#drew a flying fish in my notebook if you can’t tell

[spineless-lobster]

I fucking love flying fish they’re so cool, that girl can swim AND glide

[drzewobojczyni]

How to get rid of a spy (The Penguins of Madagascar)

Dostępna polska wersja/Polish version available

When in the central park ZOO a well-known to the penguins enemy appears, the only thing they can do is sending Private to get rid of him once and for all. No pairings

Old draft finished for @2020madagascarparty theme: Missions

DeviantArt

The day looked like it was going to be just great. In the cloudless sky the sun was shining, a slight wind was blowing, and the school year was coming to an end, so the Central Park ZOO animals could be sure that a lot of visitors was going to show up. Sadly, not everything went as well as it should have. At least, not for the penguins, standing in their habitat.

"Kowalski," – asked Skipper, looking through binoculars. "Can you see what I'm seeing?

"It depends on what's on your mind," responded Kowalski. "Technically, we're looking at the same group of early school-aged children, but I'm guessing you mean a certain person, whom I'm unable to recognize from this distance."

Skipper pulled himself together and handed the binoculars to his lower rank colleague. Kowalski took a look and reacted as the squad member predicted.

"Whoa, momma!" he yelled. "It's the same kid again!"

"What kid?" asked Private, appearing from the hatch.

Kowalski quietly handed him the binoculars. Private quickly found the familiar person in the crowd – this curious, intrusive gaze and notebook with pencil, clutched in hands, could not be mistaken could not be mistaken for anyone else.

"Skipper, it's the same boy that was spying on us!"

Skipper wanted to say that he had time to notice this, but he held back, preferring not to hurt Private's feelings. The young penguin needed to trust the leader.

"Well, we've got to come up with some plan to get rid of him once and for all. Kowalski, any suggestions?"

Kowalski had already opened his beak, but before he had an opportunity to say anything, three lemurs jumped into the habitat.

"Hello, silly penguins!" yelled king Julien

"Ringtail!" groaned Skipper. "We were just going to work on a plan of an extremely important mission!"

"It won't take long, " spoke up Maurice. "You see, a lot of visitors came here today..."

"Thank you, Maurice, the king can speak for himself," interrupted him Julien. "The thing is, when the humans start to throw these fish to you... you've got to eat them quickly, so it doesn't smell!!! And if not, I'll bait Mort on you!!!"

Said lemur tried to make a scary face, but because of his small size, it wasn't effective enough.

"That's all? You don't have to remind us of such things!" said Private

"If you said everything you wanted to say, go away, there's an important meeting happening here." Skipper pushed the lemurs in the direction of their habitat. "It concerns you as well, so be so kind and don't interrupt us."

"I also meant to tell you to not let yourselves get taken away from the ZOO," Julien kept on babbling. "Because lately some human took this Mort away, and now he can't come into our ZOO! If it keeps on going, we'll be left without food from humans." He wrung his hands in despair..

Skipper stopped chasing away the lemurs immediately.

"You've got to tell me everything in detail right now!"

"You won't be ordering a king around! Mort, Maurice, we're going!"

And they were gone

"Well, we have to get necessary informations ourselves." Skipper sighed. "Private, call Rico. We're going to check out how Mort got kidnapped and why nobody told us about it. I've got some sort of plan already."

Kowalski got sad. Although he hadno idea on how to get rid of the spy, but he was deeply hurt that Skipper hadn't even let him speak up. He had no intention to debate his leader.

*

Firstly, the penguins headed to Marlene's habitat. They found her quietly strumming her guitar

"Hello, my friend, I see you're relaxing before the hard work of entertaining humans?" started Skipper

Marlene angrily put her guitar away

"I guess I'll never teach you respecting other's privacy, won't I? Lets get this done. What's the reason of your visit?"she asked.

"We're looking for the informations concerning the kidnapping of certain lemur named Mort," responded Kowalski.

"What, again? In any case, I know nothing about this!"

"It's fine, Marlene, we mean an event from the past," calmed her down Skipper.

"Oh, you should have said it first! Although I haven't seen much, you would be better off asking, you know, the lemurs."

"Due to the reasons independent to us," lied Skipper smoothly, "we can't cooperate with them."

"Why do I have this weird feeling that the reasons are very much dependent to you," mumbled Marlene. "Okay, I'll tell you everything I know, but I remind, there's not much of it.

"Two days ago, a school field trip came. You guys weren't here, you went on some 'secret mission', didn't you? The kids weren't happy. Most of them headed farther, but some of them were lingering. I don't know, maybe they thought that you had been hiding somewhere. Suddenly, Julien kicked Mort right next to your habitat. So, one of the marauder shoved him into his bag. Somehow, he did it so well that it was noticed only after he got into the bus. That's all I know."

"And that's enough for us," said Skipper. "Farewell, Marlene, thank you for cooperating."

After these words, the whole penguin squad left as quickly as it appeared.

For a moment Marlene pondered on what the penguins could be planning. After all, she came to conclusion that she would find out one day, and got back to playing her guitar.

*

"You heard this yourself, Kowalski, we have to place Private..."

"Why me?" asked Private.

