My Anchor ~ Harry Hook

CHAPTER EIGHT

11 YEARS EARLIER

'Harriet, what the fuck are you doing? Come on,' he said, grabbing his sister by the elbow and pulling her away from the stall full of jewellery.

'But Haz pretty jewels,' she whined, making grabby hands at the stall.

'I don't care. We're already late, and we don't have any food,' he argued back.

Harry had left in charge of his now three-year-old sister when he was three. He had been left to fend for them, as their no-good father would leave them for days for random women he barely knew.

This is all he knew.

Stealing and fighting.

Wordlessly, he continued to drag Harriet through the marketplace, weaving through the people wandering aimlessly, some lurching and sneering at them. Suddenly, he felt her stop pulling him backwards and causing him to stop to see what she was doing. Harriet had gotten distracted by a large jar containing an intact head, its eyes staring soulessly into the distance. Harry shuddered before pulling Harriet's arm again more gently this time and continuing to walk while still looking at her. Before he could comprehend what was happening, he was on his back and coughing violently with his eyes scrunched up.

'Watch where you're going,' a girl voice said from above him.

When he looked up, the first thing he saw were long, blue braids and a scowl, and when he saw a sudden movement to his left, he flinched before realising the girl was extending an arm to help him up, smiling mischievously.

'S-sorry my sister, she was—' he tried to apologise before being cut off.

'Hey, it's okay, no harm done,' the girl said. 'I'm Uma. You?'

'Harry,' he replied, still nervous.

His anxiety only grew as he watched her smile grow. 'Hey, Harry, I'm tryna get a crew together. You'd be a good fit. Wanna join?' She asked him.
Harry, taken aback, just nods wordlessly, causing Uma to chuckle and walk past him while ruffling his hair before disappearing into the crowd.
Suddenly, he felt a tug on his jacket. 'Haz, who was that? Do you know her?' His younger sister questioned.

Harry, who was still looking at where Uma had previously been, picked her up and said, 'N-no Harriet, I don't, but don't worry about it.' He suddenly realised that this was his ticket to becoming an ominous presence as well as securing them food.

Speaking of food, Harry had come here to steal some, so putting Harriet down, he told her to follow him and not say a word. He walked as casually as he could through the main market, searching for any food he could. Suddenly, the smell of fish and chips invaded his senses, and he began to follow it, hoping to find food. He followed the smell all the way to the front door of a shop whose sign read 'Ursula's Fish & Chips.' Harry, desperate for anything at this point, grabbed Harriet's hand and dragged her through the saloon doors.

'Well, I didn't expect to see you here so soon,' a familiar voice said.

'Uma! Hey, I didn't know you'd be here. I'm not following you,' he said defensively, confused about why she was there.

Uma, seeing his confusion, explained to him, 'This is my mom's place. I help out sometimes. Do you need something?'

'Haz is looking for food; we're really hungry,' a little voice piped up from behind him. Harry laughed awkwardly, shaking his head, not wanting to seem like he was begging.

'No, no, ignore her,' he rushed out, but Uma ignored him, crouching down to speak to her.

'You're hungry? Well, we can't have that, not for my crew,' Uma said softly, standing up and going to the back of the shop and through the beaded curtain to the kitchen.

After five minutes, Harry began to get nervous, wondering whether he should leave. He began overthinking, wondering if he had overstepped and done something wrong.

No one had ever been this nice to him before.

However, soon after Uma emerged from the kitchen with a big bag of food, she held her arm out for him to take it, not saying a word. Harry reached out, wondering if this was a prank before she said, 'Go on. Take it.' which was all he had needed to hear before grabbing the bag and thanking her and rushing back through the saloon doors.

'I like her.' Harriet's voice followed behind him as they raced back home.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Late that night, Harry was sitting on Harriet's bed trying to get her to go to bed when the door to their house slammed shut.

'Fuck. Stay here, Harriet,' he said, jumping off the bed and quietly opening the door to her room.

'Hello, dad,' he said cautiously, never knowing what kind of mood he was in.

'What the fuck is this?' His father asked him, pointing at the bag of food, already angry.

'Erm, food,' Harry said bravely.

'Don't fucking smart mouth me, you little bastard. Where did you get it from?' His father said as he cornered him.

'The chip shop by the pier,' he said quietly, looking down at his hands.

His father grabbed his face, forcing him to look in his eyes, and said, 'And how did you get it?' He questioned further, his voice lowering.

'A girl gave it to me,' he explained, not wanting to say too much for fear of getting her in trouble with his father.

'Did she now? And what is this girl's name?' His father sneered.

'I- I don't know she didn't tell me,' he stuttered but tried to keep his composure. His father didn't answer but instead slapped him hard across the face, causing Harry to fall clutching his face as his father walked calmly out of the house again, slamming the door behind him.

Tears silently slid down his face but were quickly wiped away when he heard a small voice coming from the doorway behind him, 'Haz, are you okay?'

'I'm okay, Hattie,' he said, trying to smile convincingly. 'Come here,' he said, opening his arms for her to come to him, noticing she was scared.

'We're going to be alright, I promise. One day I'll get us out of here,' he said quietly into her hair.