the eclipse [sequel] ☾ l.s.

twenty one - family ties

"Don't move," Louis's voice pinned him in place, sending shock-waves through Harry's tired body. He couldn't do much more than press himself into the safety of his alpha's back, staring into the pitch-black uncertainties that laid before them.

Louis's nose was more sensitive than his own, his ears trained to pick up on the slightest echo of movement. Harry waited, silent, straining to hear anything over the erratic drumming of his own heartbeat.

"Louis," a voice emerged from the darkness, punctuated by the rustling of movement travelling closer. "You're one of the last people I thought I'd find in here."

Harry's knees buckled just as Louis's grip on his waist tightened, holding him upright.

He would know that voice anywhere.

The other alpha stepped into the slight light, nothing more than a tunnel of soft yellow from the tiny window. He looked the same, his dark eyes still piercing -- unforgiving. The wrinkles on his forehead had deepened, but the hard lines of his face still held the same terrifying authority.

After over a year, Harry found himself truly and unavoidably face-to-face with his father.

"Don't move," Louis repeated, firm and unquestionable. "Not another step."

Harry's father seemed confused, like their confrontational conversation should have been more of a reunion between old friends. "What's going on?"

"I said don't move. Another step, and I'll knock you so hard on your ass that you'll remember all the reasons that I should've done it a long time ago."

"We were friends once, Louis -- allies, members of the same pack. We worked together then, and we should work together now. We were family."

The word bit into Harry's hard with an icy chill. He twisted his fingers in the bottom of Louis's shirt, gripping tightly.

"Not anymore. You have your side, we have ours," Louis decided finally.

The arm securing Harry to his back finally loosened. Louis's fingers slipped down to curl around Harry's waist, giving the omega a gentle push toward the far side of the cell. As Harry moved, he did too, always keeping himself positioned between the omega and his father.

As soon as they reached the far side of the cell, Harry finally released his grip on Louis's shirt. It took a few deep breaths for him to calm himself down, especially when he could still feel the hot weight of his father's eyes from across the cell.

"He didn't even ask if you were alright," Louis fumed, barely managing to keep his voice low. It infuriated him that Harry's father had acknowledged him, not his own son.

"It's fine. It doesn't matter."

"Of course it matters," Louis scoffed. "You matter, Harry, and I won't let him treat you like you don't."

Harry bit down hard on his lower lip, chewing thoughtfully. He really didn't care that his father wanted nothing to do with him. As a child, whenever he had his father's attention, it was usually bad attention – the kind of attention that resulted in tender skin and magic-induced exhaustion.

The kind of attention that hurt.

"I don't care, Louis," he tried again to soothe his mate. Louis was pacing back and forth along the wall, and Harry reached for him, trying to get him to stop. "Lou. You barely slept last night. You look like you haven't slept in days."

Louis shook his head. "No," he repeated sharply. "No, I can't sleep. I'm too on edge."

Harry followed him, trailing right on his alpha's heels. He looped his arms around his mate from behind, sliding his palms flat over Louis's chest. "My love," he whispered, resting his chin on the older boy's shoulder.