Chapter Text
“Goodnight Maddie” Finn smiled and rolled his eyes, closing his bedroom door on his younger sister. As soon as the door closed the smile wiped off his face. He fell into his bed with a sigh, instantly regretting how hard he let himself fall because the mattress was almost nothing. He rolled onto his side and pulled the communicator he stole off Fontaine out from under his pillow. The ocean was huge. He was almost never in rage of the Arronax, but he still liked to talk to it when he was feeling extra bad, which was more and more recently.
“Hey Fontaine” he said into the com, “it's my 18th birthday tomorrow. I know, I know, no big deal. I just…thaught it would be nice to see you” he smirked and added “now that I'm legal”
“Ew, please erase that thought from my head" Fontaine's voice suddenly replied, causing Finn to drop the bracelet in surprise.
“Whoa-what? Fontaine!? You can hear me!?” he said as he scrambled to pick it back up.
“Yup, I can hear you, Pirate boy” her voice was teasing. Why did he like it so much? “And for the record, your 18th birthday is a big deal”
Finn's heart suddenly flooded with emotions. Good emotions. It was a welcome change. “Really?”
“Yes really, now can you stop annoying me I'm trying to sleep” she didn't sound mad though. Finn considered staying on the line, but in the end he decided to respect her.
“Sleep well”
“Thanks, you too”
— - —
Fontaine ran into the bridge early the next morning.
“I just saw the Darck Orca!” She cried, causing her half asleep mum to panic.
“Where!? I don't see it on sonar” Kaiko said, sitting upright in the pilot chair.
“I'm not sure which direction it went” Fontaine replied, hoping her mum would start a search.
“Scanning the ocean floor for shipwrecks, if the Dark Orca is here, it's likely they're looking for treasure”
Fontaine grinned. “Good idea mum!” Perhaps Hammerhead wanted to get Finn some treasure for his birthday. “Call me once you find them! I have something I need to finish”
“Why are you so interested in finding them?” Ant asked, walking in “want to see Smiling Finn?”
“Gotta go!” Fontaine ignored her brother, running back to her room.
— - —
Finn walked onto the bridge. “Morning captain” he said, giving his dad a salute.
“Morning Finn” his dad replied, not taking his eyes off the steering wheel.
“We, uh, got any plans for today?” Finn asked, a slight hope his dad had remembered his birthday.
“As a matter of fact we do” Finn's face lit up, his heart feeling lighter “I've found a treasure!!” And his heart dropped. It hurt. It physically hurt.
“Awsome captain” he said, fake life in his voice, perfect smile on his face. He was smiling Finn after all.
“Uh, Captain” Danny Boy's voice piped up from beside Finn.
“What is it Danny Boy?” Hammerhead replied, as if he really couldn't care less about what it was.
“It's the Arronax!” Danny boy pointed out the window. Finn felt a little lighter again. That couldn't be healthy, feeling lighter when you saw your so-called enemies.
“What!?” Hammerhead was NOT happy about this. “But, we didn't even steal any treasure yet!”
-
They had all rushed to the moon pool. Finn was putting on his diving suit when his dad rushed in.
“Out of my way boy!” he pushed Finn aside as he jumped into the water. Finn fell, twisting his ankle. A sharp pain shot through him. He didn't know if he could move his foot. He wanted to clutch it and cry, but instead he got up like it was nothing.
He watched everyone jump in the water, then instead of joining them, he sat down. He couldn't swim in this state. And frankly, he didn't want to search for treasure on his birthday. He pulled out the Nektons com again. “Uh, hey Fontaine”
“Yeah” came her reply. Somehow her voice made it hurt less.
“Would you be able to kidnap me?” He heard her laugh on the other side of the com. Then the rover appeared in the Orca’s moon pool. Fontaine in the pilot seat. She opened the dome and stepped out.
“Surrendor, pirate boy” he smiled at her, then lifted his hands into the air.
“I surrender"
As he tried to walk towards the rover, his foot shot with agony again. He winced, but tried not to show it.
“What's wrong?” Fontaine asked, clearly more observant of him than his entire family.
“I, Uh, hurt my ankle” he shrugged, flashing a smile at her. Before he could say more she was at his side, supporting his weight. Being in her arms just felt kind of right. She was stronger than she looked, and for once Finn didn't mind letting himself be weak. He let Fontaine help him into the rover.
“Wow these seats are comfortable” he remarked, as he sat in the actually back supportive padded seat.
