#i love how maddie seems so sure of herself holding the gun

[five-rivers]

Green Sky Highway

Phic Phight Phic for @deuynndoodles

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The Fenton Ecto Cell Bettery (aka the Better Battery) was designed to draw power from not only an internal, pre-charged store of ectoplasm, but also from ambient, atmospheric ectoplasm.  This meant that it would never run out of juice so long as it was in the Ghost Zone.  The Specter Speeder was designed to travel in the Ghost Zone.  Thus, the Betteries were the perfect power source for it.  In theory.  

In practice… Well, that just wasn’t working out, and Maddie didn’t know why.  She gripped the underside of the dash and tried to push herself deeper beneath it to get a better view of the machinery.  

“Maddie?  You see anything?” asked Jack, who couldn’t fit under the dash.  He’d been inspecting as much of the engine as he could from the inside, which wasn’t much.  The Speeder wasn’t designed to be serviced while free-floating in the Ghost Zone.  

Which, now that she thought of it, was a serious oversight.  

“Everything looks fine,” said Maddie.  “Except that it doesn’t have any power.  Nothing’s lighting up, but all the connections look good. You?”

“I can’t get anything to work.  Anything.  It’s like… we’re in some kind of technological dead zone.  But that doesn’t make sense.”

Maddie pulled herself out to see Jack vigorously scratching his head and shedding dandruff everywhere.  “Ghosts do tend to disrupt technology.”

“But we fixed that.  We designed all our weapons to work with that.”

“We know there are things we don’t know,” said Maddie, “and it’s always good to find new things!  Though not pleasant to find them out like this…”  They should really test their inventions more, honestly.  

But it had been over a year of testing since they opened the portal.  They had to jump in at some point, didn’t they?  That was the whole point of the portal.  

She sighed.  “Well, we didn’t have a lot of forward momentum when the portal cut out.”  She looked out the window.  “We could see if we can get out and engage our jetpacks.”

“Uh, about that,” said Jack.  He swung open the door to the jetpack cabinet.  The empty jetpack cabinet.  “I may have forgotten to put them back after refueling them.”

“Jack…”

“I know, I’m sorry.”

Maddie massaged the bridge of her nose with her mostly-clean knuckles.  This was a repeat of the handle inside the weapons vault.  At least he wasn’t pushing the blame for it back onto Danny or Jazz.  That would definitely have started a fight.  

On the other hand, there really wasn’t any guarantee the jetpacks would even still be functional, so maybe it was for the best. For certain values of best.  

She groaned.  

There was a knocking sound.  “Is that coming from the engine?” Maddie asked.  

“No…” said Jack, slowly.  “I think it came from the door…”

They both turned to stare.  Something moved outside it.  They shifted to get a better view out the window.  

Phantom was out there, tapping on the door with a ten-foot pole.  

“That little unnatural abomination,” cursed Jack under his breath.  “He’s going to scratch the paint!”

Phantom apparently saw them and waved.  “Hey!” he shouted, just loud enough to be heard through the walls of the Speeder.  “Do you guys need a lift?”

Jack and Maddie turned to each other.  

“How did he know we were here?”

“I don’t know,” said Jack.  “Do you think he followed us?”

“It wouldn’t be difficult, but I’m surprised he didn’t show up on our detectors.”

“He does seem to have the ability to drop off of them.”

“True,” said Maddie.  “So, how do we handle this?  Fenton bat?”

“I don’t know, Mads.  He might be, uh, sincere?  That time with the ectofiltrator he did help me.”

“That’s one, single, datapoint.  He’s a been a menace every other time we’ve encountered him.”

“I don’t know that we have much other choice,” said Jack, nodding towards the dead engines and the empty jetpack cabinet.

Maddie huffed out a sigh, then looked back at Phantom, who waved again.  

“Fine.  We still have to decide how to deal with him while we’re cooperating with him.  Or if he decides to show his true colors.”

“Good idea.”

.

Danny knew this had been a terrible, terrible idea the moment his parents opened the door to the Speeder armed to the teeth.  Why did they always feel the need to do that? None of the weapons, with the possible exceptions of the Fenton Bat and the Fenton Crowbar could even work here.

How his parents had, on their first jaunt into the Ghost Zone, managed to run smack into the Time Locked Lands was beyond him. They had to go to the one place in the Ghost Zone that the Speeder wouldn’t work and after coating the Speeder with some kind of anti-ghost spray that Danny absolutely refused to touch again.  Ever. Especially in ghost form.  Except with a ten-foot pole.

(If they’d left the spray off, he could have just pushed the Speeder back out of the Time Locked Lands.  But, no, they had to make everything as difficult and painful as possible.)

“I am not carrying all that,” said Danny, flatly.

(Especially because it would all turn back on once they left the Time Lost Lands, and if there wasn’t a Specter Deflector under all that, he’d eat his own belt.)

“Then we aren’t going anywhere with you!” proclaimed Maddie.  

“You’re stranded in the middle of the Ghost Zone. I don’t think you have a choice.”

“We do!”

“I could literally just fly over there and snatch you right now.  Plus, again, stranded.  Do you even have any food in there?”

“Of course we do!” said Maddie.  “We aren’t incompetent.”

Jack looked guilty.  Danny decided not to bring it up.

“Okay, but still, you’re going to run out eventually, and then you’ll still be floating in the Ghost Zone with no way to get out.  You aren’t going to get another friendly ghost coming by.”

“I’ve never seen a friendly ghost to begin with!”

“Maddie…”

“I can just leave, you know,” said Danny, planting his hands on his hips and bluffing for all he was worth.  He was not leaving his parents here to be used as hostages or who knew what else.  

Hopefully, they wouldn’t call the bluff.  They shouldn’t.  No sane, reasonable person would.  He was their only way out of this mess.  On the other hand, his parents had never been completely sane, reasonable people.  

Danny thought his odds were about fifty-fifty.  Which meant he could hope.  

Jack and Maddie had an intense, whispered conversation. This, thankfully, lead to them divesting themselves of most of their visible weaponry.  Which meant that they still had more guns on them than most professional soldiers during a firefight.  

Well, it was better than he’d expected.  But it was still too many.  

“Take the Specter Deflectors off,” he said.  “What do you think will happen if I try to carry you and you have those on.”

There was muttering.  

“Come on, come on,” said Danny, snapping his fingers. Which really shouldn’t work through his gloves but did anyway.  

Sometimes ghost nonsense was good for making lasers fly from your hands, and sometimes it was good for tiny aesthetic breaks in physics. It was a grab bag, really.  

“Alright,” said Danny.  “I’m going to fly over and pick you up.  Don’t hit me.”

Oh, jeez, he was not looking forward to carrying them all the way over to the portal.  Sure, he could bench press a school bus, but there was a difference between holding up a school bus for a minute and carrying two people who hated his guts a mile through enemy territory while flying slowly enough not to give them windburn.  

Sure, it’d probably only take a few minutes, even then, but those would be the longest few minutes in his entire life.  Not counting his actual death.  

.

Being carried by Phantom had to be the single worst experience in Jack’s entire life.  

It wasn’t the speed or the lack of control – he loved carnival rides – or the height – Jack couldn’t tell you how many buildings he’d jumped off in pursuit of ghosts – or even the fact that Phantom was a sinister specter, and ectoplasmic emanation, a putrid piece of protoplasm – he’d been carried by ghosts before, usually ones who were a lot more upfront about wanting to kill him.  

Actually, Jack didn’t know why he didn’t like it. He just didn’t.  

Maybe it was just how uncomfortable it was?  But Jack did way more uncomfortable things. Like interacting with his sister-in-law. Brr.  

Maybe it was the lurking feeling behind every interaction he ever had with Phantom that there was something he just wasn’t seeing, some hidden truth that would make everything about Phantom, every contradiction, every confusion, make sense.

Nah, that couldn’t be it.  Maddie would have figured it out by now.  That’s why they made such a great team.  He noticed the things she didn’t, and she noticed the things he didn’t.  

“You’re going the wrong way,” snapped Maddie.  

Just like that!

Wait.  That was a really bad thing.

“I’m not going the wrong way,” snapped Phantom.  “I’m avoiding Walker’s prison.  I don’t know how he didn’t catch you on your way out, but I’m not eager to be thrown in jail for a thousand years.”

“Ghosts have jail?” asked Jack surprised.  

“Depends where you are,” said Phantom.  “Walker isn’t really a sheriff, though.  There’s no government behind him and he just makes up rules randomly so he can lock up anybody he doesn’t like.”

“Like you,” observed Jack.  

“Why doesn’t it surprise me that you’re even wanted by whatever passes for the law here?”

“First, rude.  Secondly, there are realms in here that are just as organized and civilized as any country on Earth.  Just because you opened your portal into the equivalent of post-apocalyptic Detroit doesn’t mean it’s all like this.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” said Maddie.  

“I could arrange that, you know,” said Phantom, stilling.

Jack laughed nervously.  “Maybe another time?”  The ghost would do what it would do, but they didn’t need to encourage him to bring them even deeper into the Ghost Zone.  They were currently banking on Phantom’s obsession with heroics to get them home, but if they changed the equation…  Yeah, Jack didn’t want to deal with the consequences of that.  

Ghosts were like computers that ran only one program. One homicidal, destructive program.

It was like that thought experiment about an AI whose job was to maximize the number of paperclips.  It’d just keep on making more and more paperclips until nothing was left.  Which was why they had to be stopped.  

Easier said than done, as Jack and Maddie had learned.

“You don’t have to be so freaked out,” muttered Phantom. “It isn’t like I’m going to kidnap you or anything.”  He pretended to sigh.  

What was the point of that?  He had to know that Jack and Maddie wouldn’t fall for his tricks. Actually, come to think of it, he was miming breathing, too, and had been the whole time.  

Maybe that’s why Jack was so uncomfortable.  The constant undercurrent of deception.  

Hmmm… something to think on.  

“What’s that?” asked Maddie, pointing.  

“Uh,” said Phantom, who did a double take.  

Ooh, that wasn’t reassuring.  

.

Danny clenched his teeth, his parents’ reactions to him weren’t reassuring, and even less reassuring was the way Pariah’s Keep had moved from its usual creepy location and to this new creepy location. Not that there were any non-creepy locations in the Ghost Zone.  It was part of the place’s charm.  

No, really.  Some part of Danny craved the creepiness.  He was half-ghost, after all.  

(Even if his idea of creepiness was, according to his friends, sort of lame.)

But back to the main point.  The keep really, really shouldn’t be here.  And it was creeping him out.  

It should be okay to just… fly past it, though, right? Just being in its airspace in the past hadn’t done anything bad.  So, flying by with his parents in tow shouldn’t do anything either.  Right?

Danny put on more speed, just in case.  This coincided with a bunch of large ghost ravens (or were they crows?) dive bombing them and forcing him to land to defend himself and parents.  The only land around being the rim of the island that supported the keep.

He knew something like this would happen. Maybe not exactly this, but he just knew he’d be attacked and everything would devolve into nonsense, and—

Huh.  The birds weren’t attacking him, just his parents.  Oh, these were racist (mortalist?) birds.  Gross.  Trust Pariah Dark to have bigoted birds.  He called up a shield to protect his parents.  Whereupon they shot him in the back, shouting about how he betrayed them to the birds, because why not?  

Why was his life like this?

He pushed himself up off the ground.  Starbursts twinkled behind his eyes.  Neither his parents nor the crows were in sight.  The crows could have gone anywhere.  His parents on the other hand…

There was only one place they could have gone.  

Well.  At least none of the nonsentient traps would work on them, seeing as they were humans. What were the odds that they’d run into one of the sentient defenders?

Well… considering the ravens?

Yeah.  That’d be about one hundred percent.

.

“Maddie, I don’t know about this…” said Jack, examining the tall, vaulted ceiling.  

“We had to get away from Phantom.  This was the only way to go.”

“But he came here for a reason, Mads,” whispered Jack, tip-toing.

“Yeah, this is definitely a trap.  But what can we do?”

“Jack?  Maddie? This is not a place you want to wander around in! Oh, holy—” There was a loud thump.  

Maddie grabbed Jack’s hand and pulled him forward. “We have to get away from him.”

“Come on!  This is a floating island!  I’m your only way off!  Why are you like this?”

“He has a point,” said Jack.  

Maddie stopped.  “I guess he does.”

“This is literally the worst place you could have picked to run away!”  A sound like a very large door opening and closing reached their ears.  “This is Pariah Dark’s place!  Where did you even go?”

“Mads?”

“Yeah?”

“Who’s Pariah Dark?”

“I think that was the name of the ghost that sucked the town into the Ghost Zone a few months ago.”

“Please, guys!  I’m trying to help you here!  This place is ultra-dangerous!  You could accidentally – yikes! – wake up Pariah Dark.”  

“Maybe we should…”

“Yeah,” said Maddie, “maybe we should.”

“Phantom!” called Jack.  “Phantom!  We’re over—” The floor opened up underneath them and they fell into the dark.  

.

Maddie woke to a dark room, tied to a chair.  She noticed the faintly glowing ghost in front of her and jolted backwards.

The ghost wore a set of painted and engraved plate armor, a pair of lavender-white eyes glowing from behind the slats of its visor.  A knight, of sorts, Maddie supposed.  

“You…” droned the ghost in a painfully stereotypical ghostly moan.  “Enemies of the king… why have you come here?”

“Huh?”

That was Jack’s voice.  He was tied behind her, apparently.  

“We don’t have anything to say to you,” snapped Maddie.

“Uh,” said Jack.  Something twisted behind Maddie.  “Are you a friend of Phantom?”

“A friend?  A friend?”

“I’m going to take that as a no,” muttered Maddie.  

The door of the room flew off its hinges.  “Fright Knight!” shouted Phantom, pointing a glowing finger.  “Wait, you aren’t Fright Knight.  Who are you, and what do you want with my- With, uh, the Fenton ghost hunters?  Who I don’t know very well at all. Promise.”

“What,” said the ghost.  

“What,” said Maddie.  

“What,” said Jack.  

“Okay, forget everything I just said.”  He gestured at the ghost.  “Who are you?”

“My name is Paladin, my liege.”

“Okay, okay, cool, cool.  I- Wait, what?  What did you call me?”

“My liege?”

Phantom looked like he was having an existential crisis.  

“Maddie was right!” exclaimed Jack, who couldn’t see Phantom’s face.  “You did lead us into a trap!”

“What?  No?  I’ve never even met this guy before!  You are a guy, right?”

“Yes, my liege.”

“Right.  I’m going to put that on the backburner and freak out about it later.  How are you- Why are you—” Phantom shook his head.  “Why are you here in Pariah’s Keep?”

“It’s your keep.”

“Since when?”

“Say what now?” asked Jack and Maddie at once.  

“Look, this is news to me, too.  But, back to the question.  You.  The keep. Why?  I mean, you weren’t here before.”

“That is because Pariah sealed me, my liege.  When you defeated him, I was released and immediately swore fealty to the true king.  You.”

“I am so freaking out right now, but we’ll revisit that. Later.  Right now, I have to get these guys home.”

“But they have hostile intentions towards your person, my liege!”

“Everyone has hostile intentions towards me.  I’m honestly surprised you haven’t attacked me yet.”

“Ah.  My liege, perhaps you should seek the services of a priest, if all your experiences with new people are such.”

“Is that the medieval equivalent of a therapist?”

“I fear I do not know what that is.  Why do you ask?”

“Because the last time I talked to one of those, they purposefully picked at every one of my insecurities and then tried to murder my, uh.  Someone close to me.”

“An evil counselor, then,” said the knight, gravely.

“I want to agree with you, but somehow I feel like you’re talking about something completely different than the image in my head.”

“That may be true, my liege.  Doubtless, you are very wise.”

Maddie was… lost.  

Very lost.  

Even so, her prerogative was escaping.  She started twisting, trying to get to the knots around her wrists.  

“Did you, uh, pilot the castle out here?”

“Yes.  I sensed that mortal enemies of the king, that’s you—”

“I will debate that as soon as my brain stops screaming at me.”

“—had entered the Realm.”

“Right.  Yeah. Thank you.  But I can handle these guys.  And I need to get them home.  Please. I made a deal with them.”

“With these?”

“Hey!” said Jack, offended.  

“I mean, I use the term deal pretty loosely.”

“Hey!”

“But yes.  Please.  Just.  Dang.  How did you tie them up that quickly?”

“It’s a hobby.”

“Do you mind if I take the chairs?”

“They are your chairs, my liege.”

“I’m still not used to that.”

“Are you quite certain you want to take them?  And just… Let them loose?  The dungeon here is very functional.  We even have an oubliette.”

“Raincheck.  But thank you.  Really, I mean it.”  Phantom flew behind Maddie, and she protested as the chair she was in was yanked upward. “Uh… I might have gotten turned around a time or two, so if you could…”

“Of course!  The keep does seem to have sustained some damage, so we will have to take some detours.”

“Phantom!  Phantom! Put us down and untie us.”

“Nah, I think I like this better.  Your kids can untie you once I bring you back!”

“You’re going to drag us all the way through the Ghost Zone?”

“That’s the plan.”

.

The rest of the flight was surprisingly pleasant. No one attacked, and his parents were much easier to carry in the chairs.  Sure, they struggled, but the struggling was much more manageable than the wriggling from before.  

They were mad at him.  But they were always mad at him.  So.  

No loss, really.

With the utmost carefulness, Danny set them down in the middle of the lab, still tied up, and then began zapping then tossing their most troublesome inventions into the gaping maw of the portal while they screamed at him.  

Normally, he wouldn’t do this, especially after successfully rescuing his parents and hopefully raising their opinion of him, but some of those inventions were painful.  Like.  A lot painful.  And dangerous.  Also, he was doing his level best to avoid thinking about the whole ‘king’ thing.  

Which he couldn’t do forever.  

Especially since Jazz walked down the stairs, probably drawn by the screaming, to see Danny shoving half of the Ghost Catcher through the portal sans-strings.  

“Uh,” said Danny.  

“Get that ghost, Jazzy-pants!”

Danny vanished and fled upstairs.  

.

Jazz had seen many strange things in her life, but that scene was one of the weirder ones.  

It took some time to untie her parents, longer to extract herself from the ensuing rant and their attempt to salvage their equipment from Danny’s all-too-explicable rampage.  Honestly, she was surprised Danny hadn’t snapped earlier.  

She opened the door to his room.  It was empty.  She squinted. He was not just leaving her hanging like that, with no context to what happened other than their parents’ ranting.  She opened her door.  

Danny was lying on his side on the middle of her rag rug, hugging Bearbert Einstein.  

“A ghost told me I was king and that I needed a priest.”

Oh boy.  

#danny phantom #phic phight #phic phight 2021

[lexosaurus]

I Love You

My fic for day 5 of DP Side Hoes Week (yes I’m a day behind). 

Character: Jazz Theme: Hospital

This oneshot exists within my Everything Was White fic series [ao3]. You do NOT have to be following Everything Was White to understand this fic, this one exists as a prequel in the timeline and I give enough context in the text for anyone to be able to understand it. 

Okay, enjoy!

---

Jazz sat on the armchair, her gaze blank. Hazy. She hadn’t moved since she sat down some time ago. Time moved without reason, and she wasn’t sure how long it had been. Her back hurt and her lips were chapped, but she hardly noticed her discomfort.

The only thing that mattered was the person laying on the bed before her.

The person she hardly recognized.

Four weeks. That’s how long he had been missing from their lives, that’s how long the Guys in White had him. Twenty-eight days on the dot.

She could never forget his eyes as he was dragged out the door. They were wild, desperately staring down their parents who were both pinned down by government agents with guns trained to their heads. He screamed, struggling against his captures. 

But it wasn’t enough. 

Because in the end, he was thrown in the back of a white van. All while Jazz stood on the stairs doing nothing. 

She should have freed him. She could have helped. But she was too weak. 

Too weak.

Her eyes stung, and she wanted to cry. Break down. Sob. But she had already used up her stock of tears hours ago, when she finally saw him for the first time since he’d be transferred out of critical care.

He was frail, tiny. Nothing but skin and bones. His body was scarred, torn, encased in gauze and casts. Doctors fluttered about, talking in hushed tones as they analyzed her brother’s body. They tried not to show it, but Jazz knew they were baffled by him.

There was talk about his injuries. He hadn’t woken up yet, at least not completely, but Jazz was already told of the more...drastic injuries.

The Y scar on his chest.

The paralysis.

The starvation.

No one knew what the permanent effects were going to be. No one knew how he was going to fair once he woke up. But there was one thing they all knew for certain, a truth that none of the Fentons had said out loud yet: 

Danny was not going to be the same anymore.

She crumbled, allowing her head to fall into her hands. Apparently, she still had more tears to give. A sob tore its way from her throat, pulling with it a wave of emotions that Jazz had just spent the last few hours desperately trying to repress.

She was tired. So, so tired. And yet, this nightmare refused to end.

“Danny, I—I’m so sorry.” Jazz’s voice was raw. The naked truth was hanging right there in front of her, the consequences of her complete failure. 

She should have been there for him during the ghost fight. The one between him and Skulker that ultimately led to his revelation right there high in the skies in front of the entire town. She could have helped him.

She should have known the Guys in White would then come surround their house and take him.

She should have tried harder to find him and break him out of the government compound. They tried so hard, but they couldn’t find the stupid building.

She should have practiced her questions better in court. Maybe then the jury would have decided sooner. She could have gotten him released before he was hurt so bad.

“I’m sorry.”

He didn’t respond.

“I love you so much, Danny. I’m so sorry.”

He didn’t respond.

---

“You alright there, son?” Jack asked. He tried to smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

It didn’t seem to matter. Jazz doubted Danny even heard their father’s question. She was honestly questioning if he even realized they were in the room.

His eyes wandered around the room as if he were still trying to take in the walls of the hospital. He woke up four days ago, and yet every day had been the same blank wandering gaze. 

Jazz hoped it was just the pain medication the hospital was giving him. She desperately clung onto the belief that her brother would snap out of it one day and would come home and he would be back to normal.

Back to how he was before.

“Your mother and I are going to meet with the surgeon.” Jack put an arm around Maddie, pulling her into his side. 

Her face was white, streaked with red as if she’d been crying recently, and the bags under her eyes had never been so pronounced. But Jazz couldn’t blame her. After all, she probably looked more or less the same.

“Stay with Danny, alright? We’ll come grab you after.”

“Sure, Dad,” Jazz said, putting on a smile she hoped was comforting.

Her mother muttered something that Jazz didn’t catch, and then both parents were gone. 

And Jazz was alone. With Danny.

Again.

She turned back to face him. The doctors had said that he’d sustained significant brain damage, and they weren’t sure yet how much communication he would be able to do. He was too drugged up still, too out of it. 

He couldn’t speak, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t understand her.

Or maybe that was her hopeful side talking again. She shouldn’t get her hopes up. She would only be hurt in the end.

“Hey, Danny,” Jazz tried. Her voice was thin. Dry. She tried to wet her lips and spoke again. “I don’t know if you can hear me, but I hope you’re comfortable. If you were wondering, you broke your spine. I mean, I’m sure you already knew that but—” Her voice cracked. “—you know. That’s why you, um, might be uncomfortable right now. It’s the brace.”

He didn’t respond. He didn’t even look at her.

Just continued staring at the ceiling.

Jazz wondered if anything was going through his mind. If he had any questions. She would if she were Danny. 

She tried to imagine the sort of things he would say. His voice, crackling through the throes of puberty, as he poked fun at her in that annoying way only a brother could accomplish. She tried to envision a world where he could still do that.

And she tried not to think about the fact that there was a good chance that she’d never hear his voice again.

“Your SCI was incomplete, you know. So there’s still a chance…” Jazz shook her head. 

There she was getting hopeful again. 

“Everyone really missed you, Danny. I—I really missed you.”

He blinked slowly. In her imagination, Jazz heard him say “I missed you too.”

“I love you.”

He didn’t respond.

---

“What band are we in the mood for today?” Jazz asked, scrolling through her playlist.

Danny was starting to come to. He seemed to be able to hold eye contact, albeit not for very long, and his minute facial expressions showed at least some understanding of what was happening around him.

Although, he still hadn’t spoken yet.

Jazz glanced brightly down at him. Now that she knew he was conscious of her presence, she couldn’t afford to show up at the hospital in sweats with her tear-stained face anymore. She had to be there for him. She had to be strong.

Maybe she had been too weak to help him before. Maybe back then, she had failed him.

But she would be damned if she wasn’t strong enough to help him now.

“What do you think? MCR? Blink-182?” she asked. “I got these band names from Sam, by the way. So if she lied to me about what music you listen to now, don’t blame me.”

Danny just stared at her with his owl-ish expression.

“Here, if you want, you can choose.” Jazz held her phone screen out in front of him, watching as his eyebrows scrunched up ever so slightly as he gazed up at the screen.

Jazz felt her smile falter for a split second before she pulled her phone away and straightened herself up on her chair.

She had to be strong.

“It’s okay, I’ll just choose one.” She tapped the screen and set her phone down. 

The sound of over-compressed guitars filled the tiny bluetooth speaker on the windowsill, and Jazz beamed down at Danny, waiting for that tiny flicker of recognition to hit his face.

And, to her delight, some of the fog in his eyes momentarily lifted. He looked over to Jazz as if he were seeing her for the first time, the shock and disbelief seeping through the blank slate that was his expression.

Jazz was hardly able to keep the glee out of her voice. “You like it?”

His eyes flickered between Jazz and the bluetooth speaker. Back and forth again before settling back on the ceiling.

“Well, I’ll have to thank Sam for the recommendation later! She can’t wait to see you, you know. The doctors are only allowing family in your room right now, but maybe next week if you’re feeling up to it, Sam and Tucker can stop by. I don’t want to make any promises right now, but you never know.”

Danny’s eyes slowly traveled around the ceiling.

“Are you thirsty?” Jazz asked. “Hungry? Well, you’re probably not hungry. Doctors have been monitoring your nutrient intake a lot. I’m glad, too, because you have some color in your face again.”

His eyes shut, and a content smile twitched on his face.

Jazz couldn’t remember the last time he’d looked so peaceful.

“I love you, Danny.”

He didn’t respond. 

---

Danny was home now. That should have been a good thing. 

It should have been.

And it was. In so many ways, it was wonderful having him home again.

But in so many other ways, it wasn’t.

Jazz had been under some illusion that once he made it home, things would go back to normal. Sure, he would be in a wheelchair until his PT started, and he might not be able to turn into a ghost for a few weeks either, but her brother would be home. 

Except, Danny never came home. Physically, he did. But mentally he was still trapped somewhere far away.

He was talking now at least. He’d started talking the week before he’d left the hospital. He wasn’t able to speak in full sentences, at least not without pausing, and he wasn’t able to really understand long sentences either, but this was a start.

Jazz wanted to hope that things would get better, but hope was a dangerous drug.

After all, even though he’d started speaking again, he still refused to talk about what happened to him. Anytime Jazz would try to bring the conversation up, he’d clam up and close off for the rest of the day.

And that hurt. It hurt so bad. She so desperately wanted to be there and support him, to help him talk through the trauma he’d experienced, but he just didn’t want to.

But that was okay. It had to be okay. She had to be strong.

She stood in front of his door, pausing only to compose herself before knocking.

He didn’t acknowledge her knock, but Jazz wasn’t expecting him too. He was trying to isolate himself, and Jazz wasn’t going to let him.

She’d already failed him once. 

“Good morning, Danny!” Jazz bursted into the room, her voice chipper despite the fact that she hadn’t slept last night.

She doubted that Danny did either.

Danny was lying on top of his comforter, already dressed. Their mom must have gotten him situated before shutting herself down in the lab.

Their parents seemed to be doing that a lot lately.

“Come on, get up. I come bearing an activity!”

“Too early,” Danny grumbled.

Jazz ignored him, sauntering into the room brandishing a large, easy piece jigsaw puzzle she’d just ran out to buy that morning.

It was hard to find one for kids that wasn’t either a princess castle or a race car scene. Fortunately, the store had one on sale that had colorful, cartoon baby ghosts covering the image.

“Either you get up, or I drag you up. Either way, you’re doing this puzzle with me.”

“Puzzle?” Danny asked.

Jazz tried not to stare as he struggled upright, only swooping in to set his pillows upright behind him. “Yeah, puzzle.”

She set the box down in front of him, pulling off the lid and revealing the large pieces in front of him.

“That’s...so Boring.”

“Well, the doctors still want you avoiding screens for a little while longer. I figured this was better than staring at the wall.”

Danny eyed the box, his face impassive. 

“Here, wait.” She went out into the hallway, grabbing a large piece of cardboard from the wall. “I brought something to make the puzzle on. Figured it would be easier than the mattress.”

“Okay.” He picked up one of the pieces, inspecting it slowly as if he couldn’t quite figure out what it was.

“So…” Jazz plopped herself down on the mattress next to Danny and put the cardboard over their laps. “What do you think we should do first?”

Danny gazed blankly down, his eyes trailing between the cardboard and the puzzle piece in his hand. He blinked, and then put the puzzle piece down on the cardboard.

“Okay, we can start with that one!” Jazz chirped.

“No…” Danny ran his hand through his hair. “No that’s not...need to sort.”

“Oh?” Jazz grabbed another piece from the box. “So what should I do with this one then?”

Danny gazed quizzically over at Jazz, grabbing the piece to inspect it. “Edge,” he finally said, setting the piece down on the opposite side of the board from the first piece.

“So we’re sorting the edge pieces from the regular pieces?” 

Danny hummed, grabbing another piece from the box.

“Sounds like a good plan!”

They worked together in near silence after that, Jazz only stopping every so often when she could feel Danny’s attention slipping to ask him to help her sort a piece. It was almost cute how determined he was to complete the task correctly. It almost reminded Jazz of the quiet determination that would slip onto his features in the moments just before he transformed into Phantom. 