"...in the bag," finished Skipper, unfazed. "Kowalski, what options do we have?"

"I suggest using my newest invention – a homing penguin-catapult. There's fifty percent chance of hitting the target."

"Let me guess – and fifty percent chance that the catapult will blow up, turning the shootee into a pile of ash?"

"How did you know?"

"A good leader can predict elements that could make accomplishing the mission harder."

"Or maybe I'll just sneak up and jump into the boy's bag?" asked the potential victim of the device, which ended up with a slap on the beak.

"Private, do not question the leader's orders!"

Private wanted to say that no order had been given, but he decided to keep quiet, afraid of another stroke.

"Kowalski, we'll use your devilish invention," decided Skipper.

*

Transporting the device from the base to the park – with huge contribution from Rico – took surprisingly little time, even despite the necessity of dissasembling it and reassembling it on the spot. Kowalski was typing something into the console, glancing at his notes from time to time.

"Aren't we attracting even more attention this way?" asked Private, still hoping to reason with the squad.

"Are you questioning my orders again?" growled Skipper.

"From my calculations it appears that right here we are least likely to get caught," threw Kowalski without stopping clicking.

"Listen, Private," said Skipper much quieter. "Keeping the secrecy of our squad depends on your sacrifice. It's a very honorable task, and if I were you, I'd be proud of being entrusted with it."

"Calibration finished!" yelled Kowalski.

Private shivered at these words.

"It was an honor having you in the squad," said Skipper.

"I would like to remind that there's fifty percent chance that Private survives the shot," noted Kowalski, whose pride was hurt by Skipper's doubts.

"Oh, right. In this case, good luck, soldier," he spoke to Private. "May you land in the right fifty percent."

Private hesitantly scrambled up the catapult's bucket, and instructed by Kowalski, he got into the most airdynamic position. All that was left was pressing the launch button, which Kowalski did with the pleasure that always accompanied him when testing any of his inventions. Everything seemed to go according to the plan – Private shot into the air like a rocket.

"See, even the equipment is still whole," noticed Kowalski. "According to my calculations, Private should fall into the bag in ten sec..."

In that moment the cattapult blew up in the cloud of smoke. The explosion drew attention of the ZOO visitors, including the intrusive boy, who turned around in search of noise's source. Together with him moved his bag, which was the goal of Private's flight. The penguin fell flat onto the paved with concrete bricks alley.

Meantime, the remaining penguins were shaking off from underneath of scattered parts, just a few seconds ago assembled into a handy ensemble in the form of a catapult.

"Kowalski, analysis," wheezed Skipper, not stong enough to express anger with his voice.

"I didn't predict that the catapult could blow up only after the shot, heh heh..." the penguin laughed nervously, which earned him a stroke with the wing. A cloud of soot flew into the air.

Having disciplined the scientist, Skipper put his mind into further progress of the mission.

"Binoculars!" he yelled to Rico.

Sadly, Rico inhaled a lot of soot and got a coughing attack. Kowalski wanted to perform the Heimlich maneuver on him, but because of his rapid movements he raised even more dust. Rico started to cough so strongly that he espectorated, in order: a rubber duck, ukulele, and something that looked a bit like a food processor, and a bit like a piggy bank. Luckily, a pair of binoulars joined them soon.

"I'm tracking him down, Skipper," said Kowalski, observing the terrain closely. "Wait... I think I've got him... yes, Private on the third! He landed according to my calculations... or rather he would, heven't the kid moved..."

"Is he conscious?" asked Skipper.

"Honestly, I doubt it, he's laying and not moving."

"Well then, let's go, our man is injured."

Three penguins sled to help the fourth squad member.

*

Meantime, Ronald tried to explain his teacher how the unconscious penguin showed up next to him.

"I'm telling you, it flew here from the park! Precisely, from over there!" He showed the direction with his hand.

"Penguins can't fly," responded Mrs Trevor

"Well, it looked more like it was thrown or shot here," the boy continued.

The woman had an unclear feeling that something like this had happened before, but she blamed it on the deja vu effect.

"All in all, it would be better to report it to one of employees," she proposed. "I think I can see someone! Wait for me!" She walked briskly towards the first person wearing a zookeepers uniform that she saw – in that case, Alice, driving a golfcart. The teacher tried to attract her attention by yelling, but the zookeeper was wearing headphones. The cart was moving farther and farther, forcing poor Mrs Trevor to run. A few students laughed, seeing this scene.

Meanwhile, the penguins were approaching their target.

*

Having heard Mrs Trevor's words, belittling his stories about penguins once again, Ronald sighed in despair. The boy had no idea how to prove his suspicions about the group of the birds right, and he definitely didn't want to end up like certain commonly considered a freak Mr X, about whom he often heard on the news. Although, on the other hand, another weirdo with the same obsession could direct attention of the public onto the right tracks.

Suddenly, with a corner of his eye, he noticed the penguins, sliding in his direction, which meant the risk of the unconscious bird being taken away by his peers. Ronald didn't want for it to happen during the teacher's absence. In a surge of genius he shoved the bird into the depths of his schoolbag.