“That's your birthday gift” Fontaine joked.
“I'll take it” he replied as they pulled out of the moon pool. As they drove towards the Arronax he saw his family below. Maddaline was fighting Ant for an old chest, while Will chased his dad away from a pile of coins. “The stuff they'll do for treasure”
Fontaine laughed “you pirates are insane”
“You calling me a pirate?”
“Are you not, pirate boy?” He looked away, unable to answer that. His stomach hurt again. “Mum, I'm brining Finn aboard” Fontaine said into the coms as the Arronax moon pool opened.
“Finn!? Why?” Kaiko asked.
“He's a hostage, but don't tell Hammerhead yet” she smirked
“You had to tell her I'm here?” Finn asked as Fontaine helped him out of the rover and they began to walk.
“Yeah, it's good family and team communication”
“That's a thing?” Finn's family had never communicated clearly on anything. He kept more secrets from them than he did anyone else. As for the crew, he supposed you could count following orders as communication, but Hammerhead changed his mind so often the crew were often punished for doing exactly what they were told.
Fontaine gave him a look, but before she could say anything they turned the corner into her room. Finn's eyes lit up, bunting, balloons, and a neatly wrapped gift on her desk. He felt tears threatening to slip from behind his eyes, Fontaine had done ALL THIS just for him?
“Happy birthday, Pirate Boy” she smiled at him “sorry its not much, I-”
“This is WAY more than anyone would do for me on the Dark Orca. Thank you.” He smiled at her, he didn't want to take his eyes off her, but he had too when she handed him the present.
He felt so excited as he unwrapped it. It felt better than any treasure he'd found for his dad. Inside the box was a cloth, some Polish, and…spare trumpet parts? There was a small note on the cloth, with detailed instructions on how to clean and fix a trumpet.
“I figured pirates don't spend much time in instrument care” Fontaine said, refusing to meet his eyes. She had remembered. She had listened. She had listened and remembered and thought about what he could want. What HE could want.
“This will definitely come in useful” he smiled. “I'd say it's the best gift anyone has ever given me” she smiled back at him.
— - —
After what felt like too short a time, Kaiko called to let them know it was time to let Finn out. Fontaine helped him walk back to the moon pool, she didn't care that he was almost too heavy for her to support, she cared that his skin was strangely soft for a pirate's, and his breath didn't smell. Hammerhead met them in the water, pulling Finn down to swim beside him rather aggressively. Fontaine felt a surge of worry shoot through her, for some reason. Why had she put in so much effort for his birthday? Why was she showing him that she cared? Why did she care!?
-
Fontaine watched from the bridge as Finn fell behind the other pirates, his ankle clearly hurting. Maddaline, unaware of Finn's condition, let a rock fall on their path. She was trying to stop Ant from following them, but the rock was heading straight for Finn.
“Finn, lookout!!” Fontaine radioed in.
“Huh?” Was all the reply she got. She didn't see what happened next, because she was already running to the moon pool. Getting into a Knight would take too long, so she jumped into the waiting rover. As soon as she was in the sea she saw him. Limp. Bubbles escaping his mouth faster than she could cope with. She dived. Down. Down. Down. Her eyes on his limp body.
“I'm coming Finn!” She called, hoping he was conscious to hear. She got underneath him, praying the rover would pressurize fast enough to open in time to catch him. As soon as she could she let the dome fly open and swam up, taking him in her arms. “I've got you. I've got you”
He felt cold. She hoped that was just how he always felt underwater. She got air back into the rover as fast as she could.
“Finn!? Finn!? Stay with me!!” she said as she lay him across the back seat, trying to remove his helmet. It was ugly, shards of glass from his visor where lodged in his face. He was pale, lips blue, cheeks cold. She sat him up, hoping to get water out of his airway. Nothing.
“Come on, pirate boy” her voice was weak now. Now she realised, her future was dying with Finn. She needed him. No one made her feel things the way he did. No one understood her needs the way he did. She wanted to see his smile, just one last time. She closed her eyes, resting her head on his chest, hoping to hear his heartbeat.
A cough.
“Finn!?” she sat up, taking his head in her hands
He opened his eyes “Fontaine?” He asked, voice weak, eyelids droopy.
“You're okay!!” She hugged him.
“It hurts” he complained. “Ugh, and Danny Boy's nurse services are definitely gonna make it worse”
“Let's get you back to the Arronax, my parents will treat you PROPERLY”