#lets pretend danny is passed out somewhere from the training

[wannaeatramyeon]

Gun Park with Reader: Junkyard shenanigans

CH460 spoiler - no plot spoilers tho. G/N. Crack. Inspired by @razypie tag.

"Gun... Seriously?!"

You yell, squinting at the figure making its way higher and higher, up the heap of discarded units.

For a brief moment, his body stills then he continues on as if he didn't hear you.

Bastard.

At first that idiot tried to fucking jump. And yeah, he may be strong as shit but even Gun Park wouldn't be able to jump however the fuck high that is.

...Actually. You did think he could, but the way he fell back down, somehow still landing on his feet like a cat, made you cackle.

The furious look and 'fuck you' he threw your way did nothing to halt your laughter.

He would never admit it, but you reckon this is something to do with aesthetics. The 'cool' view of him smoking at the top.

Sure, it's not a pile of bodies like James Lee once sat upon (the impressiveness of that particular feat spread throughout all of Seoul and is still a sore point for Gun and Goo to this day.)

For Gun, you suppose, this pile of junk would have to do for now. Until he decides to fight some poor souls and recreate a higher and better mountain of victims to make himself a throne out of.

("Compensating for something? Yes your throne will be much much bigger than James Lee. Good for you, Big Boy." You had said to Gun when you were feeling particularly mouthy and brave. Luck was also on your side as you managed to dodge his kick aimed for your head.)

Goddamn. Sometimes you truly forget that he's only 20 years old and then he pulls shit like this.

That's not even considering his atrocious outfit. Topless with those brown track pants and loafers. How is he supposed to look cool wearing that? What was he even thinking?

Taking your phone out of your pocket, you click record to immortalise forever the image of Gun Park clambering up on all fours. Leg occasionally slipping like a dog trying to find purchase again.

Goo is going to get a kick out of this.

[bloggerspam]

Barbara is in charge of babysitting, nevermind that Danny is 16 years old and trained by a 9th-degree black belt. 

But she enjoys spending time with Danny, who has joined the fray but doesn’t join the fray. 

On nights when he can’t sleep and needs wants to know his new family is safe, one of the Bats drops him off at the Clock Tower to be “babysat” by Babs, and they enjoy each other’s company. 

They pretend that she isn’t orchestrating the Bats and Birds around Gotham like a maestro, and they pretend that Danny isn’t shaking and trembling from nightmares about explosions. They put on a movie and let the soft droning of it fill the space.

So, babysitting. 

It’s a quiet night, though the dots on her screen move about like busy little bees. 

Red Robin and Spoiler are in pursuit of a couple of thugs running down from Upper West Side towards Chinatown, Robin and Batman are surveilling one of Penguin’s new buildings nearby Dixon Docks, and Red Hood is making his rounds in Crime Alley per usual.

She can hear Tim and Steph making bets on who can grab the most, Damien is grumbling about their noise even though she knows he loves it, and one of Hood’s working girls is trying her damnedest to give him a good time even though Hood would never take advantage like that. 

Overall, a good and quiet night. 

She wonders what kind of night it is for Danny, who is lounging on the sofa a little ways away from the computer station she’s sitting at. Sometimes, it’s a quiet night. Sometimes, he needs a little bit more attention--a reminder that he’s not alone. Sometimes...well. Those times only a call to his friends Sam or Tuck will get him out of his head. 

She glances over at him to try and maybe figure out what kind of night she’s in for when she’s startled by how close he actually is. He’s standing behind her, on her left side, and looking somewhere over to her right. She turns to look, but nothing is there. 

She’s about to ask him what’s wrong when he says, somewhat absent-mindedly, “It’s a trap.”

“What?” Babs looks at Danny again, he still isn’t looking at her but his eyes are sharper, flintier.

“Red Robin and Spoiler are being led into a trap.” 

“How--”

“The building Batman and Robin are watching isn’t exactly legit, but it’s also low level and can probably wait. Tell Red Robin and Spoiler to take the next right, up to the roofs, and circle back wide closer towards the Bridge.”

All of them can hear Danny, clearly, seeing as Batman and Robin’s dots are heading straight towards Brown Bridge. Babs pulls up CCTV from that area to track the thugs and triangulate where they were heading to try and see what Danny is seeing but nothing is everything seems fine. 

“Danny, where are you getting this information? They’re just petty thieves--”

“The Joker sent them.” Danny interrupts her, and the silence is overbearing. 

“What? No, that’s not possible I checked--he’s still in Arkham Danny.” Her voice cracks but she dutifully pulls up the footage of Joker’s cell. It’s dark, as it always is in Arkham, but there he is. He’s sitting there almost slumped in his straight jacket, possibly dozing.

“Danny this isn’t funny, this isn’t something you do as a prank--” She’s gesturing at the screen where Joker sits only--

“That isn’t him!” There’s a layer of screams that she can swear pierces her. Her mind goes blank, her vision goes black, and it feels like eons pass. Her ears ring with the sheer despair and rage--but no, she glances at the dots, the screen, the clock--it’s only been a couple of seconds. 

Danny finally looks over at her, and she swears his eyes glow green, and that’s not possible--Danny’s never been anywhere near the Lazarus pits--

“I would never joke about that.” Danny’s voice is low, broken. His eyes are stormy blue, and she realizes that one of her screens is flashing different colors--it makes his gaze sharper, darker.

He knows, vaguely, that the Joker was responsible for Jason’s death--and though he makes macabre jokes all the time, it’s only in context of himself. He’s never once asked about Jason’s death, and he has told them clearly that he never will. 

“Right, you’re right, I’m sorry Danny. I didn’t mean--I just want to know where you’re getting this information from.” She watches the four dots converge, brings up their mask cams and focuses on the Arkham screen. With a few deft keystrokes she has a security guard checking Joker’s cell, and notices that Jason’s dot is already deep into Somerset and heading straight for Chinatown. 

Danny is quietly mumbling something behind her, but just as she turns to ask him more questions the alarm for Arkham breakouts booms throughout the Clock Tower. Ice floods her veins, and she looks over to see that Danny was right: the body in the cell is not Joker at all. 

Hurriedly she assesses the situation, pulling up screens and minimizing the unnecessary ones. She can see that the bats have met up with each other and are talking about possible locations the thugs were leading them to--and have apparently been calling for her for the past couple of minutes. She curses and cuts through their fervent calling for her.

“The thugs are connected to Joker, whose escaped Arkham--” she hears Jason cursing up a storm “---and were trying to lead you to these locations.” She pings them the three possible locations and sets to work on closely monitoring the CCTVs around that area, only to curse again. 

Before it would have been easily missed, but Danny was right: it’s a trap. There are thugs hidden everywhere in the periphery of the cameras but some of them have been upgraded just last week, so she can maneuver those to get a better picture. 

It’s a long night after that. Together, the bats and Babs get all the thugs knocked out and Joker apprehended just as dawn is crawling it’s way up. Orphan and Batwing were called in, with Bluebird hearing the commotion and joining in towards the peak of the battle. 

The aftermath isn’t pretty, but they made it without a single casualty. Babs exhales forcefully, leaning back in her wheelchair to close her eyes and gather herself. When she opens her eyes again, she tilts her head to the left. 

Danny is still standing there, sentinel, eyes moving back and forth between the screens and the spaces around them. He’d interjected every so often with a tip or two, though Babs still isn’t sure how he knew these things. But it helped. It helped a lot. 

“Hey.” She says softly, waiting for him to meet her eyes before she continues, “You did good today, kid.”

Dawn is just peaking through the Clock Face now, and she can see Danny a little better in the soft light--eyes tired and clearly exhausted, but no less rock solid--enduring.

Danny smiles, close lipped and small but bright in the dawnlight: an Olympic Flame.

DP×DC Prompt

Love the idea of Danny being a horror movie child.

Like he somehow ends up with a non-supernatural DC family, be it the Kent's or the Batfam, and kind of just....is vaguely unsettling at first.

He stares into dark corners laughs at jokes only he hears. Tells random people things no one else should know.

And, used to weird, his new family let's it slide. Then they start seeing things. His shadow is bigger than it should be. Multiple eyes appear in the dark, watching them. Whispers fill the halls at night.

It's driving some crazy as they can SWEAR that when Danny gets mad they hear the screams of the damned.

Meanwhile Danny is chilling with his bodygaurd Fright Knight and is happy to have visits from his former rogues who make sure to check in on him as he's going through a rough patch in his life and, as a young ghost, is very susceptible to drastic changes.

[redrobin-detective]

all is well

Death is nothing at all, I have only slipped into the next room I am I and you are you Whatever we were to each other, that we are still. ~ Henry Scott Hollard

AO3 link

______________

He hadn’t meant to say it, that much was clear. As much as she wanted to hate him for it, claim it was some sort of cruel manipulation; she knew he was just as distressed as she was. The ghost boy had covered his mouth, bright green eyes wide with panic as his misspoken words brought their battle to a screeching halt. Even the ghost the three hunters had been fighting stopped and stared before flying off. No one moved to stop them. Phantom looked at her fearfully, then over at her companion before vanishing without a trace.

It was a slip of the tongue, an accident, so why did the ghost boy calling her Mom make her blood run so cold?

“I’ve knew a kid who called the teacher Mom one time but I’ve never heard it from a ghost,” the Red Huntress said with a sarcastic chuckle. But her shoulders were tense and it was clear the situation made her uncomfortable too. “You okay, Mrs. Fenton?”

“My son isn’t dead,” Maddie said quietly. She would admit there were times where she’d look at Phantom and see Danny overlaid on top of him but those moments were becoming more and more rare. Maddie liked to think it’s because she could find more differences than similarities between the two but honestly, she couldn’t say who her son was anymore. She saw this damned ghost more than she saw the child living in her own house.

“I know, I’ve seen him around,” Huntress said with steady conviction. It made Maddie pause, as it always did, to wonder just how old Amity’s other human ghost hunter really was. Or how young rather. “It was a mistake, he’ll probably avoid you for a bit out of embarrassment but then things will go back to normal.”

“Yeah, a mistake,” Maddie muttered to herself, finally lowering the gun even though the fighting had ended several minutes ago. Why was this whole thing so unsettling to her? Phantom had said much worse things to her, called her a fake scientist and more obsessive than a ghost. He’d even called her a bad mother once when he’d been particularly riled up. She remembered how offended and angry his unnatural eyes had been as they’d glared accusingly into her.  

“You know his parents are still alive,” Huntress said suddenly. “I found out by accident a little while ago.” She was still standing on her hoverboard about 3 feet off the ground, her gaze was trained away from Maddie. “They don’t know that he’s a ghost, that he’s Phantom,” the girl’s head was still turned away from Maddie but she had a feeling she was being watched none the less. “Maybe you remind him of his mother.”

Maddie felt liked she’d been slapped.

“And why does that matter to you?” she questioned defensively to cover how much the conversation was shaking her - they didn’t know how could they not know, how could they not miss - “I thought you hated him as much as we did.”

“I don’t like him,” the Huntress said vehemently. “He’s annoying and acts like he’s the only hunter in this town who can actually do the job. But I,” she paused, “I think I understand him, just a little bit. Enough that I’ve been combing through Amity’s missing children files in my spare time. Of course, it’s no good if no one reported him missing in the first place. Phantom doesn’t want me prying but it’s not right for a kid to die and no one to care.”

“He’s just a ghost,” Maddie said, her words weak even to her ears. Was that why Phantom was stuck here? Because he died forgotten and unmourned? The thought of one of her children, her babies, dying without her knowing... she was going to be sick.

“Yeah, he is,” Huntress nodded, “but he wasn’t always. And humans deserve to be remembered, even if they don’t want to be.” That said, the girl sped off into the setting sun, the varying shades of orange glinting off of her suit. Maddie stood in the middle of the street for a little while longer, gun pointed limply at the ground as her whole world spun.

She drove home slowly, taking the long way around to try and put her conflicting feelings into words before she talked to her husband. When she and Jack first began their research into ghosts, they told themselves that they had to divorce themselves from the people the ghosts had been before. If you focused on the lingering traces of humanity in every monster then they would never be put in their place. But she was human and she had kids around the ghost boy’s age, despite her attempts to stick to logic her heart ached with sympathy.

“And you call yourself a mother,” the Phantom in her memory spat at her, filled with hatred but underneath it all was grief. “Where are your kids now? All you care about is the dead but when are you going to care for the living?” Maddie tightened her grip on the steering wheel to keep her hands from shaking.

“Mads! You’re home!” Jack grinned enthusiastically as she quietly entered the house. “Jazzy has her nose in her books and you know Danny, in and up to his room without a word so I made us grilled cheese!” He held her a plate with a flourish, “they’re ghost shaped!�� The world tilted itself a little more onto it’s proper axis, no matter how crazy things got, Jack would always be her true north.

“Gracias,” she said accepting the plate. “Can we talk, privately?” She gestured her head down to the basement. Conversations from the kitchen could easily be heard upstairs and she really didn’t want her children to overhear her asking if she was a bad mom. She didn’t want their confirmation that she was right.