Much to the boy's astonishment, the action caused the penguins to retreat suddenly into their habitat. He expected that the birds would rush to help their comrade, no matter what, but it seemed thet they were too selfish for this... or they had some other plan. Ronald was slowly starting to understand mr X.

*

After a moment, Mrs Trevor and the zookeeper Alice emerged from behind of the corner. The first of aforementioned women was explaining the other the circumstances of the event.

"We saw the penguin right here, didn't we, Ronald?" The teacher pointed under the boy's feet with her hand.

Alice appraised the habitat, then she moved her gaze to the boy.

"And you, I hope, had nothing to do with that?" she asked suspiciously.

"No, of course not!" He tried to hold his nervous grin back.

"If that's the case, where did he go?" asked Alice once again.

"And why didn't you stop him?" added Mrs Trevor.

The boy pondered for a moment.

"He went... in this direction!" He pointed at the park with his hand. "And I didn't stop him because I was afraid of him. I mean, I was afraid for him, I could have hurt him, and then what?"

"You'd be in trouble," mumbled Alice. "Alright, I'm going to take care of this situation." With these words, she turned arounds and walked away.

"I'll check out what the rest of the class is doing. Don't do anything stupid!" said the teacher, who left Ronald to his own devices as well.

As soon as the women left, the boy realised what he had done. The penguins seemingly let go of any attempts to save the colleague, which meant that the whole plan of revealing their secrets backfired. There was only one thing left – getting rid of the evidence imperceptingly and pretending that nothing happened. Ronald made sure that the animal hidden in his bag is still alive, and then he headed to the park.

*

In the bag, Private regained cosciousnes – and regretted it immediately. It was dark, stifling, and the edges of textbooks and notebooks were stabbing his body. He promised himself to never get involved in such a mission.

As if there were not enough problems, the only way of to find out his surroundings were outside sounds and the movements of the bag. From the sounds of the crowd slowly becoming quieter and rustling of the trees replacing them the penguin guessed that the boy is leaving the ZOO.

Private tried to escape before it was too late, but the velcro was holding strong, and the textbooks were giving no support. Constant jumps of the bag was not helping, either. The only thing left was waiting for a miracle.

The miracle turned out to be Alice.

*

The zookeeper was searching through the part of Central Park adjacent to the ZOO, asking the people about the penguin here and there. In the best cases she was met with polite denials, in the worst ones – laughter and unpleasant comments. Despite this, she was not giving up, mostly because of the spectre of paycheck cuts, or, even worse, losing her job, although concern for her charge was not leaving her alone, either.

"He couldn't run away too far," she mumbled. "You never know with these, though..."

She checked yet another bush, with no big results again. Resigned, she got up, turned around... and almost jumped, in front of herself seeing the boy, who informed her about missing penguin.

"It's you again!" she said, annoyed. "Well, then, have you seen anything?" she asked a bit nicer.

The boy shook his head, trying to hide his nervousness and the bag, in which he felt a slight movement. Luckily for him, it unnoticed by Alice.

"Okay, then." She shrugged. "If you see anything, let me know," she said, and left to search further.

*

Ronald was just waiting for Alice to leave him alone. He opened the bag and put the penguin on the ground. He was about to leave, when suddenly the zookeeper returned.

"I think I left..." She registered the scene unfolding in front of her. "… a pen here"

Ronald desperately tried to find some believable explanation, but before anything came to his mind, he felt as his wrist gets into Alice's iron grip.

In one hand holding the found penguin, and pulling the culprit of his disappearance with the other, the zookeeper triumphantly stepped into the ZOO. Both red-faced – although because of different reasons – they stood before the face of the teacher, who was standing next to the gate.

"Your student," said Alice, coldly as ice, "endangered thed life of on of our penguins.

"But how...?" asked Mrs Trevor, glaring at the boy, who tried to turn himself invisible with willpower.

"I put him into my bag and ran away to the park," exploded Ronald. "But you see, they were spying on me one time..."

"You must understand that I can't allow for such a situation to repeat," interrupted him Alice. "If you can't keep an eye on your students, I'm forced to ban the whole class from going to this ZOO."

"But..."

"You have ten minutes to gather the children and leave the garden. Good bye."

Alice turned around dramatically to put the badly battered flightless back in his habitat.

*

Meanwhile, the other penguins were observing the situation from hideout, lazily chewing popcorn. As soon as the zookeeper started to march towards their habitat, the threw the snacks between bushes and sled back to their place before she could notice their absence.

"Well, Private," said Skipper. "You managed better than I expected."

"Thank you, Skipper," responded Private. "But it's more of a coincidence..."

"Don't be so modest, you deserve a reward."

Skipper looked around. Seeing that most of the people had already left, he uncovered the base's hatch and jumped inside. The rest of the squad followed him.

Inspired by a certain post

[q-gorgeous]

Home

fanfiction

based on the animatic idea i had for this song

Warnings: injury, character death

i still dont know why the page break is gone does anyone know

Dash stared at the boy in front of him. He didn’t know Dash was behind him but Dash was gaping at the twerp.

Danny Fenton was over there facing a ghost.

He was fucking staring it down and exchanging banter. 

