Bonjour, mes chers! Oh, boy, where to even start with this one? This is an old thing I wrote for my girlfriend awhile back during the whole Your Words On My Skin project. It's Iambic Prose, but it's also Supernaturally Bonded - which is our name for Danny, Ghostwriter, Randy, and an OC we call Novan. This, as with Words On My Skin, is a soulmate AU! It deals with the same idea, but with Danny having three mates instead of just one.
I'm well ware that this is a rather crazy story even by my standards, so I promise I won't be upset if you click the back button right now! Still, give it a little bit of a chance, at least? If not, refresh the page a couple times so it makes it look like people are reading it.
If you choose to keep reading, though, then thank you and happy days!
Whether you like this or not, consider supporting me over at my tumblr ibelieveinahappilyeverafter. It has all my stories, information, updates, and even ways to support me - like buying me a quick coffee to keep my crazy energy going.
With all that out of the way, I hope you enjoy!
Clarification: Danny is fourteen at the start of the story, which takes place within Season One-Two of Danny Phantom.
"-just one more quick picture-"
"-could go wrong? It's not even turned on-"
"-better shot. Try taking a few more steps inside-"
"-sounds like it might actually be working for once! Do you guys think-"
Click.
Pain exploded across his entire being and there was nothing but screams and anger and betrayal and it should never hurt this bad he was so young someone so young should never hurt this bad and it felt like he was being torn apart at the seams and it hurt it hurt it hurt someone please make it stop hurting please please please-
"Ssh, it's alright, mon cher. It was just a nightmare. You're okay." Warmth and purple and books and the sound of typing and arms tight around him as that voice cooed into his ear and he was safe. Something scarier than the nightmares was protecting him.
"Easy there, petit mec, easy… There we go, see? It gets pretty bad, but we're all okay. See? All of us are right here for you and we're safe and happy. No need to worry, yeah? We're fine." Safety and white and steel guns that only ever hurt those who attacked first and a body curled around his that would keep him shielded from all harm as gentle words were murmured against his skin. He had someone that knew others came first, sometimes, and his well-being was second to theirs.
"Another one, huh, little Phantom?" A swirl of danger and teeth and blissful, feral freedom that was hidden behind a smirk and calm hands that never shook as he was pressed down and unable to move even a bit as voiceless reassurance was seared into his skin. He had one who knew that words could not fix damage, but touch could communicate more than anything else ever would.
"Oh, Danny…" The sigh fluttered against him as his eyes squinted open, Danny blinking rapidly at the morning light that was streaming into his bedroom. His lips turned down into a frown as he quietly groaned to himself. While he didn't have anything against mornings personally, they were mornings.
Pushing himself up with a jaw-cracking yawn, Danny raised an eyebrow as his door opened, Jazz poking her head inside and glancing around before raising an eyebrow at him. "You're only just now getting up? You have school!"
"Stop sounding like Mom. It's not even seven, yet." It was at least two minutes off. "You know, Jazz, there's this new thing they invented, too. It's called knocking."
"There's also this new concept they discovered called showering. Maybe try it?" Trying not to laugh, because Jazz was not at all funny, Danny rolled out of bed and caught himself before standing up and oh, right. He had that dream again. "Danny?"
"What? Oh, no, nothing, just remembered the dream I had." He was given a look, but Jazz retreated with a last call of hurrying up before he missed breakfast. Sighing, Danny looked down to where his pajamas were covering near every inch of his skin, even trailing down past his fingertips. "Stupid."
He always thought about his covered skin when he woke up from dreams like those. The dreams weren't exactly new, but they hadn't started happening until he had emerged from his parent's ghost portal over a year ago. For some reason, that dream always made him so bitter when he saw his covered skin.
Shaking the thoughts off as best he could, Danny grabbed something that looked vaguely clean before hopping into the shower. He hated those dreams for the simple reason that they made him curious about his soulmate. Which was stupid. He didn't need to be curious about his soulmate. Sure, he was a curious and those dreams made him more curious, but his parents probably had a good reason for him wanting to keep his skin covered.
The reasons probably varied from causing pain to him or his soulmate or saving Danny pain in case he had no soulmate. It wasn't impossible that his parents would cover his skin up when they saw there were no signs of a soulmate. So, really, if he met them on his own, hey, that was great! If he didn't, well… It wasn't like a person needed a soulmate to be happy, right?
Groaning and dunking his head under the water, Danny silently admitted that his lying maybe wasn't all that great - or maybe he just sucked when it came to lying to himself. Getting dressed and avoiding looking at his skin as much as possible, Danny slipped into auto-pilot, because he next found himself walking with his friends to school and munching on a strip of bacon.