Solving the puzzle was a whole different beast. If Jazz were honest, she wasn’t sure if they would have been able to finish in one sitting. Danny still tired far too rapidly throughout the day, and he still slept for more hours than he was awake.

But finally Danny snapped the last piece into place, completing their simple blob ghost picture.

“Nice job!” Jazz put her hand up for a high five.

Danny blinked, slowly processing the motion, before his brain caught up and he gave a little smirk, a tiny eye roll, but met Jazz’s hand all the same.

She put the cardboard with the now completed puzzle on the floor before sitting back against the fluffy pillows. Breathing out, she allowed herself to sink back into the cushions for just a moment.

She was so tired. 

Her brain swirled, and she wanted to sink deeper into the darkness. But she couldn’t. She wasn’t allowed to.

“Are you asleep?” Danny asked.

“No.”

“Oh. Okay.”

A quiet trepidation settled over the pair. Jazz could feel the unspoken questions hanging in the air like forbidden fruit ripe for picking. But the apples were just out of reach, and she knew the branches wouldn’t sink lower until Danny was ready. 

But he had to come home first. He would never be ready to tell her what happened until he finally came back to them. And Jazz didn’t know how long that would take.

“I love you,” Jazz said.

Danny didn’t respond.

---

Thanks for reading!

#danny phantom #dp side hoes week 2021 #everything was white #no beta!! #my writing #phicc #i'll probs go back like next week and actually edit this oneshot #but not rn during the event week

[flutteringdreams-matw]

Out of Time (6)

First/Last

Read on AO3

Word Count: 6032

Previously: Vlad and Maddie talk about cores. Clockwork gives some answers and proposes more questions. Dani shows up at Val's.

Now: Some exposition before Dan and Danny round 2 - ghost zone edition. Fight scene (T rated, cw for choking)

Link to the next chapter will be in the replies once posted. As always - please let me know what you think!

---

"Let me get this straight," Valerie started, eying the young girl across from her from the stovetop. She turned the pancake over in the pan and nudged it slightly. "You just happened to show up a few days ago from the Ghost Zone and just… hung out in the town when Phantom put the shield up? All on your own?"

Dani nodded, putting another piece of her pancake in her mouth. "Yep," she said, mouth full. "Not hard really – ghosts don't need to eat much. With that shield up, none of the natural portals have opened in the city – and I wasn't just going to leave."

Valerie put another pancake on the table before pouring more batter into the pan. "And you didn't reach out to your cousin because…"

Dani frowned. "Something's wrong," she said worriedly. "This isn't like Danny; this shield … whatever reason it's up is because he wants to protect the town. He and the Fentons must be facing something big and I don't want to get in their way."

Valerie turned the stove off, adding the last pancake to the stack between them, before she plopped herself at the table. Putting her head in her arm, she looked across at the young girl with a frown. "I don't think Phantom would mind. He seemed pretty worried about you the last time you were here."

Dani smiled. "Of course he wouldn't," she agreed. "The Fentons would love for me to stay too. But they've done so much for me and I don't want to be a burden. Or Danny worrying about me on top of everything else." She grabbed another pancake from the stack between the teens and helped herself. "Besides, other than the Fentons… my only options were you, a Ghost Hunter, or Vlad. I figured I'd chance it."

Valerie frowned in disgust at the mention of the mayor. "Yikes."

Sensing the girl's conflict, Dani waved her off. "It's fine. Vlad gets all of us at the beginning. Besides, you and Danny worked together to save me; figured you couldn't be all bad."

Valerie opened her mouth to argue that she didn't regularly team up with the ghost kid but stopped herself. This kid was all alone and was worried about Phantom, the only tangible relative she had. While Valerie had her opinions about the ghost teen, she couldn't burst this girl's bubble. Besides, if she managed to get information from the girl, it'd be a bonus.

"Sorry about dinner, Dad's working the night shift and pancakes are my go-to in times like this."

Dani grinned. "Are you kidding? Pancakes are the best! I mean… I didn't even know what they were until now!"

Valerie chuckled; she knew she liked this kid. The two girls sat in a comfortable silence for a little bit, before the news bulletin from earlier that day repeated with sharp shrill. Dani whirled around, the grin sliding off her face as she watched the fight from earlier. "Danny…" she whispered worriedly. The half-ghost turned around, distraught. "Is he okay?"

Valerie sighed; wincing again as she watched Phantom fall right after his last attack, Lance Thunder appearing to a repeat of what he witnessed. "I don't know," she answered honestly.

"We need to help him!" Dani exclaimed, a ring of light appearing at her waist. Valerie stared at it for a moment, remembering how the ghost girl transformed, before running and putting her hands on Dani's shoulders.

"Hold up - That was hours ago," the older teen replied soothingly. "There's no way of knowing where he would go if injured. Or if those ghosts were on his side."

Dani pouted, the light disappearing. "But –"

Valerie sighed. "I know you're worried, but Phantom's – and I can't believe I'm saying this – strong. I'm sure he'll be fine. The blasted ghost just doesn't stay down. If he's not back to his insufferable self by tomorrow, then you should worry."

Dani stared at the girl, a look of confusion dancing across her face before it lit up in realization. "Oh," she exclaimed softly. "He didn't tell you, did he?"

Valerie frowned in confusion. "Tell me what?"

"Nevermind," Dani replied quickly, brushing her off. She smiled gratefully. "You're right – I'll call the Fenton's tomorrow. If anyone knows where Danny Phantom might be, it'd be them." Valerie's face went from curious to uncomfortable very quickly. "What?" Dani asked, worried that she might have upset the girl.

Valerie looked away from her. "That'll be all you," she said, cheeks turning red. "My only contact with the Fentons is through Danny. He and I might be civil, but I really don't want to talk to my ex about this. He gets enough ghost stuff from his parents."

Dani was silent for a moment, before smiling from ear to ear. "Hold up….Danny Fenton is your ex?" she asked sneakily. Valerie nodded, bewildered as the two teens stared at each other. Finally, Dani burst out laughing, pointing and making noises.

"What!? He's scared of ghosts!" Valerie continued over the girl's laughter. "If we stayed together, ghosts would use him as bait to get to me!"

Dani laughed harder still, tears in her eyes. Valerie sighed glumly, watching as her new house guest laugh herself to the floor.

:-=-:

Everything hurt. Everything. The raw energy that now flooded him was only just holding Dan at bay. The evil ghost yelled something over the strong crackles of electricity and howls of the wind. Was this what Clockwork warned him of? Was this all he could do? It couldn't be.

He was tired – run ragged from everything he endured. He let his own powers push outward, feeling not only raw but core energy expend out of him.

The Ecto-Storm released – pain….the world exploded in pain.

Green eyes met a pair of fearful eyes in a distance – two pairs? –

An explosion and it all went dark…

Danny gasped as he awoke, looking around widely as he readjusted from his nightmare. He was sitting with his back against his door, looking inward into his room. Did I just pass out? Everything seemed so much bigger from down here, so far away. Danny frowned as he remembered his conversation with Clockwork and Ethelwulf. Was this another glimpse of the future?

Danny stood slowly, grabbing the door quickly as his knees buckle. He felt his core shift violently at the sudden movement. "Come on," he muttered, shaking his head. Almost as if responding, his core quieted and he felt stronger, standing up on his own. Danny frowned -There were no sparks violently going through him, his base powers were holding. If Sam was right… then what he just saw will happen. Danny shuddered as that thought went through him, bile rising from the back of his throat. "Get a grip," he muttered. "It could be worse."

Sure – keep telling yourself that Phantom voiced from the back of his mind.

A small explosion from downstairs erased his rebuttal. Danny furrowed his brow as he opened the door cautiously. Another sound, this time from an ecto-gun, came up from the lab. "Hello?" Danny called from the top of the stairs. When no response came, he sped down the stairs and down to the lab. "Mom? Dad?" As he reached the bottom he stopped, suddenly taken aback by the commotion in the lab.

His parents were at opposite ends of the lab; his Mom was facing off against Jazz and Sam with various weapons and tactics while his Dad, Ethelwulf and Tucker were hunched over at the main console in deep conversation. He looked at both ends of the lab, half amused, half relieved at what he was walking into.

"Overwhelming – isn't it?"

Danny jumped as Clockwork appeared beside him, his time staff resting on the ground softly. Blue eyes met red for a moment as the world continued beyond them. Danny chuckled slightly. "Nah, I'm used to it," he replied with a genuine smile as he turned back to the multiple activities of the lab.

Clockwork stared at Danny, regarding him in pity. "That's not what I meant," the old ghost told him. Danny's smile fell slightly, but he didn't look at Clockwork. "I would be surprised if it wasn't overwhelming; you're only fifteen. You've had to deal with Time in ways none of us have before. Just remember you are not alone; you do not have to suffer through these visions on your own."

Danny said nothing, standing in silence next to the Time Master as he watched his friends and family interact with each other. "You're right," he said, finally turning to Clockwork. Clockwork raised an eyebrow, inviting the boy to go on. "I had another vision. Whatever these things are, the one thing I know is I'm going to face Dan." Danny crossed his arm and frowned in thought. "If only there was some way to find out –"

"No," Clockwork interrupted sternly. Danny jumped, wide-eyed at the tone. "Even if there were, the less you learn about the future the better." Clockwork floated lower to the half-ghost's eye level. The harshness in his eyes softened slightly. "Trust me Danny, having the knowledge of time is one thing; having to make decisions based on that knowledge? It is the greatest burden of all." The boy's blue eyes met the tired, sad red eyes of the ghost and saw the turmoil behind the words. They stood staring at each other for a few moments, before Clockwork sighed, looking upward. With a small nod, Clockwork disappeared abruptly, bringing Danny's attention back to the occupants of the lab.

He looked between his parents again, realizing none of them had noticed his entrance. Deciding that he didn't want to be hit by a stray ecto-blast from Jazz, Danny made his way over to his father, mentor and best friend.

Sensing movement, Jack looked up from the screen briefly, before beaming. "Danny! Perfect timing!" he boomed, waving him over. "We were just going over your files."

Danny frowned apprehensively. "The ones on Dan?"

"No- the other secret Ghost files," Tucker said sarcastically, not looking up from the screen. Danny glared half-heartedly in his direction, but gestured for him to continue. "I've been pointing out the attacks we know he has for sure – this way we can figure out how to defend ourselves." He typed something into the computer, hitting the final key emphatically. Blueprints for a large ghost shield appeared on the main monitor. Finally, the dark skinned teen turned to half-ghost. "Your parents have a large shield schematic ready to go – they're just missing one thing."

Danny blinked. "Which is?"

"Dan's ecto-signature," Jack replied. Danny looked at him wide-eyed. "If we can specify the difference between you and him, we can adapt the shield's programming to keep Dan out and not hurt you in the process." The larger man put his hand on Danny's shoulder, making him stumble. "If we can get that shield up and running, you can heal up properly."

Danny shot him a grateful smile. "That's a great idea!" he exclaimed. Danny's eyes ran over the screen, recognizing some of the data on the screen. When he realized what was missing, he frowned slightly. "This isn't going to be easy – while Dan has half of my ecto-signature, he also has half of someone else's."

"Right," Ethelwulf confirmed, yellow eyes scanning a different screen. "Though from your files, you indicate that Dan had shifted forms to look like you and that he has a heat core. However, ghost cores don't change much at a molecular level – even when altered."

"Think of it like water," Jack continued. "Molecularly, stays the same but its form shifts; Even when frozen or as a gas."

"We believe that this secondary ecto-signature was a catalyst for your core to shift," Ethelwulf explained. "If this alternate version of you had an ice core during the time of the merge, then it changed into a heat core during this process but did not drastically change your ecto-signature."

Danny looked between Ethelwulf and his father in confusion. "Doesn't that mean we have the same ecto-signature?"

"Not quite," Jack said. "Remember, Jazz sent the boooo-merang into the zone to find you. It keyed into you – not the other you. Don't you see?"

Danny looked at Tucker for assistance. "Not really," he admitted.

"Basically even though it might be small, there is a difference between your ecto-sig and Dan's," Tucker answered determinedly. "All we have to do is figure out what aspect is more like Plasmius' ecto-signature, reverse the coding to prevent that ecto-signature being the one kept out of the shield and we'll be all set."

Jack blinked, before turning to Danny suddenly. "Wait - Plasmius is the other ecto-signature!?" he asked incredulously. Tucker flinched under the glare Danny sent his way. Danny sighed, nodding but did not elaborate further. The boy's demeanour changed; reserved and subdued. Jack frowned as his son stared at the schematics, hardened blue eyes lost in thought. "Hey – this is a good thing Danny! We have all the pieces we need to create the shield." He nudged Danny slightly, smiling reassuringly at his son. "It's a solid plan. You just have to trust us."

Danny shot his father a small smile. "I do," he said gratefully. Jack clapped Danny on the shoulder once more before turning back to Ethelwulf in conversation.

Tucker chuckled. "You seriously need to lighten up," he joked. "Between your Dad, Ethelwulf and this Techno geek, this shield will be up no problem!"

Danny smiled at his friend's enthusiasm and attempt to make him feel better. "I don't doubt it," he said. Danny looked his friend up and down, finally realizing something was different. "Tuck…. What are you wearing?"

Tucker smiled widely, puffing out his chest. The red beret was still there, but instead of his street clothes, Tucker was in a mustard yellow jumpsuit with dark green gloves and boots. Over his chest, he had two straps creating an X full of small pouches. "You parents thought it was time we had our own jumpsuits in case we have to be in the field. We got to design some of those jumpsuits that your Dad didn't have a chance to dye orange yet."

"We?" Danny asked, raising an eyebrow. Tucker rolled his eyes exasperatedly, muttering something under his breath before pointing to the other side of the lab. As Danny's eyes followed, he noticed his sister in an almost identical jumpsuit as his Mom's with the same X pattern as Tucker's on her back.

When his eyes found Sam, his breath hitched in his throat; her jumpsuit was a deep purple with black boots and gloves, with a small black flower on her back. She too, had straps along her torso, but most had a few ecto-guns attached at her back. She flipped gracefully in the air, a smug smile on her face as she dodged his Mom's staff and released the Jack-o-Nine tails, leaving the older Fenton unarmed. He couldn't keep his eyes off her; the world's sound disappeared as she became the only thing he could focus on. She was… he couldn't even describe what he was feeling right now. Vaguely, he heard Tucker talking at him, but it was drowned out by his heart pounding in his eardrums.

"Come on Space Cadet," Tucker said, smirking as he pulled the boy away from the console and toward the sparring women.

"What?" he replied dumbly, blinking owlishly at his friend.

Tucker chuckled. "Oh man," he murmured to himself. "Sam better appreciate this."

"What!?" Danny asked again, his voice going a bit higher in pitch.

Maddie waved her hand in the air, stopping the sparring match as the two boys approached. "You girls are getting much better," she said confidently, putting a hand on her hip. "Jazz – your weapon control is steadily improving. You might be able to handle the weapons that require higher precision now!"

"Finally!" the red head exclaimed in triumph. She wiped her brow and turned to Sam. "You've got to teach me that sliding tackle you used on Mom – it was wicked."

Sam smiled proudly. "Definitely." Noticing her two best friends on the sidelines, she turned slightly toward them. "Next time, we can give these two a run for their money."

Tucker held up his hands in surrender at the girl's suggestion. "I'm all for training, but not for getting destroyed by you. You do that enough in video games. Right Danny?" The boy in question did not answer, continuing to gape unbecomingly at Sam. Tucker sighed and locked eyes with an amused Jazz.

Before Jazz could comment on her brother's state, Maddie tugged her arm away from the group of teens. "Come on Jazz, let's help your father with that shield," she teased, a small smile across her lips.

"Mom!" Jazz whined, watching her opportunity to tease her brother move farther away as her Mom dragged her from the teens.

Sam watched them go, confused, before turning back to her friend. "What's with him?" she asked, tilting her head in confusion. Tucker shrugged, looking exasperated. Sam waved her gloved hand in front of Danny. "Hello? Earth to Danny?"

Danny blinked as he stepped back. "Purple!" he blurted out, startled. Tucker covered his face forcefully and groaned at his friend's lack of control.

"Purple?" Sam repeated, confused. "Oh! You mean this!" She gestured to her jumpsuit. "Pretty cool right? I was going to use black, but it'd look too much like yours." When Danny didn't say anything else, she frowned. "What? Not Goth enough?"

Finally shaking out of his stupor, Danny shook his head. "Just… purple's a nice colour on you," he said. Sam blinked, before her face turned slightly pink, making Danny's go slightly pink as well.

Tucker looked up at the ceiling in exasperation as his two best friends continued to stare awkwardly. "Hopeless," he said with a sigh. "Utterly hopeless." Deciding that it was time to break whatever spell they had on each other he turned to the half-ghost of the group with his hand on his hip. "How are you doing after today?"

Danny made a face. "It's… a lot," he said after a while. He turned away from his friends, staring at the portal as memories flashed before his eyes. "You guys weren't there – at the end I mean. How close it was. Now… it's a whole lot bigger than just beating him."

Sam frowned. "The time visions?"

"Not just them," Danny admitted, looking briefly at his family at the console. "If I was him-"

"Which you're not," Tucker said pointedly.

"Which I'm not," he agreed sardonically. "I wouldn't want to recreate the accident. I would want revenge." Danny started pacing, frowning in worry. "That battle this morning? He was toying with me – trying to see what I can do. Now he's somewhere in the Ghost Zone planning who knows what and I have no idea how to stop him."

Tucker and Sam looked at each other before turning back to their now worried friend. Tucker moved first, grabbing Danny's shoulder and stopping him in his tracks. "We don't know his plan," he started determinedly, "but we might be able to find him." The dark skinned teen gave him a triumphant look as he pulled out what looked to be a small gaming controller with a screen on it. "Meet the Fento-drone."

"A video game Tuck?" Sam asked deadpanned.

"Not a video game – the best invention ever!" Tucker exclaimed. Danny rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, bemused. "Mr. F and I developed it. We can send in a couple of these bad boys into the Ghost Zone and have them look for your older jerkface of a self. When this is hooked up to the main system, we can control where they go." Tucker turned to Danny. "Your Dad said he wanted to add a couple things too – give it the ol' Fenton charm."

"That… actually might help," Danny said excitedly. "How many of those are done?"

Tucker opened his mouth to answer but shut it quickly as shrill, loud alarms suddenly came to life around them. The trio of teens turned back to the console, watching as the red lights flickered across the faces of the Fentons. A computerized voice sounded from above.

"Ecto-Exdous Alarm activated. Prepare to kick ghost keister!"

A flurry of movement appeared at the other end of the lab as both Fenton parents turned off the alarm pulled up the Ghost Zone Radar. The little ghost icons seemed to be in waves, the largest in the middle.

"I haven't seen that many ghosts since the Ghost King!" Jack exclaimed. "Tucker! Lend me a hand!"

"On it!" Tucker yelled, running toward the larger man, Sam at his heels.

Danny stayed back, watching the radar worriedly. If this is anything like the Ghost King, the ghosts are evacuating. He glanced at the waves, seeing a few icons break away from the large mass of ghosts toward the back and front. His eyes found the group the furthest away from the portal and the lone figure at the back. Dan - He was sure of it.

"Are any of the Fento-drones ready for launch?" Tucker asked, frantically typing in code through the system.

"Only two," Jack replied. He turned to his wife. "Mads, what's the containment system like?"

Maddie looked up from her screen to Jack. "95% - but that's nowhere near enough to house that many ghosts!"

Danny frowned, watching the screen from afar. No one seemed to notice his presence anymore, the radar attracting their complete attention.

"What will you do?"

Danny jumped as Clockwork appeared beside him. "Don't do that!" Danny exclaimed angrily. "If you haven't noticed, we're in the middle of something here!"

Clockwork rolled his eyes. "If you haven't noticed, time has slowed down." He replied, deadpanned.

Danny's eyes widened – Clockwork was right. Everything moved in slow motion around them, from the typing keyboard to running for weapons. He looked at the Time Master in confusion, but Clockwork cut him off.

"What will you do?" he asked again. "Time will not be slowed for much longer."

Danny looked back at the radar screen; one sole ghost moved quickly, gaining momentum as the rest of the ghosts slowed. His hand curled into a fist as time started to move normally.

"The first wave of ghosts should reach us any moment," his father yelled.

Danny looked toward his friends and family, all questioning their next move – if he was going to act, it had to be now.

"Should we close the portal?!" Maddie yelled back. Suddenly she stood up straight. "Wait…. Where's –"

Steeling his resolve, Danny locked eyes with Clockwork for a moment before he took off. He jumped up and he transformed, illuminating the lab in white light.

"Danny!" he heard his Mom yell after him as he flew quickly, diving into the portal.

The vast, empty space of Ghost Zone swirled magnificently as he flew toward the crowd at top speed. They didn't deserve this. No one deserved to be part of this. He had to get to them before -

"BEWARE!"

Danny stopped suddenly, taken aback at the ghost's sudden appearance in front of him. "Box Ghost?" he exclaimed, confused. Remembering why he was here in the first place, he shook his head. "Where is he?" he asked seriously.

The Box Ghost looked at the young Phantom in front of him. "Runaway Ghost Child!" he said with wide eyes, grabbing Danny by the shoulders. "The other Phantom is too powerful. He's destroyed many realms with his sonic attack!"

"Ghostly Wail," Danny corrected impatiently. "Where is he Box Ghost? What's holding him back?"

The Box Ghost frowned worriedly, looking away. "The Far Frozen started to form ice shields as we ran," he started. Danny could see the larger crowd getting closer. "But he broke them suddenly. We thought we were getting away but he came toward us out of nowhere. Skulker and Ember told us to head for your portal; they're fighting him now."

Eyes narrowing in frustration, Danny broke away from the startled ghost. "Listen Box Ghost," he started, looking at the amount of ghosts headed his way. "I need you to lead those ghosts through my parents' portal and up into Amity – just like when the Ghost King attacked. Tell my parents to be ready to close the portal as soon as everyone gets through."

"Me!?" the Box Ghost exclaimed incredulously. "What about you?!"

Danny ignored him. "Go!" he yelled, taking flight again as he headed deeper into the Ghost Zone.

As he passed over the crowd, he heard calls of "Great One!" from below. A quick scan found a large group of yetis flanking the outer perimeter of the mass of ghosts, Frostbite among them. He flew down towards them, floating in place. "Get to the portal," he ordered quickly. "I'm going to hold him off long enough for everyone to get out safely. Find Ethelwulf – he and Clockwork will explain." He took off again, ignoring any of the calls from the group of Far Frozen workers. As he passed the last of the escaping ghosts, he stopped. In the distance he could see a lot of debris, islands that used to house ghosts turned to rubble.

How could he cause this much damage so quickly? He asked himself, distraught. He gasped, brought out of his musings by explosions up ahead. His hands balled into fists and eyes narrowed in anger. Danny shot forward toward the fight. Dan was not getting to Amity Park – not today.

:-=-:

Skulker fired another round of rockets from his suit's armour before dodging behind a floating piece of debris toward Ember. The rockstar ghost scanned her green eyes over her boyfriend's bodysuit as she quickly restrung her guitar.

"Remind me again why we're risking our necks to help the others get out of here?" she asked bitterly.

Skulker reloaded his blaster and a few more rockets quickly, chancing a small glance around their hiding spot. "Because nothing can get past the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter and Ember McLain," he replied. "I don't see him."

Ember scoffed, turning the dial on her guitar up. "Who is this guy anyway? He has the dipstick's little symbol on his chest but that is definitely not Phantom. Not unless he aged himself up."

Skulker's eyes narrowed. "No, but his head will make an excellent addition to my collection." The ghost hunter turned to Ember. "We'll move on my signal. Three – Two-"

"One," Dan's snide voice came from above the pair as a strong ecto-blast came barrelling toward them. Skulker and Ember flew sideways, in opposite directions, dodging as the blast hit the large floating rock they hit. Ember jumped on her guitar, surfing through the zone and sending a flurry of blue flames to the spectre as she passed. Dan merely put up a shield, watching with a grin as she came to a stop a few yards away. The flames petered out, making him drop the shield. "What? Can't stand the heat?" he asked menacingly. Blue flames appeared in his hands as he flung them outward, a set of flames thrown in the shape of an X toward the ghost diva. Ember jumped off her guitar, grabbing its neck as she dodged. Pulling the guitar close to her, she played a loud chord, sending two ectoplasmic fists back at the evil spirit. Dan flew upward, flipping over the attack as he sent his own ecto-blasts back. He landed forcefully on a floating rock, laughing slightly as he felt his boots sink into the earth.

His ghost sense flooded his nose as he sensed the robotic ghost behind him. Dan turned, bringing his right knee upwards and into Skulker's abdomen. The ghost grunted in pain as Dan grabbed his arm and swung him around, throwing him straight into Ember. The two ghosts cried out in pain as they tumbled through the air. "Too easy," Dan gloated, igniting his hands in green ecto-energy one more time. He threw another ghost ray at the pair. Skulker flew out of the way quickly, but the ray hit Ember sending her flying, her limp body rolling through the air.

"Ember!" Skulker called out to her, stricken. Her body came to a stop, floating in place, unconscious. With a roar of anger, Skulker flew towards Dan, two large blades appearing from his forearms. "You'll pay for that abomination!"

Dan waited, evil grin still plastered on his face as he waited for the emotional ghost in front of him. As Skulker aimed for his stomach, he created an opening, letting the blades go straight through with no injury.

"Was that supposed to hurt?" Dan asked, eyes narrowing. Skulker gasped as Dan grabbed his shoulders, lifting him above the ghost. "I think you have your priorities wrong here tin can." Dan threw the ghost, sending another blast towards the hunter. It hit Skulker straight on, sending him flying upward. He managed to steady himself just as he heard Dan speak again. "Why face me when your girlfriend is the one in danger."

Skulker's green eyes widened as he realized what the ghost was about to do. Skulker rushed over to his fallen comrade, covering her with his own body as he felt the blast connect with his armour. He gritted his teeth, biting back a cry of pain. Skulker turned back to glare at the spectre, parts of his battle suit falling into the abyss of the Ghost Zone as the blast subsided. Ember stirred briefly, but didn't awaken. Holding the pop star's form close, Skulker held out his right arm, taking aim with one of his rockets.

Dan smirked, crossing his arms. "Oh please," he said. "You can't defeat me; you had 10 years to, what, put my pelt as a throw rug? I know your whole playbook Skulker – there's no way out of this."

Skulker lowered his weapon, wide-eyed. "Ghost child?" he questioned, confused.

Dan chuckled. "Not quite," he drawled, red eyes shining gleefully. "Not since I ripped out my humanity." He flew up to Skulker's level but still had lots of space in between them. "Now, time to send my younger self a message."

He inhaled deeply before releasing his sonic attack, ripples of energy erupting from his mouth. Skulker closed his eyes, hugging Ember tighter as he braced for impact.

It never came.

Skulker's eyes flew open as merely three feet away Danny Phantom, the one he knew, held a large ecto-shield in front of them, holding the attack at bay. "You!" Skulker yelled over the older Phantom's attack.

Danny's arms shook from strain as he held the shield against Dan's wail for a few moments. He turned his head slightly toward the ghost behind him. "Get to the portal," he told him as he wail pushed him backward. "I'll distract him until then."

Skulker frowned, looking between the two Phantoms in confusion. "How…" he started, before looking down at Ember worriedly.

Danny followed his gaze guiltily as Dan stopped his attack. The younger ghost turned his attention back to the older, dropping the shield. "Hurry," he said, watching Dan apprehensively. Skulker didn't need to be told twice; he took off toward the human portal, leaving the two Phantoms facing off.

"I see you got my message," Dan told him snidely, watching in amusement how Danny's face contorted in rage. "Now, now – don't get all worked up."

"You're not getting to that portal," Danny told him coolly.

Dan laughed at his naivety. "You always did have such childish motives." Dan flew, standing upright as he got closer Danny. The half-ghost bristled, ready for an attack. "You think I want the portal Danny?" he asked, floating beside Danny's left. Dan moved around the teen, appearing again at Danny's right. Danny's head whipped to the other side. "Let me let you in on a little secret – I can take the portal anytime I wish." Dan's wrist came alive with an ecto-blast, launching it directly at the teen.

Anticipating the attack, Danny teleported away from the blast's trajectory - reappearing at one of the destroyed land masses. "I think you missed, old man," he taunted, throwing a series of ecto-blasts toward his older self. Dan growled, dodging the attacks with ease and flying directly for the teen. Danny braced himself as Dan collided with him, blocking Dan's flurry of punches the best he could. Going on the offensive, Danny brought his knee up to Dan's chest, pushing him away from the spectre. They flew at each other again, matching each other's blows evenly. Eventually, they broke apart, Danny slightly panting from exertion while Dan merely stood, crossing his arms.

"Tired already?" he provoked with a small smile.

Danny's eyes widened slightly as he looked Dan over; the evil Phantom showed no sign of weakness. Time to rethink this distraction. Danny took off toward the portal, flying through the destroyed islands that littered this part of the zone. Looking back, he saw Dan following closely. Danny's eyes and hands lit up blue, sending a set of icicle spears toward Dan. Dan merely swatted the icicles away, gaining speed toward the younger boy. Slightly panicked, Danny teleported again, trying to get as much distance as he could away from his future self.

Dan continued to fly toward the boy, eyes watching as Danny continued to teleport away from him, using the floating rubble as cover. He smiled, identifying a pattern as Danny continued to move. Dan waited until Danny teleported again, disappearing as he teleported to where he anticipated his younger self would end up. Arriving at the same point at the same time, Dan grabbed a hold of Danny, pinning him against a rock. One gloved hand moved to the boy's neck, squeezing tightly as he struggled under Dan's grasp. Danny glared at him as he struggled, attempting to break free and breathe easier. "It would be so easy to kill you now," Dan hissed, squeezing tighter. Danny's eyes widened as he started to gasp for air, legs kicking desperately to break free.