Dash was floored as he watched, jaw dropped, as Danny casually sauntered right up to the ghost. 

The fuck does Fenton think he’s doing? Danny laughed at something he said and before Dash knew it the ghost was throwing an ectoblast right at the boy. He jumped and rolled to the side so quickly that Dash’s jaw was nearly unhinged now. 

And then something happened that Dash couldn’t explain. No matter how hard he racked his mind over it, he couldn’t come up with a conceivable explanation. 

Two blinding white rings formed around Danny’s waist, floating away from one another as they passed his chest, his hands, his head. Until left standing there was Phantom. The Danny Phantom. 

Dash looked like a fish now, mouth opening and closing as Phantom-Danny- rushed head first towards the ghost, hand charged up with radioactive ectoplasm. 

Fists flew, debris rained down, and soon Danny was sucking the ghost into that little thermos he always seemed to have. Floating there, Danny had a smirk on his face and he began to turn around. When he met Dash’s horrified and shocked gaze, his own eyes filled with fear. Danny’s eyebrows drew down though and he floated over to Dash who scooted away. 

Dash could see Danny’s mouth moving but he couldn’t hear anything. The sound of his heartbeat rushed through his ears and his chest heaved up and down too quickly. 

A hand softly landed on his shoulder and Dash looked up into Danny’s green eyes. His white hair stood on end, sticking up messily. Now that Dash had seen he could clearly see Danny in Phantom now. He was wearing a jumpsuit for fucks sake. 

Dash took in a deep breath and shakily spoke. 

“Change back.”

The whisper was airy and Dash could still feel himself shaking and breathing too fast but he got it out. 

Danny’s brows furrowed again. “Dash, do you want me to take you home? It’d only take-”

“No! Change back!” Dash spit back.

Danny jumped at the tone, but did as he was asked. The rings appeared again and Dash jerked his arm away from them before they could touch him. Before him was a totally normal, dweebish looking Danny Fenton. 

“Are you dead?" Dash asked, voice barely above a whisper. “How is this possible? You can’t be both alive and dead.” Dash’s face went slack and his eyes widened. “Am I dead? Am I imagining all of this in my last seven minutes of brain activity?”

Danny rolled his eyes. “Dash, no-”

“I’m not ready to die!” Dash wailed. “Is this the karma I get? To be left in purgatory until the end of time being tormented by both my hero and the kid I wailed on everyday?”

Suddenly Danny’s hands were both on Dash’s shoulders shaking him. The smaller boy leaned forward until their faces were only a few inches apart.

“Dash! You’re not dead!” Danny huffed out a small breath, hanging his head. “You just saw something you weren’t supposed to.”

Dash’s eyes widened at that again. “Are you gonna kill me?”

Danny groaned. “Dash, no. It’s just… There are people that if they knew this secret they’d want to kill me. The GIW, The Red Huntress. My parents.” His voice trailed off on the last word. 

“Your parents don’t know?” Dash whispered in horror. 

Danny snorted softly. “Are you kidding? Who knows what they’d do if they found out their son was public enemy number one. They could kill me, dissect me, try to expunge the ghost overshadowing me. Tear me apart molecule by molecule.”

Silence reigned between them before Dash spoke again. 

“Does anyone know?”

Danny nodded. “Sam and Tucker have known the whole time. Jazz found out on her own. All the ghosts know. For some reason.” He scrunched his nose at that. He groaned and leaned away from Dash, resting against the car the jock had been hiding behind during the fight.

“How did it happen?” Dash asked quietly. He had calmed down most of the way but he was still having the shakes. He looked at Danny who had his eyes closed, eyebrows drawn down.

“Accident with the ghost portal. I accidentally turned it on and it electrocuted me while I was inside it. It’s why I missed the first two weeks of freshman year.”

“Man..” Dash looked at the rubble on the ground in front of them. “That sucks.”

Danny snorted. “Tell me about it.”

They sat there in silence for awhile before Danny groaned again and started to stand up. 

“I gotta get going. I have chores and homework I need to do.”

Dash stood up shakily, leaning against the car once he was on his feet. 

“Do you want me to fly you home?”

His head shot up at Danny’s question and he saw the other boy rubbing the back of his neck. 

“I just thought because you’re still shaking that maybe- I don’t know how long it’d take you- another ghost could-”

Dash let out a chuckle at the boy’s nervous stammering. “Sure why not.”

Those rings appeared yet again and something clenched in Dash’s stomach. It wasn’t nearly as terrifying this time around. 

Danny picked Dash up off the ground and leapt into the air, going about the speed as a car would normally be driving down one of these roads.

They finally made it to Dash’s house and Danny flew in through the wall to his room. Danny’s tail turned back into legs and he touched down on the floor before placing Dash back on his own feet. 

“You gonna be okay?” Danny asked as he started turning back to the wall they just flew through. 

“Yeah. Are you gonna be okay?”

Shrugging, Danny cracked a smile. 

“As okay as a dead kid can be.”

He waved and floated through the wall, leaving Dash alone. 

QQQQQQQQQQQQQQ

“Danny!” Dash screamed. He ran between crumbled buildings and bent cars. “Danny!”

