Chapter Thirty-Seven
A/N: I do not own anything other than my OCs when they come out to play. Everything else belongs to either Disney or the Greek myths.
*prepares to duck* I just want to say...I got nothing. I don't like this any more than you do! But for the story's sake, it has to happen, unfortunately. One thing I can promise you is it'll be different following this chapter! In a good way!
charmed princess imzadi: Oh thank you! I'm so glad you're enjoying it!
AmethystDragon14: Yay! Yeah, it was quite long but worth every minute! I don't think anyone's going to like what's coming up for Harry though.
danifan3000: Glad you liked it!
OceanBlueSeaEyes: Aww! Abby would be about six (Ben being three years older than her) so I could see Abby being Mal's shadow!
Katt Kiki: We can only hope!
Hope you guys enjoy the chapter! Let me know what you think! :D
Harriet bit her lip as she tucked CJ into bed. It had been hours, and she hadn't seen hide or hair of her little brother since he ran from the counter at the fish shop that afternoon.
She knew Harry was probably fine, that he was most likely being fussed over by Lady Persephone. Or perhaps he had stopped by the Smees' quaint cottage after ensuring Mal's safety. Mollie Smee, their surrogate mother, was nearing her due date, and Harry was fiercely protective of her well-being. He wouldn't rest until she safely delivered her child into the world, especially now that they had a functioning medical system in place on the Isle.
Of course that also meant the stubborn idiot wouldn't tell anyone where he was going, as it would be a blow to his reputation on the Isle.
A sudden commotion erupted from downstairs, jolting Harriet out of her thoughts. She peered down at CJ, her little sister's eyes wide and curious as she tried to make sense of the chaos. The distant clattering of dishes and muffled voices filled the air, creating a sense of urgency and anticipation. Harriet's heart raced as she wondered what could be causing such a disturbance.
"Stay here," she said. "I'm going to go and check out what's happening down there. No matter what happens, no matter what you hear, do not come out of this room unless I come and get you. Okay? Promise me CJ."
"I promise Harriet," CJ said with a small nod. "But…what about Harry? He's not home yet…what if whoever's downstairs gets him?"
That's what I'm worried about, Harriet thought but gave her sister a small smile. "Hey, Harry's going to be okay. You know he's one of the best fighters on the Isle. And if someone does hurt him, well then they'll answer to me."
"Promise?" CJ asked, her eyes searching Harriet's for any hint of doubt.
"I promise," Harriet said, trying to sound confident even though she was feeling anything but.
CJ gave Harriet a small smile and Harriet gently kissed the top of CJ's head before hurrying out of the room, closing the door behind her.
"What were you thinking?! Abandoning your post, leaving your sister to do your job while you cavorted around the Isle!"
Quickly rushing downstairs, Harriet's eyes widened as she saw her little brother on the floor in front of their father.
"Captain!" Harriet exclaimed, quickly rushing over to put herself in between the two of them. Her hands curled into fists as she heard the small whimper that came from her brother, even though she knew he was fighting to keep it as quiet as possible, and she focussed her attention back on her father. "What the hell are you doing? You should be praising Harry if the scuttlebutt of the Isle holds true! Does the bloody counter at the fish shop mean more than upholding the pirate code?!"
"That's none of your business lass, now get out of the way," Hook growled out. "Do you know how dangerous that was? What if I hurt you?"
"Oh so now you care about hurting your kids? What were you doing to Harry?" Harriet shot back. "He's your son! Why am I suddenly more important? You'll hit him but won't hit me? So now you're a hypocrite in two ways since you've been drilling the Pirate Code into Harry since he was born but when he upholds it you go to kick him?!"
"Harriet…don't…" Harry said, his soft voice breaking Harriet's heart as she heard it. "You're…you're just going to make him madder…what if he hurts you too? The Runt needs you…she doesn't need me…"
"Hush Harry, let him get mad. If I stand by and let him hurt you, then I am not worth being called your sister!" Harriet said, her voice growing gentle as she addressed her brother; all the while not taking her eyes off off their father. "Come on, let's get you up and we'll get whatever marks he has made on you cleaned up."
Gently getting Harry to his feet, Harriet positioned herself in front of her brother once more. "Let me be clear, Captain," she spat as she glared at her father. "You do that to him again, and you'll be the one with injuries. I don't want to have to pull a sword on my own father but I will to protect my siblings. Don't force me to choose because neither of us will like the outcome I can promise you that!"