As Danny's vision started to fade, he heard a charging of an ecto-weapon before Dan was blasted off him. Danny gasped; coughing as he finally was able to breathe again. Dan was thrown a few feet away, stunned slightly at the two sleek saucer-like robots, each proudly displaying the Fenton logo on the top. Finally regaining himself, Danny floated up to one of the robots, smiling gratefully. "Thank you Fento-drones!" he exclaimed. Turning to his future self, he sent a stream of ice to the stunned ghost, freezing him in place.

Nodding determinedly at his work, Danny leapt up in the air and headed straight for the portal. It only took him fifteen minutes but he saw it – the swirling green hexagon that led to the lab. Relief only started to sink in before he heard a roar of anger behind him. Glancing back, he saw the burly ghost sending streams of ectoplasmic energy outward, aiming for the Fento-drones and him in the distance. Danny frowned, stopping on a small floating island close by. He watched as Dan lashed out, sending one of the Fento-drones into stone and ripping through the other one with ease. Red eyes locked with green, hungry for vengeance as Dan once again moved, blasting through any object that stood in his way.

Danny sighed, digging white boots into the ground as raw energy bubbled up inside him. His right eye lit up an electric blue as energy poured out of his fingers. He held his hands up; creating an electrifying green shield of energy that covered not only the portal, but it's surrounding areas. Dan stopped, watching the shield grow in disgust until it engulfed the portal.

Danny dropped to his hands and knees, panting as his eyes slowly returned to their normal green. Blue white sparks of electricity surrounded his aura as he gritted his teeth, glaring up at his future self. Try getting through that he thought vindictively.

The last thing Danny saw before he teleported was a slow, deliberate smile spreading across Dan's face.

#cartoons #danny phantom #fanfiction #danny fenton #action #adventure #cross posted on ao3 #no phantom planet #But his parents know #ecto storm series #Out of Time #multichapter #Clockwork #Dan #Danny #Fenton family #Friends #Val and Dani bonding over pancakes #Danny v. Dan - part 2 #Fight scne #slight angst #pls like and reblog #Tucker being a bro #Danny being clueless

[tis-archer]

Dangerous Territory

TW: death, blood etc read at your own risk pls

“Drop yours first, Officer,” came the calm voice and Athena’s left eyebrow rose slightly. He clearly wasn’t afraid to die, so she took a shot at him and it ricocheted off of what she assumed was a bulletproof vest. Her eyes widened when they raised their guns and the first man shot one of her officers in the leg. Officer Davis dropped to the ground, screaming and holding onto his now bleeding leg.

“Alright, alright,” said Athena as she placed her gun on the ground and put her hands up, “No one else has to get hurt, okay?”

“That depends entirely on the lot of you, Now, get on the ground,” the man told her and she took a breath, still rooted to her spot.

“Look--”

“Get on the fucking ground!” He shouted and everyone immediately dropped to the floor. Athena followed suit with her hands still up until she was forced harshly down by one of the men. He put his knee in her back and she let out a strangled breath as he crushed her.

“Don’t make me shoot anyone else, Officer. I seriously wanted to do this without any bloodshed but if you push me, I will,” his tone was filled with nothing but venom and tears immediately sprang to Athena’s eyes. She was terrified and the previous man still hadn’t gotten off of her.

A few minutes later, the man got up and she breathed out, her lungs filling with air. She looked over at the terrified faces of her co-workers. She felt sick for bringing them into the bank but the dispatch had assured them that the situation could easily be handled. She didn’t blame the dispatch because no one knew what kind of men were in the bank. Athena just prayed no one else got shot.

Meanwhile, LAFD arrived on the scene after hearing Maddie ask for assistance from Dispatch, saying that none of the officers had checked in. When Station 118 got there, there were dozens of police cars and a SWAT truck on the scene. Bobby immediately walked over to the Director of the FBI with his team behind him.

“Director,” said Bobby as he and his team approached the man and Bobby shook his hand, “Captain Bobby Nash with the 118, how can we help?”

When he heard the man’s last name, Director Simmons looked over at the man with a worried expression on his face. It was clear that Bobby hadn’t been informed that his wife was inside with dangerous gunmen and he really hated to be the bearer of bad news, he didn’t want the fire Captain to go into the building guns-a-blazing.

“Captain,” Simmons started, “You have to promise me that you’ll do your job to the best of your ability despite the circumstances. Because if I can’t trust you to do that, I will make you and your team leave, understood?”

Bobby wanted to argue, to tell the man that he was a professional and he always did his job no matter what. He was a first responder, but instead he nodded, giving the man his word.

“There are about eight officers in there right now, the gunmen don’t seem to be letting them go anytime soon,” he paused, turning his body to fully face Bobby, “Sergeant Grant is among the officers being held hostage.”

Bobby jerked forward a little like he had been pushed from behind, his eyes widened as the breath completely left his lungs. He reached out to grab someone and ended up grabbing Buck’s shoulder to steady himself. His hands started shaking and his lip trembled as he tried his hardest not to cry.

“Wh-what do we do? What do we do?” He asked as he looked at his team. He felt like his heart was being ripped from his chest cavity. His better half, the second half of his soul, the light in his once darkened world was being held at gunpoint and no one was doing anything.

“Captain Nash, right now there is nothing we can do, okay? We have to let this play out. I understand that there is someone in there that you care for but--”

Bobby cut him off with a sharp gasp, “She’s not just someone I care for, Director. Athena is my everything, she is my wife, the love of my life. I don’t--what are we supposed to do? Because we can’t just sit here, we can’t just wait.”

“With all due respect, I have been through this a hundred times. We can’t go in there shooting them, one of the officers could be shot. We don’t know how dangerous they are yet and until we get a better understanding of what we’re dealing with, you need to stand down.”

Bobby breathed out, “But--”

“Stand. Down,” Simmons emphasized and walked away from Bobby to speak to the SWAT director.

In the bank, Athena and her officers had each been handcuffed side by side to the nearby poles that separated the lines. The metal was digging into Athena’s wrists, forcing tears to drip from her eyes as she looked towards the doors. Her thoughts went to her children, her beautiful children that still needed their mother, then she thought of Bobby, her wonderful husband who would for sure fall off the wagon without her. She wanted to believe that he was stronger than she gave him credit for and he was, but he continuously told her that he wouldn’t be alive without her, that he wouldn’t be able to go on if he lost her. She didn’t know what to do, for the first time in her entire 30 year career, she didn’t know how to get out of this one.

“Listen!” one of her officers shouted, Officer Jefferson.

“Jefferson,” Athena hissed, “Shut up!”

“There are probably hundreds of officers out there, alright? They aren’t gonna let you get away with this!” his voice was shaky, he was scared.

“Jefferson, please, for the love of God, shut the hell up!” Athena’s voice cracked slightly as she shouted at the man she’d known for a few years.

“I’d listen to her, Jefferson,” said the leader.

Jefferson shook his head, “No! You can’t just keep us here! You won’t get away with this so just let us go--” he was silenced for good by a single shot to the back of his head. Blood splattered across Athena’s face as she flinched. Jefferson was sitting right next to her, causing her face to be covered in the thick red liquid. She faintly heard the screams of the others as Jefferson’s body slumped forward. She couldn’t scream, or move, she was stuck in her spot.

Outside, everyone heard the gunshot, causing Bobby to try to race into the bank but Hen, Eddie, Chimney and Buck forced him backwards as tears ran down his cheeks. He kept fighting them, screaming for them to let him go but they had a tight grip on him, not wanting to lose their Captain to stupidity. None of them would ever know how he felt in that moment and they never wanted to but they knew what Athena would want, so they held onto him.

“Bobby, you cannot go in there!” Hen shouted, “You know that!”

“He-Hen, Athena is in there… she’s… the gunshot… Athena is in there!”

Hen wrapped her arms around Bobby’s shoulders, “I know, Bobby. I know but going in there right now will get her killed so please, just stay right here with me. Athena isn’t going to die, she is smart and resilient. She’s gonna make it back to you and the kids, but she can’t do that if you get hurt.”

Bobby finally calmed down as he turned his head to look at his wife’s best friend. Hen knew Athena, knew the Athena she was before he met her, so he’d listen to her because Henrietta Wilson always had their best interests at heart. He wrapped his arms around his friend who squeezed him in response.

“I don’t want her to die, Hen,” he whispered and she kissed the top of his head.

“Me neither,” she whispered back.

“Now,” said the leader, “Anyone else wanna eat a bullet?” He asked and no one replied, “Great,” he turned to his team as they discussed escape routes and how they’d get away with all the money from the vault.

With their backs turned, Athena allowed herself to cry. She looked at Jefferson’s still body and she wanted to throw up. She had told him, begged him to stop talking but she hated herself for not being able to do more. For getting them stuck there in the first place.

Simmons and the director of the SWAT team finally came up with a plan to extract the officers from inside and end this whole thing. They discussed sending a team through the opening in the roof, sending a team in through the back, and having a team surround the front. They instructed the other police officers to follow a team to a location, calling for two helicopters in case they tried to escape. He told the two fire stations to be ready in case anyone inside was hurt.

“Director,” Bobby called, walking over to speak to the man in private, “I know seeing me break down probably wasn’t a very good first impression.”

Simmons snorted, “You’re going through a lot, Bobby. I get it.”

Bobby nodded slowly, “I want to go in with a team.”

Simmons raised an eyebrow, “Excuse me?”

Bobby took a deep breath and released it through his nose, “I know I’m not trained for stuff like this, I get that. But, Athena is my wife, Director. She is the reason I’m still breathing and I need my face to be the one she sees first. I can do this, just let me. Let me save her.”

Simmons had serious reservations, it was against the rules, the law even. He didn’t know why Bobby would ask to do such a ridiculous thing but he thought back to his own wife and kids and he knew that at the end of everyday, Bobby was just a man, a husband, a father, a friend. He was more than just a Captain or a co-worker. He had heard a lot of Athena, how great of an officer she was, how talented and steadfast. He heard many stories of her over the years and knew she was one the world couldn’t lose.

“Alright,” said Simmons and Bobby’s eyes widened in surprise. Simmons pointed a finger at him, “But you stick very close to a SWAT member. Don’t you go off trying to be your own hero. You wanna get Sergeant Grant out of there alive, listen to everything they say.”

Bobby thanked him, tears gathering in his eyes. He went to walk away when Simmons grabbed his arm, stopping him.

“Don’t you dare make me regret this, Nash.”

Bobby nodded and went to join a team.

Athena never regretted much in her life, except what happened to Emmitt Washington, but in that moment she regretted not telling her family how much she loved them, how much they meant to her. She regretted not telling Henrietta and Michael that she appreciated their friendship, telling Buck that she admired his strength, telling Eddie he was doing an amazing job raising Christopher, and telling Chimney and Maddie that she was proud of how much they’d grown together. She regretted not always jumping into her husband’s arms with her legs around his waist and kissing him like it was the last time. For all she knew last night was the last time. She closed her eyes and prayed.

Athena’s eyes snapped open when she heard a choking noise and she looked over to see Officer Garcia being choked by a different gunman. Officer Garcia was one of the youngest people there, she had a two year old daughter and a husband at home. Athena felt her heart drop into her stomach.

“No!” She shouted without thinking, “Stop it, don’t hurt her!”

The man stopped and everyone looked at her.

“She’s just a kid,” Athena said, her voice cracking so she cleared her throat, “You’ve already killed one of us, please just leave her alone.”

The man who had been choking Garcia rushed over to her and grabbed her by the hair at the back of her head and yanked her head back so that her face was tilted up to his, causing Athena to whimper slightly at the pain.

“I’ve had about enough of you, bitch!” He shouted, “You say one more thing and you’ll regret it!”

Athena looked at his face and hated the burning of tears at the back of her eyes from him tugging so harshly at her hair, “You can do whatever you want to me,” she managed to get out, “Just leave the rest of them alone.”

“Oh, how noble. Just for that I’m gonna kill another one.”

He let her go and stood up as she shouted at him, trying to grab at his ankle but he turned and kicked her in the side of the head, causing her to fall over onto her side, the cuffs slicing deeper into her skin. She saw stars and then she heard the sound of a gunshot and a few screams. Tears flew down her face but she didn’t have the strength to get up and see who had just been murdered. She remained on the ground, silently praying that God would have mercy on her and they’d just kill her.

“This is the police! Let those officers go and come out with your hands up!”

“Fuck!” the leader exclaimed, “We need that extraction van, now!” The others raced around the bank while the officers felt hope swelling in their chests. Officer Garcia looked over at her Sergeant, who was still laying on the ground and she wasn’t moving.

“We won’t ask again!”

Next thing anyone knew, smoke bombs exploded in the room and all anyone saw was white smoke. They all coughed as SWAT members came up to them, snapping their cuffs off. Silencers went off and bodies dropped as the gunmen were being overpowered. Bobby fought his way through the smoke in search of his wife. He stumbled into Officer Rose who looked at him with wide eyes.

“You have to save, Athena! She’s over there!” The woman pointed to a figure laying on the ground. Bobby rushed over to her and saw the blood on her face.

“Oh my God, Athena! Athena, can you hear me?” He was slapping her cheeks but her eyes wouldn’t open. He prayed hard in his head to the highest being that his wife would be okay. He put one arm underneath her legs and the other across waist as he lifted her in his arms. Athena’s head lolled to the side as she groaned and her eyes slowly opened. Soon, she was staring into her husband’s terrified face.

“Bobby, you came for me,” she whispered before she went limp in his arms. Bobby ran out the exact way they came, making sure that the SWAT could handle the rest on their own. He ran around to the front, screaming that he needed help. He told them that he didn’t know where the blood was coming from as they placed her on a gurney. He hopped in the back of the ambulance, keeping his eyes on his wife while holding her hand. He felt like he couldn’t breathe, like he was under water but she needed him to be strong, he knew that.

A few hours later, Athena groaned and Bobby’s head snapped up to look at her. She tried to move but felt strong hands push her gently onto the bed.

“Relax, baby, you’re okay. You’re safe now,” came Bobby’s voice and Athena’s eyes flew open. She looked over at her husband and burst into tears. Bobby quickly joined her on the bed and held her as she wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. She was sobbing into his shirt, soaking the front with her tears.

“I thought I was gonna die,” she said and her voice cracked, breaking Bobby’s heart, “They killed him!” She cried, “They shot him right in front of me and I-I couldn’t…” she let out a shaky breath.

“Shhh,” Bobby said soothingly while rubbing her back, “You need to rest, Athena. I promise I’ll be here when you wake up and we can talk about anything you need to. For now, close your eyes and rest.”

A few seconds rolled by before she responded, “Will you still hold me?” Her small voice asked and he kissed her forehead for a few seconds before tears gathered in his eyes.

“I will hold you until my last breath, baby. I love you so much.”

She took a breath, breathing in his scent and letting it surround her, “I love you,” she whispered, “Thanks for coming to get me.”

Bobby placed his hand on her beating heart as tears rolled down his face. He looked up to the ceiling silently thanking whomever was listening that the love of his life was safe, “Always.”

#athena grant #bathena #911 fox #bobby nash #bobby and athena #archer fanfiction #bathena fanfiction

[kinglazrus]

Not Your Danny – Ch 5. Fresh Air

Previous | First | Next | FFN | AO3

Word count: 3075

Dani hesitates at the top of the stairs. The lab door, when closed, looks comically when compared to the rest of the house. Set halfway down the hall that bisects the house, from either end, the doorway appears normal. When you get closer, however, and the door itself comes into view, a smattering of warning signs greets your eyes. The yellow and black stripes, the deep red biohazard symbol, one bright green sign that just reads GHOSTS AHEAD!, are the only pops of colour against the off-white walls.

The signs draw the eye to a comical degree. They remind Dani of cheap Halloween decorations, slapped on the nearest empty surface in the hopes that more signs equal more scares.

It's not as funny when the door is open. Metal plating gleams along the walls, some of the seams between them crusted with dried ectoplasm. More stains litter the stairs, left by careless, unclean feet. Far below, the pristine white tiles of the lab floor are lit by a soft green glow.

She hasn't even entered the lab, but just a glimpse of the room below transports her back to Vlad's place in Wisconsin and that cold room where she spent hours alone. It was the worst before she learned how to go intangible, when she was stuck with nowhere to go. Vlad didn't have the time to go down to the lab every day, but when he could, he worked feverishly on making newer, better clones than her.

"Siblings for you," Vlad called them, but Dani knows the truth now. Replacements, since she hadn't been good enough for him.

So many times, Vlad made a clone that was almost stable, almost life-like, but they would die overnight. Dani could never take her eyes away from it, no matter how much it horrified her. Seeing other clones melt away to nothing, their skin sloughing off, muscle dripping from their bones until those, too, liquified into nothing.

If Vlad had known Danny was transgender, maybe he wouldn't have seen Dani as such a failure. He might have loved her properly—or at all.

She doesn't want to go down the stairs, not when such horrible memories are already clamouring for attention. But Maddie is down there, and it might be hours before she comes upstairs. Bracing herself against the wall, Dani leans forward on her toes and calls down. "Maddie?"

Although she can hear shuffling coming from below, she gets no answer.

"Maddie?" she says again, a little louder.

Still no answer.

Swallowing her nerves, Dani goes down the steps. She keeps her arms in, even as her legs shake and threaten to give out on her, she doesn't want to touch the walls. Her gaze doesn't stray from her feet, either, fixed firmly on where she is stepping. When she reaches the last stair, she squeezes her eyes shut.

It's fine. This isn't Vlad's lab. There might be some similarities, they aren't the same. Like her and Danny.

I am at Fenton Works. I am at home. I am at Fenton Works. She repeats the mantra over and over. Her heart doesn't stop pounding, but eventually, she has to look up or turn back around, and she doesn't want to give up now. Steeling herself, she looks up and opens her eyes.

It's not Vlad's lab.

Of course, it isn't. Dani knew that the whole time. Actually seeing it, however, fills her with relief. Instead of bubbling vats full of half-formed bodies, they have long counters full of inventions. Although the floors have a few scuffs and some noticeable burn marks, there are no dubious stains of questionable origin.

The only true similarity Dani can find is the specimen cabinet. Its glass doors reveal the rows upon rows of ectoplasmic samples hidden inside. The vials sit on labelled racks, sorted through some mysterious method Dan is not privy to.

One rack, near the front of the cabinet, is labelled PHANTOM, DANI. Out of the four vials, two are empty, the third is missing, and the fourth—her blood sample— is half-full. Looking around at all the weapons down here, Dani hopes her samples went to good use. The last thing she wants is one of these guns firing at her without warning.

Dani finds the missing vial with Maddie on the other side of the lab. Maddie sits at one of two desks, hers far neater than the other. The vial of ectoplasm, still capped, rests by Maddie's elbow. In front of her, a gun sprawls out in pieces. Maddie's head is lowered over the gun as she works on it.

"Maddie?" Dani asks.

Maddie takes a deep breath before looking up. She can't hide the slight widening of her eyes when she sees Dani's human face, but she doesn't flee, which is a vast improvement from last time. "Yes, dear?"

"Is it okay if I go out somewhere?"

"Of course. Where do you want to go?"

"Nowhere in particular. I haven't left the house since I got here."

"Really? That can't be right."

"It is." To be completely honest, Dani hadn't been sure if she was allowed to leave. The Fentons never laid out any ground rules for staying with them. Nor did they let her in on what a usual household day is like. After a week and a half, Dani has figured out more or less how things go, but only now does she realize that the Fentons never did anything to accommodate her.

Not that she knows what accommodations she needs, but it's odd, isn't it? Someone new moves in and they keep doing what they have always done.

"I didn't even notice," Maddie admits. "I'm so used to D—the kids doing whatever they want as long as they aren't out late. You don't need to ask us if you want to go somewhere." She leans back over the dismantled gun, grabbing a core piece with a dozen little wires sticking out of it. "Don't forget to text. And be home by curfew, young man."

—

Depends on when that is.

Maddie's mind fills in the automatic response, a perfect copy of Danny's usual snark. Several seconds pass before she realizes no one said it out loud. She glances up from her work and finds herself alone in the lab. Dani left without saying anything. The discovery cuts her deeper than it has any right to.

Maddie's parting remark runs through her head again. She gasps, finally registering what she said, and drops the barrel component in her hand.

She goes over her parting remark in her head and gasps. She didn't mean to say that. The words rose instinctively to her lips, spoken without any consideration of who she had been talking to. It was such a small thing, too; a meaningless ritual built between Danny and Maddie over the years.

"Be home by curfew," she would say.

"Depends on when that is," he would answer.

When was the last time she and Danny had this exchange? It only happened when he told her he was going out, which wasn't very often in recent years, but the instinct was still there. Maddie presses a hand against her eyes.

Danny's absence resonated throughout Fenton Works, but little moments like this cut deeper than they should. All their little rituals. Backwash soda. Small things Maddie didn't realize she would miss until they were gone. And at the centre of it all was Dani, subject to Maddie's moments of weakness, filling in that piece of her Danny took when he died, but not quite fitting.

Maybe this was a mistake.

"I'm sorry, Dani," she tells the empty lab.

—

It feels good to fly again. Sitting in the house with nothing to do, Dani was starting to get stir crazy. Finally getting some fresh air in her lungs and some wind in her hair does wonders to alleviate her mood. Not even Maddie's slip up in the lab can bring Dani down now, no matter how much thinking about it makes her skin prickle.

She soars far over the city, letting her instincts take over as the people below get smaller and smaller.

Amity Park airspace is perfect for flying. It sees so little traffic from planes, drones, or anything else like that. People in the area know to steer clear of the skies in case a ghost is about. Danny once told her that the airport actually diverts planes around the city if they're flying too low.

Not even birds like to be up here.

Dani relishes the feeling of wind buffeting her body. She lets her control slip, plummeting through the air. Spreading her arms, she guides her fall without the use of her powers, grinning wide against the roaring wind. She and Danny might not have liked all the same things, but they could certainly agree on this: there is nothing more amazing than flying.

A good hour passes with Dani in the air. She dips down toward the city a few times, swooping through the streets. The tall downtown buildings and fast-moving cars make a great obstacle course, especially when she flies at top speed.

"Is that Phantom?" someone shouts.

Dani has to stop and backtrack, flying by the voice so fast she almost doesn't hear it. Lounging in the air, she peers down at the sidewalk. "Someone called?"

A kid holding his mother's hand scowls. "You're not Phantom."

Dani sticks her tongue out at the brat. "Dani-with-an-I Phantom, thank you very much."

"I don't care. You're not Danny Phantom."

Dani's smile freezes in place. The brat, who can't be more than eight, makes a rude gesture over his shoulder as his mom pulls him away.

"Charming kid!" Dani shouts after them. The woman pulls her son along faster. Dani's expression goes flat. The brief exchange leaves a sour taste in her mouth and an ache in her chest. Flying right now doesn't seem fun anymore. She lowers herself to the street, ignoring the whispers around her, and transforms.

A few people gasp, but she ignores that, too. Who cares if they see her? The whole city already knows the truth about Danny. It wouldn't take a genius to reach the same conclusions about her.

Her hands go to the front of her shirt, seeking out her hoodie pocket. Belatedly, she remembers that she hasn't worn the hoodie in days. At night, she puts on the pyjamas Maddie bought for her, and in the morning she dons her new favourite shirt along with one of the several skirts Jazz gave her.

The first time Dani transformed from human to ghost wearing these clothes, she was worried they might disappear, or her hoodie and shorts would reappear. To her utter delight, no such thing happened. The skirt she wears now is a little long for her. She has it pulled up to her waist, with the star shirt tucked underneath, and rolled the waistband several times until the skirt rested around her knees. The soft fabric swishes about her legs, so much lighter than what she is used to.

Taking in her surroundings, Dani notes the big box stores around her. She recognizes the area, although she has only seen it from the air. The Amity Par Mall should be somewhere close by. Although Dani doesn't have any money for clothes, she could window shop and look at what's available. That should help lift her spirits.

—

The usual chatter blankets the mall food court. Beyond the tables, a kiosk for a local store advertises unique Danny Phantom merch. T-shirts, phone cases, and hats bearing Danny's iconic logo sit out on display. From her seat facing the kiosk, Sam can see water bottles shaped like the Fenton Thermos, plushies that vaguely resemble the local haunts, and even a few fake ecto-guns.

But the centrepiece of the display is a poster, unmistakably new. It features Danny twice over, as Phantom and Fenton, standing back-to-back with himself. The sight of it fills her with rage.

"How dare they." Sam seethes.

Seated across from her, Tucker nods. The soda cup in his hand crumples as his grip tightens. "Isn't that illegal, too? Using his likeness and all?"

"Absolutely. Especially since he's a minor."

"Was," Tucker corrects her, his voice soft.

"Right. Was." The memory of Danny's last moments flashes through her mind. Sam flinches, closing her eyes in an attempt to shut the image out. It doesn't work. The moment is all too vivid in her mind and she doesn't think it will ever fade.

Movies like to give heroes slow deaths, dramatic last words spoken with a final breath, the warmth of a loved one nearby. They make it so easy to forget that most of the time people don't get anything like that. Most of the time they drop, and they're gone.

Her hands feel sticky and warm, her throat hoarse.

The stunned silence of the street after it happened presses down on her.

"Looks like they have a website. I take care of that and you take care of the lawyers?" Tuck says.

Sam opens her eyes. She has to rub her hands together to remind her they're dry now, have been for weeks. Still, that doesn't stop her from picturing dried blood beneath her nails.

"Yeah," she says after a moment. "Sounds like a plan."

Whoever owns that kiosk is going to regret using their dead best friend for profit. Sam and Tucker will make them burn.

Sam's glare turns from the man working the kiosk to the shoppers browsing its wares. Her anger stretches to them, too, though not as much. She can't blame a child for wanting merch of their hero. Three of the five shoppers lingering around the stand are children, the oldest in her teens. Except instead of happily perusing the merch like her younger counterparts, this girl glares at the stand with nearly as much hatred as Sam.

Something about her is familiar, too. Sam can't see her profile in full, since the girl is angled away, but she can't shake the feeling that she's seen this girl before.

"Holy shit, is that Danielle?" Tucker asks.

Sam's eyes widen. He's right. Without the signature red and blue, Sam didn't recognize her. Dani's new outfit suits her, though. "Jazz said she saw Dani before the funeral. Where has she been?"

Sam stands up. Tucker rises with her, having the same idea. They dump their food trays at the garbage station and make a beeline for Dani.

"Danielle!" Tucker waves to the halfa, who turns at his shout.

Dani smiles when she sees them. "Hey!"

"Nice shirt." Tucker flicks Dani's collar. "About time someone put it to good use."

"Are you staying at Fenton Works?" Sam asks. Like Tucker, she recognizes the shirt and knows there's only one place Dani could have gotten it.

Dani kicks the floor with her heel, the sole of her shoes squeaking against the tiles. "Yeah. Jazz invited me to move in. It's... okay."

Over Dani's head, Sam and Tucker share a concerned look. They recognize that tone. It's one of the few things Dani and Danny have in common, at least that Sam has seen. Dani's voice dips at the end of her sentence, going low and flat. Jazz does it, too, sometimes. It's probably a Fenton thing more than it is a Danny and Dani thing.

"What's wrong?" Sam asks.

"Trouble adjusting, that's all. It's not a big deal." Dani shrugs.

Sam wants to question her further but lets the subject drop. It's fine if Dani wants to keep it to herself, although Sam prefers if she didn't. Either way, they aren't going to leave her like this.

"Doing some shopping?" Sam already knows the answer, though. Dani doesn't have a purse, or a wallet, or any money with her by the looks of it.

Dani confirms her suspicions. "Just looking."

"Cool. Can we look with you?" Tucker rests an arm on Dani's head, using her as a post for leaning. It works like a charm, drawing a half-hearted grumble and a small smile out of Dani. "We're here to people watch. And take care of assholes like this." Tucker nods toward the Phantom kiosk.

This time, Dani giggles. "Yeah, sure. We can take you to all the girl stores."

Tucker pales. "Wait, no. I change my mind."

"Too late!" Dani latches onto the arm resting on her head.

Sam quickly grabs Tucker's other arm until he's squished between the two girls, growing rapidly more distressed as they steer toward the closest store with a bright pink sign. These kinds of stores aren't Sam's thing, and she normally wouldn't be caught dead in one, but she can put up with it for a while if it keeps the smile on Dani's face.

—

Dani takes her bag from the store clerk with nothing short of reverence lighting her face. Even though she just watched the clerk pack it, Dani can't help but open the bag and peer inside at her new purchases: a skirt, a pair of shorts, and a handful of button-ups like the one she already wears.

Beside her, Sam slips her wallet back into her pocket.

"Have a nice day!" the clerk says.

"Thanks. You, too!" Tucker's hand settles on Dani's back, nudging her out of the store.

As soon as they exit, Dani spins and jumps at Sam. "Thank you so much!" When they went into the store, she didn't expect to find anything she liked, but everything inside was so different from what she found in Danny's closet. Especially the pastel colours.

"Consider it a welcome home present," Sam says. Her arm curls around Dani's back, squeezing her tightly.

"Group hug!" Tucker says before draping himself over both of them.

Dani's breath catches in her throat. When was the last time she touched someone like this? Sam and Tucker's arms surrounded her, their warmth making her skin tingle. For a second, she can't breathe, so overwhelmed by the contact that everything else ceases to exist.

Against her will, her shoulders start to shake. She clings to Sam and Tucker tighter, fists gripping the back of their shirts as she draws them closer. Tears welled in her eyes, rising from somewhere deep within her that she had been pushing down. Now, though, in the warmth of Sam and Tucker's embrace, Dani cries for the first time since Danny died.

