Oh Darling | Harry Hook x OC |

XXVIII: Sue Me

~ Harry's Point of View ~

At the deepest part of the jungle stood a withered tree that's been dead for centuries, or so the legend goes.

When I was a just runt, my father told me stories that gave me nightmares as I tried to sleep through the night. They were all about this being of the dark that hid in the depths of a forsaken land, where not even a single sunlight dares to touch.

I got down on one knee in front of the tree and slid my palm across the blackened soil. "This is it."

"This is what, exactly? I don't see anything but a poor deceased tree."

"Ya see but ya don't observe. Come on, take a good look around. This whole area is just teeming with life, yeah?"

The jungle was as vibrant as it was always depicted in books. Plants of different colors and various species scattered around the land, creating a perfect relation between order and chaos.

"Everything's blossoming. Except, of course, for this one." He looked up at the tree then back to me.

"What do you suppose that means?"

William tried to understand what I said the best he could. "Poor vegetation?"

I shook my head in disappointment and pushed more soil out of the way to reveal a cracked gemstone embedded on the ground.

It was here that I first realized my mistake four years ago.

No one was ever supposed to find it, not in a million years. But for some reason, it felt like it was calling out to me and I was just as drawn to it then as much as now.

I know what happens once I use it again. There's a good chance that we'll be able to save Peyton in time, but the risk is just as great.

The last time I used it, it felt like I was being used as well. And if I didn't snap out of it sooner, I might've had lost control entirely.

Now I'm starting to have second thoughts.

~ William's Point of View ~

A shiver ran down my spine which caused me to looked behind us.

Something's coming.

I tapped on Harry's shoulder without taking my eyes off the shadowed horizon. "Let's get out of here."

"Not yet."

"But-"

"Give me a second."

As if on cue, a creature materialized from the dark.

What I saw turned my blood into ice.

I ended up falling to the ground in fear. My heart was pounding so loud I thought my heart was going to burst as I stared at the animal with wide eyes.

It was no ordinary animal; it had the head and body of a lion, the wings of an eagle and the tail of a scorpion. All three animals mutated into one horrid monster.

The sight was too much to bear. Never once have I ever encountered such a thing.

The creature growled lowly as it stared straight at us, it's eyes glowing with the menacing shade of gold that held bloodlust.

What the hell?!

"Harry!"

The said pirate didn't pay any mind to the situation at hand. Instead, he took the sharp rock out from his pocket and pressed it firmly against his palm. It was enough to draw out a dangerous amount of blood as he let it drip down into the crack of the gem.

Not a second later, the ground started to shake beneath us. And this provoked the creature into charging towards us like a raged bull.

I remember promising my dead family that I was gonna see them soon but I didn't mean this soon!

"Head down!"

Without missing a beat, Harry whipped around and lashed a blade across the air, where the monster was in mid-pounce.

It's blood streaked the whole place, even on me and Harry, as its body landed at our feet. It was lifeless and torn into two.

My hands were shaking as I stared at the crimson substance on my palm.

He just killed that thing in one swing.

Wait- where did he even get the blade?

"This place is infested with Chimeras." Harry cleaned the stained blade with his sleeve and then flicked the blood off his arm. "Let's keep moving."

"W-Wait.. what's wrong with your hands?"

"Its nothing."

I grabbed his wrist and turned it over to see his veins lined with what looked like black blood. "The hell? This isn't normal!"

He barked at me to piss off as he pulled his hand back with a strength that wasn't there before.

It was as if he's a completely different person.

"Peyton's our priority here. What happens to us doesn't matter."

"This game is sick, do you realize that?!"

Even his eyes were shifting in color, from normal to pitch black. "This is our way of life- the very reason King Adam abandoned the way of magic! Because power makes us insane and I don't expect you to understand! We can't quit while we're ahead-"

"I never said we were throwing the game." I snatched the sword from his grip and found it surprisingly light enough to spin around. "I'm not gonna jump into the fray unarmed, not again. This thing stays with me. So if you got a problem with that, sue me."

~ Peter's Point of View ~

"Sire, it's been hours. Don't you think its time to call off the Hunt?"

I slouched against the backrest of my throne as every scene in the game unfolded in front of me with clairvoyance magic. It was like having a bunch of TV screens but in the form of water blobs hovering over my head.

"Did you even hear what I said?"

"Oh I heard you, I just don't care."

It was fun to watch Saber roll his eyes like a doting mother as he stood and watched beside me. My dear old friend never failed to nag me to no end about things such as this, especially if its people's lives on the line.

Maybe I should make him the treasure next year for a change?

I was in the middle of considering locking Saber up in a chest when one of the water spheres showed two of the students cutting down beasts left and right in a remote area not far from Peyton's location. "Uh-oh."

"Uh-oh? What do you mean 'uh-oh'?" He took one good look in the same direction I was then bolted out of the room, yelling out orders to his men as he went.

I let out a long sigh and leaned forward, resting my arms on my knees.

Tink noticed my reaction as she entered the room and drew a pretty accurate conclusion out of it. "As expected, Harry was the one who saved her four years ago and now he's gonna do it again. The question is, how does this boy do it and make it look like child's play?"

She's right. I haven't seen anyone compete like that pirate does, and it was unnerving in a way. It gets under my skin for some reason but at the same time, I felt compelled to see just how far he's willing to go as the next ruler of Neverland.

"Time to take the game up a few notches, don't you think?" I pushed myself off the throne and fixed my suit. "I mean, it's been years but I don't think I've gotten that rusty."

"Are you suggesting-"

"Yes. Now where did I put that dagger of mine?"