Dessert had felt a little awkward, but Harry bit his tongue. He wasn't going to call out one of his wards in such a public place. No, they finished up their meal and walked back to the villa. He honestly didn't know what to say to the simple slip of a word. He was confused, terrified, ecstatic, and worried. The pirate hadn't said much on the way back to their flat and waited until they were all safely inside to tell Buttercup to finish her reading before they did anything else. As for Bubbles? Well, he crooked a finger at her and motioned for her to follow him. His current manicure was some other creation of hers and it was a bit distracting. He had to stop himself from staring at his nails as he turned to head to his bedroom.
Harry shoved the door open and ushered the tiny blonde inside.
"We need ta talk," he stated as he moved to sit on his bed. "I am not mad at you so why are ye so fecking quiet? I dinnae like it, ducky."
There were probably better ways to handle this whole thing, but he was sailing blind. There was no compass to help navigate a situation like this. He ran a hand through his wild hair before letting out a sigh. "I know… I get I am not yer da, but look. You can call me wutever you want. At this point I think it is a wee bit obvious I would try to steal the fecking stars if ye or your sister asked me too. This was supposed to just be a means for you two to be free of that shite kids floor. Yet I would burn this whole sodding city down for ye, you wee terror. So wut I am attempting to say is… ye are family at this point. You and Buttercup."
Bubbles hadn’t meant to say it, but as soon as the word ‘dad’ slipped out of her mouth in reference to Harry? Well her big blue eyes somehow grew ten times their normal size, and she sunk down in her seat. The rest of the meal passed without another single word from the tiny girl. She hadn’t even eaten much of her delicious cake with huge strawberries on top. Which was honestly a statement within itself. When did Bubbles ever leave any kind of sweet relatively untouched?
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to call the pirate ‘dad’. If that was the case, she wouldn’t have said it, to begin with. In reality, she was already referring to him as ‘dad’ in her head and to both Quacky and Octi, but she didn’t intend on Harry ever hearing it. What if he didn’t want to be her dad? She was so afraid she messed everything up, that the whole way home she just kind of lagged behind with her head hanging low- Octi held tight in her arms.
She had every intention to make a beeline for one of the rooms they never used as soon as they walked in the door, but Harry caught her off guard and managed to be faster than she was for perhaps the first time.
“Feck,” she whispered, biting iting her bottom lip, and following him into his room. Bubbles still hung back near the wall after Harry sat down on the bed, her hands fiddling with Octi’s worn tentacles. She didn’t know what to say when he asked why she was so quiet, but if she really thought about it? She knew why. She was scared- not of him of course! She would never be scared of him.
As he went on with his speech, Bubbles felt happier with each word, and she finally looked up at him- blue eyes still wide and a bit teary. She was relieved that he wasn’t angry, or didn’t seem to mind if she called him ‘dad’, and did he really say they were family? Still...she needed to be sure. “You’re really not mad?”
Oh, sweet Davey Jones, the near teary gaze Bubbles gave him was like a knife to the heart. Had she really been that terrified? Harry let out a string of very colorful swear words he knew he shouldn't use around her, but he was flustered. This was not how he thought the evening was going to go. He had originally been planning to ask the girls what they thought about him switching up his job at the police station. Now he was stuck having a conversation he never thought he would have.
"I promise I'm not mad, ducks. If I'm lying may I be struck down," he held up a hand as if he was taking an oath. He paused and glanced towards the ceiling with his black lined eyes narrowed. Nothing happened. "Would ye look at that," he said in a faintly teasing tone. "Not a bolt of wee lightning about."
Harry let his arm fall across his thigh as he leaned forward. He fixed his charge with a look, his pale blue eyes glinting. "Listen, if ye want ta call me Harry or if you want to call me da, that's up to you. I won't have ye blubbering about this apartment just cuz ye had a wee slip of a word. I can't stand tears so keep em in yer eyes."