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#phic phight #phic phight 2021 #notyourdanny #phanfic #phicc #dp fanfiction #danny phantom #dani phantom #danielle phantom #danny phantom fanfiction #trans danny #trans danny fenton #nyd chapter five

[writingfromkitchenator]

The Hunter, The Demon, And The Halfblood

Masterlist

Crowley x Original Female Character

Chapters: One | Two | Three | Four

Series Warnings: A/B/O series, some Alpha/Beta/Omega dynamics, Alpha x Omega, obligatory smut warning here (as usual, no under 18′s please, specifics will be within chapter warnings as needed), violence, blood, fluff, angst, major character death, possession, swearing

Chapter 5

Words: 2,556

Crowley was glad to finally get Madelyn alone properly for a moment, knowing that none of them would come upstairs in a hurry.  He was still wishing it hadn't come to this, but neither of them had a choice now.

It was clear Madelyn was relieved to be alone as well, holding tightly to him as he led her to the bedroom door.

“You are far from alright,” Crowley said softly, allowing her to rest against the wall so he can get a proper look at her.  “Whatever am I going to do with you?”

Madelyn, despite the pain, grinned.  “I can think of several things.”

Crowley returned it, stepping in close so he can rest his forehead against hers.  “Don't let your brothers hear that, they're high strung enough about this as it is.”

“They'll get over it,” Madelyn closed her eyes, just allowing the two of them to be still. “Besides, once they find out the next part, they won't have a choice in the matter anyway.”

“They don't have a choice now,” Crowley growled, his hand hovering over the wound in her side.  “Nor, do I believe, did they ever have a choice.”

Madelyn sighs, her arms looping around his neck.  “I'm glad you're okay Crowley.”

Crowley relaxes and dips his head, placing a chaste kiss to her lips.  “I'm glad you're okay too love.”

She nudges his nose slightly with hers.  “You probably shouldn't stay up here too long, they'll start to wonder what happened.”

“Let them wonder,” Crowley's lips hovered over hers.  “There's something I have to do first.”

Madelyn hums as he pressed his lips back to hers, pressing her a little firmly against the wall, one hand just over the wound on her stomach.  The kiss is deep and slow, but it had more purpose than to just rile the other up.

A small trickle of blood ran down the corner of Madelyn’s lips, a small shudder going through her, her hands bunching in his jacket, trying to keep him close.

She had to break off, allowing herself to breath, both their lips stained red.

Crowley kissed her softly. “Does that feel better?”

“A little,” She breathes, her tongue sweeping over his bottom lip.  “You know they aren't going to like this.”

His thumb cleans the blood that had trickled down and presses it against her lips, allowing her to take it into her mouth.  “It doesn't have to come up.”

“They'll figure it out,” Madelyn said softly.  “And they are upset enough as it is without trying to hide that too.  Not to mention, if there is an…incident.”

Crowley thinks for a moment, clearly concerned, but sighs, pressing another soft kiss to her lips. “Go and get some rest love, I'm sure I can manage for a little while, as much as they probably don’t want me to.”

Madelyn smiles softly. “At least Casey won't come down, she loves curling up next to me still.”

“Something I hope she never grows out of.”  Crowley opened the door quietly for her, Casey still fast asleep in the bed.  “At least she seems to be resting easily.”

There was no hiding the worry in Madelyn's expression.  “I hope we've done what's right for her Crowley, I really do.”

Crowley nods and gently leads her in.  “Get some rest love.”

Madelyn blows him a kiss, letting Crowley smile as he closes the door.

She quietly gets herself comfortable on the bed, a soft smile coming to her as Casey stirs a little and instinctively curls into her side.  Madelyn couldn't tell her brothers yet, but she wouldn't trade Casey in for anything in the world, no matter what had happened in between all that.

Downstairs, Crowley had taken up Madelyn’s seat, aware, but ignoring, the three slightly impatient and uncomfortable glares from the three other men in the room.

“You're lucky you're getting this much,” Crowley said lightly.  “If I had it my way, details would be kept far more to a minimum.”

“Come on Crowley,” Dean growled.  “Just get on with it.”

Crowley shoots Dean a grin. “Well, as I was saying, your sister was far more intelligent than you two, and actually managed to finally track me down in all that pre-purgatory mess.  I wasn't too pleased about it, but I have to give credit where it’s due.”

Madelyn glared at Crowley, her arms folded across her chest.  “A compliment?  That's really what you're offering me?”

Crowley shrugs easily. “What would you prefer? A blade to your throat?  A gun to your head?  A compliment is far more entertaining.”

He wasn't a fool, he knew that she could reach for her gun quickly, and he also knew that there was a chance she could've learnt a new trick or two.  Madelyn was incredibly, and infuriatingly, resourceful.

For what it was worth though, Madelyn didn't seem to be there to fight.

She rolled her eyes, doing her best to hide her irritation.  “Right.  Look, you're the one in charge downstairs now, right?  So can you do anything about Sam's soul or not?”

“Why? Is he having performance issues?”

“Cut the shit Crowley,” Her eyes flashed dangerously at him.  “I'm not in the mood.  I know full well that you know what’s going on with those two.”

Crowley chuckled. “Always straight to it, makes a nice change.  To answer you honestly, no, I can't do anything for little Moose’s soul.  It's trapped in a little cage with a big bad Lucifer, and I have very little interest in that being opened again.  I'm sure you can understand why.”

Madelyn observes him, her mind thinking.  “And here I was thinking that the King of Hell would have access to all the perks.”

He knew her well enough by now to know that she was now just buying herself time, trying to get the information she needed.  “Don’t underestimate me darling, it wouldn’t be a wise decision considering just how vulnerable you are here.  Considering what you were going through last time as well…”

“Vulnerable?”  She raises an eyebrow, ignoring the second comment. “And here I was thinking that we’d built up enough of a rapport with each other to discuss things civilly.  Or did I actually make an error on that?”

Crowley chuckles, unable to help it.  “Oh, you are far too interesting for that Madelyn, unlike those brothers of yours, but if you actually stay here much longer, then I will have to take action.”

Madelyn’s eyes narrow on him, her eyes doing a quick scan of the room.  “What are you up to Crowley?  You’re being far too cautious and calm for your own good.  Especially around me.”

He smirks.  “Would you care to handle this one Feathers?”

The sigh from Castiel made her jump, quickly taking several steps back from the angel, eyeing between the two of them cautiously.

“I warned you not to go looking,” Castiel said, a little firmly to her.  “To stay with Sam and Dean.  It would’ve been far safer.”

“Like I’m going to listen to you, I barely listen to them.”  She said flatly.  “And the fact that you’re working with him, really doesn’t improve my opinion of you.”

Castiel sighed.  “This is an awkward enough situation as it is Crowley, why did you call me here?  Sam and Dean will be on us quicker than anything if something happens to her.”

“Have you currently seen Sam?”  Madelyn asked bitterly, cutting off Crowley.  “He’s just a little bit of an arsehole, which is the only reason I even ended up here. Discovering you two are up to something, however, is far more interesting, as here I thought not long having one apocalypse would’ve been more than enough for both of you, or am I reading that wrong?”

Castiel flinched, but Crowley held her gaze, amused.  “You’re acting like it’s not going to be beneficial.”

“And you’re acting like I’m going to trust the word of a demon and a renegade angel,” She replied. “Why don’t you both just cut the shit? Surely it must be tiring?”

Crowley smirks and his gaze moves to Castiel.  “I’m sure we can keep her out of the way somewhere, at least enough so the boy wonders won’t worry?”

Castiel sighed.  “It’s bad enough lying to them, let alone doing that as well.”

“What’s a few more lies?” Crowley shrugs.  “Besides, it’s one less hunter to work around.  A rather painful one at that.”

“Oh, I don’t think-” Madelyn collapses, a simple touch from Castiel rendering her unconscious.

Dean stares at Crowley.  “So who the hell was texting us throughout all that?”

Crowley smirks.  “Who do you think Dean?  Feathers lacked the imagination and I have to admit, it was a lot of fun.”

Dean pursed his lips, looking less than impressed.

Sam was frowning.  “So what, you just kept her aside somewhere?   I can’t imagine Maddie standing for that, nor do I remember her ever mentioning it.”

There was no missing the slight unease in Crowley’s expression.  “Well, there may have been a good reason for that, and before you all start saying something, it was unintentional on both our parts.”

They stared at him, Bobby sighing heavily.  “Let me guess, you underestimated her.”

“A little,” He admitted.  “I wasn’t quite expecting the determination she would have in trying to get herself out of the situation, no matter how comfortable I made it for her.”

“Comfortable?”  Dean growled. “Like you would ever make something comfortable for one of us.”

“You need to understand,” Crowley said.  “At that time, I was still intending to get her onside.  One can hardly do that through torture, especially to a Winchester, not to mention Feathers was more than determined to keep her whole.  So yes, we tried to make her comfortable, as much as I’m sure that seems strange to you.”

“But you both forgot that it was Mads,” Bobby shook his head. “The only time she is comfortable is out on the road hunting.”

“Yes, or at least making my life a living hell,” Crowley said. “Which is exactly what she did once she learnt the…routine of things.  See, Castiel and I were hardly going to let anyone else near her, and as Castiel was usually strongly invested in keeping you three occupied, especially after Sam got his soul back, then it left me to keep things as civil and normal as possible.”

“Unfortunately,” He continued.  “She quickly made other plans.  Managed to construct herself a devils trap for me.  I thought we could’ve avoided the whole situation by not giving her anything to write or hurt herself with, however, as usual with you Winchester’s, you are more resourceful than that.  She crafted herself a small weapon, one that would go unnoticed, and slowly, I would imagine quiet painfully, constructed herself a devils trap out of her own blood.”

Sam sighed.  “Of course she did, and judging by the way this is going, you walked straight into it?”

Crowley looks less than pleased.  “It wasn’t my finest moment.  I had gotten…complacent…with her.  I had figured that I had her exactly where I wanted her.”

“Just another wonderful day in paradise,” Crowley said as he enters the room, barely even glancing at Madelyn, who was leaning against the headboard of a large, bare bed, glaring at him.  “Don’t worry, I’m sure your brothers will notice you missing eventually.  Although, their returning messages give zero indication of suspecting anything.”

“Funny,” She said thickly, not moving from the bed.  “I wasn’t aware that I had to rely on them for rescue.”

He places some food and drink down at the table, casting her a smirk.  “I never said you did darling, but you do seem to be taking this all rather well, all things considered.”

If he’d been paying proper attention, he would’ve seen the small makeshift blade she was spinning in her hand.

“Like I’ve had much of a choice,” She clipped.  “But don’t worry, I promise I’m coming up with all sorts of plans for you.”

Crowley chuckles. “Now that I like to hear.  Only good plans I hope?”

Her eyes flash. “You’ll just have to wait and find out.”

To Crowley, the interaction had been no different to normal, however, as he went to leave, still chuckling, he found himself suddenly frozen in his steps, unable to move any further.

He glances down and discovers that it hadn’t been the carpet he’d been walking on, that the sheets from the bed were covering what was clearly made beneath it.

Madelyn smirks. “Getting a little out of touch, are we?”

Crowley glares at her. “And just what is it you intend to do here, darling?  You still can’t leave this room, and if you keep me locked up like this, then there’s going to be no more food and drink coming in.”

“Guess we’re at a bit of an impasse then,” She said lightly.  “Because you’re not getting out of that trap unless I say so.”

“It’s on carpet-”

“And I’ve been here for a while now,” She said.  “Don’t think I haven’t thought this through Crowley, you’ve given me more than enough for that.  I would’ve thought you’d know by now, never let a woman, especially a hunter, think too long, you never know what she’s going to come up with.”

He grits his teeth. “So, what is your suggestion then?”

Madelyn shrugs. “Honestly, at the moment, this is more than amusing for me.  The oh so powerful King of Hell, trapped and powerless, and the only one that can come and save him is off somewhere, more than likely, looking after my brothers.” She grins.  “Who’s the damsel in distress now?”

Crowley wasn’t impressed, although he could applaud her tenacity.  His eyes narrowed her for a moment, a sudden thought occurring to him, a slow grin coming to him, one she doesn’t notice, preoccupied with the blade in her hand.  “Oh darling, I do believe that that is still you.”

“Oh?” She said, only half interested.  “And what makes you come to that conclusion?”

“Your heat,” He said casually, making the knife stop in her hand as she glances at him.  “Just how many tablets do you have left?  No doubt you got a stern warning from the doctors about it after our last encounter.”

Madelyn scoffs and keeps spinning the knife, but her voice wasn’t as convincing as she wanted it to be.  “Keep dreaming.  I have myself well and truly within control.”

“We’ll see,” Crowley said lightly, deciding to play her game pulling up a chair and sitting down. “I seem to remember the last time I found you that you were almost wild with it.  This time, I can promise, I won’t be so generous as to get you to a hospital.”

She makes an indignant noise as she gets up from the bed.  “Hoping to put me in my place Crowley?  Fat chance.”

He shrugs.  “I won’t have to do anything.  You’re going to beg me for it.”

Madelyn makes a disgusted noise and strides past him, heading to the bathroom.  “Good luck winning this one.  We’ll see who cracks first.”

Crowley smirks as the door closes behind her.  “Oh, we’ll definitely see love, but it’s not going to go the way you want it too.”

#supernatural #the demon the hunter and the halfblood #crowley #crowley x original female character #long fic #fic series #crowley fridays #sister winchester #alpha x omega #a/b/o

[jeaniegreysummers]

crying power || Jean & Bruce

WHO: Jean Grey-Summers ( @jeaniegreysummers ) and Bruce Banner ( @hulkout ) WHERE: Stark/Avenger’s Tower WHAT: Jean has spent weeks planning a big science experiment, with a single intended goal - to bring Erik Lehnsherr back from the dead, sans Phoenix. She recruits Dr. Bruce Banner to assist. WARNINGS: death mention, murder mention WORDS: 3.7k

JEAN: The widely held view within the walls of the Institute was that the Avengers were a bunch of over-hyped frat boys in receipt of extensive preferential treatment, and Jean was loath to disagree with them. After all, the X-Men had been fighting this world’s battles for decades before Nick Fury put together his merry little band of misfits, and all they got for their efforts was sent to Salem to hide behind masks and pretend they were ‘normal’ (whatever that meant). The Avengers got praise. They got accolades, got medals, got their faces plastered on billboards and songs written to celebrate their glories -- with one notable exception, at least from the original team.

Bruce Banner.

She’d researched him, before, followed him through with both a personal and scientific curiosity. He was a man born human who tried to make himself something more. He was a man playing with genes on government contracts, and it went wrong. He was a man who, it could be argued, deserved what he got.

But he was a man who, when given the potential to destroy entire cities, went on the run for years at a time. He was a man who took the role of scientist on a team where he could be the heavy hitter. He was a man who was very hard to find, a man who filled the role of pacifist far more than his friends.

And he was a man Jean needed, despite her previous feelings on him, despite everything else.

(Jean was good at putting aside personal feelings for the mission -- at least until the mission was over. She’d learned that from her father.)

Avengers Tower was a fortress. Its defences had been bolstered after the siege, even if Stark had backed down remarkably quickly (and uncharacteristically quickly, Jean noted). Still, the Phoenix could move her through in an instant, could have her in the labs a couple of seconds before the alarms started blaring.

Heels clacking against the linoleum, Jean stepped out of the darkness, coming into the direct eyeline of the very scientist she’d been looking for. “Dr. Banner,” she said, holding out her hand for him to shake. “A pleasure to finally meet you. Do you mind telling Mr. Stark’s lovely computerised assistant that I’m here for a meeting before I get shot at? That wouldn’t end very well for anyone involved.”

BRUCE: Inadvertently, people who often strayed too far from the limelight always made themselves a target. One small slip up and the mystery was far more notable than any secrecy. Still, it never surprised Bruce if someone knew his name, and surprised him far more if someone knew his face when he was much more human and much less green, donning a lab coat and a pair of reading glasses.

F.R.I.D.A.Y sent out an alert that someone was in the facility — not the actual housing unit — but credentials weren’t given. Typically that meant that Tony had allowed them past the new functionality they’d put in place, working endlessly on code and bantering over F.R.I.D.A.Y’s own comments through the night. It was almost easy to fall back into the routine of it — being Tony’s tech-guy. His science guy. The person he always counted on to be sitting on the lab stools well into the night.

It had been easy to fall back into being an Avenger too.

Which was why the snake of nerves in his stomach uncoiled and hissed at the sight of an X-Men in the lab. His safe haven. His safety room. The room of safeness where he drank his tea and poured over a biochem journal when he was stressed—

“We don’t really do the gun thing anymore,” Bruce balanced around the pencil between his teeth, hands preoccupied with realigning a piece of equipment, “If you were going to get shot, it probably would have been before the big doors opened for you.” With a hiss and a click, the mechanics slid into place, Bruce turning his attention toward his guest. Tony’s guest? Jean. White? No. Grey. “Hi. Uh,” Bruce dropped the pencil, looking at his hand afterward when he thought about the possible saliva transfer. Gaze flickering over the smooth, cool one of Jean’s, he hesitantly gripped her much smaller ones in his own, “Bruce. Well. You know that. You just called me by name. Anyway, hi — what are you doing here exactly? Tony’s not here. Well, I mean, he’s here, he’s just not here.”

JEAN: The answer seemed simple to anyone on the outside, to those who still believed the carefully crafted story that Jean’s propensity for dragging herself (and others, now) from the grave was a secondary mutation meticulously honed. For all intents and purposes her resurrections had been flawless, and if she wasn’t as close to Scott as she was, she may not have noticed a difference -- but she did. She saw Erik shift, felt the cool off her husband’s skin, saw how Maddie’s smile twisted just a little too sharp. She knew it was the bird within them, knew the effect it could have, knew how it could blend things until the horrific was justifiable.

Jean couldn’t use the Phoenix to bring Erik back, but she needed him. She needed him as a father, of course -- needed him more than she’d needed almost anyone. She needed him as a leader, too. The future they had built, the legacy he left behind, that was threatened by the Black Knights. It was threatened from the inside as much as outside forces. Genosha balanced on a knife’s edge, and she needed to guarantee safety for her daughter.

It’ll be Rachel, one day. Jean wasn’t going to allow that to happen. She’d always been a pragmatist -- a soldier’s daughter.

“You’re telling me a Stark backs away from things that go boom?” Jean asked, an eyebrow raising. She managed to keep her more aggressive thoughts about Iron Man to herself, managed to train her voice to a careful tease rather than anything too condemning. She wasn’t particularly concerned about the concept of Bruce refusing her, but she always preferred to use her words than her powers -- and she wasn’t entirely sure how it would work with the Other Guy. She’d seen the wreckage in South Africa post Scarlet Witch intrusion. “See, the doors didn’t open. I scattered my molecules, went through the wall. I think that’s why your electronic friend is having a mild coronary.”

Tony’s not here. Jean held back a snort, and simply nodded instead. “I know he isn’t. I sent him to my lab in Genosha.” He was easier to distract than she thought he would be, although Jean did get the distinct impression Stark was aware he was being distracted and went with it regardless. He got the opportunity to dig around her archives, after all, so it was a win win. “I was looking for you. I have a case I’d like to get your input on.” Jean reached for her bag, pulling out a stack of papers which she set on the workbench between them. “I was looking into the Cradle,” she said. “My colleagues seemed to think it was a thing of legend, but I’m not so sure. Every myth has its place in reality, right? Now, imagine the Cradle, combined with that nanotech Stark boasted about at the Expo. Imagine it combined with the energy I can provide, or take from the people around me.”

Jean allowed the words to settle, eyes flashing with just a hint of orange as she finally met Bruce’s gaze. “I could bring my father back to life,” she said. “I could bring him back to life, but I need you to do it. What do you say?”

BRUCE: It would have been easy to get defensive - to say that there’s no way he would be stepping toe into anything that so much as even sort of resembled Cradle. That he wouldn’t be participating in playing God anymore and that his time years and years of time for all of the nonsense was over. He’d gone into hiding for a purpose after all — but the notes in his desk drawer currently, the ones marked in blue and black ink with little comments from FRIDAY as he worked, said otherwise. The ones with the exact nonsense he hated - like time-travel.

And then, the words really hit him. “You ... Erik’s dead?” Dark eyelashes fluttered, dipped in cherry red in the right light, and Bruce had to hold himself back. He strayed away from the news. Purposefully so, considering most of the time it was negative things (like the world exploding, or Bruce going on a rampage, or more terrorist attacks on meta-humans and mutants).

The ache clawed it’s way from his stomach and into his throat, and for a second the whole world flashed green, tilting sideways and knocking into his skull like the angry fists of a small child who was too large for his age. Uncontrolled, like a battering ram.

Caramel eyes flickered down to clenched fists on the metal table in front of him, indents of his fingertips marring the edges in warped zigzags where his hold was too strong. Where Hulk’s hold was too strong. His reflection in the same metal table showed that same jade at the corners of his temples too.

“How did it happen?” Using her words as a bartering chip, Bruce would get his answers. After all, she couldn’t access it without him, without Stark (and deep inside, he’d hoped that Tony would say no if Bruce asked him to).

The scientist ignored that the same rumble of hurt in the guts of him called out for Erik, his new friend, his new maybe-something if Bruce didn’t fuck it up. He would bring Erik back. He didn’t really have a choice. “How did it happen?” He repeated again, less strangled this time.

JEAN: There was that word again. Dead. So final, so complete, so absolute — to everyone but Jean Grey, it appeared. To everyone but the people Jean Grey loved the most (her best friend, her sister, her teammates and fellow soldiers … it was only a matter of time, she told herself, before they were all back on firm ground) it lasted beyond human compression, spanned centuries and even longer. Legacies lasted for a millennia but death? Death drew on even after that.

Death wouldn’t draw on for Erik Lehnsherr. Logically, they needed him. Emotionally, Jean had been half alive since he took his final breath. Scott could scarcely get words past the lump in his throat. Maddie was shifting, changing, questioning. The world wasn’t on its even keel anymore, and they had battles and wars facing them they had no idea how to handle alone — and he was her father. More than anyone else, he was her father. He raised her, cared for her, protected her. Challenged her.

Was killed, by her.

“He’s—” Jean wanted to correct him, wanted to say something like not alive or not breathing or temporarily indisposed, but those would be lies. She couldn’t feel him anymore. Neither could Lorna, who lost her due north. “He’s dead.”

And then she got a front seat to Banner in all his grief, in all she needed to know to realise she’d been exceptionally strategic in choosing him for this request. She knew this already, of course. Erik taught her compassion, taught her love, taught her how to decode messages and read faces and expressions — but he also taught her how to plan, how to read people.

How to use people, that small voice provided. Jean pushed it to the back of her mind. That wasn’t what this was. She could do it by herself, if she wanted, if she so desired. The only reason she was here was because she was trying to do things differently, trying to learn from past mistakes. Trying to be better.

(But there was still a part of her that hoped, when that flicker of green came across his irises, when his grip increased on the steel of the table. There was a. part of her that yearned for a fight, a flicker that turned into a spark. We haven’t had a challenge like this in a while, the Phoenix crowed. A good way to expel some energy. A good way to level New York, more like.)

Jean clasped her hands behind her back, wringing them together as she waited. Charles’ lessons were still clear and bright in her mind. She was strong enough to hold him back, perhaps, if she tried — but getting into his head wasn’t what she was here for. Making him comply wasn’t who Jean was.

It wasn’t who she wanted to be.

The moment passed, and she didn’t breathe a sigh of relief. She didn’t react at all. He asked the question she knew was coming, and she steeled herself, prepared for a rejection.

We could make him do it. We could. Stop holding yourself back. We have all the pieces, now, you and Madelyne. Why ask anyone else—

“It is a very long story,” Jean prefaced, “and from what I understand, you will want to know each detail. I’m not sure I can provide that much. There’s a lot even we don’t know, as X-Men — as mutants — but I’ll tell you all I can.”

Where to start?

“There is a cosmic force,” she began, “an entity I’ve only known referred to as the Phoenix Force. It is, for lack of a better term, the embodiment of life itself. It’s capable of great feats, and draws even more power from the universe if it has an appropriate host.” This time, Jean did chew on the corner of her lip, did lose some of the strength in her shoulders and confidence in her stance. “I’ve been its host since I was eighteen years old. It always protected me, brought me back when I was injured or … or when I was killed. It did the same for my husband, after Central Park. But there’s a cost.

“It takes everything in you, and makes it stronger. Anger becomes rage, affection becomes passion. Love becomes all consuming, but so does hate. And in my ignorance, I split a piece of this force, and it found a home in Erik. It … changed him. Altered him. Encouraged him to make decisions he would normally measure more carefully.”

She didn’t want to talk about the missiles, not in detail. She didn’t want to tell this man how she scarcely held her father back from committing a massacre against the very people Banner had fought alongside with the Avengers. She didn’t want to tarnish the memory that still existed of him in the public consciousness — a flawed man, perhaps, but ultimately heroic for what he had done for his people.

“He was a danger to himself and others,” she settled on. “I made the decision, as I did for myself many years ago, to end that particular threat before it went any further. We saved the world, but I lost my father. My sister lost her father. My people lost their leader, my husband lost his light, and Erik lost his life.” She sucked in a breath, brought her hands around to the front. “I hope if we can restore the latter,” Jean continued, “the rest might fall into place.”

Wishful thinking, perhaps. Wishful thinking — but God, wasn’t that what the X-Men were built on?

BRUCE: One talent that Banner and Hulk actually shared was the ability to stay quiet; read the room for tells, evaluate situations based on the now rather than the could be.  While the scientist in Bruce often disagreed with Hulk’s methods of ‘smash now, ask questions later’ there was definitely something to it.

The urge to put his fist through the metal table quelled just a few moments after it had appeared, but there was something about Jean’s story that just didn’t add up to him. So you and Scott took it into your own hands to decide whether or not he got to live or die? Bruce didn’t actually say it, but the desire was strong. Lucky for him, he had much better self-preservation than Tony or Clint, and he let the woman finish her explanation before he even tried to comment.

“You know death does not come with convenience, right? If it’s not the…” He swallowed, “Phoenix, it will be something else.” Like lack of forgiveness, or Erik coming back a lifeless zombie. There wasn’t an exact science, to resurrection. At least not yet. After all, it was one thing when you had an internal power that was able to bring sustenance back to regenerative cells, it was another when you were starting from scratch, like with the CRADLE. Bruce would have to write algorithms based on Erik’s DNA: mutated DNA.

He said so, a moment later, but his words were not dismissive in nature. Instead, they were just facts.

Bruce Banner was going to help bring back a man who was likely better off dead. But you don’t want him dead either, Banner a voice betrayed in his psyche. How obnoxious, to be betrayed by his own subconscious. The physicist had spent countless hours staring at DNA. Sorting how to evolve and demonstrate it differently when being accessed through a different source code. Pulling it apart like the strings of a handmade sweater, like he’d done with his and Hulk’s. While he was specifically oriented in gamma-radiology, it should have been less complicated to perform tasks with something much more humanoid than Hulk would ever be.

“Okay.” Bruce said finally, twirling his hands around one another with some thought, “I’ll help you.” He should have made conditions. Should have said, But if things go wrong, it’s your fault. But he didn’t. Wouldn’t. Wanted to see his friend again. Wanted to share a connection with someone who was inherently good, despite what the outside world may have perceived.

Standing from his stool, Bruce marched forward with an odd confidence, “It’s going to take me some time to write the code. I need his file. Uh, anything you can get me pre-Auschwitz.” Bruce looked at her from under his fringe, one sturdy finger pushing up the rim of his round glasses.

JEAN: No one thought of Jean Grey as the brains of the operation in the early days of the X-Men. They all had their respective roles. Scott was the stoic leader, Warren was all charisma and private school charm, Bobby was the comic relief, Hank was the scientist and Jean … well, Jean was the girl. She was the one who tried to hold them together, the person who knew instinctively when someone was upset long before she went venturing into their mind (perhaps a little too far in the early days, before she learned restraint -- before she learned that curiosity shouldn’t win out against sanctity), the one who defended Charles and softened Scott and hardened Warren in the places that mattered.

No one thought of her as anything other than the girl on the pedestal, or the body rotting six foot under. No one thought of her past the tragedy, a life ended far too soon and then violently brought back into the present, constantly within and without, years missing where she was absent from lives that moved on without her. (Bruce said death wasn’t convenient like she wasn’t the person who knew that the most, like she hadn’t lived and died more times than anyone could ever imagine). She opened her mouth to say that, to tell him what it really felt like to be dragged from the dirt, how it was better than the emptiness that Erik was lingering in now.

Death still terrified her. Every part of it, every aspect. They said it was the unknown that scared people, about what happened after. Jean knew, and she still hated it, still ran from it at every opportunity -- still couldn’t leave Erik in it, no matter what.

It wasn’t a lack of love that killed him. It was a lack of choice. She wanted to say that, too, wanted to ask Bruce if he’d ever stared a monster of cosmic proportions in the face and felt it calling to him. She thought he would understand, thought the Hulk would give them something of a shared foundation, a trust that would linger (because to have anyone near Erik, she needed to trust them immediately, wholly). Instead, she found nothing but suspicion on his face, found she was staring down the barrel of a gun instead of the compassion she had expected from his reputation.

But she wasn’t here, in the end, to make friends. She wasn’t here to be the Jean Grey that had portraits hanging in the Institute, or counselled her friends after a hard battle. She wasn’t here to be the golden girl, the shining beacon of morality. She was here for a single purpose, and she was here as a scientist.

“I have it all in here,” Jean replied, tapping the side of her temple. “I did my homework before I came to you.” Weeks and months of scouring through records and minds, trickling her way through states and countries to gain information that was long thought lost (but nothing disappeared forever. Jean knew that). “I’ve been coding it, on my personal system. I can send it through.”

The information read cold, clinical. She tried to think of it that way, as she manufactured this plan -- as she realised that it was going to work. But there wasn’t a part of Jean that could maintain that for long. She nodded once, allowed her gaze to drop from Bruce and move to the CRADLE, instead.

(It was Erik who first sat down with her, she remembered, long before the X-Men were even thought of. It was Erik who said, you’ve got a lot more in your head than you let people see, don’t you? It was Erik who first said sometimes telepaths have the most to hide, the heaviest burden to carry. It was Erik who helped her know physics so she could deconstruct it.)