"Ah, that dream again, then." It was kind of rude that Sam didn't even phrase it as a question so he could lie to himself a little. "How many times can you have that same dream?"
"Dunno. How many hints can you give him?" Danny snorted as Tucker looked at him in confusion the same time Sam stuck her tongue out and pulled her sleeves down even further. Honestly. Danny had figured out those two were soulmates three years ago. Tucker, however? Well… He was Tucker. "It's not like it's a bad dream."
"Dream? You mean the one where you go through the portal and then suddenly start talking to three different people? Because no matter how many times you tell me it's a good dream, it sounds weird and creepy as shit."
"It's a little creepy as shit, but it's mostly a nice dream." He could never remember who the three were, though. He remembered warm touches, words in a language he didn't know, and the sense of utter safety. All in all, not a bad dream to have. "I just don't know what it means. I mean, I had to have heard those voices before since it's a dream, but I know I never have. That's weird, right?"
"The human brain is weird," Sam shrugged, and, yeah, okay. She had a point. "I say if it's not hurting you and you're not obsessing over it, then don't worry about it." Yeah… Yeah, see, Danny had never told them the part where after that dream, he usually spent days wondering and worrying after his mysterious soulmate – if he even had one.
Right. Okay. School. He could so totally focus on school instead of his weird dream and soulmate dilemma and what if it was a dream about his soulmate? Except, no, that kind of didn't make sense- It really, really didn't make sense, because then why would he be dreaming about three separate people?
Maybe one of them was his soulmate and the other two were just really close future friends, except, no, that was stupid, why would he be dreaming about the future? He couldn't dream about the future- Well, he technically could, but not the future future. Maybe-
"You're obsessing." Startling at Sam's voice, Danny blinked at seeing where they were and, oh, homeroom. "You know, if you need to talk about it with someone, I'm all ears. You listen to my soulmate drama enough."
"Hey, I never said this was soulmate drama." It sure as hell felt like it, though, and Sam's look was telling him that he had not been subtle about hiding it as such, either. "Okay, so, it kind of is soulmate drama. Sort of. It just doesn't make sense. I always dream of the same three people, but I don't know any of them."
"Well…" Sam trailed off, looking to be thinking as she tilted his head back and forth. "Maybe you have three soulmates."
"Three." Danny stared at her and Sam didn't even flinch. "You think me, the kid who has never even seen any soulmate writing, has three soulmates."
"Why not?" Why not- Why- It was because it didn't make any sense. Soulmate. Soulmate. Singular! "There's been cases of triads when it comes to soulmates."
"Rarely. I feel like you're forgetting to add rarely onto that- And me having three soulmates would mean there would be four of us. Three, yeah, okay, I could maybe buy that, but four? That's too crazy for even me."
"Is it? I mean, we thought ghosts weren't real a year ago, and now look." Okay… Okay, she had a point there, but a very, very, very small point. "All I'm saying is that it's best to keep an open mind. If you really want to rule out having three soulmates, then you can just look at your skin."
"You know I can't do that." That was just about the only rule his parents had ever given him. Everything else could be pushed and nudged and tweaked, but it was a rule that Danny was to kee his skin covered and never look.
"No, you're just too scared to do that." Well… "Come on, Danny. What's scarier than being a ghost?" There was the chance that writing would hurt one of them, or cause them pain, or that Danny didn't have a soulmate and his skin was bare, but… There was always the chance that none of that was true.
"This is why my parents want you to stop coming over." Danny shook his head, reflexively tugging his coat around him as much as possible as he looked up to where Lancer was taking attendance. "The only reason they still let you come over is because you don't eat all the food in the house."
"I am better than Tucker, aren't I?" Sam was near preening as she settled back in her seat. Danny had the hope that the conversation was done, but, as usual, his hope was shattered utterly and completely. "It could be possible, you know."
"Yeah. It could be." Could. That was the problem. It made just enough sense to cause hope, but it also lacked enough sense to chip away at that hope. Sam was right, though. Danny would never get any headway into this mystery unless he tried to find out just who his soulmate (soulmates?) was (were?).
Curling his fingers around one of his sleeves, Danny looked down and stared at the soft fabric before sighing. For as much as he wanted to, he knew the danger of digging into things that he had been told to stay away from.
It was a nice dream, if nothing else, at least. A dream of three people who loved and cared about him and always wanted the best for him and kept him safe from everything in his life that tried to hurt him.
Yeah… It was a nice dream.
::
"You felt it again, didn't you." Andrew didn't bother to make it a question since Randy's answer was clear on his face. "Do you think it's from them?"