The ghost boy wasn’t anywhere in sight, not that that really mattered but it scared Dash. They’d all been at school when the guys in white smashed through walls and dropped through the ceiling.

English class with Lancer. 

Dash held his chin in his hand, looking boredly down at his notebook where he was doodling circles instead of taking notes. He looked up at Danny who was sitting in front of him to the left, barely keeping his head up off his desk. 

Mr. Lancer was droning on about some sort of poetry when the outside walls burst into the classroom, the ceiling falling apart above them. 

“Of Mice and Men!” Lancer exclaimed while students shouted and covered their heads as debris fell around them. 

As the dust cleared Dash could make out boulders of men, their white suits still immaculate of dust or dirt, all pointing their weapons at Danny. 

“Danny Fenton,” one started, “Under the Ecto-Containment Bill, section D paragraph one, you are hereby arrested for harboring a ghostly fugitive.”

“What?!” Danny exclaimed. “Why would I be harboring a ghost fugitive?” “The reasons are unknown. What we have gathered is that Phantom is taking up residence within you and either you are completely fooled, or you allow his presence.”

The blood drained from Danny’s face and Dash’s eyes widened. 

“Phantom? How would I be harboring Phantom? We’ve never even been seen in the same place before! How could I have met him?” Danny asked nervously. He eyed an agent as he took a tool from his pocket, pointing it at Danny who flinched. 

“Level 9 specter. We’ve been tracking Phantom’s ecto-signature for weeks. But if you’ve never been seen together before then…”

One by one the agents raised their weapons and pointed them at Danny. They came to life, the whirring filling the otherwise quiet classroom. The first shot was fired and students could be heard screaming as Danny ducked and rolled across the floor. 

Another blast was shot towards him and nearly clipped his arm.

“Go!” Dash shouted. He ran towards Danny, blocking the agents aim. 

“Dash!” Danny hissed. “What are you doing?”

“Buying you time. Now get out of here.”

Dash turned his head back towards the agent who fired the first shot at Danny. Running forward, he tackled the man to the ground, managing to knock the gun out of his hands. The other agents let out exclamations as they tried to pull him off the bastard. 

“The Fenton kid is gone!” 

At this, Dash was thrown to the side, forgotten, as the agents ran from the school, piling into vans or equipping their flight inventions. Once the area was clear, Dash sprinted from the building, ignoring the cries of Lancer and his classmates. 

“Danny!” Dash yelled again. His eyes were starting to well up and his breathing was getting faster. If he didn’t find Danny soon he’d be too panicked to continue looking for him. 

Suddenly, Dash felt a hand around his wrist pull him into one of the buildings the GIW had crashed through. Dash turned around and couldn’t help the sob that left his throat. 

He threw his arms around Danny, pulling him close against his chest. 

“I thought they got you!” He whispered. 

Danny shook his head. “They’ve got my ecto-signature, I won’t be able to hide from them for long here. I need to leave.”

“Leave where? Where could you possibly go?”

“Australia? The ghost zone? Hell, I might even actually need Vlad’s help this time.”

“But-”

Dash was interrupted as another hole was smashed into the building they were hiding in. 

There stood at least fifteen GIW, all armed, all aiming at Dash and Danny as they stood there. Guns began whirring and the two of them started backing towards the wall. 

“You’re surrounded, Phantom. There’s no escaping this time.” The agent barked. 

“What do you even need him for?!” Dash yelled. “He’s done nothing but good for this town!”

“He needs to be disposed of.”

The way the agent said it was so cold it sent ice down Dash’s spine. 

“What?”

“Whatever this child is shouldn’t exist. His power increases faster than any other specter and it would be unwise to leave it in the hands of a mere teenager. He must be exterminated.”

Dash gaped. “This is a kid you’re talking about! A living, breathing kid! That’s murder!”

“There are no laws protecting ectoplasmic organisms. They are supposed to be dealt with and disposed of.”

Dash’s vision swam with red. He stormed towards the agent, preparing to strike the snake’s face with his fist. 

Something shot into his stomach. It threw him into the ground and as his vision tilted he touched the aching, burning spot on his abdomen, lifting his hand to see it slick with blood. 

After that everything felt like it was happening outside a fish bowl that he was lying in. The sounds around him were muted. He vaguely registered Danny yelling. The glowing shield now surrounding Dash. Danny screaming. It all felt like it lasted a lifetime and a second all at the same time. 

Someone was shaking Dash’s shoulder, trying to get his attention. He turned his heavy gaze towards the figure-Danny-above him. He could make out the GIW agents scattered on the ground in front of them, the tears on Danny’s face. 

“Dash?” He could finally hear his name being spoken. Danny’s voice was filled with raw panic and Dash knew. He knew it wasn’t good. 

“Danny…” Dash whispered. He began to cough, a copper taste filling his mouth and over Danny’s shoulder he saw a hazy light blurring the broken building. 

“I’m not gonna… Not gonna make it.” Dash said shakily. 

