The Armor (Prince Harry fanfic #1)

Chapter Five

When the night rolled around, under the hungry dark sky, Harry stayed awake, watching the stars above. In London, in all of his homes that were moved around from here to there, he never saw so clearly. The stars were dazzling, all the lost souls of the world. Harry could breathe out there, away from the people who always wanted something. He was free here. The only person who would have brought back stories was Lucy, and all he hoped was that she wouldn't speak. If she spoke, it was his neck on the line, but it was also her neck on the line. She never would be free again. She would always have rumors follow her around, the worst kind of life. Harry knew she was smart but money did crazy things to people.

He breathed deeply, taking in the world around him. If he walked into the slum, Lucy would be asleep and he would wait for her to awake in the night, a nightly routine of hers already. He could sleep through it but now he waited, wanting to help but never moving fast enough. She didn't talk about it, and it was none of his business, but he wanted to know. Why? Who was she? How did she earn those scars? Curiosity wouldn't kill her.

The sound of a child running, the slapping of feet against the dry dusk, startled him, almost jumping at the immediate sliding in front of him. "Is Lucy here?" the child asked out of breath. "Is she? Is she? Lucy!"

"Yes," Harry responded automatically, the correct answer.

The child rushed past Harry, heading straight inside. The door banged open and Harry looked inside to see Lucy's eyes open, barely alive, but she caught the sight of the child. The blanket was thrown off and she landed gracefully on her feet to only stumbled forward. The child came forth and whispered to her, which she whispered back. The child ran out, shutting the door behind him, but Harry was already in.

"What is it?" Harry asked, concern filling his voice. She didn't respond. "What is it?"

Lucy threw off shirt, still wearing a sports bra, revealing scars across her chest and stomach, spreading to her back. She pulled off her pants, searching for shoes and pants. Harry after a moment averted his gaze, finding an interesting place on the wall. Lucy didn't care, even when his eyes rested upon her, not caring about what her body might look like to him. She grabbed a shirt and pants, throwing them on, and then she found her shoes, tying them up.

"Lucy, what is it?" Harry grabbed onto her wrist; her eyes narrowed on him and he staggered back under her death glare, so easily undone by the fierceness she held in her eyes. He swallowed and she eyes softened.

"There's a birth happening." She left and he followed.

"I'm sure that happens a lot."

"There's a problem." She jogged and he jogged after her.

"Do you know what it is?"

"It has to be serious if they needed to get me."

"Do you have medical training?"

"I have different ways of doing things."

Though it was a small-enough village with one road through the slums, on the left or the right, they kept up with the child as he ran, his small legs moving quickly. The child was one of his students but the name escaped Harry. In the running, Lucy moved her legs fully out, flipping them back and forth, spreading apart like a dancer before joining again. Her chest barely moved up again, running for long time with ease, where Harry felt himself grow warmer under the glow of the moon. He saw Lucy let up and he followed, only for there to be a skidding as they turned a corner. The running continued.

When they reached the door, he tried to go in too, but she pushed him back. "No men allowed."

Lucy shut the door in his face, and Harry went to join the rest of the males who gathered outside. Many people had turned out and in a minute, Harry understood. There was a scream. He shuddered. They all waited and more screams came. Two women rushed out, one getting more clean water and one getting more wood for the fire that was built for light. There was another scream and the women rushed back in.

There were a few moments before a woman came out and called, "Harry, Harry, Harry! Harry!" Harry raised his hand in response. "Lucy needs you."

For some reason, his feet took his quickly. Under pressure, he was good, trained to be calm with the threat of life, but it wasn't his life. But the words "Lucy needs you" made his feet move fast, wanting to help her. Something inside of his sparked to life, maybe needed again or maybe the thought of whatever hid behind the door, which wasn't going to be good.

Harry entered the slum and Lucy was on the floor, awaiting Harry. Light slowly trickled in; some of the darkness continued to thrive. "Here, now," she commanded. He bent down beside her and she placed hands upon his and moved him to the spot. "Stay here." She moved and collected something. "Harry, this is what you are going to do," she directed him, and he nodded. Harry moved around and the women didn't like how he touched the pregnant woman as she screamed.

In a calm and whispered tone, which the pregnant woman strained to hear, Lucy explained. The rest of the women weren't impressed but this wasn't a moment for gratitude, rather survival. Harry wasn't fully aware of the situation but Lucy held confidence in her voice, unwavering and strict to the time of what was going to happen next. On the count of three, Harry pressed his hands gently on the pregnant woman's stomach, trying to help push the baby out, with the pregnant woman pushing. Lucy commanded for the woman to continue. The woman didn't scream out in pain but little grunts.

"Come on," Lucy hissed. "Come on."

The woman pushed harder, and suddenly she stopped, collapsing into Harry's arms. A cry went out into the room, filling the space with a piercing moan and the high-pitched screaming of a newborn. The woman smiled, her eyes solely focused on the happiness that came. The baby flashed into Lucy's arms and then she passed it off onto a woman who waited in the wings.

"Harry, you can let go of her now," Lucy said without looking up at him. He hadn't even realized that he still hung on, which he let go immediately, finding his way over to Lucy. She waited and checked him, humming to herself as the baby cried continuously.

"Is there anything else?" he asked, putting his eyes to the floor so he didn't see anything, out of respect.

"That's all." Lucy didn't have time now; she was already on edge. This was a hard birth and doubted the afterbirth would be any better.

Harry nodded and slipped out of the slum. The air felt cooler to him as he exited, welcoming in the pure night sky of endless sights. The men gathered around, and he smiled at them, which the men then cheered. He stepped back, waiting with the cheering continued. Eventually, the cheering calmed down and no one had exited the slum. No one had been permitted to the slum. The men slowly made the way gone, disappearing into their own slums.

A child tugged at Harry's clothes. "You should go home." The child ran away with that.

Harry's blue eyes focused on the slum with the newborn child and woman inside, Lucy too, and no one came out. There was just stillness. The child hadn't belonged to the family; all the men had gone. What did they know that Harry didn't? Slowly, foot by foot, Harry made his way back to his slum with Lucy. He sat on his cot and waited.