"I doubt it." Randy collapsed onto the couch Andrew had taken over in the pursuit of finishing his latest novel, somehow avoiding each piece of paper and catching the few that had fluttered up at his dramatics. "It feels different. Younger? No… No, more like this one feels more scared."
"Emotions were always more your territory." Pushing some of the papers away, Andrew curled up on the couch and placed his legs over Randy's lap, keeping him pinned as he reached for an uncovered arm. "Any luck this time?"
"Do you know how big the Ghost Zone is?" Humming, Andrew completely ignored Randy's complaining as he wrote down his latest idea on the back of Randy's left arm. He'd use his own left arm, of course, but he couldn't reach the back as well as he could Randy's. Ah, soulmate writing was so helpful, sometimes. "One day you'll stop using me as a blackboard, you know."
"Of course. I'll have our other soulmate to write across by the time you truly get annoyed by this." Andrew paused, raising an eyebrow at Randy's look. "Yes?"
"I can't tell if you just implied that we'd never find our soulmate because I'll never get annoyed, or if you just implied that I'd honestly get annoyed by you writing on me." Thinking it over, Andrew finally just gave a shrug, delighting in the annoyed huff Randy gave.
"I suppose you'll find out when you find our other soulmate." Turning Randy's arm around, Andrew stared at where words were etched across the inner left arm of both Randy and Andrew. They were words neither of them had written and words that were in a language only known to ghosts. "How long do you think they've been waiting…"
"A very long time, I'm willing to bet." Randy twisted them around and, in a flash, Andrew was tucked under Randy's chin and in his lap, left arm still held out for him to write across. "We've seen their writing since we were kids."
"We've seen ghostly writing since we were children." Andrew scribbled a response in the same language back, biting back a laugh when a frowning face - very similar to the way Randy drew his - was given in response.
"Are you agitating them, again?" Perhaps just a touch, but it was something Andrew was very good at. "This is why they're sending us on a fuckin' scavenger hunt to try and find them."
"Or maybe they've simply been a ghost so long they've forgotten the concept of time." Andrew leaned up to give Randy a sweet kiss, trying not to laugh as the man calmed down at once. "We'll have to remind them why they shouldn't have kept us waiting."
"Try not to scare them off just yet." Randy plucked the pen out of Andrew's grasp and began doodling little ghosts under where Andrew had been writing. Andrew was very pleased when all of them were scribbled over with a different pen. "Our soulmate is very rude."
"Perfect for us, oui?" Andrew settled down against Randy and gave a soft sigh, content to let the man doodle across their skin as he relaxed. While he fully supported Randy exploring the Ghost Zone to try and find their missing mate, it was nice when he was home and they could relax together. It was never pleasant when Randy was gone for too long. Near thirty years had passed since they left their childhood 'home', but Andrew still felt as if he would wake up back in that room he still dreamt of, some days.
"Hey." Randy gave a light tug to the tip of one sensitive ear, Andrew whining as he frowned up at him. "Get out of your head."
"I want them." Andrew closed his eyes to avoid Randy's puppy dog eyes, settling back against him and sighing softly at the warmth. "I want them here with us. 'S not fair that we finally get to be happy, but they're out there all alone."
"They're probably not alone," Randy finally muttered, kissing at the back of Andrew's neck and, yes, alright, that felt rather nice. "We'll find them, Andy. At last we know they're out there if they're still writing to us."
"Mm." It was still amusing to think that the first thing their other soulmate had ever said to them - at least, the first thing they had understood, was to 'stop writing so damn much.' Randy had been delighted and Andrew had been offended. It had been a great day. "It's been so long."
"We'll find them." Randy tucked him closer, Andrew shivering as his shirt was pushed down and out of the way, Randy pressing kisses against his shoulder. "Sorry I was gone so long, Andy."
"I suppose you had a rather good excuse as to why you were gone," Andrew purred, the sound rumbling in his chest as he arched against one of the kisses. "It was an awfully long time, though. I think you'll have to make it up to me."
"Oh?" Randy's voice was full of cool charm and syrupy sweetness, Andrew shuddering as a huff of breath washed over his skin. "I think I know just the way, too…"
With that, Andrew found himself alone on the couch with Randy walking to the door and… What? No- Wait. What just happened? "Ra- Randy?"
"I feel rather in the mood to make some brownies." Oh- Oh, that was just mean.
"You're very bad for my heart, you know." Andrew huffed, and, fine. Two could play that game! Ha, he just wouldn't give him the satisfaction-
"Mhm. I think I'll wear that cute little apron you got me for my birthday last year." Fuck. That was playing dirty because Randy knew what memories were attached to that apron. "Just the apron."