Jack’s goofy grinned smoothed out into something softer and he put one hand gently on her back as they walked down to basement. He kicked her usual stool her way and they sat in silence while they ate their dinners, staring at the swirling vortex of the portal.

“You remember that time Phantom called me a neglectful mother?” Maddie asked quietly after a few minutes.

“Mads, you can’t let that sneaky spook get to you. Everyone knows you’re a great-”

“Jack,” she interrupted harsher than she needed to but she didn’t need comfort from a husband but the unbiased opinion of a fellow scientist. “He accidentally called me Mom while we were fighting today, I don’t - I don’t think he meant it, he looked more scared then I’ve ever seen him before he ran off. Huntress was there too, she said.” Maddie gripped her plate tightly in her hands. “She said that Phantom’s family is still alive, that they don’t know about him.”

“Not know? You mean about him being-”

“Apparently,” Maddie squeezed her eyes shut to fight off the unwanted sympathy she felt. “He’s always been the Ghost Boy, the Ghost Kid. I never - I never fully absorbed what that meant. He looks,” Maddie set the plate aside and dropped her head into her hands. “He’s about Danny’s age.”

“Maddie,” Jack said softly, setting aside his own plate and wheeling himself closer. “Whoever that boy was, he’s gone now and all that’s left is an echo, an obnoxious and powerful echo but he’s not... he’s not a child. Not anymore.”

“But he remembers,” Maddie gasped, angry she was letting herself get all worked up over a stupid ghost. “He called me Mom, Jack. Huntress, she said maybe I reminded him of her and,” her eyes filled with tears now. “He’s comparing me to someone who didn’t even notice that he’d died. What does that say about me? About my relationship with our children? I feel like all I do is argue with Jazz these days and god knows where Danny goes to half the time-”

“Maddie, don’t do that to yourself,” Jack said softly, tilting her face up towards him with a gloved hand. “Once you go down that rabbit hole, there’s no digging yourself out. I think it’s just part of being a parent, always worrying that you’re not doing things right. Sometimes,” Jack gaze dropped, troubled. “Sometimes I enter the room and Danny looks at me and freezes like he expects me to do something terrible... He’s just easily startled but it still hurts.”

“Phantom is an echo, not a child,” Maddie nodded quietly to herself, trying to fall back on her usual logic but it tasted wrong in her mouth. He was a ghost... but also a child. “I wonder what he was like when he was alive? His personality seems remarkably preserved, he must have been a vibrant young man.”

“Or his death was particularly traumatic,” Jack mumbled. “Painful deaths usually leave powerful ghosts. And most healthy teens don’t just drop dead for nothing.”  A chill fell over the lab.

“How could they not notice?” Maddie whispered with horror. “What sort of parent wouldn’t see that their child was dead, what? Now two years in?”

“Not everyone is as good a mom as you are, Mads,” Jack said, pulling her into his chest. “Neglectful parents are a dime a dozen sadly. He could’ve been a runaway too, ran off and died leaving his folks still holding out hope that he’d come home. Or maybe...” he frowned, “maybe he’s pretending he’s still alive.”

“No, he couldn’t keep the charade for this long,” Maddie gasped but the horrible idea had been planted none the less. Phantom always seemed in such a hurry, like he had somewhere else to be. Was another woman tapping her feet as she waited for her boy to return like Maddie often did, not knowing her child was long gone?

“He’s a wily one, incredibly solid for a spirit. Sometimes I look at him and swear I see his chest moving like he’s breathing. Dampen his glow, dye the hair, change his clothes, he could probably pass as human so long as you didn’t look too close.”

“Jack,” she pulled back and looked at her husband in a panic. “Jack, if he’s pretending to be human when he’s not fighting then there’s a good chance he goes to Casper.” Her and Jack’s eyes widened with realization at the same time.

Their children’s high school has had an unprecedented amount of ghost attacks since the portal opened. They could never figure out why the ghosts targeted that school and ignored the other elementary, middle or even the other public high, Wendy. “What are we going to do, should we pull out Danny and Jazz? Even just until we figure this out.”

“That might tip the ghost off,” Jack said evenly but his teeth were biting into his cheek with worry. “We don’t want to set him off, who knows what he’d do if his cover was blown.” He might look like a harmless teen but Maddie had seen first hand how devastating Phantom could be when threatened. “I think we should tell the kids.”

“What? Why? You know they’re supportive of him!” Well Jazz certainly was, differing opinion on Phantom seemed to be the cause of half their arguments. Danny, truthfully, she didn’t really know his opinions on the ghost boy. He always looked so uncomfortable talking about ghosts with them so they just didn’t.

“Supportive maybe but they’re smart and observant,” Jack countered. “They could be our eyes and ears inside the school. They know better than to provoke a dangerous ghost,” Jack let his eyes drift over to the portal. “Besides, if the worst comes to pass, I want them to be prepared.”

“I don’t like it but you’re probably right,” Maddie grumbled. “If it keeps them safe then I’d do just about anything.” Jack smiled and leaned forward to kiss her gently, his lips a perfect match for her own.

“And this is why you could never be a bad mother,” he said. “Come on, let’s talk to them before they go to sleep.”

“Or Danny sneaks out again,” Maddie said to herself as she followed her husband up the stairs and heard him call for a Fenton family meeting.

It went about as well as Maddie had expected. Jazz alternated between being angry and anxious, telling them emphatically that Phantom wasn’t hiding among them at school and wasn’t a bad ghost to begin with. Maddie didn’t know what had come over her but she hardly recognized this irrational and emotional young lady as her daughter. She hoped it was just Senior year stress and hormones and not some ghostly influenced. Danny, as usual, sat there like he was a piece of the furniture and didn’t say much at all.

“Danno,” Jack said gently as he interrupted Jazz’s rant to engage their youngest. “You would tell us if you noticed anything unusual with one of your classmates, right? You know we’re telling you kids this because we trust you, love you and want to keep you safe.”

“Have you considered that keeping guns around the house, threatening to hunt and torture ghosts doesn’t make me feel very safe?” Danny said quietly, looking down at the table. “So what if he sometimes goes to school, maybe he wants to have something normal in his life. All I know is that if I was Phantom, maybe I would want to hide too. So people like you didn’t find me.” For the second time that night, the words of a teenage boy stopped her cold.

“Danny, what do you-” Danny didn’t elaborate and instead pushed his chair back and headed towards the door.

“Young Man, where are you going? It’s almost curfew and we’re not done here,” Maddie scolded even though she knew that neither her or Jack were in the control of the situation. Danny opened the door and didn’t look back.

“I won’t be long, just a lap around the block. I just, I just need some air, okay?” The house became quiet, no one quite knowing what to say. Jazz excused herself a moment later and walked back up to her room. She slammed her door shut. The ticking of the clock was the only sound to be heard in the suddenly silent kitchen.

“Is that how he sees us?” Jack asked quietly, looking down at his large hands. “Danny used to think what we did was so cool, when did that change?” When did he change? was the silent, unasked question. Or maybe they'd all changed, grown apart so slowly that no one had really noticed. Maddie stood up abruptly and stalked towards the door, strapping an ectogun to her hip as she went.

“Mads, maybe you should give him-”

“You know as well as I do that this is the peak time for ghosts. Danny, he might not trust us but I won’t let a disagreement get him killed.” It was full dark outside and she was halfway down the block before she realized she didn’t know which direction Danny had gone in. The night air was chill for mid-April as it shook off the last dregs of winter. She was feeling cold in her protective hazmat; Danny had left in short sleeves. Maybe she should run back and get his jacket for when she found him.

“Nice night for a walk,” Maddie jumped at the voice to find Phantom lazily floating in the air above her. His posture was casual but his eyes were sharp, searching as he always was. Green eyes glanced at her gun before meeting her eyes. “Looking for someone? Perhaps chasing someone who doesn’t want to found?” No way was she going to let him know her son was out here, alone and vulnerable.

“You actually,” she lied. He raised a disbelieving eyebrow but didn’t call her out. How could he be so expressive and so hard to read all at once? Against her better judgement, she thought again about the ghost as a human. “You called me Mom earlier, I want to know why.”

“What, you’ve never called someone something dumb by mistake?” Phantom flinched, crossing his arms defensively. “It was an accident, I’m just as upset as you are, believe me. Now if you don’t mind, I was trying to have a nice flight to clear my mind. Good luck finding whoever you were really looking for.”

“My husband thinks you’re pretending to be alive, that you’re lying to the town, going to school.” She searched his face for some sign that she was wrong but his expression was still as stone. “You’re putting people in jeopardy, I thought you wanted to play the hero!”

“I’m not doing anything,” He growled, his eyes flashing ominously in the dark. “I’m just doing the best I can, okay? If I go to the Nasty Burger or sit in on English Poetry when there’s no ghosts to fight then who’s hurt? Only me for trying to hang onto something real, something normal!”

“But the ghosts-”

“News flash! The ghosts would be here with or without me because of your stupid portal! I can’t even legally drive and yet you blame me for everything.” He scoffed and looked away, “you really are just like my mother.”

“So I do remind you of her,” she stated. “Your mother.”

“That’s a great thing to say to some kid you shoot at regularly,” Phantom said, icily, his green gaze boring into her over his shoulder. “What do you want me to say? Yeah, you do. It’s not just your voice or your face but the way you look at me like I’m nothing but a disappointment. How you make me feel like I’m some damaged child you need to hammer into shape.”

“You can’t - I’m not disappointed,” she said before she could think otherwise because how else could she react to such a charged statement? What kind of abusive, miserable home had he come from? Her heart clenched again to be compared to this woman.

“Yeah, I can tell,” Phantom snapped at her sarcastically but, like the time when he’d called her a bad mother, underneath the anger was sadness. “None of this matters, we’re both going to keep doing our own thing without each other’s approval. We’re enemies so let’s just forget this all happened and go back to you shooting at me while I beg for you just stop and listen for one second-”

“Alright, I’m listening!” Maddie shouted back, frustrated and sympathetic against her better judgement. “What is it you want to tell me so bad?” Phantom froze, like he hadn’t expected her to just stop like that. His shoulders hunched and his eyes were wide and he looked so much like a lost teenager that it pulled painfully at her heart. God, why did this one ghost bring out so many contradictory feelings in her?

“I want,” he stopped, swallowed and floated to the ground so they were near eye level. Sometime in the last year, he’d gotten taller than her. She hadn’t realized ghosts could grow, could age. Phantom was always the exception to every rule they had. “I want the same thing you want. I don’t like seeing ghosts coming through and hurting people. Before I was Phantom, I was nobody, I couldn’t help anyone. I can now and keeping people safe, it gives me a purpose I didn’t even have when I was human. Ghosts might just be the untethered remnants of dead people but we still love and feel and value things, just differently than you do. I want to keep ghosts from attacking people but without damaging them, we’re not all evil just... trying to find our own way to the finish line. If you’d just, not attack on sight, I could show you.”

It was perhaps the most she’d heard Phantom say all at once. He was rubbing his gloved fingers anxiously against his thigh and there was a desperate bit of want in his tragically young face. He wanted her to believe him, like a child looking to their mother for approval. As more time stretched on without her speaking, his hopeful look fell into a kind of sad acceptance. He looked like Danny had at the kitchen table not 15 minutes before.

“Okay,” she said finally. “We can give it a try for a bit. It’s not a truce exactly but so long as you’re not causing harm, Jack and I won’t shoot at you.” It wasn’t much but the boy looked like he’d handed her the moon and then some. He floated up a little, his boots jittered with excitement. She gaped when he reached forward and grasped her hand only to shake it enthusiastically. His hand was chilled but solid in her own.

“Yeah, you got a deal! Don’t worry, Mo- Ma’am you won’t have to worry about me, I’ll be a good little ghost, scouts honor! not that I was, uh, ever in the scouts. If things go well, I’d be happy to tell you more about ghosts and the Zone. I’ll even give you a tour if you���d like.” His smile was infectious and she bit her lip to resist the natural urge to smile back.

Maybe Phantom was a ghost, a sad child who’d died far too young but he was also someone’s son. That woman, however, hadn’t been able to protect him, to support him. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to give the ghost boy a chance and maybe Maddie could fill in something his other mother couldn’t. Perhaps she could even learn how to give her own children what they needed too.

“We’ll see,” Maddie hummed. “Now, you were going to go flying and I need to find my son before he catches his death, that is, if he’ll even talk to me.”

“He will,” Phantom said softly. “My mom messed up, hurt me sometimes but I knew she loved me and I love her. I don’t know your son but I do know what it’s like to be a son and your mom is... whether you’re living, dead or in-between, she’s always your mom. Maybe he’s worried you won’t love him, the things he’s done or believes in.” He looked away and rubbed the back of his neck, “Of course, I don’t really know you and your family. Usually try and avoid you guys, being ghost hunters and all. Even your daughter is pretty scary.”

“That would be pretty weird, a ghost surrounded by hunters,” her lips twitched upwards despite herself as she imagined Phantom chatting with Jack and Jazz in the living room. The image wasn’t quite as strange as she’d initially thought. Who knows where this shaky truce would lead them? Phantom took that as his excuse to leave and flew off into the night. Maddie watched him go, she started up the block when she got a series of texts a few minutes later.