A sob pushed its way out of Danny’s throat and tears streamed down his face faster. “No Dash, you gotta hold on. I’ll get you to a hospital and they can-”

“Danny-” Dash’s breath hitched as he placed his hand on top of Danny’s. “I can already- already see it. I’m not gonna make it to a hospital.”

Danny leaned down and pressed his forehead against Dash’s, his tears dripping onto the other boy’s face. 

“Go to- go to Australia. Or the ghost zone, Danny. Please. Get somewhere safe.”

Danny lifted his gaze to look into Dash’s unfocused blue eyes. His breathing picked up and Danny took his free hand and ran it through Dash’s hair until the erratic breaths stopped. 

Dash was standing above Danny and his body, watched as Danny leaned over onto his chest and sobbed. 

Dash took one last look at Danny and turned to walk towards the hazy light, leaving Danny alone.

[arcadenemesis]

So I guess I managed to update this monster...

Laws of The Universe 

[ao3 link]  words: 6k, ch: 2/6

Chapter 2: Matter

“What do you think happens to us when we die?”

Shiro stilled, looking up from his entrance essay. After a moment, he placed his pen down and leaned forward. At the desk across from him, Keith kept his gaze unflinchingly on his physics textbook, reading in the lamp light.

“Where's this coming from?”

He knew. It had been years since Shiro had found him alone, just a small boy crying for the loss of his father. But he knew just as well that spectres of the past never truly vanished. They would always linger, itching at the edge of his existence with little relief. Sometimes it was best to ignore it and allow the sensation to fade on its own. But other times, like now, it seemed that leaving it unaddressed only aggravated it more.

“... It's nothing.”

Shiro's bracelet tightened around his wrist immediately. He resisted the urge to rub at it when he saw Keith’s eyes dart to his hand briefly. The younger boy knew he was caught and his lips drew a tight grimace. Shiro saw no point in voicing the fact out loud.

Keith’s shoulders hunched up to his ears when Shiro’s chair dragged across the cheap linoleum as he stood. But he didn't push the older boy away when he leaned his forearms on the table next to him. Shiro glanced over the complicated notes spread out on its surface, mountains of equations and strangely artistic diagrams of trajectories. Keith had never been short on motivation, but as the launch of the HAT-1 rocket loomed, his work rate had increased to frightening levels. He was well on his way to chasing his dream of joining the space program at the Garrison Centre, and was determined to join Kolivan on his next mission whenever it would come.

On the notebook in front of Shiro, a calculation had been written, rewritten, crossed out and messily scrubbed at in frustration. The paper had been crumpled and re-smoothed, and under the mess in Keith’s neat cursive, he had written a short phrase before continuing the workings again.

        Patience yields focus.

The little happy face drawn next to the final, correct answer - complete with undercut - was hopelessly endearing.

“When does the meteor shower start?”

Keith glanced at his watch.

“About 35 minutes. But it won't peak for another 90 at least— hey!”

Shiro ignored his protest as he plucked the textbook from his hands, carefully bookmarking the page before setting it down on his other notebooks.

“Let's get a head start then. I don't know about you, but there's only so much I can write about ethics in lawmaking before my eyes want to fall out. Besides, gotta make sure we get the best spot.”

Keith rolled his eyes sourly. “No one ever comes to our spot.”

“And wouldn't it be such a shame if tonight was the first night they did,” Shiro replied with a grin.

He leaned down into Keith’s line of vision, tilting his head so it almost rested on the table in front of him.

“Come on,” he goaded, flashing what he hoped was a good attempt at puppy dog eyes. He was determined to fish Keith out of whatever mental dip he had found himself in. And nothing cheered him up more than stargazing, pointing out planets and constellations as Shiro listened on beside him. He watched Keith stare him down, ears turning pink before his expression relaxed in resignation.

“Fine,” he huffed. “But if you fall asleep out there, I'm not waking you up this time.”

Shiro looked wounded.

“That was just once! You try staying awake past midnight after three exams on completely unrelated areas of law in one day.”

Keith finally laughed and Shiro felt his chest grow warm.

“Good thing you're going to be the attorney and not me then,” he teased as he stood, swiping up his jacket.

The walk to the little abandoned shack overlooking the Garrison Space Centre was punctuated by Shiro talking about his worries about being accepted for his Juris Doctor next year. Keith listened dutifully, breaking his silence only to offer words of support and encouragement when needed. This was what their friendship had always been, helping each other chase their wildly different dreams and sharing in each other's trials and jubilations along the way. They kept each other focused and on track, and so despite the lack of specialist schools and private tutors, both had made significant headway into reaching their goals while they were still quite young. Shiro could hardly believe he was looking at fast tracking his path to becoming a defence attorney by the time he would turn 23. At 18, the end was still far away, but in sight nonetheless.  

“And I mean, I guess writing about how sociology and the law are intrinsically linked isn't as exciting as working out how to fly a rocket, but I'm actually really enjoying it.”

“I have no idea what you mean,” Keith grinned, throwing himself unceremoniously onto the grass. “I find the idea of having my own attorney an incredibly thrilling concept.”

“Just what are you planning that involves having your own attorney?” Shiro eyed him with mock-suspicion, lowering himself a little more carefully to lay on his back. “Besides, who said I was going defend your shady dealings in court?”

