Dolly Mixtures Musebox

_{[Continued from here]}

That could have gone... better. A lot better.

At the same time, though, Harry felt like he should probably have seen this coming. Uma was not, as a rule, very good at being the kind of person who was happy for their friend's success when they had no success of their own - which is to say that hearing Harry had found a way through the barrier, was being allowed to stay there, and had found his true love, had not exactly been met with warmth and congratulations.

More like rage and accusations.

Harry wasn't sure which he'd disliked more - the heavy implication he was using Mal to achieve his own ends while betraying his friends at the same time, or the comments about how Mal was 'slumming it' to have gone from king to pirate.

At least Gil had been happy to see him alive.

He'd tried to smooth things over with Uma, but with her temper it was hardly surprising he'd been unsuccessful, so by the time they crossed back through the barrier - having promised he'd return to talk about this, despite Uma's protestations that he should never come back - he wasn't feeling so great.

"I think that went well." he tried, unsuccessfully, to joke.

He hit the water wrong.

Hitting the water at all wasn't exactly part of his plan, he was supposed to be the one used to this, the one steady on his feet even in the midst of a storm, but the ship had hit a wave at the wrong angle and the resulting bounce and lurch had thrown him overboard before he had time to react, before he'd had time to twist his body to stop him slamming down on the water's surface in a way that stung his legs and back and knocked the breath right out of him.

He lost his grip on his hook and his coat tangled around him as he plunged into the turbulent depths of the sea, the latter making it harder to gain control and kick himself upwards. His lungs were already beginning to burn and the dark water felt as though it was closing in around him, for a moment he felt as though he might actually be done for.

Then he managed to get his coat off, the sodden fabric drifting away like some bizarre jellyfish, and he thought maybe he could get through this after all... but his legs still stung from the impact and they didn't seem to want to move the way he wanted them to and he was almost dizzy from the lack of oxygen and every instinct was screaming at him to try and breathe despite knowing that was the very last thing he should be doing, until finally his body took over and he gasped for breath.

That's when things got weird.

Instead of choking or drowning or filling his lungs with water (or all three), he felt... fine. He was breathing underwater. The pain in his legs intensified until suddenly it was all over - his shoes were falling lazily to the ocean floor and his pants were a tattered mess around his waist because instead of two pale legs he suddenly found himself the unexpected owner of a tail, shimmering red scales just like...

Just like his mother.

Harry barely remembered his mother, but he knew she was a mermaid. He'd always taken after his father in so many ways he assumed he hadn't inherited anything from her at all.

Apparently he was wrong.

He had no idea what to do with this revelation... but at least he wasn't drowning anymore. A flick of his tail sent him almost flying back up to the water's surface, but when he finally reached it he could see that while he'd been underwater, their plans had not exactly come to fruition.
The Lost Revenge was back on the other side of the barrier, with Uma cursing up a storm as the sky continued to rage overhead. In the darkness and the chaos she couldn't even see Harry amongst the waves, but he could easily swim back to the ship and Uma would be able to help him figure out what was going on.
At least, that was his plan until he nearly dove headfirst into the barrier itself, and as the ship turned to start sailing home (what else could they do?) he realised he'd succeeded, he was outside the barrier, he was free... and right now he'd give anything to get back inside.

That was two days ago, and the intervening time about the only productive thing Harry had managed to do was to retrieve his hook from the ocean floor. He was getting used to living in the sea but he was also getting lonely, and he still hadn't figured out how to change back, or even if he could.
So he'd taken to staying close to Auradon's shores, hoping to find someone who might be able to help him.
Two hours ago he'd spotted a young woman walking on the beach and had managed to charm her enough that she didn't ask too many questions about who he was and where he came from, but still agreed to go to Auradon Prep and find Mal, to deliver a message - Harry needs you at the beach.

Now he just had to hope the message got delivered, and that Mal actually showed up.