Danny: I’m home, sorry for running off like that Danny: I don’t like the way you talk about ghosts the way some people talk about race or gender. I want to make opinions based on facts and understanding, not half baked theories Danny: I’d be willing to talk more, if you’d stop being so stubbornly certain you’re right and just listened for a change Danny: I love you, Mom I don’t think I say that enough. Sometimes I feel scared to, like you won’t understand Danny: Jazz came down and Dad brought out the special fudge Danny: Come home, its cold out

Maddie brought her phone to her lips, looking up in the sky as if she might see Phantom still flying around. That boy still loved his mother, the mother who’d hurt him. She didn’t want to be like Phantom’s mom: distant, cruel, unwilling to listen. If she could hold out an olive branch for her enemy, then she certainly could for her son.

Mom: I love you too, baby, never doubt that. I think I'm ready to listen now. Mom: I’m on my way home, save some fudge for me.

I am waiting for you, for an interval, somewhere very near, Just around the corner. All is well.

[datawyrms]

Half a Decade Late

Valerie was finally promoted to the main headquarters of the Guys in White. There she finally comes face to face with Phantom, who disappeared five years ago, locked in a cell. For Phic Phight 2021, @lexosaurus' prompt!

Nothing proved ’harder workers get ahead’ was only a capitalist lie than the absolute hassle getting promotions within the GIW. Of course she’d gone right to them for employment, it was the only organization large enough to actually pay people that took her resume of ghost hunting seriously. She had experience, actual knowledge and even her own gear but had still spent years getting jerked around to various small operations, basically just using her to train all their useless recruits while still just considering her a ‘fellow’ field agent. It wasn’t like she had the option to quit in protest, no one else was in the market for ghost hunters. As far as most people knew ‘ghost intelligence’ was just a joke cover story that the agents were very attached to. They didn’t want any more Amity Parks, so if she wanted to live somewhere new and still do her job...these guys were it. She’d been very clear, she wanted to be in the main office, where everything happened. That didn’t stop them from constantly assigning her literally anywhere but the actual headquarters. Maybe they finally ran out of other places, she still half expected to get stopped at the door and be told about a new field mission they absolutely needed her on immediately. It didn’t happen. Valerie Grey finally got to clock in as an Ecto Containment Officer at the main branch. Where they kept the strongest creatures, developed the new anti-ghost equipment and did more than just splattering a ghost down to nothing. Sure, she liked a good ghost obliterating, but it got boring after a while. There were only so many ways a ghost could beg for it’s useless afterlife before it became white noise. It didn’t stop any new ones from showing up, or tell her anything new. Just got rid of one pest, permanently. That wouldn’t help explain some ghosts, the powerful ones that showed up again and again. It wouldn’t explain the one that stopped showing up either. There was no way that life ruining ghost just got ‘bored’ and vanished without notice. It was still out there, plotting something. She just knew it in her bones. She had to be ready for it. There were traces of that ghost, hints of his ectosignature that she came across in the field, he was still out there. The GIW was just a means to an end, she didn’t trust them to be ready alone.

Sterile corridors and simplistic signs were expected, but even the break area was doing its best impression of a frozen tundra. Fantastic for morale? Probably not. Made the coffee pot easy to spot, at least. Even if she preferred to avoid the stuff in uniform. It stained too easily, and just made her wish for her red battle suit. She took a cup to at least have an excuse for her scoping out the place, she could pass it off to someone once she got to the containment area. A quick double check that everything was in place at the mirror before heading right back out to the winding halls. She wasn’t going to be late, she didn’t have time for that. Maybe a red tie was against protocol, but no one had been stupid enough to bother her about it yet. Judging from the deferential nods from her latest coworkers, that wouldn’t be changing. No one who worked here couldn’t know who she was. The only Ghost Hunter who got out of Amity Park without getting corrupted by the ectoplasmic monsters. It was a shame, Jack and Maddie Fenton used to be a serious force for humanity. Five years ago they suddenly flipped the script, denouncing their work and calling for peace with unreasonable fiends. Their daughter Jazz likely had something to do with it, but Valerie had her own theories. Danny, her friend and once boyfriend had gone missing around that time. Leverage to ensure the Fenton’s ‘good behaviour?’ The whole thing reeked of ghosts. To think she might have gone the same way. Back then she was actually listening to the pest, starting to really consider them a ‘good’ ghost. Like that was actually possible, when he’d just been playing to emotion and her own desire to give up in fighting a dangerous foe over and over. So much for that. That monster showed it’s true colours, sure enough. Something the GIW never bothered to look into, even as she wrote report after report about the incident, how unlikely it was for the Fentons of all people to change that drastically without constant possession. Not worth the resources, even when it was easy to see what tech was built on the foundations the couple had laid. They were throwing away so much to focus on little outbreaks of ghosts instead of making more of a lasting change. Stupid. That was what the funding was ‘meant’ to go towards, as if helping the Fentons would be less productive than making a slightly different ectogun.

She almost hoped there would be a problem, just to prove this is where she should have always been.Even if it seemed distinctly unlikely. She had to swipe to get into the lab, then yet again to actually get to the cells. Or the ‘vault’, as if the higher ups wanted to pretend the creatures in there were inert materials instead of cunning and dangerous beings. Even though they had someone posted at each door, and someone on guard inside as well, herself today. To get acquainted with the place mostly, she had more than enough training on ‘proper handling’ procedures.

“Hey, you can swap with me today, if you want.”

Valerie blinked, eyebrow already raised at the posted guard’s suggestion. “I can handle watching caged ghosts.”

They had the sense to look embarrassed, taking their hand away from the oversized ectogun to loosen their tie- which was tied rather poorly now that she got a better look at it. “I’m sure you can, it’s just, well.” They wouldn’t stop fidgeting with their tie now, eyes checking that no one was really paying attention to the guards. “H0G02 is awake today. No one likes those days.”

“Then all the more reason to get used to it early.” She didn’t give them time to sputter another excuse, swiping her card and striding past without another look. As if people should be worried about a captive ghost being awake. Maybe some of the people here never got a spine before joining up.

It wasn’t as cold as she expected it to be. Or as dark. It was actually brighter, thanks to the extra row of fluorescent lights. On some level she expected the room to reflect the monsters kept here, a shadowy icebox of a space. Of course it wasn’t. These were defeated creatures under human control, of course their cages would be bright and clean, the air warmed for human comfort. The ghosts might not like it, but why care what they wanted? It wasn’t like there were many to begin with, mostly green oversized vermin with blank red eyes. Most had the sense to cower back as she walked past, but a fair few didn’t even twitch. Calling a ghost of all things lifeless was foolish, but it was the only word coming to mind...she had to focus. She didn’t pity these things. Why so many creatures though? The real dangerous ones, the most monstrous ones were the ones that could play human, the ones that had conniving minds that only worked to cause destruction and terror. These were just feral things, annoying but hardly more impressive than a coyote when you knew what to do. Half of them she’d barely rate above ‘feral cat’. A light near the back flickered. Strange. When it flickered a second time she was already releasing her helmet to pull it on. Not nearly as easy as just willing it on, but at least she could carry it in a pocket without needing to rely on some ghost’s power. Three steps and her gun was ready, not that she expected to need it. Really, she worked on autopilot, legs still moving as she stared at the largest glass cage at the back of the room. Or more accurately, at what was in it.

“Oh, newbie. ‘Sup.” The ghost rasped out, blank green eyes watching the ghost hunter. A teenaged boy with a shock of white hair, a black jumpsuit, but the voice of a seventy year old chain smoker. Just sitting in a painfully bright cell, watching. Not exactly as she remembered him, but close enough.

“You.” The disgust was easy to voice, even as her brain struggled to catch up. He was here? Looking practically exactly as he had when she was still a soft hearted freelancer?

He only gave a sputtering laugh at the aggression. “Me? You’re not that mad about the light, are you? I’m bored, Tie.”

“What are you doing here?” That wasn’t the important question really, she should be more concerned that he apparently was able to manipulate light fixtures from his cell...but she’d been hunting after this ghost for five years. Protocol could go shove itself up the director’s ass.

“Same thing I do every day Tie, being some government property!” His laugh was wrong, not from amusement like she remembered. A desperate cackle that didn’t fool anyone. “You new enough to still have your soul in there?”

“Answer the question, Phantom.”

The smirk slid off the ghost’s face. “Wh’ad you call me? Like I’m only calling you Tie cus the red sticks out, I can call you Shooty if you don’t like it, newbie.”

The response made her insides run cold. It had to be Phantom, and the terrible sense of humour was just like him- but the ghost wasn’t quite right. What was this? It couldn’t be some copy of the ghost kid, could it? “I called you by your name, ghost.”

“Never heard of em.” The ghost crossed his legs and looked away, apparently bored of the person holding a weapon. “What day is it?”

Surely he was playing around. “What do you think your name is, then?”

He didn’t take his attention off the ceiling, looking more bored than anything.“Day first, Tie. Gotta know how much of a head start I’ve got.”

“Like you’re in any position to bargain.”

“Hm? Whatcha gonna do Tie? Let me be unconscious for a few hours? Scary. Day first.”

There was the Phantom she knew, snide and sarcastic when he really had no business being so. “I could do worse than that.”

“Doubt it. You gun grunts gotta listen to the freaks out there, remember?” His shoulders shook with a silent laughter, but it looked more like spasms. “No more mishandling the goods, yeah? Day Tie, comeonnnnnn”

Since when was he so interested in the calendar? Not to mention how weird it was how he kept referring to himself...and pretending he didn’t know his name. “It’s Monday.”

That got his attention, the casual rocking halting as he looked at her again, disturbingly still. “Monday, really?”

“Lying is your thing, not mine.”

He grinned. “I like you Tie, so you’ll probably be fired in like a week. Maybe it’s the red.” The tension left the ghost completely, she hadn’t even noticed how stiffly he’d been sitting until his spine relaxed as his elbows rested on his legs. “Pretty sure I’m H0G02. Least that’s what all your creeps call me.”

There was no way Phantom of all ghosts would call himself ‘H0G02’. He had to be a mimic of some sort, a ghost that modelled himself on the once well known Amity Park menace. “You like me because I told you it was Monday? Seriously?”

“I like the Mondays more than you, if that helps.”

“Not particularly.”

“Sounds like a you problem.” He was watching her again, more curious than anything. She shouldn’t be glad to see a spark of something in those eyes, but he was far less creepy this way.

“What’s so great about Monday? You’re a ghost.” She didn’t really care. She should be asking important questions. She was just...playing along to see if it really was Phantom. That didn’t stop her for being grateful for the helmet.

“Monday is the farthest day away from Friday.”

“Wouldn’t that be Saturday?”

“It hasn’t been Saturday or Sunday for...like four years? Those days don’t exist, I think you humans made ‘em up to prank me.” Phantom shrugged, sounding completely serious. Not even a hint of amusement or a grin. “Pretty good one, all you new guys keep it up.”

He was going to be completely useless if he kept saying nonsense. How could he be useful in finding out what happened to the Fenton’s son if he couldn’t even talk about the days of the week sensibly? “Fine, what’s so bad about Friday then.”

“Ohhhhh, you’re really new, Tie.” the ghost flopped onto his side, bored of sitting up apparently. “You know, the day they keep me around for? That day.” He wasn’t quite still, his right shoulder moving very, very carefully. Hiding something.

She didn’t have the patience for this.“What are you hiding there.”

“Tie has good eyes. Gotta remember that.” Phantom muttered, getting onto his back, a blue shard of ice melting off his arm.

“You don’t really think that some ice would help you out of there?”

“Out?” He looked mystified by the suggestion, but that could more be seeing his face upside down. “That glass doesn’t break for anything, I should know.”

Which didn’t explain why he’d been trying to hide the fact he’d made ice at all. He knew it too, but apparently playing stupid was still one of his favourite tactics. “Knock it off and just answer me.”

Phantom’s frown didn’t change, green eyes staring intently at her helmet as if hoping to see through it. “I could show you why?”

It didn’t sound like a threat. “Sure, why not. It’s gonna be a long day.” If it was? Then she’d show him that she wasn’t someone he could mess with.

Ice wrapped itself around the ghost’s lower arm alarmingly quick, a wickedly sharp blade of ice with serrated teeth jutting from the scrawny arm at an awkward angle. It was practised, something this ghost must have done often in all the time he’d been gone from her life. Yet it was so different from how Phantom usually chose to fight. That was a weapon to tear and maim, not to shock, stun or bruise. It looked wrong on him. The idea that this ghost wasn’t Phantom at all only grew more credible with that thing on his arm, even if ice powers were to be expected. His eyes flicked back to green, still fixated on her as he lifted the arm and stabbed down hard. Right into his other arm. Didn’t even blink.

“What are you doing!” She couldn’t remember the last time Phantom had ever been frightening on some primal level. This- with the disturbing snap of bone as the edges of the blade caught and tore made her hair stand on end. “Stop that, Phantom. What’s wrong with you!?”

“Cancelling Friday.” Phantom was laughing as the blade melted away into the pool of green rapidly spreading from his self inflicted wound. “I said you’d probably get fired Tie.”

