Sea and Sky

Chapter Twenty

Louis didn't come back.

Harry understood entirely as he cradled the egg in his arms, sitting in the shallows unable to let it go. He sat there day and night. When they're house was finished, he moved there, curling up in his and Louis nest, the blanket draped around him, the egg in the folds of his tail. His mother had tried to get him to get rid of the egg, to bury it or open it himself and bury his child but Harry had refused screeching at her until she apologized and left him alone.

When he falls asleep, the tears had long since dried out and he just felt hollow inside. Once he woke up, he realized the egg had disappeared. He freaked out and searched frantically for it, finding it on the floor of the cave, broken. He sobs out in despair and picks it up, gasping and dropping the broken half he had in his hands.

A little baby harpy lay there, broken egg shell underneath him. His eyes were closed but they didn't matter. He was a carbon copy of Louis. His chestnut brown hair lay in feathery tufts across his head, thin and sparse. His wings and legs, which were curled up to his little chest had the extract same colour of feathers as his father. He had the same lips and nose, same cheekbones, eyebrows  and ears, and even the same weird little discolouration of one of his claws, which were all black spare a patch of brown, on his left foot. Harry reached down and picked up the little boy in his arms, supporting his head, noticing the way his wings fell out behind him as he was pulled to his Papas chest. Harry placed his forehead against the babies head, holding back a cry as he cradled the fragile body to his chest.

Then he heard a little sound, just a small snuffling sound. Harry looks up, looking around to see what had made the noise, but found nothing.

He looked down and was met with two big wide green eyes.

"O-oh my god...." He mutters his hand stroking the babies hair back gently before letting out an inhuman sound, clutching the baby, tucking his nose into the his soft little stomach as he began to cry, his head bent as tiny fingers grabbed his hair.

Harry didn't know what else to do but he knew he never wanted to let the baby go ever again.

It was hours before someone showed up. That someone was his mother who surfaced, holding both babies in her arms as she started to speak

"Harry, I know your upset but you have two more babies to take care of!"

"Mo-"

"You have to let it go, they're gone, I'm so sorry but you have responsibility"

"Mom!"

"Harry!" She says reaching forwards to take the baby from harry, but he scoots back


"Mom, look!" harry yells and leans forwards, shifting his arm so that she could see the baby. She gasps, a small coo coming from her mouth


"Oh my god... what?" He asks

"I-I must have dropped the egg in my sleep, I-It broke, and there he was, I-I picked him up, I though he was gone, he was so s-still and limp but he opened his eyes and..." harry stammers

"Harry, he looks so much like Louis, but he has your eyes love, he's beautiful, I wonder why he took so long to hatch?" Anne says and harry shrugs

"I-i don't know" Harry whispers, smiling down at his baby. He readjusts himself, curling his tail around and places the baby against it. He takes his other babies from his mother and settles them next to their new baby brother, who was looking around with his wide eyes. They locked on harry's face and harry smiles down at him happily. Anne leaves then, smiling at her son as she does, so happy for him.

Jay is the next one to visit, walking in through the door and walking over to harry, sitting down on the side of the nest and then gasping, leaping up with her hand over her mouth. 

"H-Harry?" she asks and Harry picks up the baby handing him to Jay who has tears in her eyes. "H-he's okay?" she asks and harry nods "He looks so much like Louis..." She notes and harry nods

"He's so beautiful..." Harry says and Jay nods drawing her fingers down the side of the baby harpy's face gently, lovingly.


"Where's Louis?" Jay asks as the the harpy in her arms blinks slowly up at her.


"He-He sort of took off a few days back, he thinks losing that little one was his fault and i guess he couldn't take it, and its sort of hard for me to go and look for him" Harry tells her and she nods, handing the now sleeping baby back to harry,


"Ill go find him, send him your way" She says and harry nods


"Thank you Jay" harry says gently and Jay smiles 

"Of course love" she leans down and kisses his forehead then leaves, closing the door gently behind her.


True to her word, Jay sends Louis back and he walks in, sullen and sleep deprived. He walks over and sits down by harry. Harry smiles and picks up the harpy baby handing him to Louis with a smiles 

"Louis, meet your son" Harry gently whispers and Louis looks at him, taking the baby into his arms with a small intake of breath.


"What?" Louis ventures and Harry smiles


"I fell asleep and dropped the egg out of the nest so i picked him up and he make a little sound at me, looking at me with these big eyes Louis... I couldn't believe it"

Louis begins to cry and hugs harry tightly, crying into his shoulder while muttering

"I-I didn't k-kill him...I-I didn't kill him, I'm so sorry for leaving Harry, Im so sorry" Harry just rubs his back while he cries

"Louis, it wouldn't have been your fault, and i forgive you for leaving, it's okay, all that matters is your back and he's okay..." Harry says giving Louis a gentle kiss. Louis nods and hugs harry again, sitting there for a long time just letting harry hold him while he held his new son.


"Leo?" Louis asks and harry grimaces

"How about Kyle?" Harry suggests and louis shakes his head

"James?"


"No, Xavier?" Louis shakes his head 

"No, thats too fancy" Harry pouts and nuzzles his face into Louis neck gently

"Thomas" Louis says gently and harry leans back looking at him.


Harry smiles, kissing Louis nose gently "I love it, we can call him Tommy for short" Harry says and Louis nods happily.


"Our little Tommy..."

The next few days consisted of them moving into their new home, adjusting to having three new kids and how on earth they were going to deal with them.

Niall had offered to make harry a wheelchair with nature magic, form branches and vines to make it easier for harry to move around the house but harry refused, thanking him, as he could access his children's rooms already, especially Rosalie's and Elliot's as they were mostly underwater, with an access for harry, and shallow enough for Louis to take care of his children as well. All harry had to do was dip under the main living space and swim to them. There was also easy access to Tommy's room as well as Fern's room through a sealed hole in the floor. They had opted to put a cover over the hole, in fear that one of their non-fish babies decided to take a swim. They also fitted a door with a lock to their room, which was where harry and louis used to come in from underwater, another large pool of water that could put their children at danger.

Fern enjoyed having new siblings as much as she had enjoyed turning five, which she had mere days ago. Harry and Louis had thrown her a small party, inviting her centaur friend and the few other friends she made. Jay had invited them over but Harry had told her it was better to have dinner at their house, because there was no way Louis would be able to get him and all their children up to his mothers, and besides, Anne and Gemma wanted to come as well. So they had dinner at harry's and Louis home, Harry and Jay cooking for them all, harry having to sit on a chair the whole time but he helped non-the-less. They had a terrific time, Fern getting many gifts from her new family. She had later confided in harry that she was afraid to come live with them first, because she didn't know if she was going to like it, but she told him she was really happy with them. Harry had smiled and tucked her in for the night, kissing her forehead and just before he left she whispered quietly


"I love you Papa..."


And it had made harry smile uncontrollably.