It wasn’t a logical plan, but it was the only one she could make, the only choice that didn’t choke her.

“Let’s get started.”

#discord #char: bruce banner

[eeveevie]

Salvation is a Last Minute Business 

Prologue: You’re Dead. Lay Down

1958—Boston, Massachusetts.One year after witnessing her husband’s murder, Madelyn Hardy is struggling to survive in a city full of political corruption and crime. Together with Nick Valentine, the two investigate a string of mysterious disappearances and work to take down Eddie Winter’s reign of terror. But who, or what is really pulling the strings in the shadows? And who is the mysterious spy that’s been following Madelyn as she draws closer to the truth? In this town, everybody is looking for redemption. (A Fallout Noir AU) 

“Salvation is a last-minute business, boy.” -  Reverend Harry Powell as played by Robert Mitchum (The Night of the Hunter, 1955)

“Nobody’s your pal now. You’re dead. Lay down.” - Charlie as played by John Kellogg (Johnny O’Clock, 1947) 

x - x

On-going Story Tags: Alternate Universe, Slow Burn, Depictions of Violence, Minor Character Death(s), Canon-Typical Violence, Blood and Injury, Established Relationships/Past Relationships, Friendship/Love, Loss, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Baggage, Historical Easter Eggs

[read on Ao3]  |  [chapter masterpost]

December 24th, 1956

Boston Common.

A sprawling network of tourist attractions and bars, beautiful parks and scenery—it was an idyllic place as any for couples to spend their holiday. It was picturesque, with the fifty-foot Christmas tree standing near the frozen-over pond’s edge, lights sparkling over the skating residents. Hot cocoa vendors strolled with their carts as a soft dusting of snow fell from the evening sky. It was beautiful—something out of a Hallmark greeting card. It was safe.

That all was about to change.

“Madelyn James—attorney at law,” Nate’s voice was jubilant as he read over the small, embossed business card, thumb brushing over the bolded name. “Still think you should’ve gone with Maddie Hardy—catchier.”

Madelyn regarded her husband with a fond smile, still unsure of what she thought of this gesture. “It’s all a bit preemptive, don’t you think? I haven’t even passed the bar—”

“Yet,” he interrupted, pressing the eggshell colored card into her palm. “Two more weeks, after the new year, and you’ve got it in the bag, babe.”

She smirked, tucking the paper away in her front coat pocket. “This isn’t your Christmas present, is it?” she teased, looping her arm around his elbow as they walked along the sidewalk. “I saw that big box in the laundry room the other day…”

Nate raised his eyebrows up, feigning surprise as he glanced down at her. “It’s just an empty box. Nothing to get excited about. I’m going to use it to ship you away to Paris so you can finally learn how to cook like you’ve always wanted to—ahh!”

Madelyn playfully smacked his arm as she pulled away from him, the two laughing at his tease. Earlier in the afternoon, she had burnt the Christmas Eve roast, but the apple pie had survived the oven unscathed. Full on sweets, the two decided to drive out into the city for a late-night meal at their favorite diner before taking a romantic stroll in the park. She giggled as he grabbed her hand again, twirling her back into his embrace. This time she was facing him, flush against his chest and angled her chin up to stare into the dark green eyes she had fallen for as a lovestruck teenager.

“Oh, you better kiss me, Mr. James,” she breathed, gripping her hand into his coat to steady herself on her toes to reach his height. She wasn’t always one for public displays, but where they were, on the eastern side of the Commons where most businesses had closed for the evening, they could go unnoticed.

He grinned, free hand appearing to hold the side of her face, fingers dancing through her light blonde curls. “Yes, I better, Mrs. James.”

There really was no sweeter sensation that Madelyn could ever compare her husband’s kisses to. Every kiss still made her toes curl like it was the first time, like she was a nervous sixteen-year-old sneaking out from her bedroom window. Every caress still made her heart race, every touch exciting—it was thrilling to know that after ten years of marriage, a simple kiss could still be everything. She didn’t want it to end.

“How cute.”

Madelyn dismissed the voice that echoed behind her, only pulling away when she felt Nate hesitating to continue their little escapade. She felt him tense, turn and tuck her behind his back but she stubbornly fought to see what he was so spooked about. A chill electrified her, and her throat tightened with the taste of bile and fear at what she saw. A man—tall and broad shouldered, dressed in military garbs and a leather jacket, shaved head and a long scar that crossed over his left eye. In his hand, hanging by his side, he gripped a large gun.

“Whatever you want, we’ll give it to you,” Nate offered quickly, trying to stay calm. Madelyn tightened her grip on his arm, clenching her teeth as she breathed out so she could stay focused. If they followed the man’s orders, they would make it out with their lives. Except the mugger didn’t seem interested in whatever was in Nate’s pockets or the contents of Madelyn’s purse.

“I’d like you to beg for your life,” he said slowly, in a low voice that had Nate gripping Madelyn’s hand so tight she thought he might break her bones out of sheer terror.

“Excuse me?” Nate responded, more out of confusion than defiance.

The gruff man took a half step closer, this time raising his gun, so it was level with their heads. “You heard me. I want you to beg.”

Nate reluctantly let go of Madelyn’s hand as he raised his arms to the air, spreading his fingers wide defensively. She copied, trying to stay where she was half-hidden behind her husband until their captor motioned for her to come forward. She hesitated, sharing a silent look with her husband but ultimately decided it was best to follow through with the demands, even if they were starting to sound unhinged. Dread settled in her gut as her heart fluttered wildly against her ribcage.

“On your knees.”

“No!” Nate took a half step forward to protest, voice wavering. She didn’t need to see her husband’s face to know that he had begun to cry, wondering if she was too in shock to do the same. She followed the stern directions, lowering herself to the concrete where the snow began to dampen her dress.

Madelyn assumed the request was of a sexual nature but instead, the man stared down at her, gun aimed perfectly at her head. His fingers ghosted across her scalp, tangling through her hair before he yanked out a few strands, causing her to yelp. He chortled. “I prefer brunettes.”

Nate’s resolve must’ve broken—military training kicked in—either way, he leapt forward, forcing the gunman’s arm upwards as they stumbled into the street. Madelyn pushed herself to her feet, rubbing at her temple as she looked on. Her husband landed a punch against the assailant’s jaw but earned a swift elbow to the gut in return, the two twisting and writhing over the weapon. And then it happened. With one swift shove, their attacker pushed Nate away, nearly sending him toppling. In the created space, Madelyn saw a flash of silver and shouted in unison with the deafening gunshot.

Silence.

She looked at the shooter, at the smoking barrel and at the menacing grin she’d never forget for the rest of her days. He was gone before Nate collapsed to the ground, blood pooling rapidly from the wound in his chest. Madelyn was at his side in an instant gripping his hand tightly in her own as she inspected his injury. But the blood staining the ground and snow was far too much, spilling out of him at a rate that no emergency room doctor could fix. A choking sob rattled her body at the stunning realization that he was dying. Nathaniel James—Nate—her husband of ten years lay dying in her arms.

“Hey, hey,” he struggled, sputtering out the blood from his mouth. The bullet had likely punctured his lung. Madelyn gasped, reaching up to wipe away the red, uncaring about the stains on her gloves, on her skin, on her dress—she’d never wash them, never wear them again. “Don’t—”

“Stop,” she hushed, shaking her head, biting back her tears. She smoothed a hand across his auburn hair, glancing up for a moment to see if anyone—anybody—had witnessed their nightmare. Surely somebody had heard the gunshot and had called the police? Why didn’t she hear sirens? “Oh God,” she lamented, closing her eyes tight.

“No, no. Look at me,” Nate barely whispered, fingers squeezing the best they could around her own. They were already so cold. “Maddie, look at me.”

She did. She would make sure the last thing he saw was her face, her bright blue eyes locked on his. Despite it all, she forced a smile through her tears, leaning close to press a soft kiss to his temple. “I love you, Nate.”

There was one last rattling breath that fell from his lips. “Maddie…”

The life faded from Nate’s eyes. Madelyn turned her head to the sky and screamed.

#fallout 4 #fallout au #deacon x f!solesurvivor #madelyn hardy #well eventually it gets to that 👀 #sole survivor x spouse #check the tags on Ao3 #chapter 1 coming tuesday :) #I am sorry for angst train #please tell me how you feel in the asks #screams into the void

[suffering-and-happy-about-it]

Mount Everest Ain’t Got Shit On Us (Fezco x fem!reader, Part 18.) - The Aftermath, Part 1.

Description: You were always told that your life will be as you wish it to be if you’ll study enough. That it will pay off if you work hard. And some people were given you like a scary example of what will happen when you don’t obey. But sometimes it feels good to disobey.

A/N: I hope that you do not hate me yet because we are not in the finish line!

Warnings: Main character unconsciousness, drug addiction mentions, drug mentions, suicidal thoughts mention.

Word count: 2 K

Read the rest here, babe:  PART 1  PART 2  PART 3  PART 4  PART 5  PART 6  PART 7  PART 8  PART 9  PART 10  PART 11  PART 12  PART 13  PART 14  PART 15  PART 16  PART 17

Masterlist and declaration: H E R E

Tagging: @charmed-asylum, @jeyramarie, @pantherxrogers, @analia-analia-analia​

Mostly, throughout your entire life, you will be just a face amongst the other ones. You must know that you most probably won't be special - your face will not be worldwide known. But that isn't a bad thing. Don't it as such.

You can have a normal life, a normal job, normal surroundings. The media won't be sniffing about your day-to-day life, nobody will. You will be you, your own person, who has the luxury of being one in the many. Be glad for that. Accept it. Being in the middle class isn't bad.

But sometimes something can happen which makes your face stand out in the subconsciousness of the others. Something like ODing yourself. Something like being abused or neglected. Sometimes, your mental or physical handicap can make your name known. Or being in a car crash. Just being the victim of anything of it makes your face and name publicly known for a short amount of time, for two or three months, one year in the worst scenario.

Of course, the people will be telling your story long after it's finished. Oh yeah, they would start, that poor girl or boy, they were neglected as a child - that's why they aren't capable of having a normal life. Oh yeah, they would continue, that's why they don't have a chance of having a normal partner.

In your instance, you were in a car crash. In a bad car crash per se. It wasn't looking too good for you. When everyone in school heard the news, not many of them actually knew who they were talking about, they were just spreading the news to other people. They hadn't known you, they hadn't noticed your face. Your name wasn't publicly known, you were the one of the many.

"Y/N Y/L/N? That's terrible. Did she go to our school?" - They would usually ask with a shock on their faces. They would remember only if someone had told them that you're Fezco's girlfriend. Then they knew in the in an instance. That sweet cute girl who was making Fezco company at every good party in the town. The one who was a drug for him.

Many people came to his house just to tell them they are sorry for you. Fez didn't even seem to notice how many of them came to his house, so many faces, so many voices. So fucking much meaningless shit and such meaningless bullshit.

Rue tried to make the situation better for her in her own ways - sometimes Valium helped, sometimes Lexauryne was the thing she felt like. Sometimes she sat on the rooftop, thinking about jumping down and changing her life for yours, hoping that exchange will be accepted by God. Sometimes she was cutting her hand.

It was too long a month, to say the least.

A circus of police investigations have started and as Jules told Rue, she took the situation to her own hands. For a time, she had every one of Fezcos material and guns in her bag, with the help of Ash, so their flat was completely cleaned. She did her best to arrange the murder as murder in self-defense. She had an idea of how they do that.

And she also made Rue and Fezco say the story she wanted it to be. That Mouse made you do the drugs, which was true in the end, and that she and Rue were there all along when it all happened. She had a difficult storyline in her mind, doing her very best to match it for all of them. 

They told the police story, which was matching the timeline in almost genius way, they even talked about the details beforehand. 

They made it look like Fez was in law - and with help of Nate Jacobs, who had to listen to his girlfriend Maddy because of some tape she got a hold on, they made sure that Fez will be clean as a lily before you wake up. 

They also talked through what part you play in the story - so they made a decision that Fez shot Mouse after you got drugged without your own will. That made you totally untrustworthy witness for the case. They will have an interview about that night with you as well, that was for sure - but your utterance will not have any value in the eye of the policemen.

Nate got them through it. He knew perfectly how to manipulate a crime scene. That's why he was the first person who Jules called to when Rue went to search for you. Nate was in a tight corner because of Maddy and the things he have done to Jules. And Jules made things for him as well, so he helped her without his own will.

But everything they have done was nothing to Fezco. Yeah, of course he didn't want to go to jail, but you still were in the hospital, looking all dead on the edge of being alive. It didn't matter at all in the end.

"I told ya dat dis will go bad for 'er. I fuckin' told both of ya." - Fran said to Fezco when they both sat by your bed. He held your hand in a tight grip, kissing your knuckles lightly. - "Fez, my man, yo a great boy. And she's in love with you so much, so fuckin' much. But what's the next thing that'll happen?" - She asked worriedly. Fez just sat there, watching you sleeping and breathing. He got way skinnier and way paler than ever before. He couldn't sleep at night, he couldn't concentrate on anything.

You were his main concern. Sometimes he spent the evening at the police station, sometimes he went to a party for five minutes. Then, when he sold everything he needed, he left for the hospital.

When they took you in, they were asking what you took so they didn't get you anything that could hurt you, your heart or your brain. Rue told them that it was PCP - but until you wake up from the coma, they wouldn't know if the drugs didn't harm your brain. They could only hope that you're as mentally ok as you were before.

Yeah. Your condition was fucking bad. And to say at least, they marked you like a junkie. And your parents were in a fucking berserker mode when they found out. You have never done anything like that before - you were the good girl after all.

They thought that they can believe at least you, if not Fran.

But, these things happen.

"I told 'er that she shouldn't come." - Fezco looked at your sister with a hateful look. Fran froze down in one place. She had some memories of what happened the night you were hit by a car. But she couldn't tell for sure. - "Huh, darlin'? She told me somethin'. Tell me. Yo pushed her?"

"Fez... Fez... I don't know." - Fran got her knees under her chin and leaned it into them. She was crying. Fucking junkies, Fezco thought. They can tell everybody that everything is their fault. But when you blame them, they break down and they start to cry. - "I didn't want to hurt my baby sister."

"Dat doesn't change yo fuckin' did. If there wasn't for yo? We wouldn't be 'ere." - Fez said quietly. He was right and somewhere, deep under, she knew it. But she wouldn't tell it out loud. That was just how were junkies working. The lied, lied, lied until it killed them - from the inside or from the outside. It didn't matter at all.

"I didn't wanted to do it, bro, ok? I didn't. It was a dumb fuckin' accident, nothin' more bro." - She whispered as she started to cry. Fez was there with Rue as well. Lies. Fucking lies. Over and over again.

"Yo pushed her on a fuckin' cabinet, dat is a thin' dat sis does to a sis? Yo call dat a fuckin'accident? Yo told yo parents or the police? Bet they would be interested, huh?" - Fezco sat back to his chair and watched Fran down with a slight, dying smile. He knew that he's right at the moment. All it took was one little call and Fran would've been fucked.

"Yo know what? Fuck you, fuck Rue and fuck her." - Her shaking finger pointed at both you and him as she got up and stormed out of the room. Junkies were like that. They would've sold their soul from one tablet of PCP, they would steal for a gram of weed, they would plan a murder for a small bag of cocaine.

That's how junkies work.

Lemme say one thing - Fezco wasn't bright. No matter how did you look on the situation, that boy seemed to be dumb. It wasn't mostly possible to have a complex debate about something with Fezco.

But he learned many things over the years of dealing. He was able to perfectly say if anyone took drugs, if they were drugged at the moment, if they tried to end with it or if they were junk-starved. Which Fran clearly was.

Since the day you were hit, he and Ash closed the store for her. There was no way that they would sell another pill, another gram or just dust remaining after cocaine or drolled pills. Fran was fucked up to say at least.

She was without her stuff for two to three weeks and at the moment, she was running on her last supplies. She was fucked up - mentally and physically. She was in a tight corner and that with the combination of you being hit, drugged and that that night was a man shot at Fezco's apartment and you could've died that night was just circling through her brain like a worm. She was already fucked - but she was fucking up herself from the inside even more.

Her hands were shaking, she was hallucinating, aggressive, acting like a little child or a woman with hysterical attacks. A picture of a typical junkie.

"She didn't mean it. I swear, babe." - Fez leaned down to kiss your forehead, as the beeping in the soon got faster for a moment.

There was a hope that you'll maybe wake up, that you're getting awake in your boyfriend's arms; but then the beeping got slower and rhythmic again. At least you looked calm and contended while your soul was somewhere at the Milky Way.

When Rue sat by your side, she and Fez had changed the watching over you, she opened up her phone's gallery after a long time. It hurt to see you smiling, shining and looking into the camera of her phone.

There was your photos from the pool, in a bikini, when there was the freezing cold water. Both of you were posing like mermaids with duck-faces, your make up was all over your face and you looked happy as ever. Then there was a photo of you and your three double chins from the school cantina and then you stuffing Jules's mouth with chimichangas while telling her that it's a penis and she was almost screaming by laughter.

You were crazy. And she missed you as fuck. Everyone was too... Normal, too boring, too calm. She missed those evenings when you just showed up at her house's door with popcorn and something to watch when you cuddled to her.

Rue was always a physical person, to both girls and boys, and since she kept her head clean, she almost always was touch-starved. And since you loved her as your own sister, you held her so firmly that she felt like when the sun comes out tomorrow, she will be safe. Not many people were disposing that ability of unconditional love for everyone, not making too big of a matter of their past - but focusing on their future. There was not people missing you since you had your closest people in the new town by your side since the very beginning, but they missed you dearly.

There was a 50% chance of you waking up, but with that, Rue knew that there's a 50% chance of killing herself of you won't wake up.

Because even if Jules was trying to keep her in the real world, she was snapping out too much. 

#rue bennett #rue euphoria #nate euphoria #maddy euphoria #jules euphoria #fezco euphoria #jules vaughn #euphoria hbo #euphoria #hbo #mount everest ain't got shit on us #the aftermath part 1.

[trueromantic1]

“You’re a god damn mistake, that’s what you are.”

Maddie, I hope you like it. And I hope everyone enjoys me taking such an angst prompt and making it fluffier.

****

Sitting in the dark at the kitchen island, contemplating the five things she’d pulled from the fridge, was not what she’d expected to be doing at 2AM on a Tuesday night. But at just about 14 weeks pregnant, that’s where she now found herself. She’d woken up an hour earlier with the sudden urge to pee, but then she found herself wandering into the kitchen to see if there was anything she could find for a quick late night snack. She could just wake Chimney up, she knew he wouldn’t mind, but he had to be up for a shift in a few hours and she wanted to let him get all the sleep he could. It’s not like he could explain what made him so tired when he got to work, not without jumping the gun, since they’d decided to wait until the pre Fourth of July party that weekend to tell everyone.

It had been nice though, having such an amazing secret just between them. She couldn’t wait to share it with their loved ones, but it being just the two of them had made it so real. Instead of watching movies, one of their favorite pastimes since her boyfriend had decided her movie knowledge was severely lacking all those months ago when they’d first met, they found themselves talking about the baby, and where they hoped their life together would go. One night he’d told her that he hoped it was a girl, because Mr. and Mrs. Lee had kept a bunch of stuff that had belonged to his mother, like dressers and decorations, and he wanted to put them in a daughter’s room. And she’d told him that she really didn’t care, but she was glad it was happening with him, because she’d lived in fear for years of bringing a child into the world with Doug as its father. Little things, secrets just for them, that she knew would still happen once everyone knew, but felt somehow more theirs when no one else knew.

But that’s what led her to this moment; staring at a bunch of food items without any idea what to do with them. So far she hadn’t had any real cravings, but she knew that didn’t usually start until around 13 weeks anyway. It seemed they’d decided to hit in the middle of the night, when they didn’t have much in the fridge due to their busy schedules the last couple weeks. She didn’t really know what she wanted, so she’d just grabbed everything that sounded good. It’d seemed like a good idea at the time, but now she was left with an assortment of foods that she was pretty sure should never be eaten together, let alone mixed, which was actually sounding better and better the longer she stared. Deciding to just go for it, she grabbed a plate and spoon and started dishing things out. Placing a tortilla from the package in the breadbox on the plate, she added a good grating of parmesan cheese. She spooned banana peppers and kimchi in extra large helpings on top of the cheese. After taking a whiff of the orange chicken leftover from when they’d ordered Chinese the other night, she dumped the rest of it on top of everything else on the tortilla. After a healthy squirt of ketchup, she wrapped it all up. It smelled awful, and looked worse, but it had all sounded good when she put it on the counter, so she decided to throw caution to the wind and take a large bite.

“Hmmm...Not bad baby. Maybe you do have good taste. But we are never telling Uncle Buck about this. He’ll never let us live it down, and will probably tell all your friends that it’s your favorite meal.And let’s just keep it between the two of us what happened to the rest of Daddy’s kimchi from Mrs. Lee.” She continued talking to the baby, babbling from one topic to another as she finished her snack. It really was surprisingly delicious, considering she didn’t normally even like kimchi or banana peppers. As she polished off the last bite, she turned back to the fridge for something to wash it all down with. “Hmm...What do you think we should have? We’ve got milk, water, apple juice, orange juice, some of that weird health drink your Uncle Buck likes...Looks like your Uncle Albert left some of his bananamilk here too…” She stared into the fridge, trying to decide what she wanted. She’d been on a bit of a milk kick lately, but that just didn’t seem appetizing right now. Her eyes were drawn back to the bananamilk, so she pulled it out and turned back to the counter after grabbing a glass. As the liquid poured out, she wrinkled her nose, realizing bananas were going to be yet another thing she hated that the baby was going to make her crave. She wondered if her stomach was really going to be able to handle the astonishing mix of foods she’d put in it in the last 45 minutes. “You’re a goddamn mistake, that’s what you are.”

“Maddie? Why would you say that?” The voice came from behind her, startling her enough she almost dropped the glass on its way to her mouth. She wasn’t sure why he sounded so upset, but maybe he’d just gotten worried when he woke up and she was gone. She put the glass down carefully and turned toward him.

“Howie! Was I too loud? I was trying not to wake you up; I know you have to get up for your shift soon. I just woke up really needing to pee, and then I was just so hungry, so I decided to raid the fridge.” He didn’t respond, just staring at her with a distraught look on his face. She took a step closer, but he flinched back. “Howie? What’s the matter? You’re scaring me?”

“Is that really how you feel? I thought you were happy about the baby.” He wasn’t looking at her, keeping his eyes trained somewhere over her shoulder. His words confused her though, because of course she was happy about the baby; she’d told him so just that night.

“What are you talking about? I told you, I’m thrilled about the baby. I’m a little surprised, because we didn’t plan it, but I’m so happy we’re having it. Why would you think I wasn’t happy?” She almost stepped to him again, wanting to comfort him, to take away whatever had put that awful look on his face, but the memory of him moving away from her held her back. She wrung her hands together instead, anxious that she’d done something to upset him.

“I heard you. When I was coming into the kitchen. You said it was a goddamn mistake. How could you ever say that Maddie?” He came slowly into the kitchen, still not looking directly at her, stopping just out of arms reach. She didn’t think she’d ever seen this look on his face, even more distraught then when he realized Hen might eventually be leaving him. But she was still confused, and couldn't figure out how to fix it.

“Seriously, what are you talking about? I would never call our baby a mistake! It may have been a surprise, but that doesn’t make it a mistake! I can’t believe you’d-Oh, Howie, no.” She let out a laugh, realizing what had happened. “No, Howie, I wasn’t calling the baby a mistake; I promise.” She took a few steps toward him, glad he didn’t flinch this time. He slowly lowered his eyes to hers.

“But I heard you Maddie. Just now, that’s what you said.” She could see that he wanted to believe her, but she could understand his hesitancy.

“No, I was talking to the milk. It’s Albert’s babanamilk. The baby wanted it. I was talking about how it was probably going to be a mistake drinking the bananamilk after the mix of other things I’d already eaten. I just made a burrito of orange chicken, banana peppers, parmesan cheese, kimchi, and ketchup. I couldn’t imagine how my stomach was going to handle that, nevermind the bananamilk I was about to add to it.” She could see when he believed her, the distraught look easing into a grin. He laughed as he grabbed her, carefully pulling her into a hug.

“I’m sorry I doubted you Maddie. I didn’t think you thought that, that’s why I was so upset. This baby already means so much to me, and  I thought it did to you too, so I couldn’t understand why you would tell it that it was a mistake.” He kissed her forehead before leaning his against it. “I’m also sorry our baby is making you crave the foods you can’t stand. Is it at least making them taste good to you?”

“I’ll forgive you this time, since you said you couldn’t understand it. I’ll chalk it up to lack of sleep on your part.” She huffed, allowing her body to lean into him more, knowing he’d take her weight. “As for the food, it’s not awful. I don’t know how they’d all taste on their own, or when the baby isn’t craving it, but right now it all tasted okay. And the bananamilk wasn’t horrible, at least the sip I had wasn’t. I just hope I’m able to keep it all down. I don’t want to know what it tastes like the second time around.” He pulled back some, kissing the tip of her nose. How about you finish your milk while I get rid of the rest of your dishes, and then we go back to bed for a couple more hours.”

She smiled, pecking his lips quickly, before she went back to her glass. As she watched him take her plate and silverware to the sink, singing a song quietly, she smiled. She took a few more sips, thinking about how far they’d both come, to be able to move on from such a potentially big thing so quickly. Feeling her stomach suddenly roll, hoping it would settle, though she wasn’t holding out much based on past experience, she realized maybe the bananamilk had been a mistake after all, but nothing else about her life right then was.

#maddieandchimney #maddie x chimney #911 fanfic #angst prompts #but not angst because it was more fun this way

[iplaydrake]

FULL CIRCLE - CHAPTER 6 - THE RIGHT AND WRONG (AND RIGHT AGAIN) WAY TO BE A STUNNER - PART 2

Catch Up Here :

FULL CIRCLE - CHAPTER 6 - THE RIGHT AND WRONG (AND RIGHT AGAIN) WAY TO BE A STUNNER - PART 1

Song : No Love - Eminem

Author’s Note : This story is gonna get a little dark. Talk of Suicide, Assault (both physical and sexual), Gun Violence, Blood, Swearing. Please read with caution. Positive feedback, constructive criticism, and reblogging are always welcome. I own nothing except the storyline of my MC. Everything else belongs to Pixelberry.

Pairing : Drake x MC

HUGE SHOUT OUT to @ao719 for all your help and encouragement!!! I know I am a pain in the butt but you are the best!!!

Tag List : @likethetailofacomet @carabeth @rhymesmenagerie @speedyoperarascalparty @butindeed @wannabemc2 @client-327 @jovialyouthmusic @be-still-my-aching-heart @riseandshinelittleblossom @lodberg @drakesensworld @alj4890 @rainbowsinthestorm @ao719 @andy-loves-corgis @drakewalkerisreal @whenyourheartskipsabeat @furiousherringoperatortoad @silentcoyotesong @choicesmacmakes @ladyangel70 @lady-alex-keith @notoriouscs @lynne1993

******

“Remington, please... Please tell me you believe me... I... I need you to believe me.” He was desperate to reach out to her but kept his distance. As she stood with her tears falling, staring at the man in front of her, the memories of their time together danced in and out of her vision. Memories of falling asleep under the trees after long talks, of car rides that were filled with laughter as they sang off-key to their favorite songs, of sneaking out long after everyone around them had gone to sleep, of late nights that almost always included s'mores by the fire.

She knew; in her heart she'd always known. The realization that she had allowed Madeline to take something else from her, to taint her feelings and question his motives all this time, hit her hard. She lowered her head to her hands and covered her face as she cried harder. That was all the push he needed as he grabbed her arm and pulled her to him, kissing the top of her head. She lifted her arms and wrapped them around his neck as he lifted her off the ground in a tight hug.

“Well, well, well, what have we here?!”

Drake felt Remi tense in his arms at the sound of Madeline's shrill voice. He lowered her back down and stepped forward, putting himself in between them. “What the hell do you want, Madeline?”

“You know, I always did think it was adorable how you 2 seemed to take pity on each other. It was most fitting seeing as though you are both nothing more than a commoner and an ugly duckling... I wouldn’t get too attached to her though, Your Grace. She won't be here long... Isn't that right, Duck?”

He made a move towards her but stopped, feeling Remi's hand on his arm. She squared her shoulders and slowly walked towards Madeline before speaking, venom in her voice. “Countess, let me make one thing crystal clear. I’m back and there's not a damn thing any of you can or will do about it. 'Duck' is gone and the girl who took her place is not someone you want to go toe to toe with, trust me... I dare you to fight with me... Just one time... You do NOT want to get on my bad side anymore than you already are... It will not end well for you.”

“Excuse me?! Are you threatening me?”

“Not at all, Countess, but I am promising you.” She leaned in closer so Drake couldn't hear. “I would have no problem letting everyone know of your many scandals, including what you and your bastard friends did to me, 'Maddy'... I’m sure the court will be most willing to hear it, especially considering I was underage at the time. It would bring me nothing but joy to see you stripped of your titles at the very least... I'm serious, Madeline. Stay out of my way!” She walked past her back into the ballroom, purposely bumping shoulders to make her point clear.

***** (REMI’S POV) *****

As she walked through the doors, she took a shuddering breath and made her way over to Maxwell and Bertrand.

“Remington? Are you crying? What happened?”

“Nothing happened, Bertrand... I'm fine... Guys, I'm gonna head back to my room, ok? I've had about all the fun I can handle for one night.”

“O-Ok, come on, I'll walk-“

“No, Maxwell really, I... I just need some time by myself.” She leaned up to kiss his cheek and then Bertrand’s before smiling to them as she made her way to her room.