“Forget Friday you idiot, cover the wound so you stop splattering everywhere!” He was just a ghost-a ghost messing with her. A ghost she’d fought with and had heard scream in pain. This...thing wasn’t him. Her heart didn’t care what her mind thought, insisting he needed help.

The ghost sat up, his left arm holding on by a shred of his suit before splattering into the puddle, but the left behind stump stopped dripping almost as quickly as he’d lost the limb. “Aw. Maybe Tie does have some soul left. You actually sound worried.”

“Of course I am! You slashed your arm off!”

“So?”

He didn’t seem to be in pain. If it wasn’t for the mess of green and the lack of a limb, she’d almost say she imagined it. Why did she care? “You wouldn’t do this sort of thing.”

“Uh. Yes I would? You just saw me do it. I’m down for an encore.”

The idea just made her feel ill. “Don’t.” Did she want this to be Phantom or not? “What the hell is wrong with you?”

“Well I’m down an arm. So the coats are going to be very whiny about how much ectoplasm they can get out of me.”

“You must have felt that.”

“Sure. Isn’t nearly as bad as when they start ripping as much ectoplasm as they can out of you. Every single Friday.” He actually rolled his eyes, like she should just know this.

Why did they bother keeping Phantom around if they just wanted ectoplasm? He might be strong, but no ghost had limitless amounts. They’d just fall apart and stop existing. That’s why the weakest ones never even left the Ghost Zone, they couldn’t survive without constantly being around the stuff! “What makes you so special then? Not your attitude.”

“I’m just lucky enough to make my own ectoplasm. Who knew food was easier to get then high grade ectoplasm? Not me.” His remaining arm pointed to her weapon, his smile stretching. “Bet ya your weapon’s fully powered from Fridays. Yours and every other thing they use in this hellhole.”

“Ghosts can’t do that.” The lie was absurd. It went against everything they knew about ghosts, even before food entered the equation.

“Y’know, Tie. I think I knew a ghost hunter that wore red once.” the ghost’s eyes went unfocused, unmoving as he looked listlessly into space. “It’s a good colour.”

“You knew me. Quit fooling around with this not remembering crap.” Valerie threw her helmet aside, no longer caring. She had to know who this ghost really was. She had to know if everything he was blathering about was a lie. So what if it wasn’t ‘safe’.

His eyes didn’t change. “Y’know how hard it is to remake a brain? Cut me some slack Tie…”

“I mean it. Look at me Phantom. If you’re the ghost I know, you can stop pretending to be something else.”

“You lose the details. Arms and legs are easy. The brain though? Way too hard.” He kept rambling to himself, not reacting even as she put a hand to the glass to get his attention. “Y’know how many times they’ve cut it open? I don’t. I lose track after like. Eleven. Maybe. Pointy Shoe said my best was fifteen but I sure don’t remember that.”

She wanted him to just stop talking. She wanted this ghost to be some strange creature she didn’t know. To not have the only possible link to someone long lost a shattered husk. “Phantom. Do you remember the hunter in red’s name?”

He finally blinked. “I’m not this Phantom guy, Tie.”

“Okay, whatever, forget that part. The ghost hunter in red, what do you remember?” She insisted, knocking again in hopes it would keep the ghost’s focus.

“Wish I’d told em something.” he held up his gloved hand as she opened her mouth to speak. “Don’t remember what that something was, don’t ask.”

So he was Phantom? He couldn’t be. That was so non-specific it could be anything. “You never explained how you’re the only ghost that can make their own ectoplasm.”

“It’s in my name Tie! Come on. Thought you guys were smart or whatever.” He did a very awkward one armed attempt at crossing it, eyebrow raised. “The H? The feeding a ghost food thing?”

She didn’t really get the whole naming scheme they used here. The fact it mattered wasn’t making her gut unclench either. “What about the H?

“Hybrid? Might have been Human. That might have been a joke.”

Valarie’s mouth was drier than any desert when he said it that easily, that casualty while kicking his own arm aside. “You’re saying you aren’t all ghost.”

“Yup. Not yet! Trust me, I’ve tried,” the bubbly high pitched laugher clawed out of the ghost at that. “I tried so much. Guess it’s another thing I’m a failure at, eh Tie?”

Something told her not to ask. She had to know. Five years she waited, five years apparently knocked Phantom clear from reality.“Does Danny Fenton mean anything to you?”

He just laughed harder at the question. “Really Tie?”

“Yes, really.”

“That’s the name I scream at em. Don’t know why. Feels good though.”

“Is it your name?” Had he had contact with Danny? Been part of whatever made him go missing from everyone’s lives? He couldn’t be, there was no way.

“They get reallllll angry when I say it is.”

There was no way the GIW had a human captive for five years. There was no way Phantom could be the Danny she knew. The ghost was just lying. He had to be, she desperately needed him to be. “Were you fused with a human or something? Got stuck when possessing someone?”

“Nah. Been like this before I got here, pretty sure. You can check your fancy gear though. There’s some non-ghost DNA in it. Lucky lucky me,” he lay back down in the mess of ectoplasm, ignoring how it clung to his hair. “Thanks for the Friday off! I hate those.”

There was no reason to need air. Talking to a ghost she didn’t even like shouldn’t make her feel like she was being crushed under a boulder. Panting for air, outside the room would make her look pathetic and weak, but she needed the space, needed to be away from that...mockery of a ghost.

“He does that to everyone. He’ll repeat the whole thing in a week or so, but he’s a really good copy the first time you see it.” The guard gave a comforting word, apparently unsurprised by her sudden unscheduled departure.

Oh, there would be no ‘next time.’ Not if he was right about her weapon. But she nodded instead, letting her ‘coworker’ think she was just overwhelmed. Even if all she could think of was how many ways this place would burn if that ghost- that thing had been a human once. She was good at telling when ghosts lied. Phantom didn’t sound like he had. No matter how much she tried to convince herself he did.

[early2000smovieimagines]

Meeting and Dating Danny Walker

(Not my gif)(requested by anonymous/sorry about the wait, I had to get my hands on a copy of the movie)

(We’re just gonna pretend that Evelyn and him never got together, alright? Good. Also I’m not a historic genius so please don’t yell at me if this is factually inaccurate)

- You met Danny when you were stationed at Pearl Harbor as a mechanic. When Danny arrived at the hangar he was surprised to see you there crouched at the side of a plane with tools scattered around you.

- One of his friends caught him watching so he promptly informed him of who you were, making a joke about the two of you having to be “in close proximity”.

- Danny was immediately very nervous, he is so out of his element around new people… well new females, that he isn’t sure exactly what he should do. He stares for a little while longer getting caught by you in the process after which he all but runs out of the room. 

- Every time he sees you in the chow hall or around the base he can’t help but sneak glances at you, so much so that the girls at your table start to take notice. Against your own will you’re led over to the handsome young man catching him completely off guard. 

- Your “friends” introduce you between giggles. Danny can barely look into your eyes; his gaze just stays trained on the floor in front of him as opposed to the swarm of girls before him. He’s extremely uncomfortable but he manages to glance up and nod his head as a greeting complete with a tight lipped awkward little smile. You decide to relieve him of his torture and pull the girls away.

- Once you’re gone he curses at himself for not taking his chance but now that you’ve been “introduced” it becomes his mission to talk to you more. It starts with him greeting you whenever he sees you, then it evolves into mini conversations when you’re waiting in line for meals or working on one of the planes in the hangar, and finally he’s comfortable enough around you to just approach  and talk like friends. 

- You start to fall for Danny and well he’s absolutely in love with you but an army base isn’t the best place to get involved with someone so you try your best to just remain good friends. That goal doesn’t stick around for long after he shyly invites you to “see the harbor at sunset”. 

- Listen I cannot think of a better first date than that so please; if you haven't already, watch that scene, if not the entire movie. It is quite possibly one of the most romantic things I have ever seen. Sorry that I’m cheating you out of a first date and kiss scenario but I don’t want to just rewrite what happens there. 

- Lets just say everything went pretty much the same except you didn’t end up getting fully tangled in the hanging sheets. 

- The next day he asked if you’d be his and you couldn’t help but say yes. The two of you can’t stop smiling for the rest of the day knowing that you’re finally together.

- No matter how much time you spend together he’s always so happy to see you especially when you first start dating. You can see just how much he loves you from the way he reacts to you being near.

- Visiting him at his base whenever you can.

- He gets downright giddy around you, it’s really adorable the way his eyes light up and the way he giggles. He just can’t seem to control himself, he’s just a little boy in love.

- A lot of caressing and nuzzling. He uses any excuse he can to touch you.

- He’s very soft with you.

- You can make him flustered very easily and he doesn’t know how he feels about that fact. His ears will turn red (you can always tell he’s nervous if he touches his ears, it’s a little habit of his), he’ll start to fumble with his words. If you touch his chest you’ll feel his heart pounding.

- Writing letters and notes when you aren’t able to see each other for a while.

- Beach dates.

- Sunbathing together.

- Watching sunsets although he spends a lot of the time just looking at you.

- Cuddling in his car.

- He lets you wear his pilot jacket.

- He thinks it’s cute when you wear his sun glasses. After the first time he saw you wear them he always offers them up to you with this cute little smile on his face. 

- Teasing and joking with each other; your laugh is music to his ears.

- He carries a picture of you on him at all times.

- He sneaks you into his plane for a trip into the sky. He loves being able to impress you and share his love of flying with you.

- Getting to hear the history of places that you pass during your rendezvous in the sky.

- Helping him deal with his past and the trauma his father caused.

- Double dates with Rafe and Evelyn.

- Getting to hear all of his childhood stories. Him and Rafe both like to tell you about all the crazy things they did. 

- Listening to his proud stories of Rafe when he’s M.I.A. 

- Warm hugs.

- Holding hands.

- He’s more than happy to say he loves you pretty early on in the relationship. He’s faced with a lot of danger everyday and he doesn’t want to die without you knowing just how much you mean to him. 

- He’s always ready to defend you honor.

- Nose kisses.

- Fixing his tie when it gets all crooked.

- Tugging him closer by his dog tags.

- He definitely gets jealous and depending on the situation he can either get a little aggressive or just deflate and sink in his seat. 

- His best friends said it: he’s insecure. As much as you tell him that you love him he’s always going to second guess himself.

- And if you do want to keep your relationship a secret from, lets say your supervisors, then he’s going to feel kind awful about it even if he agrees on some level. 

“I just don’t want everybody to know about us.”

“No, no, cause that would be embarrassing right?” 

- Sometimes he’ll just agree with you no matter what he thinks which can be a good thing and a bad thing. He doesn’t want to fight with you but his actions may just lead to the two of you fighting anyway. It’s nothing you can’t resolve quickly and easily but it’s definitely something that will bother you in the moment. But don’t worry, the two of you don’t actually fight or argue all that much. You’re actually on the low side of the spectrum of couples arguing. 

- Sneaking away from the base so that you can spend some alone time together. 

- Being the first one to greet him every time he gets back from flying. 

- He’s always ready to comfort you whenever you’re nervous or scared. Just whenever you need him know that he’ll always be there.

- He needs a kiss a day and thats an order.

- He loves when you touch him, just the softness of your hands and the emotion behind your caresses. 

- Brushing away dirt and grease from his face after a long day at work. 

- You’ll jokingly; and not so jokingly, tell him that he looks good in a wife beater and he’ll shyly chuckle while he tries to play off how happy it made him. 

“Oh really now? Is that all I look good in?”

- He has you kiss his hand or wrist before he goes out flying or takes a trip somewhere. He likes being able to see your lipstick print on him whenever he misses you too much. 

- He likes to lay his head on your chest or in the crook of your neck whenever you cuddle. 

- He’s pretty damn strong and he likes to subtly show it off. Lifting you up with ease when he hugs or kisses you, carrying your bridal style, just happening to be in some state of undress while carrying some heavy box whenever you’re around. 

- Getting gifted little weed like flowers that he’s able to pick for you before he meets you somewhere. Sometimes he’ll get lucky and manage to get away from the station long enough to buy you a proper bouquet. It’s worth the trouble when he gets to see the smile on your face.

- He treats you like you’re the most precious thing in the world. 

- After the war is over the two of you get married; you have kids and live a perfect little life together in a nice rural area. 

-  AND YOU LIVE A LONG HAPPY LIFE, A LIFE HE GODDAMN DESERVES. 

[lonely-bored-writer]

Casper High Ch. 9

Sam was used to constantly leaving, a fact that was the only real constant in his life besides his brother. Ever since he could remember his life was always in motel rooms, him and Dean against the world, only staying with Bobby when they were much too young to stay alone in the motels by themselves. The moment each brother hit the age to be able to shoot a gun without getting knocked over by the recoil, was when they officially became hunters. You can't particularly say that was much of a childhood.

The highlight of most of Sam's life was when he's able to go to school and pretend like he had a normal life. Do homework and interact with kids his age, regardless of how horrible most of them are. Some schools had that one kid that always stood out. Someone who caught Sam's attention, or wouldn't let him be a loner. Along with the occasional girl that would catch his attention once in a blue moon. Those people were what made his life feel a little less chaotic.