"You didn't need to do that Harriet," Harry muttered as they made their way to their rooms. "He's just gonna be madder next time and all he'll do is do it when you're gone…this isn't my room. My room's on the other end of the hall."
"You really think I'm going to let you be alone tonight?" Harriet asked as they entered her room. "Not on your life Harry! I'd like to have CJ in here as well to be on the safe side but I know your feelings about her and right now, you need to take priority. Come on, lay down. What did he do?"
"Nothing…nothing too bad. I don't think he got the chance to do more than…than backhand me across the face and get a couple of kicks to my stomach," Harry whispered. Normally he'd insist he was fine until the seacows came home but Harriet was his sister. "I'll…I'll probably have a few bruises but nothing major."
"You shouldn't have anything but let me take a look," Harriet said softly. "Come on, shirt off."
Harry sighed but did as she asked, biting back the whimper of pain that threatened to escape his lips as he pulled his shirt off. He knew his sister well enough to know that she wasn't going to take no for an answer. Plus…she was a Captain. He was only a First Mate and while he loved being Uma's First Mate, even at nine, Harry knew the pecking order of a pirate crew.
Harriet sighed as she saw the dark marks on her brother's stomach and lower chest area. Captain…what did you do? You could have broken his ribs if I hadn't stepped in, from the looks of it. I'm going to have to drag him to the new hospital to make sure you didn't! I lost a mother, I'm not losing my brother!
"Okay…it could be worse, seems like I got there before he could do major damage. You don't find it hard to breathe right now, do you? Honest answer, Harry," Harriet asked as she gently prodded her brother's chest and stomach.
Harry shook his head, even as he winced slightly as Harriet prodded one of the bruises. "No…like I said…I just got a backhand and a couple of kicks," he said softly.
"Right…does it hurt to move your arm or shoulder? Right now, it looks like you've just got bruises but I want to be sure there's no internal damage."
"I…I haven't tried to move either of them. I was more focused on trying to keep myself as small as possible so he'd maybe miss me," Harry said softly.
"Can you try for me? And don't hide the reaction if it does hurt," Harriet said.
"What does it matter Harriet?" Harry muttered.
"The fact that we have a medical system that might be able to help you?" Harriet countered and Harry sighed before doing as she asked.
Harriett shook her head as she watched her brother. "It also matters because I need to know whether I need to go give the Captain what for right now or whether he can go through another day without the fear of the Gods in him," she told Harry. "If your ribs are broken, it's also the difference between you walking around and having to stay still. Now does that hurt?"
"Not real—," Harry said before letting out a small yelp of pain as his arm reached the halfway point of his attempt to raise it all the way. He bit his lip, the yelp having slipped out without him wanting it to. "Don't say anything Harriet…please! I've got my first shift at Lord Hades' restaurant tomorrow and if he finds out I'm hurt…that I couldn't stop the Captain—."
"Lord Hades would agree with me that keeping you still is more important Harry! You think he wants to judge a nine-year-old? One of Mal's allies?" Harriet asked with a small sigh at the confirmation that one of Harry's ribs was at the very least bruised. They'd have to take Harry to the hospital to confirm that and Harriet knew her stubborn brother would refuse that as long as he could.
"But…I won't be doing much my first day. Besides, it's the Isle Harriet. I can't just lie in bed all day. The…the Captain won't let me, you know that," Harry said softly.
Harriet sighed. "I know our father won't let you but I know people who will. Leave the Captain to me alright?"
Harry's voice trembled as he spoke, his words barely audible over the sound of their breathing. "But he'll hurt you too," he whispered, his eyes filled with fear and concern. His grip on her hand tightened as he pleaded with her to understand. "It's...it's better if it's just me," he finally managed to say, his voice cracking with emotion.
"Harry, don't say that!"
"Why not? As long as he doesn't touch you girls, it's fine. Better me than you."
Harriet shook her head. "Don't say that Harry. He shouldn't be acting this way with any of us. You're not a scapegoat!"