Keith smiled, pulling his knee up to his chest.

“You'd never abandon me.”

The words came out surprisingly serious, his voice soft but confident. Shiro blinked at the sudden shift, struggling to form a reply, and Keith’s watch blipped quietly before his brain could catch up.

“It's about to start,” the younger boy said, casting his eyes up.

Shiro tucked his palm under his head, the very first of the lights streaking across the atmosphere above them. Watching the meteor showers was much more for Keith’s benefit than his. But the time spent together was precious to Shiro in a way he couldn't put into words. And it didn't matter if he didn't want to chase his dreams into space like Keith. Away from the light pollution, the night sky was objectively magnificent. He didn't have to be a budding astronaut to appreciate that. And the time away from his books helped refresh his perspective too. A thought came to him as he recalled Keith’s question earlier that evening.

“The stars sure look beautiful tonight,” he mused as nonchalantly as possible. Keith just hummed his agreement unsuspectingly.

“You know what else is beautiful?”

He felt Keith flinch beside him slightly, but focused on staring right ahead and trying not to crack a grin. He missed the dusting of pink that spread across the other boy's cheeks in the dark.

“L. A. Hart’s concept of legal positivism and his philosophy of social influence on authority.”

There was a pause, then suddenly a fist thumped against his shoulder.

“Idiot,” Keith muttered as Shiro laughed, turning his face away.

Shiro sat up to fling his arms around the other boy’s hunched shoulders, scruffing his hair. Keith yelped his protest but didn't shove him off, and when Shiro settled one arm around him, he leaned ever so slightly into the hold.

“You asked me what I think happens after we’re gone?” Shiro asked, turning his face back up to the sky, where their personal light show was ramping up. "Maybe we turn into stars. And maybe some of us can't stay away. Which is why this happens.”

“Corny, even for you,” Keith scoffed. “How can we turn into stars when our bodies are stuck on the earth?”

Shiro laughed, squeezing him to his side. "Good question. I guess don't know the answer... But I don't think it's the end. We’ll see them again, I'm sure.”

Shiro pretended not to hear Keith sniff, his response coming at a delay.

“Promise?”

Shiro rested his head on Keith's with a smile.

“Promise.”

Pidge was the first to look up when Shiro arrived late in the afternoon, round glasses exaggerating the surprise in her eyes.

“Shiro?!”

Allura’s head shot up, and immediately she abandoned the evidence list on her desk. She stood, smoothing the material of her pink pencil skirt. “What do you think you're doing here, Shiro?” she admonished, unable to conceal her concern. “You should be in a hospital bed.”

Shiro pulled the jacket draped over his shoulders a little closer. “No… I couldn't stay there, doing nothing. Not while…” He grit his teeth, looking down.

“You need to rest!” Pidge cut in. “Leave Kolivan’s case to us. We’ll take it from here.”

Shiro's eyes hardened, still staring at the ground. “Thanks… but that's not an option. Not for me.”

Allura looked troubled, pausing as she moved around her desk, placing a hand on the tabletop. “Shiro… your injuries.” Her voice was gentle and even, but it still grated against Shiro's raw nerve endings nonetheless. "You're putting your health in danger by being here.”

“I'm fine. The hospital provided me with everything I needed. I was just wasting a bed there.” He avoided the disbelieving looks from his colleagues. “Now that Shay has been cleared, the court has let Kolivan’s trial recommence, right? Tell me how the case is going. What progress have you made?”

Allura exchanged a glance with Pidge, but his junior partner seemed to decide keeping him informed was best, no matter what Allura was trying to silently communicate.

“We have a witness that claims a suspicious figure was spotted in the lounge just after the explosion at the launch pad. But the description doesn't match Kolivan. It has to be the real killer!”

Despite her enthusiasm, Shiro remained thoughtfully quiet.

“I thought you'd be happy to hear that,” Allura interjected gently after a moment, sitting on the corner of her desk.

“Mm?” Shiro snapped out of his reverie. “I… I am. And I'm going to make sure Keith's murderer is brought to justice.” His voice went cold. “Nothing in this universe will get in the way of that.”

Allura was solemn as she spoke. “Keith meant a lot to you…”

“He meant…” Shiro tried desperately to unfurl his phantom fist, the throb of pain starting to work its way up his arm. “He meant everything.”

“What was he like?” Pidge asked, chewing on her lip.

Shiro’s smile was bittersweet, because how did anyone begin to describe the enigma that was Keith Kogane: orphan, dreamer, astronaut, friend... much more. “He was focused. Passionate. If he set his mind to something, he would achieve it in the end. But never at the expense of anyone else. On the outside he could seem distant to those who didn't know him well enough, but his heart was always open just below the surface. Nothing was worth the pain of a loved one to Keith. He would sooner…” Shiro stopped, swallowing hard.

“And now he's gone.”

Allura’s shoulders tensed and Shiro knew she was fighting between her professionalism as his boss and her desire to comfort him as a friend.