Then there was Amity Park. A small town that Sam really didn't expect much different then the last twenty small towns, but it was. All because of one teen, someone he just happened upon. If those bullies hadn't shoved Danny in those lockers when they did, it was a wonder if they would have ever met in the first place. He was glad they did in a way, making sure that he could befriend Danny, even if it was going to hurt when he had to leave. He always leaves, but it's not something you ever truly get used to.

"Hey, dad's coming home in a few hours." Dean emerged from his side of the room, waving the small phone. Sam felt the weight press down on his chest, he knew what Dean meant. He was expecting it, but it didn't mean it wouldn't hurt. "He said we'll be leaving Wednesday early morning." Dean explained, patting his brother on the shoulder.

"Okay Dean." Sam nodded, finished up lacing his shoes. Grabbing his bag and making sure his assignment he created with Danny was packed safely in there. Dean watched Sam moved with a watchful eye.

"Make sure to talk to Danny." Dean prompted, watching his brother moving around the small room to gather the necessary things for school. Sam nodded, slipping his wallet into his pocket. He never carried much, but it was always safe to have his drivers' licence on him. "Maybe you can even take Baby to hang out with him tonight." Sam almost got whiplash by how fast he looked over at his brother, eyes wide.

"Really?!" Sam asked, shock clear as day in his voice and features. Dean never let him drive the Impala, even learning how to drive he learned at a school with given training cars. The only time he was ever behind the wheel was when Dean did a short driving course in it. It was just to make sure that if there was an emergency, Sam would be able to drive the older car.

"Yea, but only for a few hours." Dean warned, glancing at the clock. "And if you so much as scratch her-" The threat hung in the air, Dean didn't need to finish that sentence.

"Yea, okay." Sam grinned, slipping his bag on. "Thanks Dean."

"We gotta get you to school."

The presentation of the folktale project went off without a hitch, Danny did a great part on his end and designed an amazing book cover. The teacher had been impressed compared to everyone else's mismatched and lackluster creations, as their project was so creative. That had won them an easy A overall, and Danny seemed overly happy when he saw their final grade.

The whole day Sam couldn't figure out how to break it to Danny that they were leaving soon. It was hard after seeing just how much the Winchesters helped him with injuries and with his loneliness, Sam really didn't want to leave Danny alone. He was scared of what could happen if neither he nor Dean weren't there when he needed them. It wasn't like Danny was just being bruised up a bit, which isn't good either way, but the boy was littered with serious injuries most of the time. It was a scary thing Sam really didn't want to think too much about.

But to think today was the only full day he had left with Danny. Tomorrow his father would want to keep them in, wrapping up any loose ends on the most recent hunt, before they disappear into the dark. Dean wasn't wrong, they were going to leave Wednesday morning. Sam already knows that they would be leaving not long after midnight. He also knew John wasn't going to let Sam or Dean really leave tomorrow unless absolutely needed. Just saying goodbye to a friend didn't count.

So he had to make tonight count, he just needed to make sure Danny was free to hang out. It wasn't going to be easy, as the Winchester didn't really want to lie to his friend, but he couldn't tell him the truth. He didn't want to bring anything like this into Danny's already complicated life. He just hoped that Danny takes it alright, and the night goes well... But the question is what can they do? It had to be different, he really didn't want to do the same thing that he and Danny usually did. The motel was off the books if his dad was coming home that night.

"What's going on in your head?" Danny's voice pulled him out of his thoughts, turning to be greeted with a tired but content looking Danny. Sam felt his heart flutter at the real smile that greeted him.

"Going over my plans for tonight." Sam mused, offering a smile back. "I was wondering if you'll be free at eight?" Sam asked before he could stop himself. He watched Danny pause for a moment before the shorter teen nodded.

"I will be, where do you want to meet up?" Danny asked, walking through the slightly crowded halls as the two aimlessly strolled towards their classes.

"It's actually a surprise." Sam tried not to blush at the look he was met with, Danny's eyes widening, eyebrows lifting up, and head tilting questioningly. He quickly cleared his throat before continuing. "I was actually thinking I can pick you up. Dean's lending me the Impala."

"His Baby?!" Danny gasped, before laughing. "Must be a special occasion." The other teen joked, and Sam tried not to let it show that it technically was.

"I know right?" Sam laughed, shifting the weight of his bag on his shoulder. "So, I'll pick you up at eight?"

"Yea, but where are we going?" Danny asked, turning to the taller teen. Moving them out of the flow of traffic and towards some lockers. "I know all the spots here."

"If I told you it wouldn't be a surprise dummy!" Sam laughed, shaking his head. Danny might know the place he settles on, but he wasn't going to let Danny know ahead of time. After all, the local was going to know a lot more than the tourist. "At least I'm going to try and surprise you." Sam shrugged, losing himself a bit in thought.

"I'm sure you can." Danny smiled, just as the bell rang, knocking their shoulders together. "Also, my dad's picking me up after school so I can't catch a ride with you."

"I'll let Dean know." Sam nodded, not liking missing the almost routine pick up. "I'll see you tonight."

"Yep, eight." Danny nodded, moving to walk away before dropping a parting statement. "It's a date." Sam blushed, quickly hiding his face in his hands. Danny was none the wiser, back to Sam

Okay so maybe it wasn't an uncommon idea, but Sam was working under pressure of time to make sure he picked a good place. Picked the best idea for food, and location, and the whole nine yards. And maybe Danny saying what he did added a little more pressure on him while Sam was still under the pressure of figuring out how to tell Danny. Maybe Sam was a little worried.

But he had Dean, and his older brother was more than willing to help. The older Winchester easily gave Sam ideas on where the two could eat and go to hang out, mentioning how a coworker at the shop mentioned it in passing. It sounded perfect, and if all went to plan that's what tonight would be, even if it had an overshadow of sadness. Not to mention Sam was, of course, teased a tiny bit about this 'date' that's not really a date by his brother. Nonetheless, Dean was off to work, opting to work for his last shift so Sam would for sure have the car. He wasn't due to pick up Danny for another two hours and his dad was supposed to come back in at nine thirty when he's out. Dean promised that he'll cover for him so he wouldn't have to listen to too much of a lecture when he comes back to the motel.

For the meantime though, Sam was left with nothing but his thoughts, which were anything but pleasant. He was used to hard goodbyes, he's had them before. But Danny was different. This whole situation just felt different. He wished he didn't have to go, wished that his father wasn't too paranoid to just settle them somewhere, too paranoid to give out contact information, too angry to give up hunting the yellow eyed demon. It just wasn't something they would do, so he had no way to check on Danny if...

That was not the train of thought he wanted tonight. Tonight would just be about saying goodbye. Making sure Danny would be okay before they leave, okay without them, without him. It's not like Sam can even tell if Danny cared about him as much as Sam did for Danny. He shouldn't make Danny feel uncomfortable, just keep everything as a friendly goodbye and end it there.

No beating around the bush, that much Sam knows. He needs to be straightforward, if he isn't, it'll probably only worry the other teen more than needed. Sam really shouldn't be so worried, he knows Danny would understand. Danny knew since the beginning that the Winchesters' stay was only temporary. The smaller teen should have been expecting this. Maybe John did come back a little earlier than he expected, and maybe it was more abrupt than Danny would have expected either.

This was the life of a Winchester, and Sam sometimes needs to remember that.

The night was in full swing. Sam sent Dean a message letting him know that he was leaving and would most likely be back home by eleven thirty. The first stop was refilling Baby. Dean left clear instructions to fill the tank before and after the hangout. After that, he picked up two energy drinks from the gas station, and moved on to the next stop.

Nasty Burger.

It wasn't anything fancy, but it was always their go to food. You could never really go wrong with it. The franchise really was the best in town. Sam ordered the usual, along with a few extra snacks and dessert, you can never forget the dessert. The young lady at the counter was clearly judging him for all of the food he ordered, and he can understand that all things considered, mainly because a clearly high teen had just ordered a little more than half the menu, but she didn't have to do so blatantly.

With the food placed in the back seat, Sam was off to Danny's, driving the empty streets much slower than he normally. Maybe it was partly because of Dean's threats, but it mostly stemmed from the fact that he still had about twenty minutes to kill before it was time to pick up Danny. Music thrummed through the air in an attempt to distract Sam's racing thoughts yet it did little to reduce the worry that build the closer it got to being time.

By the time he got to the Fentons, it was only a few minutes before it was time. Surprisingly enough Danny had just been stepping out of the house. Sam smiled as the other walked over to the car, his smile only faltering a little when his eyes landed on a new bruise rested around the teen's right eye. Danny settled into the Impala with ease.

"This is what the front seat looks like." Danny joked, having always been seated in the back, clearly avoiding the blatant bruise on his face. Sam joined the laughter, knowing better than to sour the mood with questions neither really wanted answers to.

"Ready for your surprise?" Sam asked, pulling the car away from the curb. The streets flew by in blobs of color, Sam picking up a little speed to get there sooner rather than later.

"Well, I know one of them is Nasty Burger." Danny smirked, making a show of sniffing the air. "And when ever that's involved, it's always good." Sam genuinely laughed, cracking a smile that he couldn't stop even if he wanted to.

"You got one of them." Sam glanced over, before settling his eyes on the road. "No trying to guess where we're going though." Sam said, he figured if Danny paid enough attention he would be able to figure out where they were headed.

"Scouts honor." Danny nodded, settling back in his chair. Sam quietly hummed to the music as Danny reached over to raise the volume to the music a bit. The ride was going to carry out mostly in silence, barring the blaring music. That's one thing about Danny, sometimes the two of them didn't have to make small talk to be content. Sometimes silence is good, fulfilling and amicable, calming and supportive.

That silence was something that they both needed and were happy to provide to one another, a quiet solace sinking into their bones and giving both of them a contentment that they couldn't quite replicate with anyone else.

[ladylynse]

Ectober 2018, Day 15: Explain

After what happened, Star wants some explanations, and she’s not going to let Danny get away with brushing her off. (Part II of this fic for Day 13: Help)

By the time Star managed to find her way out of the school’s basement (it would’ve been easier if she’d had a flashlight, but she’d lost her phone in the fall and couldn’t even use that), the ghost fight was over. The door had been busted clean off its hinges and the classroom was empty but for the melting ice.

She wasn’t sure how long she stood there, just staring at the mess, but eventually Lancer found her. “I’m glad you and Mr. Fenton are safe,” he said. “Please, consider your detention over. You’re free to go.”

She didn’t have the heart to tell him she had no idea where Danny was, but maybe he’d already sent Danny home. Maybe she was just…late. That could be why Danny wasn’t here, right? Not because the ghost had taken him somewhere.

She started walking to the Nasty Burger on autopilot, though she was aware enough to keep an eye out for any sign of ghosts—or of Danny. She still had no idea how she’d gone through the floor and ended up in the basement. It had been solid. Solid. And then…it hadn’t been.

But Danny hadn’t fallen with her.

And that didn’t make any sense.

If Phantom had come to save them, why not save both of them? Or even just take the ice monster ghost away so they work on thawing a window or something so they could get out? She had no idea why Phantom would separate them. It just didn’t make sense, not when they were both vulnerable. Why leave Danny behind if he was the target?  Wouldn’t it make more sense to get him away first?

Star reached for her cell phone, remembered it wasn’t in her pocket, and groaned. Lancer had begun cleaning up when she’d left. If her phone was in the classroom, he’d find it and give it to her tomorrow.

If it wasn’t…. Well, if it wasn’t, she’d have to explain how she’d ended up in the basement. And she couldn’t. But it had definitely sounded like Danny could, which is why she needed to find him. He…. He knew what had happened. He must. But how?

The Nasty Burger was busy as usual, but not so busy that she couldn’t tell at a glance that Danny and his friends hadn’t claimed their usual table—or any table, for that matter. Paulina was there with the other A-listers, and Star hunched and turned away, not wanting to be noticed or at least to able to pretend she hadn’t seen them if she was. She hadn’t stopped to fix her hair, and it was no doubt a mess, but that worked in her favour right now. It would make her more invisible to her friends, someone beneath their notice. And that’s…. That’s what she needed right now. She couldn’t talk to them, tell them what had happened, until she came to terms with it herself.

And until she got some explanations.

Star stood off to one side, half-hidden by the dwindling line. Once it disappeared entirely, she went up to Valerie, who was on cash. “I need to borrow your phone,” Star said.

Valerie frowned. “I just got on shift. I can’t—”

“I’ll be like five minutes. Please.”

Valerie glanced behind her, but her boss didn’t materialize, so she passed Star her phone. She didn’t have time for questions now, but Star knew from the look she received that Valerie expected answers later.

“Thanks,” Star murmured, already scrolling through Valerie’s contacts. She knew Valerie had dated Danny, and it hadn’t been a messy breakup, so surely—

There. Star hit dial and held the phone to her ear as she left the restaurant and walked around back. He had to pick up. He had to be safe. He hadn’t lost his phone, and with the fight over—

“Hey, Val. I thought you had a shift today. What’s up?”

“Danny?” Star’s voice cracked. She couldn’t stop it. “I…. Can we talk?”