"Brownies sound wonderful right now, mon chevalier." Ah, his mate did so spoil him. That was something that had never really changed, though, and Andrew was all too happy to exploit it. Moments like these, where everything was so perfect, did make him worry, though.
What if they never found their other soulmate? The Ghost Zone was big, and if their soulmate didn't want to be found, then they would never find them. Simple as that.
What if they were missing something important? Yes, alright, it was hard to miss the fact they were missing their soulmate, but there was always this feeling of something else, as well. It felt like a missing page in a book - which was a feeling that drove Andrew mad. Randy felt something young and scared, but Andrew felt something incomplete and yearning.
What if their soulmate didn't want them? Yes, according to research that was practically an impossibility, but there were stories of it happening before. And why didn't their soulmate ever try to find them or give better hints! Maybe they didn't want to be found. It was a lot of worries, and Andrew knew it was useless to worry about things he couldn't change, but it still felt as if something-
Oh. Alright. Randy hadn't been joking about wearing nothing but the apron, had he? Aha, and Andrew remembered when he had shame about things such as that. "Andy. You'll help me make my special treats for you, won't you?"
Well. Worries could wait for another time, he supposed.
A few very fun hours later and Randy was curled up in bed and sound asleep, Andrew humming lightly to himself as he jotted down ideas on Randy's back for the latest novel idea he had come up with while Randy had been soundly fucking him against the kitchen counter. If he ever did anything 'professional' with it, he would have to use one of his lesser known pen names, but, well. It would be fun to write, at the very least.
Pausing at seeing some new ghostly writing on Randy's arm, Andrew squirmed his way up the bed to read it. 'are you really fucking writing on his BACK right now?'
'Oh? And how can you tell that, dear one?' There was a very unflattering word written back, Andrew scribbling through it with glee.
'you should be sleeping.' Mm, probably. Andrew didn't much care for sleep, however. Especially when there were ideas to write.
'As should you, yet here we are. Do I get another clue, tonight?' There were a long few minutes of silence, Andrew not minding as he shifted over to start absently doodling freckles on Randy's face before thinking better of it and quickly cleaning them off. Their soulmate probably wouldn't be pleased to be stuck with freckles. Neither would Andrew, for that matter.
'where was he last?' Ah, where had Randy been last…
'The desert, I believe.' There had been quite a bit of vicious complaining before he had left, too. 'Were you there?'
'do you think I was?' Cheeky. Andrew loved it. 'you two are really committed to this.'
'We could be committed to you.' Mm, no, that was far less charming over words. Andrew scrubbed the words away and hoped Randy wouldn't realize Andrew had used his spit. Again. 'I'm still waiting for that clue.'
'alright I'll give you a clue.' Ha, of course they would. 'at the next shift after you sleep.' Bastard. Andrew loved them. 'good night little writer.'
'Good night, dear one.' Andrew paused and doodled a little heart after his words, refusing to admit the way that stupid nickname made his heart squeeze.
"Ya have yer own arms, ya know." Ah, Randy with his accent thick in his voice was so nice. Kicking his way back under the blankets, Andrew hid a grin when Randy lifted an arm for him at once.
"Yes, but it's far easier to write on yours. Also, don't shower when you wake up." There was a snort of what was probably laughter, Andrew humming as a kiss was pressed against his cheek.
"Love you." Mm, now those were perfect words. "Now go the fuck ta sleep." Those weren't so bad either, he supposed.
"You two will get along marvelously." Andrew curled up to Randy's chest with a soft sigh, shifting so he could see where their writing was still spread out across all their arms. It was nice to know that even if they didn't know what their soulmate looked like, they were still connected. "We'll find them."
If it was one thing they had learned, after all, it was to not give up. White Fang and the Priest might have been stubborn, but Andrew was finding that the Ghostwriter and the Mercenary were even more so.
::
"As soon as I find you, I'm going to punch you," Randy promised, glaring down at his right arm. "Why do you have to be left handed, anyways?" It made it harder to write swears under the teasing comments of their other soulmate. Huffing and writing one as steadily as he could, Randy capped his pen and kept flying.
It had been two relaxing weeks of recovering from his last trip and spending time with Andrew before the need to find their mate had started pulling him apart again. Randy had tried to put it off a little longer - he had been neglecting Andrew for a while, but Andrew knew him better than Randy knew himself, some days.
Which meant that Andrew had fucked him into a goddamn coma and when he woke up his bag had been packed and Andrew had shown him the next 'hint' that had appeared on their arms. The younger had also been very smug, but Randy couldn't argue too much since the feeling really had been getting to him.
