Choosing Home

Chapter Fifty Two

Sammy sighed as Claudine drove her, Harriet, and Harry across the bridge; CJ opting to stay behind to spend some time with Ryan. They had finally gotten permission from Ben to start bringing adults who didn't belong on the Isle across the bridge.

Specifically Sammy had gotten permission to get her father off the Isle. While he was a member of Captain Hook's crew, her father hadn't really done anything worth being trapped on the Isle. Sure, he had kidnapped Tinkerbelle on the orders of Captain Hook to find the Lost Boys' lair and potentially kill Peter Pan...but other than that he was harmless!

Plus...as Ben told Harriet and me, there's no crime in wanting to live our own lives, Sammy thought. Squeaky and Squirmy deserve a chance to see our dad again and dad deserves the chance to see the boys grow up. Even if he would want to stay on the Isle to keep the memory of mom alive.

"Are you okay?" Harriet asked, gently taking Sammy's hand. Squeaky and Squirmy were back in Auradon, being watched by CJ, Ryan, Henry, Hadie, and surprisingly Melody and Herkie.

Well maybe not that surprising now that Sammy thought about it. After all, Macaria was practically crew with her dating Gil and being Mal's cousin. Plus they had said that family members of crew members were always invited to join—it'd been said a lot more though after Ryan lost his sister.

"Yeah," Sammy nodded. "I was just thinking about dad."

Harriet gave her girlfriend a small, slightly sad smile before giving her hand a squeeze. "I'm sure your dad will be happy to see you."

"I know," Sammy sighed. "But that's not what I was thinking about I...I was thinking about how he might want to stay on the Isle to be close to mom."

"Your dad loved your mom," Harriet nodded. "She was like a second mom to the three of us after...after mom died even though she had to captain the Rose after the death of Red Jessica and we...we all know how tiring captaining can be."

"Maybe not all of us," Claudine spoke up from her spot behind the wheel and Harriet flushed slightly as she realized how casually she'd mentioned the death of Jessica. Even though Claudine had never known Jessica, she was still her mother. "But Harriet's right, Sammy. Your mom was an amazing person—I'd probably be dead if not for those sandwiches she would drop off at Dragon Hall before Henry started sneaking me food."

That had been an interesting discovery, back during the week she was living with the Rats. Claudine had known that someone had been leaving her food when she was younger but at the time she hadn't questioned it. Well maybe she had the first time it happened but that was just because she wanted to know who knew about her hide out at Dragon Hall.

"You're the daughter of her captain," Sammy said, looking at Claudine with a small shrug. "Mom was going to protect you as best she could...and dad and I took over the food drops after she got to about the seven month mark with Squeaky and Squirmy. But that goes to my point...there was nothing dad wouldn't have done for mom and all of dad's memories of mom are on the Isle."

Harriet gave Sammy a small, sad smile as she gently took her hand and gave it a small squeeze. "Not all of them. You and your brothers are in Auradon. If there's anything I know, it's that if there's anyone your dad loves more than your mom, it's you three."

Harry sighed as he heard Harriet's words, having chosen to sit in the front with Claudine rather than sit in the back with his sister and her First Mate/girlfriend. Not because he didn't want to but because he figured they'd want their privacy. You know, it's hard to be comforting and romantic with a little brother sitting next to you or so he was told.

There was another reason why he was tagging along on this mission. Yes, Smee was a good First Mate and deserved to come to Auradon but there was someone else Harry needed to 'talk' to. Even with all the insanity with Freddy and finally admitting his feelings to Uma, Harry had still found the time to continue going to his psychiatrist that Ben had him go to back when Harry first arrived in Auradon.