Silence.

She wasn’t even sure if he was breathing.

“Danny?” she ventured again, just to make sure he really was still on the line.

“I’m…I’m still here.”

“Can we meet up and talk?”

“Now?”

“No, next week,” she snapped, her nerves frayed. “Yes, now. And we’re both still supposed to be in detention, so don’t pretend you have something on.”

“Why are you calling from Valerie’s phone?”

“Because I lost mine and don’t have your stupid number anyway.” She took a few steadying breaths and then said, “Look, I’m sorry. I just…. I don’t know what happened back there, and it’s freaking me out. I just…. Please. I want to talk. Somewhere quiet.”

It was a few long seconds before he sighed and said, “Okay. Football practice will be over by now. Meet me by the bleachers behind the school. I’ll see if I can find your phone.”

He hung up before she could agree, let alone ask him how the heck he expected to find her phone.

She slipped back inside, passing Valerie her phone with a quiet thank you before running off. Another customer behind her ensured that Valerie’s questions would have to wait, and Star was back out the door before Paulina had time to realize that she was out of detention early.

Danny wasn’t anywhere to be seen when she got there, so Star sat down on the bleachers to wait for him. It occurred to her that he could easily just not show up and she wouldn’t be able to track him down if he stayed away from his usual haunts. He’d know better than to answer a call from Valerie’s phone now, and she didn’t know if anyone else would have his number.

“I’m such an idiot,” she muttered, drawing her knees up to her chest so she could hug them. “I’m going to be waiting here half the evening, and tomorrow he’s—”

“Star?”

She straightened up and looked over. Danny’s voice sounded small, almost like he was afraid of her. It was so unlike how he’d been while facing down the ghost that she almost started to laugh. She might have, if he hadn’t been holding her phone out in front of him.

“Where’d you find it?” she demanded, snatching it out of his hands.

“I, uh, found it in the classroom? After the fight?” He was rubbing his neck and staring at his feet.

She frowned. “Then why not just tell me you had it all along?”

He froze. “Uh—”

She rolled her eyes. “Fenton, I’m not stupid, okay? Just tell me how you got it.”

“I went to look for it,” he mumbled.

Sure he did. Inside the school when the doors would be locked from the outside, so people couldn’t get in even if the people inside could get out.

She sighed. That wasn’t important right now. “Look, Danny, thanks for finding my phone, but that’s not really the pressing issue. Just…you can explain, can’t you? What happened?”

He met her gaze now, still looking like the spooked kid Dash routinely shoved into his locker. “There was a ghost fight.”

“I know that. But…. What happened? Who was that guy? How come he knew you? Why was he going after you?”

Danny laughed, but he sounded more nervous than she did. “Well, you heard him. Apparently he’s called Icebreaker.”

He didn’t continue. Star crossed her arms, not willing to let him get away with playing dumb when she knew he knew more than he was telling. “So who’s his brother? Frosty-something? Frostbite? I didn’t even know ghosts could have brothers. Especially ghosts like that.”

He gave her a nervous smile. “You, uh, ever hear about yetis? I’m pretty sure they’re related. And the ghosts of those guys.”

“Yetis aren’t real, Fenton.”

“Yeah? Well, most people would say the same about ghosts.”

He had her there, but she was willing to concede such a small point. “But most people don’t know ghosts as well as we do. And most people here don’t know those guys as well as you apparently do.”

Danny held up both hands. “Hey, that was the first time I’d even heard of Icebreaker, let alone met the guy.”

“Maybe, but you were his target. You told me that. And he didn’t seem to have much trouble tracking you down. Why would some ghost want to kill you if you’ve never met him?”

Danny raised an eyebrow. “My parents are ghost hunters. That’s, like, a natural target on my back.”

She glared at him. “But that’s not the reason here. You guys were talking about secrets. Teaching or training or something.”

Danny pulled a face at her. “Why ask me questions if you already know the answers?”

“Because I don’t know all the answers. And because you’re still trying to lie to me!”

“Technically, the only thing I lied about was finding your phone in the classroom. And that hardly counts.”

She narrowed her eyes and stepped into his personal space. She wasn’t big enough for it to be a good intimidation tactic, but Danny still backed up. “Then forget about the phone,” she growled, taking another step forward, “and forget about this Icebreaker guy. New question, Fenton. How’d I wind up in the school basement?”

Danny hit the chain link fence, but he actually looked relieved. “Phantom,” he said. “He showed up. Phased you down there and me through the wall, actually. I guess so Icebreaker wasn’t sure who to try to follow? Anyway, Phantom dealt with him pretty quickly.”

That…actually made sense. She hadn’t thought about it like that. If Danny really was Icebreaker’s main target, then having her out of sight might put her out of mind. And if he’d decided to get rid of both of them, since he’d seemed pretty set on it earlier, then dividing his targets might make him hesitate long enough for Phantom to get in a good hit.

“Did you see they took out the classroom door? I dunno who hit that, but I bet it hurt.”

Star stared at him, stunned at how easily the lie had left his lips when he’d been so bad at it earlier. But maybe that was it. He’d been comically bad at it earlier. This time, he’d almost had her fooled.

He must’ve read her expression. “What?”

“How did you get back in if Phantom sent you outside?”

“Huh?”

“The doors. They lock.”

“Oh, that?” More nervous laughter. “This was earlier, when people were still going in and out. I was back in looking for your phone before everything was locked up.”

But he couldn’t have been. He shouldn’t have been able to get in either time. “Danny, Lancer would’ve pulled the alarm. Locked the doors so no one could just walk in and accidentally get caught in a ghost fight. Your parents installed it last month, remember? The only people it’ll let through are them, first responders, school staff, and the mayor.”

He opened his mouth, hesitated half a beat too long, and then said, “Right. Tucker hacked that system a while ago. I’m, uh, one of the ones included on the clearance list.”

She’d been so ready to believe it, so ready to believe all of it. It had made so much sense. And now she had no idea what was truth and what was just a clever lie. “Right,” she echoed. He started to relax again, and she asked, “What’s a halfa?”

He paled. “It’s, ah, a nickname. The one Frostbite gave me.”

“Meaning?”

“That it’s a nickname?” He winced at her look. “Okay, okay, sorry. But, seriously, it’s just a nickname. I wouldn’t think about it too much.”

“Nicknames always mean something. Even if it starts with an inside joke and spreads so people who don’t know the origin use it, it always has to start somewhere. People don’t get nicknames for no reason.”

“Yeah, this would be one of those inside joke things. Trust me, it’ll take way too long to try to explain it.”

“I’ve got time. I don’t care if it’s a long story. Hearing how the son of ghost hunters spent enough time with a ghost that the ghost decided to give him a nickname should be an interesting tale.”

Danny sighed. “Star—”

“Please don’t lie to me, Danny.” She shoved a lock of hair behind her ear just to give her hands something to do, but it was hard not to fidget beyond that. “This…. This doesn’t all make sense. There has to be something you’re not telling me. And I think it might have to do with you being important enough to warrant whatever that was.”

“Everyone in this town is important,” Danny said, deflecting things again, “because Phantom will try to save all of us.”

“But Icebreaker wasn’t after Phantom. He was after you!”

“I help Phantom sometimes, okay?” Danny mumbled, not looking at her. “Mom and Dad would flip if they realized, so I keep it a secret. Jazz gets enough flak defending him as it is.” He finally looked her in the eye, adding, “Frostbite and his tribe in the Far Frozen—they’re good ghosts. Like Phantom tries to be. Mom and Dad don’t understand that, but Phantom does, and he took me there so I could train with them to be a better ghost fighter. Hone some skills. I guess Icebreaker found out, hated the idea of a human learning stuff like that, and wanted revenge. But that’s why I could hold him off for as long as I did; this really isn’t the first time I’ve done this sort of thing.”

It made sense.

Star just didn’t know if she could believe him anymore.

She stepped back anyway, giving Danny some room to breathe. He hadn’t told her what halfa meant. He’d outright admitted that he had lied about where he’d found her phone, and why lie about something like that? She wasn’t sure she believed his explanation about having security clearance, either, though she didn’t doubt that Tucker could give it to him. And he’d said Phantom had phased her through the floor, even though she’d never seen him. But what other explanation was there?

Trust me, he’d said. I can help, he’d said.

If he’d just meant that he had more skills when it came to ghost hunting than she knew about, why not say that?

“Okay,” she said. “I’m sorry for freaking out over this. Thanks for meeting me. And finding my phone. I’m glad you’re okay.”

He smiled at her. “No problem. See you around, Star.”

She let him walk off. Cornering him and demanding explanations wouldn’t get her any farther than she’d already gotten. Letting him think she was just going to let this go? That might do it.

She could be patient.

She could wait.

And then she could find out exactly how much of what he’d told her had been the truth.

Continued for Day 19: Mistakes

(see more fics)

[imagine-loki]

Magic Mistake

TITLE: Magic Mistake CHAPTER NO./ONE SHOT: Chapter 5 AUTHOR: staria ORIGINAL IMAGINE: Imagine being a witch (on Earth) and accidentally summoning Loki. He gets angry and confused, but ends up actually liking your company and teaches you more magic.  RATING: T NOTES/WARNINGS:

——–

Three weeks had passed before I heard from Loki again. I was already thinking that I would never hear from him again, when he showed up one Saturday morning and knocked on my door. As always I was still in my pajamas trying to figure out what to eat for breakfast.

I opened the door to find him holding a box of donuts and cup of something that smelled like coffee.

“I bring edible goods,” he said, sounding extremely cheerful, which was really weird for him. He then bended forward, extending his arm towards me, giving me the box like it was a lost treasure brought from a mystical land just for me.

I was surprised that he had showed up like this out of nowhere acting like we were cool, he seemed to have forgotten that we had a bad fight a few weeks ago. I reluctantly let him in and grabbed the box with the donuts and carried it to the kitchen. I opened the box and grabbed a glazed donut and immediately began eating it. Mad or not, I never said no to free food.

“Hi, Loki. Nice of you to finally show up. I thought you were never going to talk to me again.”

“What? Why would I ever do that?” he said, trying to act all innocent with sad puppy eyes and all.

“Because of last time. You were a total jerk the last time we were training. Remember?” I said, while licking all the sugary goodness from my fingers.

“Psssh. I would never do that, it was all a misunderstanding, little witch,” he said, grinning “if you don’t want to train today, we don’t have to. I just thought I would be nice and bring you a treat,” he said, opening the box and handing me another donut which I happily grabbed.

“I don’t think we should train for now. I’ve been practicing by myself and it’s been going fine,” I said, crossing my arms.

He seemed to realize that I was still not happy, so he completely changed the subject before I could say anything else.

“I actually came by because I wanted to invite you somewhere.”

“Really? Where?” I said, suspecting that he was just making things up to distract me from the subject.

“I cannot tell you. It’s a surprise, little witch.”

“I really wish you would stop calling me that. I’m an adult.”

“Come on, it fits you so well. You’re short and a witch. Hence the nickname,” he said, while actually patting me on the head, “don’t you want to go out tonight? It will be fun.”

With one swift motion of his hand, my clothes changes from my pink pajamas to a layered purple dress, “Now you are dressed like an Asgardian, this way you will not attract unnecessary attention. Where we are going no one ever sees Midgardians.”

“Fine, I’ll go,” I said, as I admired my new attire, “I don’t even want to know what’s an Asgardian.”

He opened a portal in the middle of my living room, and then held out his hand for me to take, “We’ll be back before anyone notices that you are gone.”

I grabbed his hand and closed my eyes. I guess I trusted him more that I thought since I was willing to jump into the unknown with him.

* * * * *

We were inside a damp, hot cave. It was dimly lit with a few torches on the walls, but there was not enough light to see the path clearly.

Loki created a light orb and began walking down the passageway when he told me to make one as well. I informed him that I didn’t know how to do that. He sighed, annoyed at my answer, and said, “Of course you can, just mumble some of those rhyming poems you do and it should work.”

“I can’t. I don’t work like you,” I said, looking down at my new dress. I pretended to play with a small button in my waist area.

He turned around and got close to me, bringing the light orb close to my face. He held my hands in his. His face was so close to mine that I could make out all the specks in his bright eyes.

“Yes you can, Dannie. Just concentrate,” he said, looking fixedly at me, “Tell yourself that you really need this light orb and then will it into being.”

I decided to do as he told me to even though I didn’t have much faith in this. I closed my eyes and concentrated. When I opened them up again, there was an orb floating between us, it was not as big or bright as his but it was my light orb, so it made me super happy.

“I told you you could do it, you little witch,” he said, patting my head in an almost sweet manner. I was speechless as I couldn’t believe that I had done something so awesome.

We continued walking down the cave in silence for a while until we reached a room with a high ceiling and something that resembled a banquet hall like the ones you see in medieval movies.

“Welcome to Nidavellir,” said Loki.

“This is… different. Why are we here?”

“They have something I need, but they mustn’t know that I need it.”

“So, are we going to trade or something?”

“Yes, something like that,” said Loki smirking mysteriously.

We walked up to the throne where a short stocky man with a long reddish brown beard was sitting. He got up from the throne when he saw Loki and walked up to us.

