked Beast and Belle for High King and Queen is because, in the pretense of Descendants, they work the best. Belle is the only Disney Princess who's seen a 'villain' change because he was given a chance/second chance and Ben would have grown up with that, hearing stories about how anyone can change if you just show them love and give them a chance. Now do I hate the way they portrayed Belle and Beast? Yes I do but they do make sense in terms of the story.
IWantColouredRain: Oh thank you! Yeah that chapter (and this one) were like pulling teeth in terms of getting words out so that might have been the cause of the shortness. I don't want to give any spoilers so I'll just say that we'll have to wait and see if Abby survives this time! :D
twilightgirl587: Oh thank you! And yep, baby time! Though now I wonder what baby stuff would have been provided if Belle and Beast did provide it?
Guest: Um…odds are probably not that high for Emma and Neal having a brother if I'm honest.
Hope you guys enjoy the chapter! Let me know what you think! :D
Hades quickly made his way to The Jolly Rodger, trying to make it seem like it wasn't as urgent as it was. But Hades knew that babies came when they wanted to come, they had their own schedules.
And there was always a chance that the Isle would make it so that this was Hook's only child with Milah. As long as Hades was allied with the pirates, he'd at least make it so a father could be with his wife for the birth of his child.
"Hook!"
"Hades?" Hook asked, looking over at the God as he climbed up the gangplank. Unless Hades was mistaken, the crew seemed oddly relieved to see him—and relief really wasn't something that Hades was used to seeing on mortals' faces when they saw him. "What can we help you with?"
Hades crossed the deck and closed the distance between him and Hook. "Milah needs you," he said, leaning so that he was almost whispering in Hook's ear.
Hook paused and looked at Hades. "The babe?"
"Milah's in labor," Hades told him. "I've sent Panic to get one of the Tremaines just so we can have whatever medical supplies they have but Mollie's working right now to help her while they wait."
"Right," Hook nodded. "Smee! With me! Bones, you're watching the ship!"
"Yes Captain!" Bones called while Smee rushed to Hook's side. None of the crew seemed to wonder why Hades knew about Milah going into labor but then again, the worthless rats had enough brains not to question the brother of the God of the Sea.
If they ever got off this accursed rock, they'd want the sea to be calm enough for them to safely travel and that couldn't be done if they'd made an enemy of Poseidon. Granted that was an assumption but seeing as Poseidon was the brother everyone knew that Hades still talked to, it was a reasonable one.
"Do you know how far along she is?" Hook asked, trying to match Hades' quick pace to the extent that he might have been leaving Smee behind. Not that the First Mate complained at all.
"Not sure, I had been coming up from the Underworld for a break when I heard Pain running to get me. Apparently he overheard a bit of Mollie and Milah's conversation and while he might not be the smartest imp in the Underworld, he does understand the importance of the words 'I think the baby's coming'."
Hook shook his head. Sure The Jolly Rodger wouldn't have had the best system in place back when they were in Neverland but it was a better system than what the Isle had. The last thing he wanted was to…he couldn't even say it. "I don't…"
"I know Hook," Hades said as the two of them entered the Underworld, Hades pausing to keep the gate open for Smee to join them. They might have only been allies and only recent allies at that but Hades knew from watching how Hook interacted with Milah that losing either the baby or Milah would devastate him.
And truthfully, Hook wasn't that bad of a villain. Sure he went after a flying brat but said brat gave as good as he got, chopping off Hook's hand.
Hook wasn't like Frollo, who chased down an innocent woman who was fleeing from him on foot as he rode his horse, wasn't like Gaston who didn't seem to understand that a woman could not be interested in him.
Hell, you could even say that Hook wasn't like Hades. At least Hook waited until his enemy was old enough to fight back. Granted Hook still went up against children but they were children who could walk and talk and you know, defend themselves.
Hades stole a baby. Granted it was Zeus' baby but a baby nonetheless. Even if he was prophesied to be the one to destroy Hades plot to rule the cosmos, it still didn't mean that Hades should have targeted him. Hell, maybe Wonderbreath wouldn't have done anything if he'd been raised by Zeus in the first place.
