Clockwork watched Danny. Danny was his responsibility, after all. The boy was growing up so fast... and changing.

Yes, Clockwork saw the changes. How he grew distant from his friends when they started dating each other, how he barely spoke to anyone, how even the schools bullies slowly left him alone.

Danny used to write to his sister, who was away to collage, about all of his problems and feelings. But slowly, even that stopped. He still wrote to her, but it was like to everyone he was just empty. Went on with his life without any emotions at all.

But Clockwork knew. Ever since he took up responsibility of the boy, he's been able to sense his emotions. Sometimes, they were so overwhelming that he had to curl up in a ball on his couch until they passed. But somehow Danny could handle it, all those emotions, with a poker face. (Maybe it was worse for him because he was a ghost and shouldn't feel emotions.) All those times Clockwork thought he would snap resulted in Danny just staying silent.

Clockwork knew he had to do something. He couldn't just let the boy live his life that way forever. So, Clockwork found the source of all of this.

Love.

Danny needed love. He loved Sam, but Tucker took her. He loved his family. His family hatted Phantom. Danny slowly grew away from them. Not just because of their hate, but because he love them and didn't want them to get hurt because of his ghost half.

So what could Clockwork do? Maybe talk to him. He's got to learn to love again. And so, that's what Clockwork did. He called Danny over for a chat, when things got a little... what would the word be? Crazy? Weird? Out of hand? Either way, here is what happened.

-*Changing to first person, I find it easier*-

As Danny floated in, shoulders hunched down, I guided him towards the couch. He had his eyes half lidded, as if he were half asleep. He wasn't tired, I didn't sense tiredness from him.

"Danny, what's wrong?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"Nothing," he responded.

My eyebrows grew closer together. We both knew it was a lie, and we both knew the other knew it was a lie. "Danny, why can't you love anyone anymore?"

He looked up at me with sad eyes. "I don't want to. I don't want to love someone and have something happen to them."

I started to understand, "So, really you're afraid of being hurt?"

He looked down at the floor. "I've got powerful enemies. If they ever found out about the people I love, then they won't be able to protect themselves without me and I'll loose them..."

His eyes were tearing up, and before I even knew what I was doing, I let the words out, "I could protect myself."

He looked up at me, shocked. I was just as shocked as he was. Was I suggesting that he should love me? Hesitantly, I sat next to him on the couch. I was still a little taller then him, in my adult form which I tend to stay in around Danny alone. He really was beautiful, I thought. Here I never thought I'd ever think of this boy that way.

His white hair covered parts of his face. His green eyes softly glowed, giving them a bit of ghostly essence, though they looked real human to me, a ghost. He was just so... perfect. Could he ever love me?

"...Clockwork, I..."

I tilted my head to the side and pressed my lips against his, softly. His eyes opened wide and he pulled back and gasped. He just stared at me in disbelief, but I sensed his emotions. Something amazing, that I've never felt in my life or afterlife. I loved it, and wanted to feel it again.

Danny tried to say something, -anything- but no words came out. Instead, I tilted my head again, whispered softly, "Danny...", put my hand behind he's head and pulled our lips together again.

Danny lifted his hands in alarm, but slowly placed them on my chest. I felt his eyes close, heard a whimper, and sensed a single tear fall down his cheek. I pulled away, pulled his head into my chest and let him cry.

Let him get ride of all of those horrible emotions. I will make sure that that emotion I just made him feel, that LOVE, is always with him.