“Loki! It’s been too long since you graced us with your presence. Who is this beauty next to you?” said the dwarf, looking me up and down like I was a morsel, making me feel uncomfortably naked even though I was wearing this beautiful dress.

“Greetings, Eitri, King of Dwarves. This is Dannie,” said Loki, “she insisted on coming with me when I told her about all the wonders in Nidavellir.”

“If she wants to behold all of our wonders you should feast with us. You arrived at a great time. It’s the second day of celebration for my eldest daughter’s wedding. Go, sit, and enjoy,” said Eitri, laughing heartily.

I sat down in a spot between Loki and a lady dwarf. She was drinking mead from a mug and smiled at me when I sat down. She offered me some of the mead from her cup but I politely declined it. She merely laughed at me and kept loudly talking to a dwarf  next to her.

“Dwarf food is simple but nourishing. They don’t have anything fancy like your donuts but they do favor roasted boar and bison,” said Loki, as he filled a plate with different types of meat and something that looked like potatoes before passing it to me. I looked around for a fork but apparently dwarves don’t have forks or knives so I decided to use my hands to eat.

The mood was a happy one and everyone talked loudly around me. The dwarves grabbed food with their bare hands, they would talk with their mouths full and laugh loudly at each other. It was a merry place but I was not used to all the noise and pretty soon I had a headache that only kept getting worse with all the mead the dwarves kept pushing my way but that didn’t stop me from enjoying myself. I never get to go out and just be myself like this.

Eventually everyone was dancing as the music got louder, and even a tallish blond dwarf invited me to dance. I’m not much of a dancer but I was in such a good mood that I accepted the invitation.

I twirled around a few times with the guy until Loki cut in and asked me to dance as well. I never would have thought he liked to dance but I accepted. He grabbed my hands and pulled me close to him. I was so excited about dancing that I completely forgot that I was mad at Loki. I stood on my tippy toes, locked my arms around his neck and let him lead the way.

“I didn’t know you liked to dance until I saw you dancing with that guy. Should I be jealous?” he said, as he lifted me of the floor. I held close to him as he spinned me a few times, trying to hide my face on his shoulder but he pulled me away from him.

“Don’t be shy now, little witch. Are you having fun?” he said, eyes twinkling in a mix of drunkenness and joy.

I nodded before hugging him, “This is the most fun I’ve had in so long. Thank you,” I said, as I tried to clean my tears with the back of my hand. The mead was really getting to me. I think he hesitated at first but he then hugged me back so hard that I thought I would never be able to breathe again.

* * * * *

The festivities continued late into the night and we didn’t retire to the chambers the king assigned to us until the early morning hours. We danced until I was falling asleep standing up. All I wanted to do was go to sleep, but once we  finally retired to our room Loki shared with me all about the amulet he wanted to steal. It was in a guarded room near the banquet hall behind the king’s throne. His plan was to exchange it for a replica that he had.

“We can’t just come in here stealing their things. They were nice to us!” I said, glaring at him.

“They won’t even notice that it’s gone. Dwarves aren’t very smart, so it might take them a few centuries to realize this is a fake,” said Loki, showing me the replica.

We sneaked behind the throne in the great hall where a few dwarves had passed out in a drunken stupor and still slept leaning against the long communal table. We reached the room and Loki used a weird key to open the door. Once inside, it was obvious that this was the room where all of their important artifacts were kept. There were swords, shields, and armors but all Loki wanted was a small amber colored stone that lay inside a box in a corner of the room.

Loki had already put the stone in his pocket and was holding the fake one when a guard caught us and shouted at him to drop the stone, so Loki dropped it. I raised my hands in surrender and so did Loki but then he quickly pulled out a dagger and threw it at the guard who moved out of its way before it was able to do him any harm. The guard then drew out a bow and arrow to shoot at us. Dwarves may seem clumsy, but this guard was agile and fast with his hands and before I could react, I felt a sharp pain in my arm. An arrow had pierced my shoulder near the clavicle. I was in so much pain that I tried to pull out the arrow but Loki stopped me.

Loki told me to stay back before throwing another dagger at the guard. He then used the distraction to punch the guard. The guard punched him back and Loki then kicked him in the chest, throwing him off balance. I wanted to do something but the pain was still unbearable and I could barely stay awake. I was covered in a cold sweat.  

Finally Loki was able to subdue the guard by using his Seidr to tie him down. He came to check on me but I could barely concentrate on his words and I began blacking out. I think he then carried me in his arms because I faintly remember being lifted from the ground where I was laying. He opened a portal that we went through and when I opened my eyes again it seemed like we were not back home because I heard Loki curse, apparently this was not where we were supposed to be. The pain was too much to bear and there was so much blood that I didn’t care where we were. That’s when I finally passed out.

[cas-tellation]

Not what you thought (I’m sorry, I didn’t know.) 2

last chapter - masterlist

TW// suicide mentions (kind of. Depending on how you look at it.) dan’s sad a lot. Mentions of drinking and all that. Stay safe xx

.

The next Mmonday, Dan feels heavy. There’s a weight somewhere in his chest and he can’t ignore it. It requires so much effort to just convince himself to get out of bed.

He doesn’t want to move.

He feels like crying, but no tears are coming.

What’s he going to do? Call him mum up to his room and state that he’s simply too ‘sad’ to go to school that day? Yeah, right.

He pulls on a pair of jeans and glances around the room for his binder.

Later, when he’s all packed up and binded down, he trudges downstairs. He leaves without telling his parents or eating breakfast. In truth, neither of those things seem important right now.

His legs are heavy as if bricks have been tied to them.

He can make it through this day. Tomorrow will be better. Just make it through the day.

-

Apparently, making it through the day was harder than it seemed.

Lunch ended half an hour ago and he still can’t find the will to stand up. He had meant to go  and read a book for the hour, but now the book lies in the dirt beside him, discarded.  

“Hey,” a voice reaches Dan’s ears.

Dan turns his head to face the newcomer, “Oh.”

“Oh?” The person says, smirking slightly before sitting down beside Dan, their shoulders mere inches apart.

“Nothin’.” Dan murmurs.

“What’s wrong?” tThe boy says, reaching his hand out towards Dan’s face -, as if he was about to push the curly hair away from his eyes -, before thinking better of it and jerking his hand back.

“M’fine,” Dan groans, crossing his arms.

“You don’t look fine,” hHe points out.

Dan thinks, ‘That’s not a very nice thing to say,’ and then, ‘It’s true though, isn’t it?’ He speaks neither of these thoughts.

“What’s your name?” The person asks, in a tone far too soft for a stranger.

When Dan doesn’t respond, he says, “I’m Phil.”

-

Phil, as it turns out, wasn’t shaken that easily.

He was there again the next day, sat on the dusty ground in Dan’s spot. He greets Dan with a soft smile and a, “Hello.”

Dan eyes him warily, but sits down nonetheless, “Hi.”

Dan doesn’t need to look at Phil to know that his bright blue eyes had lit up, “He talks!”

“Of course I talk, you nerd,” Dan mutters under his breath, though it’s loud enough for Phil to hear.

“No you didn’t, not yesterday,” Phil states quickly, fishing a brown paper bag out of his backpack.

“Yes, I did,” Dan protests weakly.

“Nonono, you didn’t. I was like ‘hi hi, hello friend, my name’s Phil,’ and you were just like; ‘grumble grumble I’m not gonna tell this weirdo my name,’” Phil says, pulling a sandwich out of the bag and handing half to Dan.

“Thanks,” Dan says through a mouthful of sandwich, “I’m Dan, by the way.”

“Danny,” Phil grins widely at him.

“No, we’re not at the stage of friendship where you can call me Danny,” Dan chides, yet a smile finds its way onto his face anyway.

“Will we ever be at that stage of friendship?” Phil questions.

“I don’t know. Stick around and see,” Dan offers.

Phil shuffles a bit closer to him, “Okay, I will.”

-

It’s all too much. There’s a consistent voice in his head, telling him that he’s not enough - not a boy.

His mind always settles on Nicole.

She felt like safety - a security blanket, you might say.

The first time he had seen her, he had been nine years old. It was a rainy day, and he had forgotten his jacket. The cold bit at him, making him shiver and tug his saturated jumper closer to his body, which just made him colder. His nose was running and his long hair was all tangled.

Then, the rain seemed to disappear. There’s a girl standing beside him - maybe a year older - holding an umbrella over his head.

She had said: “You’re the new kid… Yazi, right?”

Dan had replied: “Yeah, thanks.” and gestured up towards the umbrella.

“No problem, I’m Nicole,” she smiled, “It’s nice to meet you.”

“You too.”

Nicole had walked him home. At first he had protested, not wanting her to go out of her way for him. But as it turned out, she lived on the same street as him, only a few houses down. Dan had been so busy with moving that he hadn’t noticed any other kids living near his new house.

It had become a part of his day after that. He’d wait by the gates of the school for Nicole - who was usually a bit late leaving her classes, or was busy with other friends, then she’d walk him home. After a few weeks she even came into his house with him.

Before two months had passed, she was waking up early to eat breakfast at Dan’s house. She’d spend almost all her time there, to the point where Dan’s parents were calling her their ‘second daughter.’

-

The next day, Phil’s sitting there behind the school when Dan arrives during his lunch hour. But this time, Phil’s not alone. A few people were with him, cigarettes between their lips, leaning against the side of the building. Dan almost chokes on the scent of the smoke. He hates the way that he loves it.

Phil’s easily conversing with them, his eyes not flickering to where Dan stood, at the corner, undecided. The smoke reminds him of Nicole. The taste of it on her mouth, mixed with booze.

He backs away quickly, slipping back inside the school building to hide in one of the men’s washrooms until the bell rings.

-

Dan skypes Nicole that night. Maybe it’s because he misses her as a person or maybe it’s because so many things during the day had reminded him of her, and he needs to make sure that she’s okay.

She is. Okay, that is. Kind of, at least.

Her face is pixelated through the thin screen of Dan’s laptop, but he can still see as she smiles at him brightly, “How’re you doing, Dan?”

His stomach flutters. He’s not sure if it’s because this is Nicole, or because she just called him Dan.

He grins, shuffling back on his bed so that he was resting up against the wall, crossing his legs and balancing his laptop on his legs, “I’m good, how are you?”

“Cut the bullcrap,” Nicole’s parting her hair, braiding small chunks of it, “Tell me with more detail, how are you?”

Dan sighs heavily, “I dunno, I guess I’m still just trying to process everything.”

“D’you think that you’ll be happy there… In time?” sShe asks gently.

“Yeah- It’s just all new and weird right now,” he pauses, “It’s definitely a lot different without you here.”

Her eyes are full of understanding as a soft smile lights up her face, “It’s different here, too,” A long pause, then, “I wish you didn’t move.”

Dan says, “I miss you too.”

“Can I come to visit you? Where do you live?”

Dan’s face falls a bit, “My parents hate you.”

“And I hate them, too,” Nicole says defiantly, “We can go out for coffee or something. Please?”

“I- uh. Yeah, of course,” hHe falters for a second, then rattles off the address to a coffee shop near his house.

“Next weekend?” Nicole asks, “Like, Saturday?”

“Yeah,” Dan murmurs, “That’ll work.”

They talk for about an hour, about anything and everything. It feels refreshing, like a cold shower on a hot day.

He says, “I love you,.” wWhen his mum yells at him from downstairs, telling him to go to sleep.

She says, “Love you too, babe.”

“Bye.”

“Bye.”

-

It’s cold outside the coffee shop. It reminds him of when he first met Nicole. Except that this time he had brought a huge winter coat, \there wasn’t any rain, and he was in Manchester instead of London.

Nichole was supposed to meet him here at 2:00pm, and now it was fifteen minutes past that. Then again, when had she ever been early, or on time, for that matter? Besides, he didn’t mind waiting.

Ten minutes later and someone was barreling into him, wrapping their arms around his shoulders and squeezing tightly. Her black hair is as long as ever, her head tucked into his neck. His arms wind their way around her waist, holding her close.

They rock back and forth slowly, neither of them really paying attention to how long they’re there for.

Eventually, Nicole mumbles something that sounds like, “Fuck you, Dan, I missed you so fucking much, you little fuck,” and pulls back.

“I missed you, too,” Dan smiles.

“Of course you did, loser,” she teases, “let's go get something to drink before we freeze.”

Dan holds the door open for her and pays for their drinks after they order. Nicole tells him that he doesn’t have to, but he does anyway.

The window by their seat is so fogged up that they can barely see out of it. Nicole draws a smiley face on it.

“So,” she starts, “How’re you doing?”

“Oh my fuck, are you really going to ask me that every time we interact?” Dan snaps, though there is a hint of humour to his voice.

“Yes,” she says, “I’m your therapist now. Tell me all your problems and somehow miraculously -through talking -they will disappear,” she mocks.

“Bye-bye depression, anxiety, and crippling dysphoria,” Dan sips at his coffee, “T’was nice knowing you, but I’ve talked enough and now you’re gone.”

“I wish it worked that way,” Nicole says seriously. She hooks her foot around Dan’s ankle.