Whoa, what's with the introspection? Hades thought as they made their way to Milah's room. You're not going to go all buddy buddy with Hook, he's here until we can be sure Frollo won't come after Jess and then the Hooks and the Smees can go back to living their lives. And save the Wonderbreath thinking for when Steph is home, otherwise you're going to get angry and scare Sammy and Jess. Which right now, no one wants to happen. Okay granted I don't think either Mollie or Milah want me to scare their children any time but especially right now when Milah's giving birth.
Of course, Hades never realized that he'd referred to little baby Jessica as 'Jess', the nickname that Milah and Mollie had given her to avoid confusion whenever Mollie talked about her old captain.
"Oh Lord Hades! There you are!" Mollie sighed in relief as they approached the room. "Lady Anastasia is here."
"Good, good," Hades nodded. It was good to know that Pain hadn't messed up the simple task of getting assistance for Milah. "How is the Captainess doing?"
"She's asking for the Captain."
That was all Hook needed to hear before he made his way into Milah's room.
"We'll just give them a bit of privacy," Mollie said, closing the door after Hook. "After all, this is the Captainess' first child and I can speak from experience that it's not the easiest of deliveries. Hopefully the Captainess won't have a large babe so it'll be easier on her."
Though…hopefully Milah's babe is also big enough that they can survive the Isle, Mollie thought. The Isle has too much death, there's no point in adding to it.
"I'm sure Milah will be fine," Hades said though he made a mental note to make sure the Fates didn't cut any life threads belonging to the pirates today. Hey, he had to judge the souls of children all the time, he was not doing so today.
"Speaking of children…where's Sammy?" Smee asked, looking around to see his daughter.
Mollie smiled softly. "I put her down for her nap in our room, William. I figured Sammy could meet her new captain later once Milah had the chance to recover from labor."
"And Jess?"
"With Sammy. I was just about to go check on them actually, if you'd like to join me."
"I thought you'd be by Captainess Milah's side through the whole delivery?" Smee asked.
Mollie shook her head. "I was at first, while Lord Hades was getting Captain Hook. It wouldn't do for her to be alone which is why Sammy's in our room. But now that he's here, he should be the one by Milah's side. As her husband. They should have their privacy after all."
Smee smiled and gently kissed his wife on the cheek as they headed off to check on the two babies who were nestled in their room, and Hades quickly made his way back down to judge the incoming souls. Though he never realized he was hoping that he wouldn't see a familiar name on his list of souls any time soon.
He knew how dangerous it was, giving birth on the Isle. With the exception of the food barge, pregnancies were probably the biggest purveyor of souls to the Underworld for the Isle. Even if he never talked to Hook after all of this, Hades never wanted the other man to lose either his wife or child.
Meanwhile, over in the Hooks' bedroom, Hook was gently holding his wife's hand as she squeezed for dear life.
"I swear…James…we are never…doing this again!" Milah exclaimed. "I don't…care…if you want a boy…or not! Jess and this babe…are it!"
"I'd agree with her," Anastasia said, looking at Hook from her spot at the end of the bed as Hook opened his mouth to respond. "Trust me, I've handled many a pregnancy here on the Isle, just agree with her."
Hook nodded but then paused. "But love, I thought you wanted a big family?"
"Then you…can deliver the…other kids!" Milah exclaimed as she felt another contraction hit. Honestly she had no idea how Mollie had done it with Sammy or Red Jessica with her daughter.
Though maybe thinking about the former captain of The Rose was a bad idea considering the outcome of her pregnancy.
No, don't think like that, Milah thought. You will make it through this labor and you'll see your child! Jess will know her brother. Why should the babe not be a boy? After all, boys are prevalent in James' family. Not that I'd love the babe any less if they were a girl of course.
"Alright, I can see the head," Anastasia said. It luckily looked to be a fast labor though she was sure that Milah wasn't thinking about it like that. "Milah, you're going to have to push one more time to get your child out. Just one more big push."
Milah nodded. Tired or not, pain or no, she would do it. For her child.
"If it helps love, imagine you're a cannon firing a cannonball at an enemy ship." Hook said and a silence fell over the room as both Anastasia and Milah paused to look at him. "What?"