Of course, Randy still wasn't sure why their mate had to test him and Andrew when it came to finding them, but damn if Randy was going to lose something like this. He'd tear apart the whole damn Ghost Zone if he had to.
'I've checked every inch of the Woods and you've never been in there before.' Randy winced at how shaky and uncertain his words looked when written in his left hand, and, really, this was why Andrew and Randy wrote on each other instead of their own arms. It was easier when their mate was left handed. 'You're fucking with us aren't you.'
'whoever said I lived in only one place?' Because that's what ghosts did? They had lairs. Ghosts had lairs and set locations and it was only… 'finally piece it together?'
'You're from a clan.' Fuck. Fuck- Oh, Andrew had written the same over their mate's words. It made sense, though. That would be why their mate was so strange and why they had never been able to find them. It was because they were part of one of the ghostly clans and the clans all tended to work a bit differently. 'Which one?'
'that'd be too easy.' Great. Right. Yeah. Near three decades searching and they had only just discovered that their soulmate was a part of one of the clans. That was fine, but that meant it would probably be another thirty years before they found out anything else! 'how much do you know about clans?'
That was a good question. Andrew wrote in 'the basics,' but they didn't really know much at all about the clans. Randy had found out that there were clans - sometimes tribes - that banded together and were all spirits. Some of them were born from the Ghost Zone, like the case of the Far Frozen and the tribe ruled by Frostbite, but others crossed over and were slowly accepted into a group who was always on the move and worked as a family unit.
If their soulmate was from a clan, then it would explain the reluctance to meet them. The average ghost was still mostly human, but clan members were different. Randy had never had the words to explain it. Words were Andrew's thing, but the clans tended to be more… Not feral, but wild? No. Free. They didn't bind themselves by human standards. It made for quite the clash, at times.
'we're traveling through the woods for the next dozen shifts.' Dozen shifts. A shift was the Ghost Zone version of a day and typically around thirty-six hours or so. Randy wasn't quite sure since he could only feel the change between night and day when he was further away from the stable portals that they lived near. Right. A dozen shifts. That should give him near three weeks human time to search the woods. Last time it had taken him two months to search through the entire woods.
Looking down to his arm, and feeling more than a little hopeless, Randy paused as he saw their soulmate's words written across his right wrist like a bracelet, linked together in a beautiful pattern that spelled out 'good luck.' Randy traced his fingers over the words before taking a breath, and, right. He could do this.
Andrew didn't know the Ghost Zone as well and became unsteady when he was away from a safe location for too long, but Randy? He had always been good at moving from place to place and this wasn't really any different. It might have been a bit different, but he could handle it, at least. Besides, all those years of traveling the Ghost Zone had taught him a lot about ghosts and who he was, and if he managed to find their soulmate, then he wouldn't change it for the- Oh, son of a bitch.
Randy had met clans and tribes and they all had the same hierarchy and style and tests and this was a test. Ghosts and spirits had no care for the time that passed. Why would they? They had an eternity. Their soulmate giving them so little information and sending them running around the Ghost Zone had to have been a test. A test of what, though?
'It was a test.' Seeing the words appear in French on his left arm, Randy snorted and uncapped his pen. At least Andrew had realized it, as well. 'If they're part of a clan, then all of this had to be one of their tests or rites of passage.'
'You have a book open on your lap right now don't you.' There was a frown drawn next to his words and oh, yeah, Andrew had dug through his books on clans at once. 'Rites of passage?'
'Clans typically have rites for certain points in their "lives" and I have no doubt soulmates are one of them. Maybe they're testing our devotion?'
'I'm going to punch them.' Damn, he was running out of space. Why did Andrew have to write so damn much? 'Right after I kiss them.'
'Idiot.' Ah, but Randy could tell Andrew was smiling fondly. 'Find them and bring them home. I believe they're getting as tired of the game as we are.' Squinting near the end as Andrew's words grew small enough to fit in the free spaces, Randy wrote a quick agreement back. Randy may not be Andrew, but he could feel the way everything was building and coming to a close. It was time they found their soulmate.
'quit writing so damn much i can't see my skin!' Choking on a wild laugh at the words that were written over their French, Randy drew a beaming face the same time Andrew drew a frowning one. They were both scribbled out viciously, Randy laughing even louder.
"Right, then. No name, no gender, no age, no description, and nothing but a clue that you'll be in the Woods for the next dozen shifts." Capping his pen, Randy drew himself up as he looked over the massive expanse of woods. "I'll find you."
