The rain pelted Harry in the face as soon as he Hermione, Gon, and Katzuo made their way up to the deck. The deck was slick with rain, and Harry could see the ship's crew members run to and fro as they tried to stop the ship from sinking. The waterspout was closer to them than it had been before, which caused large waves to crash into the sides of the ship. Some of the crew were struggling to pull the sail down by using rope. As the four of them rush to help the crew, Harry spotted Leorio and Kurapika out of the corner of his eye. The wind made it hard to make out what they were saying, but judging by the stormy looks on their faces, it didn't seem like they were having a pleasant conversation.
"Hey Harry, stop staring into space and help us!" Hermione shouted.
Harry shook his head and rushed over to help pull the sail down. He grunted as he tugged on the rope, struggling to find a good purchase. Suddenly, a wave slammed into the side of the boat, causing Harry and most of the crew to lose their grip on the rope. Katzuo let out a loud scream as he was dragged up into the air by the rope, and before Harry knew what he was doing he grabbed onto Katzuo's leg with one hand and tightly held onto the mast of the ship with his other hand.
"I've got you!" Harry shouted. Harry tried to keep his grip on the boat's mast, but the rain was making the wood too slick for him too hold, and the wind was making it a struggle for him to stay standing. A large wave slammed into the side of the boat, and Harry lost his grip on the mast as both he and Katzuo were sent flying overboard. Harry's eyes widened as he plunged towards the icy water, his scream died in the back of his throat when he felt someone tightly grab onto his leg.
"Don't worry Harry, I've got you!" Harry heard someone shout. Harry turned his head to see that Gon had grabbed onto his legs, while Kurapika, Hermione, and Leorio had grabbed onto Gon. Gon grinned at Harry as the three of them were pulled back up onto the boat...
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"I can't believe you two!" Leorio shouted.
The waterspout had died out, and the waves were calm once more. The crew, exhausted due their efforts to stop the ship from sinking, had gone back to their quarters for a well-earned rest. Gon and Harry found themselves sitting under the glares that came from Leorio, Kurapika, and Hermione.
"If it hadn't been for us, you two would've been shark bait!" Leorio continued. "You two owe me big time, and don't you forget it."
Kurapika sighed. "Honestly, how reckless can you be?"
"You should think before you act." Hermione said. "Jumping headfirst into danger like that...you could've gotten hurt or worse!"
"But it's fine." Gon said.
Leorio, Kurapika, and Hermione stared at Gon, their confusion was etched across their faces.
"You three caught us." Harry said. "So it isn't like we have to worry about the 'what-ifs' right?"
"...I guess you have a point." Leorio said.
"Gon! Harry!" someone shouted.
Harry turned to see Katzuo rushing over to them. The crew member panted once he'd reached their little group.
"I wanted to thank you two." Katzuo said. "You guys saved my life, thank you for that."
"Yeah, well we weren't the only ones who rescued you." Gon said. He then pointed to Leorio, Kurapika, and Hermione. "Those three helped too."
Katzuo faced them and bowed. "He's right. Thank you for your help."
Kurapika closed his eyes and softly smiled. "You don't need to thank me."
Hermione slightly blushed due to the praise she got from the crew member. "I just did what anyone else would in that situation, you don't need to thank me."
Leorio rubbed the back of his head and smiled. "Yeah, no prob. We're just glad to see that you made it out okay."
"Me too." Katzo said. "In fact, I ought to get back to my post right away."
Katzo bowed once more before he rushed back down to the ship's lower decks. Leorio chuckled as he watched the crew member go, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Kurapika smiling up at him.
"What?" Leorio asked.
"I'm embarrassed by my behavior." Kurapika said. "Pardon my rudeness, Mr. Leorio."
"I wasn't expecting that." Leorio said. "You can forget it. Oh, and you can drop the 'Mr. Leorio' Leorio is fine."
"I'm sorry too." Leorio continued. "And I take back everything I said to you before. That was wrong of me."
"No, it's fine." Kurapika said.
Kurapika smiled at the older teen, who smiled right back at him. There was a drastic change in their dynamic that Harry quickly picked up on.
'It's one thing to see a scene in a manga.' Harry thought. 'It's entirely different to see it played out in front of your eyes.'
Harry's thoughts were interrupted when he heard the loud, boisterous laughter of the Captain. The captain was leaning against the side of the doorway to his cabin, he'd been watching the whole thing play out.
"You five are growing on me." the Captain said. "So... I'll make sure you five are dropped off at the port closest to the exam site."
Gon blinked in surprise. "But...what about your test?"
"Like I said, I decide who goes on to take the Exam." The captain said. "Congratulations! You're all moving on!"
Hermione sighed in relief as the others cheered. Harry couldn't stop the huge smile that stretched across his face.
'We're one step closer to becoming Hunters.' Harry thought to himself. 'I've got to admit, I'm pretty excited!'
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'James Potter...now that's a name I haven't heard in years.' the captain thought to himself as he entered his cabin. It would take them about another hour until they reached Doelle Harbor, from there he planned to give the group a hint of where they should go next and then he and his crew would set off for their next destination. He picked up a photo that had fallen to the floor during the chaos that had been brought on by the waterspout. The photo had been taken a few decades ago, his younger self was standing next to his old crew members. There was one crew member that caught his eye. The crew member had thick, round, wire framed glasses, dark hair, and a large grin. He was practically the spitting image of Harry; the only difference was their eye color.
'I wonder...is it fate that brought your son here James?'