“Yeah,” he agrees.

Nicole grimaces when she takes a big gulp of her hot chocolate, “Fuck, that’s hot,” she swallows it anyway.

“Hot like you,” Dan kind-of jokes, winking exaggeratedly.

“Oh, please. Don’t mock me.”

“You love it.”

“No, the only thing I love here is you,” she flirts back easily, trying to keep a straight face. They both end up dissolving into giggles.

“I hate you,” Dan gasps out.

“You too,” Nicole shoots back.

Dan draws a tree onto the condensation on the windows. Nicole adds fire to its branches. Dan draws a person standing under the tree and Nicole draws the rope around its neck, elongating the trunk of the tree to make it look like the person is being hung.

It takes a long time for Dan to finish his coffee. He says that it’s just because it’s hot, but really, it’s because he wants to draw out his time with Nicole as long as he can. She’s doing the same thing.

An hour passes and they can no longer pretend to have any of their drink left. Nicole has a bus and a train to catch. Dan has to go home before his parents wonder where he is, butut they don’t want to leave.

“You look good,” Nicole’s saying as they leave the coffee shop, “Really masculine. I love it.”

Dan’s cheeks heat up with red, “Thanks,” he stammers awkwardly, “you look good, too.”

“Of course I do,” Nicole flips her hair, then goes serious again. She sighs, “I’m really going to miss you.”

“I’m gonna miss you, too,” Dan assures her, opening his arms for a hug.

“I love you,” she whispers into his shoulder.

“Love you, too,” he tightens his arms around her, “Fuck. I love you so much.”

“I’ll come back. We can do this again, or you can come to London and we can get drunk and do whatever the hell we want…” she rambles.

“You’re going to miss your train,” Dan says, rubbing her back.

“I don’t want to leave. Don’t make me leave? I hate it back there,” she bites down on the fabric of Dan’s coat.

“You have to go,” he points out.

She’s the one who pulls back, though she keeps her arms wrapped loosely around Dan’s waist. She leans forwards, gently pecking him on the lips.

“Bye, Dan.”

And then, she’s gone. Like the smoke that she likes putting in her lungs. There one second, gone the next.

Dan stands there -dumbstruck -for a good five seconds before he remembers that breathing is a thing that he needs to do in order to survive.

[frequent-phases]

Heart - Part 13

A/N: After this, I only have the epilogue! I’m kind of sad to see it go, but I’m also very excited to start the next series!

| Last Part | Masterlist |

I sat at my vanity, putting the finishing touches on my coral lipstick when my mom came up behind me holding up the beautiful dress that Lydia had picked for me.

“Maybe I should just stay home.” I said and my mom gently laid the dress on my bed before walking over and kneeling beside me, grabbing my hands.

“Honey, what’s wrong?” 

“Stiles is going with Lydia, Scott is going with Allison and I have no one. I don’t want to be that pathetic girl in the bleachers that just sits there because no one asked her to even go in the first place.” I looked down at my hands, feeling slightly pathetic, but my mom put her hand under my chin and made me look her in the eyes.

“Olivia, you don’t even have that amazing dress on yet and I already know that boys will be knocking each other out just to be near you.” One of the many things I love about my mom is her contagious smile, you could be in the worst mood ever, and one smile from her just makes you instantly feel better.

“Thank you, Mom.”

“Of course. Now, let’s get you into this dress.” 

I pulled the Charger into one of the empty parking places close to the entrance to the school and shut it off, sighing and pulling down the mirror, playing with my makeup in hopes of stalling for a little while.

I saw the flash of headlights as a car pulled into the spot in front of me. When they shut off, I glanced under my mirror to see Jackson’s Porsche with... Allison sitting in the passenger’s seat? I was not expecting that.

Not even two minutes later, I saw Roscoe pull into the spot next to me out of the corner of my eye and I steeled myself, hoping that I wouldn’t feel that pit again. 

I sighed once more as I reset one out of place curl before I flipped the mirror back up and grabbed my sparkly white heels and my cream clutch from the passenger’s seat. I opened my door and bent over to slip on my heels as I heard one of the squeaky doors of the Jeep open, a feminine sigh following, causing that annoying pit to return.

“Jackson. You look handsome.” I heard Lydia say, a scoff following as I finished up the strap on the first shoe.

“Obviously. It’s Hugo Boss.” Jackson said before I heard his footsteps fade away.

“I don’t care. I don’t want compliments. I refuse to fall prey to society’s desire to turn girls into emotional, insecure neurotics who pull up their dresses at the first flattering remark.” Lydia ranted with a dramatic huff.

“Well, I think you look beautiful.” Stiles said, and the pit got deeper.

“Really?” Lydia asked, her voice hopeful and the pit continued to grow.

“Well, I know I could use a compliment or two. I feel slightly ridiculous this dressed up.” I said as I stood up, finally finished strapping my heels and I saw Lydia and Stiles gaping at me.

“Wow. Didn’t I tell you it was the perfect dress?” Lydia asked, looking me up and down, proud of her work. She then proceeded to turn on her heel and strut inside, but Stiles stayed behind.

“You look amazing, Liv.” He complimented and I glanced at my feet... blushing?

“Thanks.” I muttered, not daring to look at him.

“I’m sorry that Scott and I kept you out of the wolf loop..” Stiles began but trailed off for some reason, causing me to look up as he sighed. “When we heard that you passed out again, we got worried, and didn’t want that to happen again because of us, so we agreed to keep you as out of it as much as we could.”

“I can understand that, but you guys could’ve just talked to me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still mad, but you know what, it’s my last night here and I want to enjoy it with my friends.” I declared with a small smile, which Stiles gladly returned before making a funny face and turning to the school, holding his elbow out to me.

My smile grew even wider and the pit in my stomach all but vanished as I rested my hand in the crook of his elbow and we strode into the school together.

Lydia, Stiles and I had been sitting together, doing absolutely nothing for about fifteen minutes when we spotted Allison and Jackson dancing, apparently, this spurred Stiles into wanting to dance with his date. I can’t say that I blame him, I was starting to get really bored just sitting there.

“You wanna dance?” He asked and Lydia barely glanced at him.

“Pass.”

“You know what? Let me try that again.” Stiles said as he stood up and leaned over that table that we were at. “Lydia, get off your cute little ass and dance with me now.”

“Interesting tactic. I’m gonna stick with no.” Lydia mused, but that didn’t help the regrowing pit in my stomach.

“Lydia, get up! Okay? You’re gonna dance with me. I don't care that you made out with my best friend for some weird power thing, I don't-. Lydia, I've had a crush on you since the third grade. And I know that somewhere inside that cold, lifeless exterior there's an actual human soul. And I'm also pretty sure that I'm one of the only ones who knows how smart you really are. Uh huh. And that once you're done pretending to be a nitwit, you'll eventually go off and write some insane mathematical theorem that wins you the Nobel Prize.” Stiles was slightly out of breath at the end of his rant and Lydia looked around for a few seconds, speechless, but me, it felt like I was about to be swallowed up by the hole that kept growing inside of me.

“Fields Medal.” Lydia finally said as Stiles’ face went blank and I started to pick at my manicured nails.

“What?” He asked, confused as Lydia stood up and walked over to him.

“Nobel doesn’t have a prize for mathematics. A Fields Medal is what I’ll be winning.” She said as she grabbed his hand and pulled him onto the dance floor, causing Stiles to fist pump and despite my sinking feeling, I couldn’t help but laugh and feel happy for my spastic friend.

“McCall!” Coach’s voice suddenly rang out over the music as he shoved dancing kids out of his way. “I see you! Come here, buddy. Come here. McCall! Get outta my way! McCall! It's a small gym, buddy. I'm gonna find you. I gotcha, McCall! Come here, come here! Get outta my way! McCall!”

I looked around, trying to spot my friend, only to find him dancing with... Danny? I let out a snort as Coach found them and a random spotlight suddenly shone down on them.

“McCall! You're not supposed to-. What the hell are you do-. What the hell are you doing?” Coach asked as the music stopped and quite literally everyone was giving him dirty looks, assuming that he didn’t like gay people when in all reality, Coach couldn’t care less.

“Yes, Coach?” Scott asked as he pulled himself closer to Danny, who looked like a deer in headlights and everything was silent for a minute.

“Okay.” A coach said before he started to laugh. “Hold on, you- I was just saying he's not supposed to-. I mean, I wasn't saying that he shouldn't-. You guys don't think -. You don't- I- I was-. Just dance, everybody. Just dance! Dance! It's a party!” Coach laughed nervously as he backed away. The music started again and everyone began to dance, immediately, Scott rushed away to, I’m assuming Allison, leaving Danny and his boyfriend to just stare awkwardly at each other before Danny grabbed the, no doubt, spiked drink and chugged.

The next song that came on was slow and still, not a single person asked to dance with me. I was right, I dressed up for literally nothing. My eyes drifted through the mass of dancing couples and I spotted Scott and Allison dancing together and I couldn’t help but smile, they were perfect for each other. 

My eyes continued their drift until they landed on Stiles and Lydia who looked like they were actually a couple. Stiles’ hands were around her waist and Lydia had one hand around his shoulders, the other clutching his arm, they each had their heads resting on each other’s shoulders. 

Suddenly, it felt like I was strapped to a runaway train that had just collided with a cement wall. I liked- no, I think I loved Stiles, I had this whole time. The fact that I always wanted to hang out with Stiles before Scott. The fact that I actually started to care about how I dressed. When I found out that Scott and Stiles were keeping me out of the werewolf loop, I was mainly mad at Stiles because of how angry he sounded when he said that Scott made out with Lydia. The pit in my stomach. I had only realized it because it seemed highly probable that Lydia and Stiles would be a thing soon and I knew I wouldn’t be able to handle that with my realization.

I quickly stood up and speed walked my way out of the school, fumbling to retrieve my keys with shaky hands. I slid into my car and drove home, feeling...blank, that is until I pulled into my driveway, that’s when the dam broke and the tears began to fall. I managed to make my way inside before sobs began to wrack my body.

“Liv? What’s wrong, honey?” My mom said as she made her way down the stairs, wrapping me in a hug.

“I-I think I love him, Mom, but he’s never go-onna see me as a-anything but a friend-d.” I sobbed.

“Who? Honey, who is it?” My mom asked as she held me and stroked my hair.

“Stiles. I think I’m in love with Stiles.”

After a very long, hot shower, I sat on the living room couch dressed in my tardis slippers, yoga pants, and my overly large Captain America hoodie, a tub of Salted Caramel Core resting in my lap and my damp, wavy hair, slowly soaking the back of my hoodie. My mom had gone to bed a few hours ago, but I was still up, blankly staring at whatever late night movie that was on, really just trying to figure out when I began to fall for my best friend.

I shoved my spoon into my mouth, trying to think back, but I was ripped out of my thoughts when a frantic knocking came from the front door. I groaned as I stood up, setting my ice cream on the coffee table and walking over to the door, complaining loudly.

“Ugh! It’s freaking midnight! Who could possibly want what from me at midnight on a Saturday?” I whipped the door open to find a very panicked Stiles, who seemed to immediately relax when he saw me, pulling me into a bear hug.

“Thank god you’re okay. I was so worried. You just disappeared from the dance and then Peter showed up and now Lydia’s in the hospital-” Stiles began to ramble but I cut him off.

“Okay, slow down. I’m fine. Now, why don’t you start with who Peter is.” I said as I lead Stiles inside and sat down on the couch ignoring the way that my heart fluttered when Stiles hugged me.

“So Peter is Derek’s uncle who killed Derek’s sister and became the alpha, killed lots of people, including Allison’s psycho aunt, who was part of Allison’s family of werewolf hunters. Allison’s aunt tried to convince Allison to kill not only Derek and Peter, but also Scott, but that didn’t work. Then you and Jackson come in with Molotov Cocktails and with Allison’s help, you guys burned Peter to a crisp, but then Derek kills what’s left of him, becoming the new alpha. Did I get that all right?” I asked, trying to process all of the information that Stiles had given me.

“Yeah, that’s right. The only thing that you missed was that during the dance, Peter bit Lydia who is now in the hospital, but she’s healing too slowly to be turning into a werewolf.” Stiles pointed out and I nodded.

“That is a lot of information.” I muttered as I took a bite of my ice cream.

“So why did you leave the dance?” He asked, and I focused all of my attention to the empty tub of salty deliciousness that rested in my lap.

“I wasn’t having any fun, in fact, I was kind of miserable.” 

“What went wrong?”

“You, Scott, Lydia and Allison were all busy. No one even bothered to ask me to dance even though I’m one of the best friends of the most popular girl in school. Overall it was just a bust that I was practically forced into, so I left.” I lied, setting my spoon into the tub.

I looked up and saw Stiles looking over every inch of my face with a slight smile, not saying a word.

“What?” I asked and Stiles shook his head, smiling.

“What do you say we have one more sleepover before you leave?” Stiles asked and the smile that grew on my face was so huge that it actually hurt.

“I’d like that.” I nodded, discarding my ice cream tub and climbing up the stairs to my room. Falling asleep curled up against my best friend and crush for what would be the last time for three months.

| Epilogue |