***** (DRAKE’S POV) *****

As Drake moved to follow Remi, he paused, taking his turn to stop in front of her. “I know it was you, Madeline. We all do. God help you if she ever comes forward with the truth because there won't be anything stopping me from killing anyone who was involved in hurting her. And that is a threat.” He said as he left her standing there, a look of shock on her face.

As he entered the ballroom, his eyes searched for her but she was nowhere to be found. He too made his way over to Maxwell and Bertrand.

“Maxwell, where did she go?”

“Back to her room... She said she'd had enough... What happened out there?”

They both looked towards the balcony doors as Madeline finally made her way back in, turning back to each other as Drake gave him a knowing look.

*****

After the ball had ended, Drake slowly walked up the steps towards his room. He'd felt better knowing she'd believed him, and he made it his next goal to prove to her he still felt the same as he did before she left. As he got close to the top of the staircase, he stopped suddenly, as he heard music echoing off the walls of the old palace. 

🎼 It's a little too late to say that you're sorry now

You kicked me when I was down

But what you say just (don't hurt me)

That's right bitch (don't hurt me)

And I don't need you (no more)

Don't wanna see you (no more)

Ha, bitch you get (no love)

You showed me nothing but hate

You ran me into the ground

But what comes around goes around 🎼

He quickly detoured, following the sounds until he came to a hall he knew all too well; one that led right to the palace gym. By the time he reached the door, the music was blaring. 'Is that Eminem?', He slowly pushed the door open and saw Remi with her back to the door beating up a bag. 'Well, the music is definitely fitting.'

🎼 And you can never break my stride

You never slow the momentum at any moment I'm about to blow

You'll never take my pride

Killing the flow, slow venom and the opponent

Is getting no mercy, mark my words

Ain't letting up, relentless

I smell blood, I don't give a fuck: keep giving them hell 🎼

He stood watching her, completely enamored in that moment; No makeup, hair a mess, in a sports bra and shorts that should have been illegal, completely oblivious to anyone around her. After watching her for a minute longer, he decided to make his presence known. “Remington? Rem-” He walked up behind her and put his hand on her shoulder, startling her. Without thinking, she turned and punched him in the face, gasping as she realized what she'd done. He stumbled back, falling to the floor and in quick succession, she removed the gloves from her hands, pulled out her earbuds, reached for the remote to turn off the music, and knelt down on the floor next to him. Both of her hands went to his face, trying to get him to look at her.

“Oh my god, Drake? Drake, look at me! Are you okay?”

“Damn, Beaumont! You hit like a guy.” He said, chuckling. He slowly tried to sit up, his hand rubbing his aching jaw.

“Very funny...” Her hands moved to his arms to help him before going back to his face. “Now look at me... Follow my finger.” She moved her finger side to side in front of his face but Drake's eyes never left hers. Before he could stop himself, he cupped her cheek with his hand and pulled her towards him. He slowly pressed his lips to her, his tongue tracing her bottom lip before sucking it gently. She opened her mouth, allowing their tongues to dance together as his hands went to her sides, pulling her to straddle him as he kissed her desperately.

She'd always imagined what it would be like to kiss him and now, as she experienced it for the first time, it was everything she'd dreamed of and more. His arms wrapped tightly around her waist, holding her as if he was afraid she would disappear if he let go. He was reluctant to pull away, only doing so to allow her to breathe as he leaned his forehead against hers and whispered to her. “I've been waiting forever to do that...” They both smiled as she pulled back and ran her thumb across his jaw.

He winced as she hit a sore spot. “I, uh, I'm so sorry... I didn't think anyone was awake.”

He put his hand over hers and pulled it from his face, holding it tightly as he rubbed the top of it with his thumb. “It's fine. I shouldn't have snuck up on you... Of course, I didn't think you would beat me up for it.”

She laughed, the first time he'd heard a genuine laugh from her in almost 6 years and all it did was make him want to kiss her again. His stare was intense and she looked away, smiling to herself. “Well, I, uh... I should probably go shower, I’m sure I look and smell disgusting.”

“You look beautiful.” Her eyes shot back to him, and he leaned in to kiss her again. They sat there on the floor, the rest of the world fading away as they made up for lost time before she pulled back once again. She whispered “G'nite Drake.” and slowly stood, making her way to the door.

As she lifted her hand to the handle, he called out to her. “I've missed you, Remington.” She didn't turn around, but didn't move as he continued. “I've missed everything about you... About us and what we were... I know it was nothing more than just words at that point, but I.. I meant them... I still do.” She smiled to herself as she opened the door and make her way back to her room.

Want to continue? Click below for the next chapter :

CHAPTER 6 - THE RIGHT AND WRONG (AND RIGHT AGAIN) WAY TO BE A STUNNER - PART 3 

#choices #fanfic #choices fanfic #choices fandom #trr #choices trr #choices the royal romance #drake walker #drake x mc #drake walker x mc #drake walker x mc fanfic #the royal romance fanfic #Liam Rys #liam rhys #au #maxwell beaumont

[friking-awsom-kitten]

Breaking bones and traffic laws IASA Chapter 2

The crowd cheered when the jet retreated.

"That's right!" A man yelled, holding up a shoe. "You better run!"

Sam, however, sprinted over to her best friend. His parents were kneeling next to him, trying to rejuvenate him.

"Someone call an ambulance!!" Was shouted among the crowd.

Sam kneeled next to the Fentons and flinched at the sight of her friend. It had been her turn to check on Danny, so she had skipped a lesson and had ran in only to see him surrounded and shot down. Now he lay here covered in bruises, pale and burned, probably because of the GIW's gun, not to mention unconscious.

His parents were not taking this well. His mom was crying and trying desperately to wipe the green tinted blood away. This wouldn't help Danny in any way but she seemed focused on cleaning him from any evidence that he was hurt.

His dad was muttering under his breath. His eyes wide as he held his limp kid.

About three ambulances pulled up, having been called by several people. There were also some police cars and the distant roar of an emergency helicopter.

The policemen pushed people away to make way for the medics. Two medics squatted down next to Danny and quickly started working on his worst injuries.

Sam couldn't see much past the policeman blocking her sight but she could tell they were stopping the bleeding. Especially from the injury on his head. She knew head wounds blead fast (thanks to Danny) but this looked bad.

Meanwhile his parents were shouting out things.

"Please help him!" Maddie begged. "That's my son. Save him!"

They were in a panic. The whole place was chaos. People were crowding around and shouting and camera crews going awol because of this breaking news and the Fentons kept trying to get to their son.

The medics put the halfa on a stretcher and directed him to the ambulance as quick as they could.

One of them stopped Jack from getting in too. "Wait at the hospital. Don't worry, Mr. Fenton. We'll take good care of your son."

"But he's a ghost!" Jack said frantically. "We can help you with that."

The medic froze and sent his comrade a questioning look.

The other called through a telephone that was attached to the vehicle and his eyes widened. "It's true," he said when he hang up. "It seems we have Danny Phantom on our stretcher."

The medic's eyes got huge and he eyed the boy that was being taken care of by the third doctor. He glanced back to see both of the parents watching him hopefully. "Do you know how to heal a ghost? Or whatever this kid is?"

Maddie hesitated but she knew her knowledge would be valuable to her boy. "We've studied ghosts and how they work for years. Please let us help."

The medic gave the other medics a glance before nodding. "Only one, though."

They both stepped in before pausing. Jack smiled sadly. "I'll go with the RV."

"Thank you, Jack." Maddie sighed in relief and stepped in. The doors closed, leaving Jack and Sam outside. They watched the ambulance take off with the siren on, people rushing out of the way and waving them good luck.

Jack sighed but he turned on his heel and sprinted to the RV. Sam followed quickly.

He got in and turned on the engine. The door of the other seat opened and he saw Sam stepping in.

"I'm coming too," she said with a determined glint.

Jack honestly couldn't care so he grabbed the wheel tightly. "Hold on."

Sam barely had time to grab onto the seat when Jack took off.

They sped through the streets in a way that would make the roadrunner jealous. Everything went by in a flash, but Jack only had eye for the hospital at the end of the road. He faintly remembered another time he had been setting a new speed record for his injured son.

Jack peeked at the back seat to confirm his son wasn't laying there, dripping green liquid and covered in scorch marks, barely breathing.

No. This time he was in an ambulance, which was honestly worse. Was he still alive? Was he still breathing? Has he run out of blood?

The panicked screams of Danny's friends had been barely noticeable above the loud rumbling of the house, which the Fenton parents later found out was the powerful start of the Ghost Portal.

Maddie had dropped the bag of groceries she had been carrying and sprinted past her husband to the basement.

They had opened the door to see Danny half dead on the ground and his friends freaking out, not able to get a coherent sentence out.

Jack now realized much more had happened back then than just a bad shock.

Jack screeched on the brakes and scrambled out of the RV, leaving it occupying three lanes because of his horizontal parking.

Him and Sam sprinted to the main entrance, bursting through the doors and scanning the lobby for the receptionist. There she was. A short woman, her dark brown hair tied back in a loose ponytail and her fingers messing around with different papers.

Jack slammed his hands on the desk, making the woman jump. "Where is my son?!" he cried.

The receptionist blinked in surprise and Jack called out again. "My son, Danny! Is he ok? How is he doing?!"

The woman held up a finger. "Just a second." She typed something on the computer next to her and frowned. "Danny Fenton?" she asked. She knew Jack, or at least, she knew his last name (who didn't know Fenton Works. That sign over their house was visible halfway across town). However she didn't know much about their family and kids, much less their names.

Jack nodded furiously and the woman raised an eyebrow. "The ambulance taking him hasn't arrived yet." She gave him a suspicious glance, probably suspecting all of the traffic laws he must have broken. "Please take a seat in the waiting room and I will call you up when he will be ready for visitors."

"Please," Sam interjected. "Can you tell us how he's doing?"

The receptionist pursed her lips. She glanced at the screen of her computer and back at the distraught people in front of her. "I will keep you posted on how he's doing." She smiled at them reassuringly before she was interrupted by the phone.

Jack and Sam dejectedly started walking towards the waiting room, but paused when the receptionist let out a small panicked sound and started writing something down. "Of course," she was saying, "I'll make sure they're ready to take him in." She hanged up and looked at Jack with wide eyes.

"What," Jack frowned. "What happened."

"There has been some complications during the ride, but they're back on track. They will be arriving here shortly."

"What kind of complications?" Sam wrung her hands together nervously.

The receptionist ruffled with a few papers and gave a tired sigh. "I'm not completely sure myself. However, Danny might need some special attention. Excuse me, I need to take care of somethings so we can be prepared for his arrival."

Jack seemed to realize they weren't getting anything more out of her so he slowly guided the distressed Sam to the waiting room. The chair creaked as the big man sat down on it and Sam plopped down next to him.

The goth looked around. The waiting room was big. Many people were scuttling around, some nervously talking to their companions, some by the coffee machines, some staring off into nothingness deep in thought. Sam wondered what it would be like, having a normal life. She rarely thought about this. The thought usually just popped into her head when either Danny, Tucker or herself were injured badly. As they tried patching each other up she would wonder how it would be like to have a normal life, with normal problems. Not that she wished she had a normal life. She loved this. The thrill and sensation and feeling like she was actually doing something with her teenage life.

However she couldn't help but wonder. If they had a normal life, Danny wouldn't be there, bleeding out in an ambulance, his death status being brought up a few notches.

But Sam guessed he was never destined to have a normal life. None of them were. Not Danny for having such ghost loving parents. Not her for constantly wanting to be different and looking for new and adventurous things. Not even Tucker for the simple fact that he chose Danny and Sam as his best friends (of course being such a Tucker wouldn't be normal either).

Sam's eyes teared, but she smiled through the tears. Her life wasn't normal and she loved it. And she knew Tucker and Danny loved it too. For the most part. But every roller coaster that climbed up, had to fall down sometime. No matter how thrilling it was, there were risks. And Danny just happened to be sitting on the front seat of the ride.

The worst thing wasn't even that he was injured. He had gotten worse, she knew. It was that everyone else knew about him. The moment he woke in a hospital he would be waking up to his living nightmare.

With a start Sam realized these people here in the hospital didn't know about the blown secret yet. She looked around again. Taking in their faces. None of them had any idea. It was an unsettling thought that within a couple of hours most of Amity Park would find out. She faintly wondered if the rest of the world would know, or even care. They didn't know Danny as personally as the people in Amity did, but the town was famous for being as haunted as it was and a half ghost kid would surely spike their interest.

Sam let the thought go. She would just have to wait and see. It's not like they had another Reality Gaunlet to erase everyone's memories. All she could do was care for Danny as she knew Tucker would too.

Sam's head snapped up. Tucker! He didn't know yet. He couldn't have. He was still at school as were most teens. But he had his PDA and this was sure to be on the news by now. However, she checked her messages to find it empty, he would have called her by now if he did know. Should she call him now? This would also be a big shock for him and he would most likely freak out that his friend was being taken to his number one nightmare. Before she could make up her mind, Mr. Fenton's phone rang instead, blasting out the Ghost Busters theme in the waiting room.

Jack fumbled with the phone in a panic until he managed to pick up the call. He held it to his ear, unsure whether to feel hope or dread. "Mads?"

Sam's wide eyes inspected the bigger man's expression, searching for any information it could give her.

Jack nodded and his brow creased. "Yes. I'm at the waiting room. How is he?" A pause. "Ectoplasm? Are you sure? And the Fenton analyzer. Of course." He stood up and started speed walking to the door. Sam scrambled behind him in confusion.

"Anything else?" Jack running a hand through his hair. "Alright. I'll get them." He hang up and glanced at Sam briefly. "I'll be right back."

"What?"

They passed the doors and walked by the receptionist, who called out saying something about Danny arriving at the hospital.

Jack didn't falter as he walked out and towards the RV. He kept muttering words under his breath and counting on his fingers. "Two cans of ectoplasm. No three. Just in case. Fenton analyzer. The ecto-sector."

Sam frowned. "Where are you going?"

"To pick up some things from the house." He stepped in and turned on the engine. "Be right back."

Sam was left standing in the driveway as the RV screeched away. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves. She shivered despite of the sun and decided to walk back in. As she walked through the lobby she noticed there were more people in there than before. Most were clustered around the secretary while others talked to each other, watching something on their phones and pointing it out.

She raised an eyebrow but didn't think much of it until one of them spoke to the secretary. "Can you at least tell us if he's gonna make it?? Is he a ghost??"

Sam froze. She turned in time to see the woman behind the desk smile uncertainly, though apologetically, at them. "I am sorry. I'm not allowed to disclose information about a patient with no one other than his family and friends."

Sam sprang forward, suddenly remembering how she had told her and Mr. Fenton that Danny's ambulance had arrived. She pushed past the few people in between her and the secretary and looked at her with wide eyes. "How is he?"

The woman opened her mouth to deny an answer again when she recognized the girl. "You are his friend?"

Sam nodded furiously. "He's like my brother. You said the ambulance got here and his dad just went to get things for him and I'm worried. Is he alright?! What happened?"

The woman smiled reassuringly. "The ambulance stopped because his heartrate was out of the normal and his bleeding was too fast. They had to make sure it stopped before he ran out."

"His heartrate is usually faster than the one of a normal human." Sam nodded.

The woman's eyes widened in surprise that this girl knew that and referred to her friend as if he weren't a human but her expression turned to a frown. "That is worrisome. His heartbeat was slow." She quickly glanced to the screen to confirm her facts when the girl began to panic. "But it accelerated. That is why they stopped the ambulance."

Sam breathed a small sigh of relief but didn't relax. "The bleeding stopped?"

The woman nodded, which made the other people relax as well. "For the most part. He's in the emergency room at the moment. I haven't been updated on any other injuries or complications." She turned to the small crowd questionably. "May I ask who you are?"

"We're worried." A middle-aged man didn't answer the question. "We want to make sure the boy is ok."

Sam was touched. These people didn't even know Danny, yet here they were, worried and panicked for his sake. She considered it was a logical reaction given how he was the ghost that had protected them for so long and had been beaten up to the hospital. But they could have just followed the news from their houses. Instead they came all the way to the hospital.

She couldn't understand the receptionist's confusion until she realized the woman didn't know about Danny's special status yet. She guessed she would be getting this reaction a lot at first. "Danny is half ghost." Sam decided to enlighten the woman. She glanced to the woman's name tag to see her name was Erica. "He's Danny Phantom." She was almost not able to say that simple phrase. She'd never said it before.

Erica only managed to look more surprised. "Excuse me?"

"You don't know?" The man next to Sam said it as if he had been insulted. "It's all over the news! The ghost boy is the Fenton's son!!"

Sam sighed and left them alone. She didn't need this right now. She entered the waiting room, thankful no one here had heard the exclamation from the lobby. She didn't want anyone to recognize her as his best friend and bombard her with questions. Those people by the receptionist better not try.

She sat down, hunched over and placed her head in her hands. She couldn't do this alone. She needed to tell him. She couldn't care less if he freaked out. She couldn't bear knowing this while he didn't.

The depressed goth girl pulled out her bat themed phone and scrolled down the contacts to find 'Tucknology' popping up as one of the first ones. She tapped it and held it close to her ear as she waited, still hunched over.

The call traveled out of the hospital, a few blocks down, to the school Casper High. In a social studies class, three seats away from the front, in a beat up backpack a high tech phone rang with the same call. Tucker jumped when 'Dead girl walking' sang from his front pocket. He frowned, confused and slightly panicked. That was Sam's ringtone. Sam never called in the middle of class unless it was something she couldn't handle, so it must be bad.

He ignored the snickers coming from the other students and picked his phone out. He glanced at it and turned to the teacher with pleading eyes. "I just...I have to take this I'm sorry."

The teacher sighed and waved her hand. "Do whatever you must to turn that horrible music off."

Tucker didn't waste anytime and held it close to his ear. "Sam?"

"Tucker. It's Danny."

The boy immediately straightened. Danny wasn't the only one protective of his friends. "What did he do?"

There was a faint chuckle from the other side. The standard question concerning Danny. "He umm...he's got it bad. The GIW shot him down."

"They did what?!" Tucker half sat up, ready to tear the GIW's headquarters open with his bare hands and get Danny out of their undeserving claws.

"They didn't get him." Sam reassured him quickly. "He's at the hospital."

"He's where?!?"

By now the rest of the class was getting nervous. The teacher leaned forward in slight worry.

Tucker gripped his desk, tense. "Why is he there?" Not 'What happened to get him there'. Danny did lots of things that should get him in the hospital, as did Sam and Tucker. But what made this time different?

"They know, Tuck. Ever-one knows..." Her voice cracked. Tucker was really panicking now. "They...they shot him down and he- wouldn't move. Everyone saw him. I don't know what to..."

"Calm down, Sam." Tucker's own voice trembled slightly, although he didn't know what got his friend breaking down like this.

His classmates gasped. Sam had to calm down?? What had happend to make the tough goth who never let emotions show unless it was anger freak out like this?

Tucker continued. "Where are you? I'll come to you."

"I'm at- the hospital."

That made him pause. Both his friends at the hospital. He hated that place so much. Being at the hospital never meant anything good. It meant pain and suffering. Tucker heard another un-Samly sniffle and broke. He took a deep breath. "Which hospital?"

He ignored the collective gasp of his classmates as he threw his stuff into his backpack. He had learned to always be prepared, especially in a crisis.

"Honor Grave Hospital."

Tucker nodded. "Be right there. Don't move."

She mumbled a bye and hung up. Tucker slung his backpack over his shoulder and shoved his phone in one of his many pant pockets. He didn't say anything as he passed his teacher and opened the door, ignoring his fellow peers' questions.

Tucker ran out of the school and to his motorbike that was chained to a tree next to the school. The chain was only decoration really. He yanked it off and typed in a password after pressing his thumb and scanning it. He quickly jumped on and revved the motor, starting up and away towards the hospital.

He was at the hospital in a blink.

#danny phantom #danny fenton #ghosts #ghost zone #amnesiac!Danny #chapter two #sam manson #tucker foley #jack fenton #maddie fenton #jazz fenton

[dp-pastandpresent]

Past and Present: Chapter 12

Sarah quickly removed her rather thick glasses, rubbed her eyes, and then replaced them. Still, he was there.

"Uhhhh…." was all she could say.

'I had guessed, but never thought it could really be true. It CAN'T be true! How?'

he had tried to become invisible when Sarah did the glasses thing, but his body seemed to be thinking otherwise, as he his attempt to do so failed. After all, he had come here with a mission. No, this wasn't how he had planned to go about it, but he knew what had to be done.

"Sarah?" he rather squeaked out. Indeed, he was shocked too.

To his surprise, it was Sam who answered first.

"Wait? What is going on here? Grandma?"

But she still couldn't answer. Somehow she had just gone stiff.

'This is impossible! Danny—sort of—here? Now? And at THAT AGE?'

Before either of them could say anything more, Sarah fell backwards in her chair, completely passed out.

--

When Sarah came to, she found herself lying on Sam's bed, out of her chair, Danny's green eyes gazing down at her.

"Ah!"

"Grandma?! Are you okay?" It was Sam's voice that finally got Sarah out of her trance.

"Sam…? Is that you, honey? I must still be dreaming. You're here, and that's normal, but how can—?"

"Grandma, what is—"

Before she could finish, Danny cut her off.

"Sarah. You're not dreaming. It's me. Danny."

He had finally managed to let it all out. Everything that had been building up since he realized the relationship had all come down to this moment.

"Danny? But… how?"

She had finally sat up, which meant that Danny was now sitting across from her, still looking straight into her eyes. Next to her, Sam was seated on the edge of the bed, utter confusion on her face.

'I wish he'd stop that. It's really intimidating. Those aren't even the eyes I remember.'

"It's a very long story, believe me." Now that she knew it was him, he let out a small smile.

'I knew she'd never truly forget. I didn't.'

"I do, I think," Sarah replied firmly.

"Wait! Hold on. What is going on here?" Sam had finally absorbed their conversation enough to get the idea that somewhere along the line, someone had forgotten to mention something to her.

"Sam, I wanted to tell you. And I was actually going to before Sarah showed up today…" Danny began.

"Wait? Sarah? You know her name? You've never even met until today…"

"No, Sam. We've met before…" Danny continued, turning back to Sarah for support; sadly, she wasn't much help. Apparently this all still seemed suspicious to her too.

Things in Sam's mind began to click. The looks her Grandma had been giving her during those news stories. The similar tastes in music. The scattered reaction Danny had had when she told him her name.

"When? How? What?" were the only words that came out of Sam's mouth, and Danny knew he had to start at the beginning.

"We dated. Fifty years ago. When I was still alive," he said bluntly and without any enthusiasm.

--

"Well that didn't go very well."

Danny was now sitting on the edge of the bed, Sarah was in her chair. After learning the truth, Sam had gotten up and stormed out, not wanting to hear another word.

After a few short minutes of silence, Danny finally broke.

"Sarah, talk to me.

She turned to him and squinted. Finally she opened her mouth only to say, "I don't know. This can't be real."

"Believe me, I know. When I was first resurrected, I had no memory of anything except where I was from."

"Resurrected?" So then… you're alive?"

'I saw that coming. Hmmmm, what do I say? Yes, I am alive, but I'm really not. I'm a ghost. Sort of The ghosts people see in movies are nothing like what I am. I am more than that. Or part of me is, otherwise these memories wouldn't exist. Right? And then there's apparently a prophecy about me being of both realms?'

These were all very good questions Danny found himself asking, but had never found an answer to.

"No Sarah, I'm not alive. Not really. I'm a ghost." He sighed, admitting the reality of his existence.

"So you did die that night?" she asked.

"Yes."

"How?"

He'd been expecting that one too, but once again he was unsure how to answer. He remembered how he had died, the one thing all ghosts remember, but until recently he hadn't remembered the details. But all the rescues he'd been doing had finally allowed the memories to come back. However, saying it out loud would only make it real, and he wasn't sure he was ready for that.

But he had to be. For her sake.

"That night, the night before graduation."

"Yeah, I remember. You were at my place and my parents made you leave early, and you made fun of me and my curfew."

Sarah was old, but memories like this never left.

Danny stayed silent; he didn't remember the details the way she had.

"You never called."

"What?"

"You were supposed to call me later when you got home."

She really did remember those small details.

"Sorry, I didn't call, but I had a good reason. I stopped that night, to get you flowers. We were together, more than friends, but we had never really reached that level of a real couple and I was going away soon, and you were staying behind. I just wanted you to know before I left…"

To Danny's surprise, things were coming back very clearly now. When he first remembered that night, his death, and her, he only remembered bits and pieces. Now, however, he was remembering everything exactly as it happened. Funny how things worked out that way.

"Danny…"

"Shh, I'm on a roll; let me finish. I walked by a local shop on my way home, advertising discount flowers, and it made me realize how I felt."

'How did you feel?' But before she could say that out loud, he continued.

"I was at the register when the robber showed up. He demanded the money and the clerk refused. Any other robber would have pulled out a gun, but this guy had a bomb."

He heard a faint gasp come from Sarah.

"He threw it. And in no time flat the whole store was on fire. It was late enough that it was a pretty empty store, but still the shock and flames hit me and I passed out before I could even begin running. I never made it out and by the time the firemen came, it was too late. I was gone. "

Sarah sat and listened. Thinking back, she did remember reports on a fire of unknown causes at the grocery store, but the reporter said all victims were unidentifiable. Danny, her Danny, had been one of them. How had she, let alone his family, never put the pieces together?

They both just sat in silence for a few moments, absorbing what had just been said. Finally, it was Sarah who broke the silence this time.

"Why flowers? Why were you coming back to my place after we had seen each other so recently?"

"I realized something that night when I left. Knowing we wouldn't have a lot of time left to make things happen."

'Oh, I hope this isn't what I think it is! After all these years, I may finally know…'

--

At that moment, Sam had decided to give them the benefit of the doubt. Standing outside the door, she was about to knock when she heard it.

"Sarah, I was in love with you."

They sat in silence for a little while, unaware of the fact that Sam was outside.

'Love? Danny? MY Danny was in LOVE with my GRANDMA? So does that make all of this, our relationship, a lie?'

--

Sarah was the one to break the silence this time.

"Danny, that night, after you didn't call, I was really worried about you. And then you didn't show up at school. I was heartbroken. I have been ever since."

"I know. And I'm sorry. I knew that it could have waited. There would have been plenty of opportunities for what I had planned. "

"You had no way of knowing what would happen, though. It was unexpected."

"But still, I left you, defenseless, way too early."

If there was anything that Danny had begun to feel lately, it was remorse for leaving Sarah all those years ago.

"I moved on... I met another man, and had amazing children, and Samantha too!" Sarah perked up. If there was one good thing that had come from all this mess, it was Sam.

"You did, and I'm glad. I never would have wanted you unhappy."

This was becoming very weird for Danny. The warmth he had felt during his recent conversation with Sam was coming back as he told his story. And his story? Danny hadn't been able to remember this much since he came back, so why did he suddenly know what had happened, and how to feel about it? It was as if someone else was feeding the memories to him.

Sam, on the other hand, was still dead silent, simply from shock. She had known that Danny wasn't from her time — he was a ghost, after all — but she had never expected THIS.

"I still was, though. I did move on, and I still went to community college like I had decided, but I barely had the energy to care. After losing you, there wasn't any real reason to. I guess maybe I was in love too."

Her glasses had begun to fog up, which only meant tears. For the first time in a long time, she was crying. She had wished for this day, the chance to see Danny again, several times after his death, but had never expected it to happen. Now, though, after having moved on and raised a family, she wasn't sure she wanted it. Tom had always tried to help her forget the horrors of her past, and she had finally done so, only to have them return.

"Tom always tried his best to help me through this. Since the day we met, he knew I was troubled, and knew he'd have a lot of work on his hands, but he never complained. He was my rock when I had hit the bottom, and for awhile we prospered. But I never forgot you, Danny, never!"

"I wish I could say the same," Danny commented quietly.

"Hmm?"

"When Clockwork, the time ghost, resurrected me, I couldn't remember anything. I didn't even know my own name."

"Then how did you just remember all that?"

"I don't know. I mean, I was resurrected for the sole purpose of fixing Jack and Maddie's portal. They had everything right, but Clockwork knew it wouldn't work unless they sent a ghost through. So that's why I'm here. They wanted someone who knew the town, and there were no ghosts in the Ghost Zone who were qualified."

"So they found you?"

"Apparently, every human who dies is sent to a sort of ghost-graveyard. Their souls still exist, just not their bodies. It took some work, but Clockwork finally cracked the code to resurrection. Every other ghost until now has either been formed in the zone from loose ectoplasm, or appeared right after their death. But not me. You're looking at the first ghost to ever be brought back from the dead."

"And all so they'd have someone who knew the town be the one to fix the portal? That sounds like a lot of work."

"Well, from what I was told, it would be rather difficult to make it back, so they wanted someone who wouldn't cause trouble, in case there was no way of getting back to the ghost zone. You would not believe how devious most ghosts are. Obviously, once I was brought back, I had a lot to learn."

"If you didn't remember, how would it matter whether or not you came back? You wouldn't have remembered anyway."

Sarah was growing very confused, very fast.

"I was getting there. Clockwork, the Master of Time as he's called, was able to pull up memories from my life and show them all to me. Just the simple ones: mostly of my family, the town. How I died. Only really a few of you…"

Danny actually felt ashamed of that.

"All that work, to make a portal work?"

"I've been getting this feeling lately there was more to it."

"So if he had to show you your own memories, how did you remember all this stuff you just told me?"

The feeling that someone else was feeding him information hit again as he tried to find an answer to Sarah's questions.

'Does Clockwork know more than he let on? Is it possible that my human memories return the longer I'm here?'

Danny finally decided to settle on a rather pathetic answer.

"You know, I can't answer all your questions. I know you expect answers, but sometimes I just can't supply them, okay?"

He was beginning to get a bit annoyed. He had expected questions, but never really thought about how to answer them.