“Shiro, about that jacket…”

“... It's Keith’s. It was given to him after he was selected for the HAT-2 mission. I remember how happy he was when he came home wearing it for the first time. He'd finally achieved his dream… and then…” he started to crack, “then…”

His fist connected to the wall behind him with a crack, making Pidge jump.

“It's not fair!”

Allura took a step forward as he drew a shaky breath, but stopped short when he squared his shoulders a schooled his expression back into something more neutral.

“I'll never forgive the person who took his dream from him.”

“I know,” Allura said softly. “Shiro, the way you feel… it's natural. You've been through a lot. Just… don't forget that as attorneys, our first and foremost task is to save our client, not avenge the victim.

Conflict constricted Shiro’s ribs tightly. “I-I understand that,” he said, trying not to let desperation bleed into his voice. “That's why—"

His voice failed him completely. Allura finally abandoned professionalism to close the distance, reaching up to touch his face. Shiro caught her hand though, gently redirecting it away. Up close, he could see his tired face mirrored in concerned blue eyes.

“Sorry Allura, but I'll be taking a leave of absence.”

Beside them, Pidge looked stricken. “Wait, what do you mean?”

“Shiro, I could understand if you were taking the time to heal,” Allura said softly, “but clearly that's not the case here. I can see the files in your bag and I know you don't want to give up this investigation. Can you at give me a reason why you don't want to work with the Voltron Offices?”

Shiro turned his face away, unable to look Allura in the eye. There was no way he could tell her. That his reason was borne of the seed of doubt in his mind. That the roots of distrust and suspicion had spread and grounded themselves deep into his stomach. He had always trusted his intuition. And it told him now that he needed to do this alone.

“When I put on Keith's jacket, it was my promise to him. I'm going to catch his killer myself.”

“But that's our goal too!” Pidge insisted.

Allura glanced to the junior attorney, trying to offer her split-second reassurance. “Pidge is right. We should find the truth together.”

Shiro knew she was trying to watch out for him. It had always been this way since she had first recruited him, fresh from law school after the bar. She had given him his start and he would always be grateful for that. But right now…

“The truth…” He released her wrist, stepping away. “What if the truths we seek turn out to be different though?”

“What could you possibly mean, Shiro?” Allura sounded exasperated and horrified all at once.

“I'm going to find the monster who took Keith's life, my own way.” His tone was finite, turning away. He paused when he opened the office door, his hand on the handle. “Take good care of Kolivan. It's what Keith would have wanted.”

“Goodbye.”

"That's time, Keith. Pens down.”

Keith let out a long sigh as he sat back in his chair, running his fingers through his hair where it had been getting a little longer at the back. He turned a tired smile up to his companion.

“Thanks for keeping an eye on the clock. I know you have better things to be doing than watch me take another practice exam.”

Shiro waved him off. “I got a pretty big chunk of my torts essay done, so I'm not complaining. That's the last one, right?”

Keith nodded, fishing for a red pen and an answer key. “Then it's the real deal tomorrow,” he said, looking a little green.

Shiro tsked disapprovingly. “You’re fine, Keith. Say it.”

Keith sighed again, but replied obediently. “Keith Kogane is fine.”

Shiro attempted to channel all of his encouragement into a warm smile. “You've done the hard work and it's just one last hurdle. And what's your average score right now? Ninety-five?”

“Ninety-six,” Keith corrected, trying - and failing - not to look smug.

Shiro laughed.   “Why the hell am I being your cheerleader then? You don't need me.”

“Not true,” he rebutted immediately, eyes focused on his paper as he started marking his answers. After all this time, his determination still shone through as strong as ever, undeterred even in the face of the news of HAT-1’s disastrous launch a year ago.

Shiro watched as his brow creased in concentration, and the way he chewed on the end of his pen as he read. His boots tapped out an anxious rhythm on the floor, but Shiro found himself unbothered by the distraction. If anything, it was a little charming, watching his nervous habits on display all at once.

“You don't have to wait,” Keith said suddenly, without looking up.

Shiro felt strangely startled, as if caught out. Just how long had he been sitting there, staring, essay abandoned at his elbow? He cleared his throat.

“I was thinking we could go to the Space Centre after you finish marking. One last time for good luck before your exam. My treat.”  

Keith’s eyes shot up, violet and eager and Shiro felt his heart give an odd thump.

“Yeah?”

Shiro swallowed and nodded, suddenly not trusting himself to speak. The smile that spread across Keith’s lips at the gesture sent him into a spin. Shiro had to stop himself from reaching up to hold his head as he finally looked back down to his essay again. He tried to focus intently, but the words refused to sink in. Paragraphs sat idle on the pages in front of him and letters threatened to blur out of comprehension. Was he sick? Had he not had enough to eat before he agreed to join Keith as his adjudicator this morning?

He risked a glance up to the boy in question again, where he was marking his test with renewed vigor. Between questions, he twirled his pen between his fingers in an absent flourish. His mouth quirked at the corners with every answer he got right and he alternated between chewing his bottom lip raw and soothing it with a quick flick of his tongue. When he paused to blow his fringe out of his eyes, Shiro felt his insides flip over.

Okay, so he wasn't ill. It was far worse.

Takashi Shirogane had inexplicably fallen in love with his best friend.