"James, I know you…didn't just…compare our child…to a cannonball!"
"…it was just a suggestion."
"An…idiotic….one!"
Anastasia shook her head. "Honestly, I'd just be thankful that she doesn't have something to throw at you. Let's not make the pregnant woman mad shall we? And here we go Milah, you're doing perfectly. Honestly, this might be one of the easier births I've seen on the Isle since I started helping. Guess this baby's eager to get out."
"Well we're eager to meet him," Hook said. Years from now, when he thought back on the day his eldest child was born, Hook would understand the look Anastasia Tremaine gave him. A look that said quite clearly: you are going to be severely disappointed.
However, in the present time he was in, Hook did not understand the look though there wasn't much time to ask about it as Milah gave one final push. Soon the room was filled with the sounds of a wailing babe.
"Congratulations captain," Anastasia said. "It's a healthy baby girl."
Hook paused. "A…a girl? But we thought Milah was carrying a boy."
"Why did you think that?"
"I mean, I had a brother—."
"And I have a sister yet I would still be capable of birthing a son if I became pregnant," Anastasia said, shaking her head. "The gender of one's siblings, I'm told, does not affect the gender of your child. Who would be needed a name."
"Oh right," Milah said, her voice slightly breathless. "For the registry."
Thank you for reminding me that we never sent a submission for Jess, Hook thought. Though, since the plan is to play it off like Jess and the new babe are twins, sending the submission for Jess at the same time will help with that.
"James?" Milah said softly.
"Yeah love?"
"Do you have any thoughts about what our daughter's name should be?" Milah asked, looking at him. "I know we'd planned to name the babe after my father but Harrison doesn't exactly work well with a daughter."
"Right, right," Hook nodded and looked at his daughter, who'd been cleaned off and was now resting in her mother's arms, swaddled in a blanket. The blanket must have been provided by Anastasia since it looked too clean to be something that had been pulled from the barges.
The name needed to be a decent one for the Isle, one that if they ever got off the blasted rock that would go on to lead to a successful wave of piracy.
Unfortunately that meant that they couldn't do something like 'Jamie' which Hook had been made aware was a potential name they could use. He had found it in a book of names which had washed up one day during the pregnancy, before they joined up with Hades.
Wait…wasn't there a name that was like Harrison in that book? Only it was for lassies? What was it? Hattie?
"What about…Harriet?" Milah said, looking at her daughter. "Harriet Hook?"
"Aye, that's a strong name love," Hook said with a small smile. "You're forgetting something though."
"Oh?"
"Her middle name," Hook said.
Milah chuckled softly. "Oh right. Well I did just finish pushing a baby out of me so I think I can be forgiven for overlooking something like that."
Hook shook his head. "Well, I think that there is only one middle name that suits her."
"Oh? And what's that?"
"It should be obvious I would think," Hook said as he looked at his wife. "Milah."
Milah looked at him. "…are you sure James? I would think you'd want to use your mother's name."
"While Jane is a fine name, I don't think it suits this lass as much," Hook said. "Unless you'd rather have it be your mother's name?"
"…Harriet Calista Hook doesn't really have a good ring to it," Milah said after a minute. "Neither does Harriet Jane Hook for that matter."
"So how does Harriet Milah Hook sound?" Hook asked her.
Milah looked up at Hook and she couldn't help the small smile that pulled at her lips. "It sounds…perfect."
"Then Harriet Milah Hook it is."
Harriet cooed softly, her dark eyes staring up at both of her parents; wisps of hair evident on her head.
"Looks like she's going to get your hair color," Milah chuckled. "From what I can see, it looks like our girl's going to have black hair."
Hook chuckled as well, even as he thought that it was a good thing then that Milah had dark brown hair. Jess' brown hair could be attributed to that should any idiots on the Isle ask. And if you asked Hook, most people on the Isle barely had two brain cells to rub together.
It was the ones who did who were worrisome.
But they weren't worrisome at that moment. The only thing Hook was thinking about at that moment was the future, with Milah, Jess, and his new daughter.
Life might not have had any sun on the Isle but at that moment, things were looking pretty bright.