Less than a year ago he had been a terror on a prison Isle. He had been violent and willing to do anything to break free of the barrier, but somehow he had always made sure the sproglets on the Isle were protected. In Goodland he had calmed down a bit, but he hadn't stopped wanting to make sure kids were okay. He just had never thought it would land him with two in his charge. Collecting your own Lost Boys, Hook? Feck, life was strange here and he found himself wishing Uma didn't show up. She would yank him back towards being the crazed pirate and he wanted so badly to be a better person for the slight girl in front of him and the other one hopefully doing her homework.
Harry wanted to actually be worthy to be their family.
Maybe some of the problem was it also kind felt like a bit of a betrayal to the Professor? He was their father, for all intents and purposes. He had created the girls, and raised them as his own, even if they pretty much knew how to raise themselves. But he wasn’t in Goodland? She wasn’t sure if he would ever be. Blossom wasn’t even here, and sometimes Bubbles felt guilty for being happy.
When they first arrived, she and Buttercup would have stopped at nothing to try and find them, but as time went on? They had settled into their new life here, and it was a new life that very strongly revolved around Harry’s presence. Bubbles adored him and was very happy in this world. She was certain she would be absolutely crushed if he ever went away as some people had, or if she went back to Townsville and never saw him again.
She cracked a little smile and tried not to laugh when the lightning didn’t come crashing through the roof into his hand, and she tried really tried not to let a single tear fall. But, a few slipped out anyway.
“I’m sorry!” She exclaimed, using Octi to wipe at her face before rushing over in a blue blur to wrap her arms around Harry in a hug. “I’m sorry!”
Oh, bloody Hell. Harry caught Bubbles in a hug and somehow managed to not fall backward on the bed. "Oi, oi, no apologies, ducky." He had a moment and couldn't stop himself as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. By Evil, where had that come from?
"Enough with the tears and the apologies." He shifted enough to rub some of the threatening tear lines from her cheeks with his thumbs. "Now ye dinnae eat your dessert back at the diner. Should we go see wut we've got in the kitchen to feed that wee sweet tooth you have."
Harry flashed her one of his charming smiles and gave her another hug. "I think we have ice cream and some cookies and maybe some chocolate syrup… and a wee container of those sprinkles. Come on, ducky, this is sorted, aye? We be family and you need sugar. Dinnae why you like it so much. It's so sweet," he made an exaggerated face to try and get a laugh out of her. "Guess you'll have to eat my portion."
Bubbles sniffled and tried to dry up her tears, the kiss to the top of her head helping as she tightened her arms around Harry. “Okay. Okay. No more tears. No more sorries.” Her big blue eyes met his when he wiped at her cheeks. She nearly apologized again, but bit the words off of her tongue.
“Yes, please!” The tiny girl thought about that piece of cake she barely touched, and wanted to kick her own butt for not eating it. The idea of all the sweets they had in the kitchen perked her up however, there would always be more cake right? For now she could have some of her other favorite things.
His yucky face did it’s intended job and made her high pitched giggles fill the room. “You’re crazy.. Sweet things are the bestest things. Let’s go!” Tilting her head, she hugged him again before bouncing off of his lap, and whispered- “I love you, Dad.”
Ah, there it was. The thought of sweets was distracting her! Harry couldn’t help laughing along with her as he shook his head. Sweet things were not the bestest thing, no matter how much his girls kept telling him they were. Even Molly and Klara seemed to enjoy the sweets and often reminded him that he was crazy for not liking sweets. He still wasn’t sure how Mal had adapted, but then again she had also spent an annoying amount of time in Auradon. That place had corrupted her tastes.
He hugged her back and grinned widely as she seemed to perk up from her little episode. His eyes widened as he thought he heard her say four simple words. Love? She loved him? Maybe his ears were playing tricks on him,
Sweet Evil, he was a goner.
He stood up and placed a hand on the top of her head. “Come on, love, let’s get you ice cream.”