Because there were nights he felt fear that wasn't from Andrew. There were days he felt weariness and loneliness that was from neither of them. The days he felt like it was all coming to an end… Those days weren't his. It was for that alone some days that Randy kept pushing himself further and further into the Zone, willing to do whatever it took to find their missing mate.
Although that still left him with hundreds of miles to search through a haunted wood. Crossing his arms as he hovered over the 'entrance,' Randy looked from side to side. Right. Their mate was part of a clan. That meant there would be a large group with possibly young ghosts or even children. They would stick to either the outer edges, or travel through the north side of the Woods. Those typically were the safest and quite nice to visit.
It would take him three days to travel that far even with the use of his teleportation, and at that point he would be worn out enough that he would need to rest for at least two days before continuing. If he chose the wrong spot, he would be five days into it and would run out of time before he figured out another spot to search.
"What other clues have you given me…" They knew little things. Their mate's favorite color, the fruit they liked most, and a few stories of when they had been young. That was still so little, though, and none of it seemed to help in a case like this. "Okay, okay, okay. Think like Andrew- Nope, no, bad idea."
Andrew's idea would be to investigate every piece of writing they could remember which would take days, and then he would pick the direction that 'felt right' and refuse to admit he could ever be wrong even when they found nothing. Thinking like Andrew was a bad idea. Okay, so think… Think White Fang, maybe.
Maybe he needed to stop thinking of this as a job like he had been, and think of it more like a mission. He had been given all the information he needed, he just had to put it all together. Staring out over the woods, Randy closed his eyes and let out a quiet breath, turning over every phrase he could remember that their mate had ever written to them. He wasn't sure how long he sat there before he paused as he felt a slow grin curl on his lips.
"East." A conversation on exploring almost two years ago had revealed that their soulmate always traveled east, first, when arriving at a new place. A silly little belief that had yet to steer them wrong. "So, if you would be traveling east first, that would mean you'd have to come in from the oceans." A joke about sand there and gone in a flash said three weeks ago and Randy grinned. "So that's where you'll be."
Coming in from the oceans and heading east would put them on a path towards the center of the Woods. It would take two days travel time to reach the direct center and only one day for him to recover and gather his energy around him. After that he could look around for signs of a clan and then continue heading east while setting up markers to help him teleport back to check for any signs he missed.
Looking down to the good luck wrapped around his wrist, Randy gave a quiet hum as he traced the words with his fingertips. Luck? Not quite. White Fang had never needed luck to get a mission done.
'I'll bring them home.' The message was written in French across his left wrist, near mirroring the words wrapped around his right wrist. Randy knew, even without anything being written in return, that Andrew had seen the words.
"Right, then." Stretching out, Randy gathered his energy around him, pulling on the image of his last time through the forest and the exact spot that he could safely teleport to without wearing himself out. "Time to bring you home."
This time, he would not fail.
::
"You're doing it again." Resisting the urge to sigh, Novan let his gaze slide over to where one of his clan mates was floating in the air next to where he was, grin sharp on her face. "You're looking for them."
"Aren't you young ones supposed to be asleep?" The cheeky grin he was given had Novan aiming a swat at her, pleased when she dodged quicker than she had even a few years ago. "Go to sleep. We leave at the start of the next shift."
"You're not sleeping." That was true, but Novan hardly ever slept when the clan was first settling in. Besides, there were others still awake, whether tending to the fires or checking on the younger ones that were curled together near one of the larger fires. "If they find you, will you go with them?"
"You've been asking this question for quite a while," Novan hummed, settling back in his spot and looking up to the sky that he saw peeking through the trees. The Woods always showed the beautiful greens of their world, but it was only ever this dark when in the Woods themselves. "It will be a while yet before they find me."
Even as he said it, Novan couldn't help but trace his fingers over the words around his left wrist that he couldn't read. It was in one of those human languages of theirs that they used to communicate, but Novan couldn't help but read it as a promise. Sometimes, he really hated the rites of his clan.
"You will, though." Lizzie took a seat beside him, looking up at the sky and making sure her voice was quiet. "You can always bring them to the clan later, when they cut ties with their human lives."
"That could be a long time. You know how they cling to those connections." Just from what they said to him, Novan could tell that his mates were so human. He had been surprised when words first showed up, especially when they were in a language he couldn't understand, but he had calmed when they had eventually been able to read and understand the language of the dead.
Still, even with the fact they had been ghosts for so long, they were still human in their nature. Novan already knew he would go back with them when they found him, but it had already been so long… The rites were specific. His mates had to want to find them. They had to prove they were dedicated, but could they do that when they knew so little about this world, still?