Sarah just looked away, a little put out, before finally saying, "Sorry, it's just been SO long and I just… hoped."

"It's ok. But you do realize that I'm a GHOST right? I'm here, but I'm also not. What we once had, that can never be. We both moved on…"

It was silent for awhile, both of them lost in their thoughts of each other and the past.

Finally, Sarah broke the silence. "Well, maybe we should see if Sam is ok." 

--

At the sound of this, Sam quickly ran back down the stairs and out of the house.

'Danny and my grandma. Fifty years ago. Ghost zone, Clockwork. Memories. Love.'

It was the last thought that got to Sam the most. Love. They had loved each other once, something she thought she had found. But now, after all she heard, Sam began to wonder if it was all just false emotions.

--

"It's about time you found her."

Staring at his domed screen, staff in hand, the ghost smirked.

"I should have told you about all the memories I stole, but I didn't want you rushing into things. I've been trying to save them for the perfect moment, but you've made it so hard with the girl."

He quickly became older before adding, "The girl. What to do about the girl? She's becoming a nuisance, but ever so essential to the prophecy."

Turning to float away, he took one last peek at the ghost child and elderly woman sitting on the bed.

"I guess time will tell"

#danny phantom #danny phantom fanfiction #phanfiction #danny phantom au #danny phantom fanfic #dpau #sam manson

[writershapeholeonthedoor]

Unconventional Family - Chapter 3 - After

Chapter 1 - Before

Chapter 2 - During

Sumary:  “The way Cordelia looked at her made her go weak in the knees. She was about to die, she knew it and Cordelia also knew it. Madison had done a lot of fucked up things through life, most of them involving Cordelia, and yet the woman trusted her. She had no one else, she had no family, all she had was Cordelia and it had been like that for years now.”

Disclaimer: You might want to take care while reading this, there is mentions of violence, sexual abuse, drugs and alcohol use, and depression. Please, let me know if there are any grammatical mistake!

Read it at AO3

Seeing Cordelia again was like seeing the moon, at least, the calm feeling was the same. Madison knew it sounded like shit, but that’s how she felt. When she walked the big unsheltered land with Michael her heart was beating so fast that she almost fainted. The last time she saw Cordelia, the woman had those awefull scars around her eyes and she was still crying because Misty was dead. It has been what? A year? Two? So yes, she was nervous to see the woman again, even more after Queenie told her about her being the Supreme.

Madison wasn’t going to lie and say she wasn’t at least a little shocked about it, but she understood. Cordelia teached everything there was to know about magic. She teached her spells, potions, and history of magic, grabbed her by the hand and guided her in every step. She was surprised because the woman herself never showed too much ability in magic, not more than anyone else – even less than Madison for a while – but the younger blonde knew it was the best thing that ever happened to that Coven.

If Cordelia was still half the woman she was when Madison met her, she was going to protect the Coven with every bit of strenght left in her. Just when she spoted Myrtle’s wild red locks, Madison wondered what she would have done if it was her. If destiny made the mistake to choose Madison as the Supreme, would she do anything like Cordelia or would she just be another Fiona?

When Cordelia fainted, she got her answer. She would always have some of Fiona in her, no matter how hard she tried to change.

  Seeing Misty again was like seeing the sun, at least, the warm feeling was the same. Her body came back from nothing. It was air and suddenly she was there, and Madison couldn’t remember the last time she saw Cordelia smile so bright like in that moment. She was also happy, even if she was pretending she wasn’t, because, fucking shit, Misty was back. The woman looked exactly the same, even her old clothes, and it brought a nostalgic feeling that Madison wasn’t ready for.

Madison remembered about what Mallory told her in the time they were stuck doing some research in the library together. From everyone that was there before Cordelia raised as the Supreme, Zoe was the only one that managed to stay alive. Nan died, Misty died, Madison died, Queenie died. Cordelia lost girl after girl and now she had almost everyone back, of course she would be happy about it, but the way she was locking eyes with Misty had to mean something else and Madison knew it.

In fact, she was sure everyone in the room knew it.

  “Tomorrow is a big day.”

“Just the end of the world, not too much.” Madison was sarcastic as easily as she breathed, like a second nature.

Cordelia sighed, sitting by her side in the dirty porch to look at the swamps with her. They could see a few animals around the area, some half dead plants that weren’t receiving the care they needed and Myrtle, in the distance, talking by herself while she digged a hole - they would need three of those. “A common day at work.” The Supreme agreeded with a plain voice.

The emptyness in her voice made Madison considerer what exactly she was doing there, but she came with nothing. “Did you signed up for this shit?”

“They didn’t gave a manual, to be honest.” Cordelia frowned, shaking her head while tapping her fingers in her thighs. “I suppose the last Supreme should have done it, but she probably drank it.”

Madison couldn’t stop the scoff that came. Fiona was the most stupid bitch that ever walked on Earth and they all met LaLaurie. “Yes, well, she had a very large tolerance to it.”

They stayed in silence for a couple of minutes, watching Myrtle waving her hands to send the flies away while a frog approached her feet in fast jumps. “Madison, I’m sorry I couldn’t save you.”

“What do you mean? From the Apocalypse? To be fear, you didn’t saved anyone yet.”

Cordelia rolled her eyes, suddenly amused. “Yes, sorry I couldn’t save you from the one thing I can’t do anything about.”

“So... what are we doing here anyway?”

“Converting it in a spa, what do you thought we were doing?”

Madison laughed, before reaching her side to grab the cigarette pack. She lighted one using her power and blew the smoke away. “Nice one.”

The Supreme also giggled and looked down to her feets, deep in mud, with a grimace. “I’m serious, though. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to save you from Fiona, from Spalding, from Kyle and from Michael now. It seems like all I have done in life was let people down somehow... you specifically.”

The younger girl took a deep breath, feeling an ache in her chest that wasn’t there before. It was new to feel anything other than emptyness since she came back to life the first time, so, even if it was painful, it was welcome. “I’m pretty sure nothing of this was your fault.”

“Fiona was my mother and she killed you, Spalding lived under my roof, I let Kyle stay and I provoked Michael enough for him to decided to blow the world away, so I have to desagree with you.” Cordelia shrugged.

Madison remained in silence until her cigarette was gone. She wanted to smoke another one, but stay in a hole in the ground for Goddess knows how long smelling like that would be more torture than she was willing to sign up for. “I made my life choices.”

“You were young, Madison.”

“I wouldn’t have listened to you if you tried.” The girl took a while to hug her knees to her chest. “Besides, nothing of this matters. We’re going to die anyway.”

“I’m sorry.” Cordelia turned her face to look at her. The woman’s eyes were filled with tears that they both knew were about to fall and she held so many feelings in them that Madison was uncapable of looking away. “I’m sorry I let all of that happen to you and I’m sorry so much more will happen. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to send you with Mallory and Coco, I’m sorry you will have to go throught this with me. Sometimes I still see you holding your suitcase in front of the Academy, waiting for me.”

“Don’t go there, Cordy.” Madison shook her head. “The last thing we need is this pity party going on here. There was nothing you could do and it dosen’t matter anymore, the Antichrist is right in the corner.” She sighed heavly. “Besides, I rather be here than in some bunker under the floor.”

‘With you’ was implied, but Cordelia saw it in Madison’s green eyes.

  "I will hold him back as long as I can." Madison was scared, her body was shivering and the cold sweat was not helping her situation, but she knew she had to do it.

Coco wouldn't do it, they needed Mallory and Cordelia to be alive to perform the spell, and Myrtle would be more useful than Madison, so yes, it had to be her. Besides, she was already holding the gun. Madison knew she was going to die again, she wasn't strong enough to hold the Antichrist - no one could probably - and death was the only way out.

She really wasn't expecting Cordelia to react the way she did. The Supreme, her mentor, walked towards her and placed a soft hand im her cheeks. The look in her eyes were something Madison have not see for a very long time and it made her heart skeep a beat: pride. And love. Cordelia was proud of her, for what exactly Madison wasn't sure, because she literally was doing one good thing between all the fucked up shit she ever done. Madison felt like she didn't deserved that feeling, even if she was enjoying it.

"Go." Her voice was a little weak, not at all holding the strenght she wanted and it wasn't helping that it made Cordelia's eyes softer. "Go."

The way Cordelia looked at her made her go weak in the knees. She was about to die, she knew it and Cordelia also knew it. Madison had done a lot of fucked up things through life, most of them involving Cordelia, and yet the woman trusted her. She trusted her to sent Madison to the Murder House to find informations about Michael, she trusted Madison to go back to the Coven even after she had done, and she trusted Madison now, even if she had no reason to. The younger blonde realized, just there, with Michael’s body behind her, blood all over the place, and Cordelia soft face right in front of her, that the Supreme was the only person she had in the world. She had no one else, she had no family, all she had was Cordelia and it had been like that for years now.

Suddenly, Madison wished she had agreeded with the ice cream the last time Cordelia asked. She would gave up everything to go back and accept it.

“I’m sorry.” Madison didn’t even realized she said it until Cordelia took a step closer, caressing her cheek with her thumb. “Delia, go.”

  It was the second time she woke up and found Misty right in front of her. It wasn’t the way she wanted it to be, but at least it was Misty and not Michael, so she was not going to complain about it.

“Hey, Maddie.” Misty had a huge smile while waving at Madison like she was across the street and not right in her face.

“Don’t call me like that.” Madison’s voice was a little hoarse, like she hadn’t used it for a while. She took a deep breath and started to get up, ignoring Misty’s hands trying to help her. Once she was up, she saw Cordelia standing right behind Misty with teary eyes and crossed arms looking like she was trying to hug herself. Mallory was also there and she had a shy smile that didn’t fit her. “Family reunion, I see.”

Cordelia ran to her before Madison could think about what she was doing. The woman huged her strongly and warm, holding Madison against her body like she was afraid the girl would disappear. “Oh, Madison.” She was crying.

Oh, boy. Madison hugged her back, even if she was blushing a little, and looked at Misty, who had a happy smile while watching them. “Ok, enough.” The former actress wiggled out of the hug and took a few steps back to creat some distance.

Cordelia wasn’t having it, so she just kept Madison’s hand in hers. “How are you feeling? Are you ok?”

“I feel like I had just come back from Hell again.” Madison rolled her eyes. “And I need a cigarette.” Before she could move, Misty reached her arm to her and Madison saw she was holding a cigarette packet towards her. Madison grabbed it once Cordelia released her. “I don’t know who went to get me, but fuck you.”

Misty giggled, but Cordelia didn’t enjoyed the joke. “You need to rest, come on, you can have your old room.”

Madison held her back by her hand when Cordelia tried to walk away. “Actually... do you want to go to the ice cream shop?” She didn't know why she asked, especially because there was other people around, but the proud look in Cordelia's face right before she sacrificed herself flashed in her eyes and she knew she did the right thing.

  “Love is a very hard thing to find, Madison, and, when you do, you don’t want to lose any time.” Cordelia had a sad smile that made Madison’s heart ache for her, suddenly feeling sorry for her mentor. “Believe in me.”

“I really don’t know what you’re talking about, Cordy.” Madison knew, of course she knew. Since she came back, five weeks before, all she had done was follow Zoe around with puppy eyes that reminded everyone of Kyle, like she was desesperate for the girl to notice something that she wasn’t ready to say out loud.

“Just keep that in mind.” Cordelia leaned over the table to squeeze Madison’s hand that wasn’t holding the ice cream cone. “I lost a long time just because I was scared and I don’t want you to pass for the same strugle.”

Madison sighed, unconfortable with the conversation and where it was leading. She knew what was the right thing to do, but that never meant she would do it. Her life was a mistake after the other. “You never told who brought me back.”

The Supreme ate a bit of her own ice cream before answering. “Mallory did.”

“And what was Swampie doing there?”

“She wanted to.” Cordelia shrugged. “She was with me when Mallory told us.”

“Told you what?”

Her mentor took a few seconds to respond, not very sure how honest she should be. “About the Apocalypse and everything that happened before, during and after. She told us she negotiated to take Misty out and... not you.”

Madison knew the girl wasn’t her fan, most people hated her and she was used to that by now, but it was a little fucked up to leave her in Hell just because of that. But again, she did killed Misty at some point so... “Maybe she had a reason to.”

“It dosen’t matter what she thought, Madison. She was wrong. She should had took you out with Misty the second she got the chance and we both made it very clear to her.” Cordelia shook her head, showing how disappointed she still was. “Misty said she should go get you imediatly and she wasn’t going to leave until you was out of Hell, that’s why she was there.”

Madison took a deep breath, rolled her shoulders once, and tapped the floor with her foot, all nervous habits, before nodding. “Well, Hell wasn’t fun so... I’m glad someone did.”

  Zoe’s head was laying her head in her lap, eyes closed and a soft hum leaving the back of her throat in pleasure because of the hand caressing her hair. Madison was looking at her like she was a pure miracle – the more beautiful and cute miracle in the world. Cordelia had her good moments of advice master, not that she needed to know that. Zoe had one of her hands around Madison’s thigh, while holding Madison’s free hand with the other, making sure they were touching each other in every place possible for their position.

“Cordelia wanted to talk with me today.” Zoe said out of sudden, trying to move only slightly because she was too confortable.

“She always wants to talk with everyone everytime.” Madison joked, poking the brunette’s nose.

Zoe giggled and turned around so she was facing the girl’s stomach. When she thought it couldn’t get better... Madison was so fucking soft, not fair. “She mom me.”

“She what?” The former actress let a nervous laugh scape. “Is that some sexual shit?”

“Gross.” Zoe sneered. “No! I meant she gave me the ‘mom’ talk.”

“And what exactly is that?”

“She told me that if I ever hurt you, I’m in trouble.”

Madison was surprised by it. To be honest, she thought she would be the one being told to be a perfect gentleman towards Zoe or she would be kicked in the butt, not the other way around. She had no clue that would happen or even why Cordelia thought she needed to do that.

“When is my time to go?” She was using sarcasm again, because that’s how she manage to go through most things in life.

Zoe smiled softly. “She cares about you, Mad. I’m fine with having Cordelia as my mother in law, she’s nice and we won’t have to travel to visit her in holidays.”

“Shut up.” Madison rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. She was glad Zoe still had her eyes closed so she wouldn’t see that she was blushing.

“Besides, I’m too much of an angel for you to do anything wrong, so no talk for you.”

  "Hey, Supreme." Madison walked inside Cordelia's office like it was her own, without knocking or waiting for an invitation.

Cordelia was used to that by that point, but that didn't stoped her from jump in her chair when the door suddenly opened. "Hello, Madison. What do I owe the pleasure of your presence this early in the morning? Did Zoe kicked you out?"

"She does that everynight, but no." Madison scoffed, sitting in the big confortable chair in front of Cordelia's desk. "I thought about what you asked me."

That made Cordelia stop completly, dropping her papers and pen, and taking her glasses out. "Okay." She considered it for a second. "Did you made up your mind?"

"I could do it." Madison nodded, crossing her arms in her chest. "And, to be honest, you could use someone who's good looking in your council."

"I will let Zoe know it." Cordelia laughed.

"Oh, please. She already kicked me out for tonight, you can't make it worse." The younger girl joked and rolled her eyes.

The Supreme watched closely how the girl's face started to get more and more serious, and a very know glow showed up in her eyes. Madison was about to say something that made her unconfortable. "But...?" She offered.

Madison sighed. "Why would you want me to be a part of your council?" She tried to act cool about it, but Cordelia could see that she cared with the answer. "I mean, Zoe and Queenie are teachers, it makes sense that they're your council. I was just wondering."

Cordelia hummed, before agreeing with a nod. "Yes, it does makes sense. Well, Madison, why do you think you couldn't be a part of this council?"

The younger blonde shrugged. "I don't know." Cordelia arched her eyebrowns at her. "I don't think I have anything to offer. I'm not a teacher, technically I'm not even a part of the coven since I'm also not a student."

"You are a part of this coven just like any other girl." Cordelia jumped quickly to stop her. "You're not a student, but you were once, and you're a witch, and you will be a part of this coven as long as you want." The Supreme's voice was sharp and it was clear to Madison that the subject wasn't open to discussion. "And I think that you could have some thoughts that could help us, so that's why I want you to be in my council."

"I don't see how, but..." Madison added quickly before Cordelia could say anything: "I'm not saying no, I'm just going to suggest you something."

Cordelia also crossed her arms, a proud smirk in the corner of her mouth. "What is it?"

"I'm going to college."

"What?" That took the older woman completly out of guard, her eyebrowns shot up in surprise.

Madison almost laughed. "You think I can't?"

"No, no, no, it's not it!" Cordelia jumped in her chair, moving her hands nervously. "I just... wasn't expecting it."

"Yes, well, me neither." She joked and shrugged. "I was thinking about it for a few weeks now, not that I thought I would ever do it, but Zoe told me I should try if I want."

Cordelia smiled and got up, walking around her desk to sit in the chair by Madison's side. "Zoe is right."

"As always, but don't tell her that."

The Supreme laughed, throwing her head in delighty. "I think she already knows that, but sure, I will let you live in the illusion." She shook her head, still smiling like crazy. "So what do you want to do in college?"

"Ideally, party." Cordelia rolled her eyes, making Madison grin. "Joking, geez. I want to go to law school."

"Law school? Where did that came from?"

"Remember when I asked you if you ever wanted to do anything besides work in here?"

"Yes, I remember that. We lost the falling star." The Supreme smiled to the memory.

"Not my fault, but anyway... I didn't thought much about it back then, I never thought about the future, to be honest. But recently..." Madison took a deep breath. "Recently I started to think about it."

"Can I ask what caused this change?" She didn't had to wait for the answer, because when the girl blushed she knew exactly what happened. "Did I ever told you that Zoe Benson is a blessing?"

A even darker shade of red coloured Madison's skin and she bit her lip before recovering her composture. "What do you think? This way I could help in the Academy and not be just a part of the council. I know we're expending a lot of money with lawyers, and they don't know magic and us, so I thought I could help out... with that."

"Is that really what you want to do?" Cordelia leaned in her chair, resting her elbows in her knees, to hold the girl's hands in hers.

"I think so, yes." Madison never sounded so insecure before and, if the subject wasn't so serious, Cordelia could have squeezed her cheeks like a baby.

"Ok." Cordelia nodded with a soft smile. "I will help you with the college application. This Coven will be more than pleased to pay for your education, since it's for us." She thought how silly she was for almost cry in front of Madison, but she never felt so proud before. "And if you ever decides you want more, you want to go out and have your own office or something, I won't hold that against you. I'm the only one stuck here." She joked.

Madison rolled her eyes. "Like you're complaining."

"Never." Cordelia dropped her hands and got up. "Now, come on, give me a hug."

"No way."

"Yes way!" The Supreme laughed happly. "I'm so proud of you, Madison."

"I didn't even started yet. Maybe no usiversity will want me."

"They're fools if they do that. Besides, I'm proud because you finally saw a future for yourself like I always had. So, please, give this old lady a hug already!"

  “Heya." Misty, as always, had a big smile and was almost dancing instead of walking, but Madison had come to terms with that - she would pretend to be annoyed, but find it cute secretly. "What'cha doing?"

"Pancakes." Madison huffed, rolling her eyes. "What do you think I'm doing?"

Misty looked over the desk to the dozens of papers spread on the surface. "That seems like a very complicated recipe."

The former actress opened her mouth to say something, and be rude, when she realized the other woman was just mocking her. "What do you want, Swampie? I'm busy, I have a test tomorrow."

"Zoe told me. She said I should stay away."

"You should also listen to her." Madison whispered, turning the page in her book. "Why are you here?"

"I want to help you." Misty shrugged, putting both of her hands behind her back and bouncing in her feets like a small child waiting for the treat.

Madison scoffed. "Yes, right, go away then."

"When I was a kid..."

"Oh, here we go."

Misty ignored her. "I used to be very bad in math... in fact, I'm still very bad in math. Anyway, momma..."

"The one that burned you at the stake?"

Misty rolled her eyes. "That one. She used to help me to study by using cards."

"I already have plenty of those, so you can leave now." Madison grabbed a pile of papers and colored cards from the table to make her point, before dropping them with a little too much strenght. Zoe actually helped her with those. College was taking a lot from her. She spent all week away to attend her classes and would be back by friday night, tired and stressed, only to find her girlfriend ready to cover her with kisses and gentle words. Zoe would even go throught her books and make her some flashcards when she had some time.

"Yes, but no one is helping ya. That's why I'm here!"

The younger girl stared at her for a total of eight seconds, before saying: "fuck off." Misty only nodded and pulled the chair in front of Madison with a sarcastic smile, sitting down and putting her hands behind her head. "Where are we starting?"

Madison would never admit she thanked Misty when she got every fucking question right.

  "I promissed Zoe I would wait until dessert, but what the hell is this?"

Zoe quickly used the back of her hand to smack Madison's thigh. "You couldn't wait even five minutes?"

"They're the ones who called us for dinner in private." The blonde deffended herself. "Don't say no one was thinking about asking." Madison’s graduation was just a few days ahead and she still had some finals to study to, so it would be great if they could do it a little bit faster.

"Some of us have manners." Queenie shot back, arching her eyebrown.

"Girls." Cordelia interjected and rolled her eyes. "We will tell you after dinner." She promissed, moving to take her glass closer to her.

"You're pregnant." Madison accused before she could move. Zoe and Queenie looked like Jesus had just popped in the table, while Cordelia was the perfect image of a deer in the red lights.

"What?! Is this true?!" Zoe asked, ready to rise from her chair and run to her Supreme.

Cordelia layed back in her chair and crossed her arms, looking at Madison with a grin. "If Madison wasn't so impatiente..." the woman accused. "Yes, I am."

"Holy fuck!" Queenie shouted.

"Language!" Was all Cordelia could say before finding herself stuck in a bear hug between Queenie and Zoe.

Madison watched with studying eyes while they laughed and cried together, before moving her eyes to Misty, who was watching her with a glad smile. They locked eyes, neither of them dared to move, and stayed like that until Zoe snapped them out of it.

"Maddie, isn't that great?" Save the girl's soul, trying to help Madison to be nice.

"Just peach." The former actress said and got up. There was an old feeling rushing back in her guts and she wanted to leave before she said anything out of pain that she would regret later. She felt abandoned all over again.

Madison managed to get to the porch and pull out a cigarette before anyone could find her. She sighed when she saw the coloured dress with the corner of her eyes, because the last thing she wanted was someone who could understand her. She didnt wanted to talk, she didn't wanted to think about the unwelcome feeling. She knew she didn't had the right.

But Misty didn't said anything when she sat by her side, even if Madison was still on her feets, the Cajun only stayed there, looking at the street and the people that walked by, being a strong presence, even if she was trying not to be.

Madison only spoke after her third cigarette and Misty didn't tried to stop her at any point. "I'm happy for you."

"I know. So does Delia, I'm sure." The wild-haired woman, as always, was holding her gentle smile in place, her eyes shinning bright when she spoke. "How do you feel about being a older sister?"

Madison let a shaken breath rush out with a nervous laugh. She turned her head so she could look at the woman with blue eyes and her snap comment died in her throat. Misty's eyes were loving, something only two other people did towards her, and Madison almost cried. A thought rushed in her mind and she blushed a little. Mallory, the girl that turned the Academy upside down, looked like a copy of Misty, except for her eyes. The girl could be her daugther with Cordelia and no one would be surprised, she had Misty's looks and Cordelia's mind. But, as much as the girl looked like them, so did Madison, in a way. She imagined a small little blonde girl running around the house or hugging Cordelia's legs, actually their kid, and Madison sighed again.

"Maddie." Misty called softly. The girl only arched her eyebrown, wanting to show her to talk. "How do you feel about being an older sister?"

Madison knew that she was asking more than just if she was happy with the news. She wanted to know if Madison was in the same page with them. She was. "Happy."

  “I have never being prouder.” Cordelia’s voice was right in her ear, warm and carying, making Madison’s heart swollen in happiness, while her arms were around the girl so hard that it suppressed her attempts to pull away.

Misty was right behind the Supreme, her same happy smile in place, a hand in Cordelia’s shoulder and the other one in Madison’s. “Ya did it! The first one to graduate in the family!”

“Oh my God!” Cordelia shouted in her ear. “It’s true!”

Madison rolled her eyes, shooting a ‘help me’ look to Zoe, but the girl only laughed at her face. “Yes, well, if you all wouldn’t be so lazy...” She offered and tried to brush both of them off, but they weren’t having it.

“Madison...” Cordelia pulled away only enough to put both of her hands in Madison’s face. For a second, she saw the lost sixteen years girl who showed up in front of her house someday, and it only made her cry harder. “I love you so much, sweetie. You did it! I’m so proud!”

“Fuck.” Madison blushed hard and tried to push her away, but Cordelia only hugged her again. “Ok, people are staring.”

“I don’t give a shit!”

“Please, stop crying.” The younger blonde was slightly in panic with the comotion and Queenie didn’t waste a second to laugh out loud in her face.

“I just think how fun it is that the girl is not even born yet and she will have a lawyer to beat up. Cordelia should have being faster.”

“You’re jealous.” Madison mumbled under her breath, raising her middle finger towards the black girl.

Misty jokingly slapped her hand, before pulling Cordelia and her in her arms, taking advantage of how much taller she was then both of them. “Let’s celebrate!”

Madison was sure that her idea of celebration involved Stevie Nicks and there was no way in hell she would do that, so she finally managed to wiggle out of their hugs, rushing towards Zoe to ocuppy her arms before the older womans could do that to her again. “I’m fine, thanks.” Zoe giggled, hidding her face in Madison’s hair.

“No way! This is very important, we need to have a proper celebration.” Cordelia was now hugging Misty, both were crying, still staring at Madison like she was some sort of Goddess.

Madison looked at them, then to Zoe, and a fullfill feeling rushed towards her body. Her heart was full, her soul was happy. She was home. “What about... ice cream?”

#ahs #american horror story #madison montgomery #cordelia foxx #cordelia goode #misty day #zoe benson #queenie #nan #mallory #coco st. pierre vanderbilt #ahs fanfic #fanfic #ahs imagine #imagine ahs #unconventional family #family #love #foxxay #zadison #ahs coven #ahs apocalypse #american horror story coven #american horror story apocalypse #emma roberts #sarah paulson #lily rabe #taissa farmiga

[anip-ocs]

Location: Town Plaza, Kihiro City, California, United States

Time: Sunday, March 29th, 3:18 P.M.

Compared to other monsters they'd fought before, this one was acting relatively docile... for now. Which probably just made it even more terrifying by that aspect alone.

Disillusions stood huddled in an alleyway, observing it. Whatever the monster had been doing before to initiate the warning ping, it had stopped. Maybe it was because there was no one on the streets anymore? All they knew is that they'd come onto the scene and it was eerily quiet.

The monster perched atop the fountain. At least, they presumed it was the monster. It was a bird--a black crow, just sitting atop of the bow of Eros, out of reach of the spray of the little cherubs spewing water in arcs around the Greek God. It was unmoving, and it's eyes seemed to be closed as well. But nothing else was on the street, nor was there any slight indication that the monster had actually moved to someplace else.

"What are we gonna do about it?" Brian asked, giving it another wary glance.

Ken looked at it a second before looking away, looking more than a little bit unsettled. "I don't think that's a normal bird."

"But what if it is?" Maddi asked.

"Doesn't smell like the birds that are in the forest usually." Claw mumbles, looking over at everyone. "So no, I don't think it is either."

"So then, why isn't it wrecking shit already?" CJ asked. "If it's a monster, then wouldn't it be hellbent on doing that?"

"Maybe it's waiting for something." Jay said with a shrug.

"Like what?" Taylor asked. "Us?"

"Probably."

"But we're here. Why isn't it doing anything yet?"

"I'm not sure, but we should probably go attack it while we have the chance." Ken said, standing straight and reaching for his swords. Alana put a hand on his arm before he could rush out.

"It could be a trap, Ken. I'll go." she said.

"Why you?"

"Because you're terrified of this thing, and I can sneak over and be way smaller so I won't get noticed."

"But what if it--"

"Attacks me? We risk that no matter what. I'll go up, and then pin it and then we'll figure out what it's up to. Okay?"

"I think it’s a good idea!" Claw grins. "And if anything goes wrong, we're here to assist."

"Yeah! I'll be fine." before anyone could protest further, Alana shifted forms into a chickadee and flew out of the alleyway, making her way to the back side of the corvid. It didn't even seem to notice, didn't even shift. She landed on the edge of the fountain behind the bird, shifted forms, and reached out to grab it.

Before she could, it opened its eyes--eight of them, pupil less and red, and turned to face her with a screeching caw that grated at all of their ears and left their heads reeling. By the time anyone was even mildly ready to react and attack the beast, it was as tall as the fountain and had Alana pinned under its talons, one sunk deep into her shoulder.

"Hey! Let go of her!" Ken shouted, but found himself paralyzed to the spot. The rest of the team rushed out to try and help her, leaping into action. Maddi tried to send out a plume of flame its way, but the beast flared out its wings--eight wings--and a flurry of arrows rained down on the group. Claw was hit in the leg, CJ earning a slice in the arm for his efforts to run and defend him. Brian cast out a hand, and a nearby car zoomed over to block them, separating the team from the beast, who still had their friend pinned. When the hail of arrows ended and the bird redirected its attention--and beak--to Alana, the car became surrounded in a blue glow and floated in the air a moment before being sent hurtling towards it. Before it could hit, it was sliced in half by a wing, and the following shots from Brian's gun seemed to do little to nothing more than irritate it.

No one else could even get any other attacks in before it fully grasped Alana in its talons and flew away, with another horrendous caw that seemed to rock the foundations of the buildings around them. Alana couldn't do much of anything more than reach out for them, vines desperately uprooting themselves from the earth to try and ensnare the corvid with no success. CJ tried to get into the air and go after them, but with another screech he let out a scream and plummeted to the ground.

"A-Are you guys okay?!" Ken called out, finding himself able to move again and rushing to their sides. Maddi turned and sent him a glare.