"But…I'm the only boy," Harry said softly. "If…if I don't get a brother, then I'm going to protect the siblings I do have. The…the Captain's probably never going to go back to the way he was, so…so I might as well make myself useful. If he wants to focus his bad moods on me, then I'll take it. We can't lose you Harriet…if we lose you then we have no one…"
Harriet couldn't help the sad smile that pulled at her lips. "Hey, you are useful Harry. I don't know why the Captain changed but never think you need to put yourself at risk for CJ or me. You matter just as much as we do and that is why I'm going to keep you safe," she said gently. "So get comfy okay? You're sleeping here tonight. I can speak to Mal and Uma in the morning about getting you a place to recover. Like you said, you can't stay here but we'll sort that out in the morning."
As Harriet tried to adjust the pillows to keep Harry comfortable in his sleep, he weakly placed a hand on her arm. "Please, don't bother them, Harriet," he whispered. "Mal will worry and feel guilty about me being injured, and then Benny'll fuss too because as he likes to say, as Crown Prince he doesn't want to see any of his citizens or more importantly his allies hurt."
Harriet could see the concern in Harry's eyes, even in the dim light of the room.
"I still can't believe you got an alliance with the Crown Prince of Boreadon but he's been a good ally," Harriet said. "And they should fuss over you. You're a part of the crew, you upheld the Code and showed loyalty to one of your captains. That is something that should be praised, not punished."
"No, they shouldn't fuss! I…I should have been quicker, should have gotten out of the Captain's way before he had a chance to lay a hand on me. Maybe I should have even slept in the clubhouse, that way this wouldn't have happened. But they shouldn't fuss over me, not when I was stupid."
"Harry, you have the right to be able to come home. The Captain shouldn't have reacted like that, he should be praising you."
"Yeah well…when was the last time the Captain praised anything I did?" Harry muttered. "Hasn't happened in years and it probably won't happen again."
Harriet sighed as she climbed into bed. Oh Harry…she thought as she gently held him close to her. She frowned as Harry stiffened slightly before relaxing in her arms.
"Why Harriet?" Harry asked, his voice cracking as he wiped away a tear. His once confident tone now sounded lost and small.
"Why what Harry?" Harriet responded. She leaned in closer, concern etched on her face.
The words slipped out of Harry's trembling lips, barely more than a whisper. "Why doesn't papa like me anymore?" His voice was laced with confusion and hurt, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. He couldn't understand what he had done to be cast aside by his father, the one person he had always looked up to and adored. The pain in his heart grew heavier as he replayed every interaction with his father, searching for any mistake or fault that could have caused this sudden change in affection.
Harriet's arms tightened around Harry's smaller frame, her heart aching for her brother. "You did nothing wrong," she whispered into his ear, "I promise you that. The Captain's issues are not your fault." She brushed a stray lock of hair from his face and pulled back to look into his tear-filled eyes, willing him to believe her.
"…Okay," Harry said softly and Harriet could tell that her brother was slowly falling asleep.
"Good," Harriet said. "You get some sleep okay? Wake me if you need anything. I'll be right here. I promise."
"…Okay…" Harry said, his voice soft as he continued to fall asleep. Harriet couldn't help the sad smile that pulled at her lips as she watched Harry finally give in to sleep.
Oh Harry…what am I going to do with you? She thought. One thing I know for sure though? You'll be okay. I'll make sure of it. I promise, don't worry. Your big sis will protect you, don't you worry about that. You just rest and get back to fighting form. I know that'll be a few days where you'll have to be still…oh Gods, that'll be fun. Well, I guess I should get some sleep myself. I'll need my strength to battle the stubborn force that is my brother. I'd wager anything that he'll actually try to go to work tomorrow instead of the hospital. Though…if Lord Hades made it an order…
As she sat beside her sleeping brother, Harriet couldn't help but notice the dark circles under his eyes and the shallow rise and fall of his chest. She gently brushed a stray hair from his forehead before closing her own heavy eyelids, letting out a soft sigh of relief that he was finally resting peacefully. Maybe now, with him asleep and safe, she could focus on getting him the medical attention he needed. It wouldn't erase all of her worries, but it would at least bring some peace to her troubled mind.
Harriet's heart raced as she thought of her brother's injury. She knew that if Lord Hades found out, he would ensure that her brother had a safe place to recover within the Underworld. And that, Harriet realized as she drifted off to sleep, was probably the best reason she could think of for accompanying her brother to his first shift at Lord Hades' restaurant.