"You worry so much," Lizzie sighed, squirming under one of his arms and curling up to him, Novan trying not to laugh. For as much as Lizzie had grown, she was still such a young one. "Your mates will find you, Novan."
"I know." He was worried about them being able to find him, yes, but… Well, he was more worried about when they found him. There were such differences between them. Would they really be so accepting of him? Sighing, Novan tugged Lizzie close and ruffled her hair. Worry wouldn't get him anywhere, and now all he could do was hope for the best.
"I can hear your thoughts from here," Lizzie grumbled, glaring up at him. "Even if they don't find you this time, they're getting closer, right? You have an eternity. You'll find each other."
"A great deal can change within an eternity, Lizzie." It wasn't change that scared Novan. That part was natural. There was no stagnation - not even in death. No, it had never been change to scare him, but it was what might not change. He knew himself well enough to know he would rarely, if ever, change who he was. Those who still thought themselves to be human, though? Humans were such changeable creatures. "They won't find me, yet. All they know is that we'll be in the Woods for the next dozen shifts. That's not enough for them to find me in a world this large."
"You're so dramatic." Lizzie had been spending too much time with those new to their clan. "Novan, they love you and you love them. I've seen the looks on your face when you see the writing on your skin. They'll find you, and I'm willing to bet it'll be soon, too."
"Just like I'm willing to bet you'll never stop being an annoyance. Go curl up with the young ones." Novan didn't bother trying to push her off, though, just letting her get more comfortable. For as much as he complained, it was nice to have reassurance when he began doubting.
Sighing and looking back up to the sky, Novan let the back of his head hit the tree he was leaning against. If nothing else, at least it was a nice night.
That was how Novan found himself spending most of their time through the Woods, watching the skies when he wasn't helping the little ones or keeping others from wandering off. Logically he knew that they would find him eventually, but he still made sure to keep the 'good luck' around his wrist fresh as possible, as well as keep an eye out for any new writing that he could understand.
They used those human languages on purpose now to communicate without letting him know what they were saying, but Novan found himself amused and proud of their ingenuity more than anything else. The marveling didn't stop his worry, though. Nor did it stop him from getting more and more anxious as their time in the Woods almost ended.
Not even Lizzie could distract him as they began to reach the border, and everyone else had long ago begun keeping away from him. It was bad enough that his shift, the core of who they were as a clan, began slipping through when he didn't want it to. He was going to worry himself to pieces if he kept this up.
"Hey, hey, did you hear? One of the elders spotted what seems to be a nomad." Lizzie flew over and tackled him from behind, hanging off of his back. The contact did wonders for calming him. "What do you think?"
"Nomads travel through the Woods all the time. It's nothing new," Novan huffed, trying to hide a smile. "Did they bring any harm?"
"No, but I caught a glimpse and he looked exhausted. He's probably been traveling nonstop for shifts, now. What do you think? Is he running from something?"
"Most are. Where did they find him?" Novan followed to where Lizzie was pointing behind them. "And we didn't see him before?"
"It is a big place." Shaking his head, Novan flew in the direction, absently counting heads and making sure everyone was accounted for. The last thing he wanted was for someone to be left behind in these Woods. "Ah, there he is!"
"-telling you that I need to find someone in your clan!" A nomad looking for one of them? Odd. Very odd.
"Did he say who he was looking for?" Novan felt Lizzie shake her head from where she was still wrapped around him. "He looks like shit."
"Doesn't he? I thought he was going to collapse before he saw us." From behind, Novan could only tell that the ghost was wearing a white coat and had white hair that was bright as the snow of the Far Frozen. There was something about him, though…
"I'll take it from here, elder one." The elder gave a nod, looking grateful as two of the little ones curled around her and led and pushed her towards the center of the clan. Ah, the little ones were always so worried after her. Novan couldn't blame them. Ta'nel, that particular elder, had been with them since the clan first began wandering. Her time of fading would come soon, no doubt. "Who are you looking for, nomad?"
"Jesus Christ, you clans are so fuckin' sheltered, sometimes!" Ah, not a nomad. He was speaking the language of the dead, but the words were stilted and foreign in his mouth. He was still human. "I'm not a nomad and I need to find someone, but I don't have a name."
"Hmph, he's rude," Lizzie mumbled, Novan about to respond before the ghost turned around and bright blue eyes as clear as the sky of the living world looked into his and… Oh. "Think we can get rid of him?"