"Why weren't you helping?!"

"I-I panicked, I couldn't move, I--"

"Damn good time to panic! Ala--Bio's gone, Darky! What are we gonna do now?!"

"We could go after her instead of trying to start arguments?" Jay suggested with a flick of an ear. "Which way did they go? The faster we can get there, the more likely we're able to prevent anything worse from occurring."

"Jay has a point, guys." Taylor says, taking the Vastian's hand. "Let's get going." at that, the whole team set out to find their kidnapped friend. Hoping that nothing was happening she wouldn't be able to handle.

Location: Sanders Household/The Puppeteer's Base of Operations, Kihiro City, California, United States

Time: Sunday, March 29th. 3:30 P.M.

Alana was already pretty terrified the instant the monster turned and pinned her, and it only heightened once it took flight and whisked her away from her friends to who knows where. But as she started recognizing gated communities and roads her mother would have to drive through in order to get to the house of an old friend, her anxieties turned into irritation.

Of course, Will was at the bottom of this! For a moment, she'd worried that this monster was made by Zarroff--he was pretty determined to make man into beast, and she'd feared he'd figured it out. But no, it was just the Puppeteer again.

Was the Puppeteer still technically a threat? Yes, of course. Was the Puppeteer a coward who hid behind his magic book, had no real combat skills, and almost a full half a head shorter than her? Yes. All she had to do was make sure he didn't get a chance to crack open his book, and she could hold out until her friends got here--or even beat him herself.

The giant demon bird--that was two now, Will--touched down in the Sanders Household's backyard, immediately shrinking in size as it flew to perch on the back of a lawn chair. The pool was behind her, the chair and the irritating twig of a boy who'd decided to kidnap her in front. The book sat in his lap, the pencil in his hand, but he wasn't too interested in sketching her as it seemed. Instead he looked up at her, lowering his sunglasses to reveal his real glasses and... honestly, one of the more disturbing things today was that look on his face.

"At long last," he grinned, sitting up fully. "You're all mine."

"Uh. No, not really." Alana muttered, rubbing at the talon scratches across her arm. It hurt immensely to even try and move her right arm, nor was she willing to strain it until her shoulder healed. She wasn't a fan of the sticky feeling of blood, nor the boy who'd caused it.

"Oh, but that's where you're wrong, my love." now he was standing up, taking slow gliding steps towards her. Was he trying to be impressive? Right now, he was just annoying, and had her good shoulder not had a hole in it, she might've punched him in the face. "You don't have to pretend anymore, Alana. Your 'friends' aren't here to manipulate you! You can be yourself, we can be together!"

"How many times do I have to tell you that I do not want to be with you?"

"But you only said that because your friends were manipulating you!"

"No, Will. If anyone here is being manipulative, its you. You literally mind control people, and you think my friends are the ones who are being manipulative?!"

Will's smile shifted into a frown, and Alana unwillingly felt herself shudder. Goddamn shoulder, would you heal already?! "Alana. Together, we will be king and queen of this world. I can be king as is. If you need some... persuasion to be my queen, then so be it." he reached for the collar of his shirt and... started unbuttoning it. With every button, he took a small step forward, and Alana reciprocated by taking a step back. Eventually, the shirt was unbuttoned fully, and Will was standing there as if he was presenting something impressive. "Well? What do you think?"

"I think I want to go home." Alana rolled her eyes, but a glance down showed she was almost at the edge of the pool. One more step back and she'd fall into the water, and it wasn't like she'd be able to swim with her dumb arm still being injured. "Will, you can literally stop being a villain whenever you want. Just accept that I am not into you and let us move on with our lives."

"You'll learn to love me soon enough."

"Uh, no, Will, I won't--"

"Here, let me show you how," he took more steps forward, but before Alana could think about sidestepping to avoid him, the crow flew off of his shoulder and grew in size, just enough to block her way out. It made a sort of caw, and her head started to hurt too bad to even really see. By the time the spots were out of her eyes and her skin stopped crawling, she realized Will had grabbed her by the waist and was trying to tilt her chin towards him for a kiss. And then her skin began to crawl again.

Alana shoved out with her arms--her right shoulder began to bleed anew, but she didn't care as much at the moment--to get Will off of her, and stepped backwards, perfectly expecting to feel water start to flood over her. But she didn't get that--instead she got more solid surface to stand on. What? She looked down, and a giant lotus flower had bloomed beneath her, keeping her afloat upon its petals. When she looked back up, Will was lunging for her. Another shove, which wrenched him away and pushed her flower further towards the other side of the pool. He'd torn her shirt a bit, he'd grabbed her so hard. Her whole shoulder was beginning to throb with immense pain, and she clutched at it to try and stop the bleeding. What was in there, what was keeping it from healing?!

Will was occupying himself by taking pictures, but he was frowning. And then he began to make his way back to his lawn chair, to his book and pencil. "I tried to give you a choice, Alana, but now you leave me without one."

"Or you could stop being an asshole! What's your fucking problem!?"

"What can I say? I can't control myself when it comes to you." he was opening the book, flipping through the pages one by one. It was like torture, her heart was beating in her chest, but she wasn't sure she could even manage to shift into anything right now, let alone maneuver in that form well enough to escape in time.

"You can control yourself. You're just choosing not to." she sent him a toxic glare, but he laughed it off.

"You'll see things my way soon. Take a pose, sweetheart."

"Hey!" the two turned to see Claw standing there, the rest of the team behind him. He tapped his wrists and the clawed gauntlets appeared in a flash of red light. "Let her go."

"Coming to crash the party?" Will sounded frustrated, but then a malicious smirk crossed his face as he thrust out his hand. "Be my guest!"

The mutant crow once again began to swell, towering over the team. Ken's eyes widened in horror, his hands shaking as he drew his blade to fight the best he could.

A screeching caw from the creature shattered their resolve, and their focus, and before anyone was anywhere near ready to react, the bird was flying at them with a vengeance. Its talons were outstretched, and it pinned Taylor to the ground and knocked the wind out of her. She let out a scream as it bent to try and peck at her, but before it could a fireball flew into its mouth, and shortly after it was stabbed by Claw's gauntlets.

Will was just about to begin to draw something else when he heard CJ calling for Alana to jump. He and Brian were at the other edge of the pool, urging their teammate to jump to them. He couldn't have that, now could he?

The two boys stopped and turned to see that a snake-headed crocodile was behind them, letting out a hiss of a growl and targeting their ankles. It was a dark green, almost black, but with dangerous looking red spots along its back and at the tips of its fangs and teeth.

"Whoa! Scoot over!" Brian shouted, launching himself onto the leaves of the lotus flower. CJ quickly followed suit, but just as they were thinking they were safe, the beast slipped into the water and began circling around them. Oh fuck.

The others were a bit too occupied to help them, which wasn't necessarily their fault. The bird monster was still on top of Taylor, arrows shooting out of its wings at their friends. Jay had managed to form a shield large enough to protect three people, but Ken was still in the midst of the firefight. His own wings furled out of his back, and he flew at the monster with his swords and a battle cry. The two collided, Ken trying to slash through the monster's thick feathers with one sword while precariously holding back it's razor sharp beak with the other. Another caw sent their heads spinning, and the bird hopped off of Taylor to snap down on Ken's arm and shake him around. He let out a cry of pain, another following as Maddi attempted to hit the monster with her fire but instead hit his wing. Taylor thrust out her hands, summoning rocks to strike the beast in the side of the head and causing it to stumble to the side. The beast tumbled into the pool with a splash, Ken being pulled in with it.

The crocodile monster redirected its attention towards the giant splash, having already been on the leaves of the flower and about to climb over the petals into the center, but deciding to launch back into the water and go after whatever caused the disturbance. The three teens within the flower relaxed a bit, but weren't quite ready to leave the flower yet either.

Maddi almost launched herself into the water, but Claw stopped her, wincing a bit as he strained his leg to do so. "Wait! Don't!"

"What?! Why not?!" she groaned.

"Fire powers and water? No, that's not happening. Let's get Alana and them and--where's the Puppet boy?"

"Over there!" Taylor pointed towards the house, where Will was about to duck inside to supposed safety. The three chased after him, while Jay did his best to help the other three off of the flower.

Maddi, Taylor, and Claw raced into the Sanders Household, only to be stopped by Will's parents. The two servants lunged at them, his mother grabbing Claw and pinning him down and throwing punches while his father went for Taylor. He grabbed her arm before Maddi punched him in the neck, causing him to stumble back and let go of her friend. Claw was struggling to get up, mainly because Mrs. Sanders had relented to pulling at his ears as hard as she could muster, which was really damn hard when considering all of her normal inhibitions had vanished under the control of a madman.

Maddi and Taylor ran to go help him, but the cupboards began to tremble, slowly at first but then violently as a horde of black salamander-like creatures burst out of them and raced their way. While one of them wouldn't be too much to handle, hundreds and maybe even thousands of them was a bit too much, especially considering their footpads seemed to seep toxins into their skin that made them get too tired to keep fighting and resisting. Odd thoughts started filling their heads, thoughts none of them liked or even wanted to be hearing, but as the creatures overtook them, ignoring them became less and less of an option.

When he and the bird crashed beneath the surface, the monster let go of his arm with a gasp and tried to fly to the surface. Ken held his breath and thrust out his hands, and the surface of the water began to freeze over, trapping the bird underwater with him. Now it was a waiting game--who'd break through first, who'd drown first? He snapped his wings to propel him forward under the surface, striking at the bird with his blade. A gash of purple blood clouded out of the wound, but it wasn't fully down for the count quite yet.

Before Ken could go in for another attack, something bit down into his leg, causing him to cry out before he could think not to. Immediately his lungs began to fill with water, burning, but the new offending monster just thrashed about, as if it were trying to rip his leg right off of him. He barely managed to wrench it away, desperately trying to swim up and break the surface of the ice so he could catch his breath. Luckily, this was ice of his own will, and it broke easily enough for him to pop his head out of the new hole and catch a breath.

"Ken! What's going on in there?!" Alana gasped, eyes wide as she hopped off a giant flower atop the ice to run over. Her friend coughed out some water, but was unable to get any words out before he was suddenly pulled back into the water, desperately clawing at the ice to no avail.

"Dude?!" CJ shouted, running over to the hole with his friends beside him. There were three dark shapes under the ice, one large and desperately trying to peck through the ice, but the other two were smaller. One swam to the surface, but it swam too fishlike to be their friend. Indeed, the snake-odile surged up and nearly bit CJ's face off with a hiss. Brian formed a blade of metal and swung at it, but before it could connect, the beast dipped back under the ice. The two shapes began tussling again, the large demon bird fading away into nothing after it had sat still for far too long.

"Should we go help him?" Brian asked, looking to his friends.

"I can swim, but not well enough for that, I don't think." CJ said. "Now, I could try and make a bubble around me, but I don't know how well I could attack like that."

"I don't think I can even shift forms right now. My shoulder won't--oh? Oh, its healing now. Give me a second, then we can talk." Alana said, rubbing her shoulder.

Before anything else could be said, Ken's head popped out of the hole, and CJ and Brian lifted him by the shoulders onto the ice. An instant later, the final monster burst out of the ice, launching itself onto the surface. It came after them, its claws causing it to skid along the icy surface, but it was still moving formidably fast. Ken finished coughing and turned to face the beast, a sword held in front of him as he stood in place umoving.

"We're ending this!" He shouted, glaring down the reptilian monster. It launched into the air to attack him, but he stabbed through it's underbelly with his sword, the tip of the blade piercing through it's leather back, and he took his other blade and sliced it's head off it's form with one fluid motion and a spattering arc of violet blood. Only then did he let the fallen beast slide off his blade and onto the ice, where it then faded into nothingness.

"That looked so cool!!" CJ shouted, eyes wide.

"I wouldn't know anything," Jay said, causing everyone to turn and see him with his arms crossed over his chest. "Ken, with all due respect, I'm not sure what exactly I'm expected to do in a battle scenario like this, let alone why you brought me."

"Well... We could use your healing assistance." Ken offered.

"What about your telekinesis?" Brian asked. "You have that, don't you?"

"Yes, but I don't use it for much more than shields. I didn't really see a reason to train it any further. I can't really aim any attacks, could I?" Jay said, his tail flicking to and fro. "Is everyone alright, by the way? I know Alana's healing powers are faster than mine, but I can still assist."

"Honestly, I had a hole in my shoulder for a good fifteen-twenty minutes, and it's taking a bit longer than usual to heal up. I'm not even close to halfway done." Alana said. "And Ken has some damage on his arm, leg, and wing, so if you want to help him with that, you can."

"Alright! And if CJ and Brian are alright, then the rest of the team went inside a house or something."

"Oh, yeah! Let's go!" the two boys raced inside to assist their friends in hopefully bringing down the Puppeteer and his plots.

Brian and CJ opened the door to the house, and near-immediately a stream of black salamanders poured out, scattering into the world beyond the Sanders' yard. The inside of the house was dark, pale light seeping through as it shone through the bodies of salamanders sticking to the light. Asides from that, no one seemed to be around.

"Uh? Guys?" CJ called out. "Hewwoooo??"

"Maybe they're upstairs," Brian said, stepping further into the door to find the stairwell. Almost immediately, he was grabbed by a hand and slammed onto the tile floors of the kitchen, the force of impact nearly cracking them. Maddi had him pinned, one hand around his throat and the other about to cast a fire attack right onto his face, a knee on his chest. Fortunately, Maddi was pretty short and easy to throw off, but--

"What the fuck, Maddi?!" CJ shouted, only to be grabbed by Taylor and Claw. They seemed to be trying to strangle them, but even in the low light he could tell something was wrong. If the fact that his friends were attacking him wasn't enough of a clue, their eyes were too dark, it was like even the sclera was beginning to turn black. Something had happened. And they needed to snap them out of it.

Something started crawling on Brian's arms, making his skin crawl. He moved to swipe it off, but it just stuck to his hand, and then Maddi slammed him into the counters with bared teeth, trying to hold him still for... some reason... was that a salamander on her neck? And there were a few on her arms too, pressed down like tattoos, nearly flat against her skin. And the one on his arm was quickly being joined by many others, and the more they moved around the dizzier and dizzier he got. Serve the Puppeteer. What? No way that thought was his!

Wait a second.

"CJ! Get them outside!" Brian shouted, gesturing the best he could towards the door. CJ couldn't even properly see it because he'd been pinned on the ground, the blades of Claw's gauntlets hovering dangerously close to his neck.

"Uh, don't think that's an option right now!" he yelled, eyes wide and focused on the knife points.

"We need to!" Maddi tried to pin him more, but he kicked her in the gut to get her back before he pushed off of the counter and ran for the door, the girl giving chase. Taylor tried to block his way, but he just grabbed her arm and dragged her outside as well. Claw looked up at the commotion, distracted, and CJ managed to squirm out from under him and race outside.

The sunlight didn't seem to waver their resolve, the three teammates still chasing after them, but quite frankly Brian had a backup plan that would hopefully help. Ken looked up at the sound of the door slamming against the wall behind it, eyes wide.

"What's going on?!" he asked incredulously, prompting Alana to look up from her shoulder and Jay to stop what he was doing and listen in.

"Un-ice more of the pool!" Brian shouted as he jumped onto the slippery surface and fell on his butt, sliding halfway across the expanse.

"What?! Why?!"

"Just do it!" CJ shouted, leaping onto the surface as well. Ken made a larger hole in the ice just as the rest of their friends launched themselves after them, causing them to fall into the water instead. They let out shouts of shock before climbing out of the water, shaking themselves off as black salamanders slipped off their arms, necks, and legs before scattering into the distance. The instant they were all off, they rubbed their eyes and looked around.

"Since when were we out here again?!" Maddi yelled, spinning in a circle to make sure her eyes weren't tricking her.

"You guys got puppeteed by fucking lizards!" Brian said.

"What?!" the rest of the team exclaimed, eyes wide.

"Lizards?!" Taylor screamed, looking absolutely repulsed. "Oh, ugh, I can't stand lizards, what'd they make us do?!"

"You tried to attack us until you fell in the pool, then they fell off." CJ said. "You guys okay? Not still wanting to kill us, are you?"

"I'll pass on that," Claw said, trying to dry himself off further. "But I'm not really willing to go back into that hellhole again either."

"How'd it happen?" Alana asked, walking up to check them over. Asides from dark marks on their arms, they were okay, and it looked like the marks would go away sooner or later too.

"We went in and his parents attacked us! Then all these sala-shits came out the cabinets, like, thousands of them! Then we were out here!" Maddi huffed.

"That sounds... yeah, you couldn't pay me to go in there right now." Jay said, eyebrows furrowed. "Ken, you should be good to stand."

"Thanks, Jay. So, what are we going to do next?" he asked.

"Will's probably upstairs in his room, laughing his head off at us. And as much as I want to punch that look off his fucking face, I don't want to go back in there either." Maddi grumbled. "I just want to go home. Treehouse is ready now, right?"

"Yeah. I actually got the call a few minutes before this battle happened. You all can come to my house to grab your things and then I'll walk you over."

"Thanks."

"For?"

"Uh, for letting us not go back in there... and for everything else." Maddi's face turned red and she looked away, shoulders hunched. She let out a cough. "I mean, you could have saved your dumb money and done rich people shit with it."

"You're welcome, Maddi." Ken smiled.

"So, we can leave now, right?" Alana asked.

"Yeah. That was more than enough action for the day. We know where his base is, we can attack when we're ready."

With that, the team split off, making their ways home. Being generally sick and tired of Will's bullshit.

The Yakk List: @ravenpuffwriter @dreamswithadashofspice @ejmcmoon @writerofwriting @beeofwriting

#writing sneak peeks #anipwrites art #anipwritesart #anipwrites disillusions #anip writing #Disillusions #Alana Ritroso #Will Sanders #The Puppeteer #Ken Shinigami #Maddi #Brian Hodges #Cujo CJ Smithson #Taylor Wakes #calhoun claw brighton #jeffery jay kestrel #this is my friend's favorite chapter and so ye ye #i'm actually really close to finsihing this draft of Disillusions I just have to get off my dumb ass and actually WRITE IT #or i can just procrastinate as well thats always an option #also again if you wanna join the yakk list (which is the tag list) let me know literally whenever #this excerpt's long and i'm sorry but consider: i like this part and am very proud of it

[badlands-lore]

It's A...

{ Weeks of doctors appointments, scan after scan. Truthfully, she was never sure she had anymore blood to give. Weekly, they somehow found more. Tabitha sat quietly on the edge of her seat, gown open in the back which made her squirm and wiggle against the crinkling paper. She was never sure how these appointments would go. Always good news mixed with the same warnings and complications... but, she refused to give up. Doctor let himself in, papers in hand as he made himself at home in the little rolling chair. Circle seat swiveling towards her as he began the repetitive comments. "This is still a very unstable road you're going down, Ms. Deluca..." Eyes rolled, another anxious squirm in her spot. "Listen, doc... no offense but you could say that every day for the next five months and I would still tell you I haven't changed my mind." Quick reaction, pulling and adjusting the gown once more. "Can you just tell me if my baby is okay?" Brows knit, watching curiously as the man flipped through the papers in his hand. "Everything is the same... heart still has the hole in the left, your blood pressure is still skyrocketing and you still have-" A hand came up, stopping him immediately. "I'm not asking about me..." She reminded, leaving him to leave the clipboard on the counter to his left, hands clasping in his lap with a stare that screamed with judgement. *"Ms. Deluca, with all of the labs we've ran, and no current changes... with your refusal to listen to reasoning, this appointment can't go further... but I will ask if you'd like to know what you're having? Maybe end this on a good note for once?" The Pair in the room always butting heads, one worried about her while she just worried about the little life she was trying to bring into the world.

"Isn't it too early for that?" She questioned quietly, hand immediately brushing over the ever growing bump between her hips. "Usually through scans, but when you agreed to the genetic testing last week, it was determined." His words dry, he seemed to sound just as hopeless as he did the week earlier. "Yeah sure... lay it on me, doc." }

A week later, the house was filled with childish giggles. Two boys chasing each other through the living room. Madison tucked on the sofa with her own nerf gun -- clearly hesitant to fire back, despite being drowned in the foam bullets. Tabitha hummed, disappointed in her father for blatantly avoiding the little get together. He knew too much, and made it clear he wouldn't participate in a celebration that could ultimately leave him with an empty home. "Legend, don't shoot him in the face!" A quick snap, nose wrinkling as a rubber tipped bullet whacked the four year old dead between the eyes. Phoenix laughed, unphased unlike the overwhelmed girl rushing about the house. Phone in hand, shooting Axel another text. {txt:} Where r u? I need help, dumby. Phone tossed on the counter, Madison tuning in to the chaos -- shuffling the boys outside to finish running them out of energy.

He knew he'd been out far too long, but he had ended up having to wait on the cupcakes they had requested, and by the time he walked out of the store, he looked like he was surrounded and being swallowed by cotton candy - baby blue and pastel pink surrounding him, balloons, and as many dyed tulips as he could find to go with tonight. Silly hats for the boys, and maybe some sparkler's to let the kids play with once it got dark, knowing how much they loved running through the garden. His truck cab was packed and he finally answered the text, heading for the house that was finally home to him. Give me 15, promise. 15 minutes. A groan escaped, head falling with a heavy huff. "Fifteen minutes... cool... great." Tiny mumbles to herself as she continues stirring the pot in front of her. Water boiling, pasta dumped in. More squeals and giggles heard from out back, before a loud shriek followed the once playful actions. Stove flipped off, barefeet rushed out the back door. Madison struggled to keep two boys apart. The pair screaming and flailing. "What the he--" A scolded look as Madison scooped Phoenix up. "Heck.." Tabby corrected, making her way over. "Legend, what's going on?" Bashful, his head dropped, foot digging into the ground. "She's my grandma... not his." Lips formed a pout, Tabby at her wits end over the whole day. "Legend... we're a family... and no matter what, for the next 18 years, Phoenix and Axel are part of that family.. trust me she has plenty of love to give." Mid speech and the truck tires were heard at the driveway, her eyes fluttering closed with her index and thumb pinching the bridge of her nose. "We good here, punk?" Relaxing, eyes softening as they land on her son, waving him over. Legend nodded, hugging her legs before making his way over to apologize to the skittish boy in the older woman's arms. "I'll be back" Once again, disappearing into the house.

The ride back home had been music blaring, his head almost in the clouds. The past little bit was something he hasn't had before. It was...normal; and he was happy. He felt like the bottom was going to drop out at some point but he was going to be blissfully unaware until then. Pulling up in front of the house he managed to carry everything in but the flowers, setting it on the table, noticing how stressed the blonde looked. "Hey, you okay?" At that moment his son ran up, piling into his legs, crying about how Legend didn't like him anymore. Bending down, he let the boy tell him his story, but then gathered him in his arms. "Buddy, it's not that he doesn't like you. He's just getting used to all this to. You were a big change for him and we can't expect him to be okay with it all overnight. Okay?" Both of the boys were handling it incredibly well but they all had their moments. "Why don't you take him one of these?" He handed him a party hat that was specifically for a gender reveal, enough for both the boys and Maddie, letting him run off. "I got flowers too, they're in the truck. I'll do these balloons, cupcakes can be up here on the counter... what else? What can I do?" She was on the brink of tears herself, ready to fall apart until the crying tot bolted through the door. "That. This. Legend." Hands waved frantically, sniffling back whatever emotions she felt. Remaining as calm as she possibly could in front of the little boy. "Legend is jealous... Phoenix won't hit him ba-" She stopped, immediately inhaling, hand coming up over her mouth. Quietly moving away as he dealt with the smaller boy. Legend, sulking on the steps. Phoenix ran off, the boys back to their games as if nothing had ever happened. How amazing. Crisis over, and Tabitha huffed, leaning back against the sofa with a hand on her head. "Three of them and I can't manage two? This is great." Cramp sent her upright, cheeks flushed from the quick rise in her heart rate. "No... no... just... balloons... I'll take the cupcakes." Lithe arms extend, fingers taking hold of the box before pouting off back to the kitchen.

He saw the jolt, the look on her face and followed her, letting the balloons float to the ceiling, letting her sit the box down before he was laying a hand on her bump, his other going to rest on her back, stopping her from moving. "Hey... What was that?" Everyday felt like a gamble they were taking, and nothing he could say would change her mind, so he had resigned himself to the fact that all he could do was to be there for her, try to ease anything he could. So for now, he rubbed his hand back and forth gently, letting her take a minute. "You need to sit down. Please. Just let me. It's not a huge deal, you need to relax." He shook his head, gesturing up at the balloons. "I'll put these outside on the rails, and we can do this outside. I have a feeling the boys are gonna make a mess and this way no clean up." Kissing the side of her head, he led her over to a kitchen chair, making her sit. "I've got this." He went to work, though stopping to give Maddie a kiss on the cheek, taking the balloons outside and tying them to the railings, putting them on the side of the picnic table he had set up a few days ago; trying to make the space something more, where Tabby would be able to enjoy her days outside with the kids, especially since they'd signed the papers and he now shared custody of Phoenix with her, the tot having taken to her like she had raised him. He was almost done, turning to call the boys over, squatting down to be eye to eye with them. "Legend, can you guys do me a BIG favor?" The boy only looked slightly annoyed before he nodded, looking at Phoenix. "Okay. You wanna go inside and get the bag with the plates and napkins and bring them out here?" They didn't answer before running off, causing him to roll his eyes. Jesus they were going to be a terrible twosome when they got older. Okay. Balloons, plates... Tulips. He needed to grab the tulips. A shadow was felt, knowing she wasn't going to get away with that so easily. Captured by his hands, one on either side. Pierced nose wrinkled, head shaking quickly. "Nothing, I'm okay... she's fine." Denial so deep, she probably would end up drowning in it. Cupcakes adjusted on the counter, the last couple weeks seemed to be moving at the speed of light. The pair had everything they may have needed... well, almost. "I'm just tired, ok?" A lie. "The boys were insane when you were gone... Legend misses his dad, God knows where he is." Tabitha continued her rants, complaints about whatever she could think of. She sunk down into the kitchen chair, sulking and feeling rather useless for the day. Axel went out the back, leaving her once again alone and restless. Two blondes rush through the door, heading for the bags on the table. A neatly trimmed brow arching at their odd little hats. "Here." A bag gently nudged to the table, a faint and exhausted smile offered. She was never certain over taking on Phoenix, mostly because despite how much she did care, she was surely going to fuck this up too right? A sigh escaped, finally climbing to her feet to join the group outside. Uncomfortable, but pushing through. A hug to her mother, eyes roaming the newly tied balloons. "Looks cute out here, Axe.." Small smile before making herself at home on the picnic table. "Everything is almost done, right?" Legs cross then uncross, squirming in her seat to avoid the dull ache in her back.

He had grabbed the flowers, bringing them outside, the blues and pinks somewhat unnatural but they went with it, and he wanted the flowers to be her favorite. He wanted today to be special for her. He knew Legend's pregnancy wasn't exactly a walk in the park, and he wanted more than anything to change that with this one. To show her how she should have been treated, to show her how much he cared, since his heart was also on the line with this one. "It is, just lemme grab the cupcakes and we can do it however you want to." He leaned over and kissed her head, jogging inside to grab the cornily decorated cupcakes, bringing them out and putting them on the table, the two for the boys subtly marked with special toppings; He chose to set those on plates first, handing them over to the two. "Wait for Mom and Grandma to grab theirs, okay?" He caught her movements out of the corner of his eye, hand going to her lower back as he sat down beside her, immediately trying to massage at the usual spots that bothered her. "Your back hurting again?" Flowers taken, immediate twitch to her lips. "Perfect, thank you." Slightly relaxing, neck rolling as he once again disappeared to collect the cupcakes. Corny. She didn't do any of this with Legend, in fact, she mostly avoided the entire pregnancy. Baggy clothes, only leaving the house when she absolutely had to. Though, when Beck and Des got sent away, she did loosen up with the anxieties. This was new, different and as much as she wanted to enjoy it -- she felt a rise in body temperature. Similar to the incident at the diner. Relax. Breathe. Mind wandering, startling when Axel approached her with the little box. There were six, one for each body; except the fact her dad decided he wouldn't be attending. The thought made her uneasy, plucking one of the cupcakes up, setting it aside. "Yeah.. just a bit, probably just from all the... moving." Smirk, tired body leaning into his as he rubbed low. Eyes fluttering closed for just a moment. Tabitha knew she seemed to be the debby downer, Madison's raised brow at the two making it even more clear. A hum offered, slowly scooting and patting the spot beside her. "Come here you two... yours are going to tell us if the baby is a boy or girl" Though, she already knew. She'd play along with the little game. Cheeks and ears red, and she slowly climbed to her feet, phone out to start snapping photos.

Axel kept rubbing, letting her lean into him, his body automatically moving to make sure she was in a comfortable position, now familiar with exactly how their bodies fit together. "Yep. You guys got the important job today!" He followed suit, moving, so the boys could sit down, keeping close to her, an odd feeling in his gut. He should have no qualms, no worries, not today. But the air was starting to feel heavy, like somehow, the outdoor wind was going to suffocate him, or the ground swallow him whole. "Okay guys. You get to bite in, and inside is gonna be pink or blue, okay?" Legend gave him a smirk, little body wiggling on the seat. "I already know it's a girl, duh." Axel couldn't help but laugh, motioning towards the small cakes in their hands. "Well, bite in and see if you're right, little dude." But apparently the boys had conspired against the adults, the both of them giving a grin right before they smashed he cupcakes in one another's faces, strawberry gel falling down their cheeks, a clear indication of a little girl, Madison's happy squeal filling the air as Axel circled his arms around Tabby's middle, his laughter mixing in as the boys happily shoved whatever leftover mess was in their hands into tiny mouths, Legend giving him a full on smirk, "I told you so."

#tabitha deluca #chapter 1 #angst #pregnancy #death #axel moretti