"You…" Mate. His mate was in front of him and it was Randy, his mate, and oh, with that white hair and those eyes it could be none other than Randy. They had told him so much about themselves with words flowing freely and Novan knew them so well and he would know them anywhere and it was his mate-
Novan didn't even get to say a word before he was catching Randy and holding him close as soon as he moved. Lizzie slipped off his shoulders and Randy clutched onto him as tightly as possible and oh, no, Lizzie was going to make this dramatic. "Novan- Novan, is that- It is! Everyone! Everyone- Novan's mate found him!"
Novan found himself thinking that Lizzie was very lucky that she was already dead. Shaking his head, he shakily ran a hand through Randy's hair, and oh. It was soft. "Randy?" Randy. Randy, his mate, one of his mates, and they had found him. They had found him, but… Why wasn't he saying anything? Was he upset? Novan would certainly be upset. Ah, so human. Did they even know of the rites?
Carefully, so carefully, Novan cupped Randy's cheek and lifted his head up, pausing at seeing the man's eyes were closed. At the same time, he realized that the man was heavily leaning against him and his arms were limp around him. "Oh, mate." He was asleep.
"Did he faint?" Lizzie sounded close to cackling, Novan snapping around and giving a quiet growl that did nothing to deter her. "Remember those marks we found the other day? I bet he's been teleporting around looking for you."
"Then he is an idiot," Novan huffed, unable to stop himself from pressing forward and skimming his nose behind Randy's ear. The man curled closer to him even in his sleep. "Would you say the rites have been completed, then?"
"If they argue, I'll bite 'em for you," Lizzie nodded, quite seriously. "See? I told you not to worry!" Humming absently, Novan tugged at the pen that was around Randy's neck, carefully sitting them down before writing across the man's left arm.
'peace little writer we will be with you soon.' There was no response, but Novan knew without a doubt that Andrew had seen the words. He was never the type to allow words to go unseen.
It was almost two complete shifts before Randy had regained his strength and he had yet to stop talking. Novan found it endearing, honestly, with how enthusiastic he was when it came to talking about anything and everything - especially when others started getting annoyed and he only talked louder.
They were now at the border of the Woods and Randy, who had yet to let go of him completely, was tightening his grip on his shirt even more. "I'm kidnapping you. You're coming home with me and you're going to live with me and Andy for a while."
"Okay." Novan watched as Randy puffed himself up, and, really, he would make such a great shifter once Novan had him practice. Ah, Randy seemed to realize Novan had agreed.
"I… Okay? I mean- Just like that? You're not going to argue, or complain, or-" Novan cut him off by nuzzling against his cheek, pleased when he heard Randy purring softly and quietly. "Or that. That works."
"You doubted I would go back with you?" Novan had only been able to talk with Randy for a few shiftlets, but already he knew he loved this man with everything in him. Andrew, he knew, would be the same. "Precious mate… I'm yours as much as you are mine."
Ah, that was delightful. The man, so white and so pure, flushed the same white as his aura and hair, blue eyes near dazzling as he looked away. "Right. Right, okay then- Um, I guess, do you- Do you need to say goodbye, or-"
"There's never any goodbyes among clans," Novan laughed, kissing Randy at the corner of his lips and pleased when the flush went further. "They all knew I would go with you the moment you arrived. I will see them again within this eternity."
"You're so inhuman." Randy's fingers curled through his hair, arms braced against his shoulders as he watched him carefully. "Andy's gonna love you- I mean, more than he does, anyways."
"Mm." Novan relaxed at the soft wonder on Randy's face, pressing close to rub their noses together. "Take me home, mate." And oh, Randy was so very obvious of what he liked. Novan was finding that he very much enjoyed that, as well.
It was also good to know that his mate was powerful. It only took a single teleport before they were in front of a library that Novan had read so much about, the words of who she was written across his skin for him to read over and over. Slipping out of Randy's reach, Novan placed a hand against the door and closed his eyes and ah… There she was.
Powerful and cautious as lairs always were, but she wrapped around him near at once, music like he had never heard slipping into him as the doors opened. It was a sweet moment that quickly turned when a book flew out and near hit Randy in the head before he caught it.
"Hey! I wasn't even gone that long this time!" It was a fight to not laugh and oh, his mates fought with their lair? That was… Such precious little humans he had for mates. Allowing Randy to fight with the lair - Vidya, she sweetly whispered to him - Novan slipped inside and quickly began looking around.
For as sudden a change as it was, it still felt so right, somehow, as he flew through this library. It was as if he had done this time after time, slipping through halls and peeking around corners and oh. Oh. There he was, surrounded by books, and this was his mate, too.
This was Andrew. This small, sweet little thing who had death lurking in his eyes and fear heavy on his shoulders was Andrew. It felt far too easy and far too natural for Novan to slip up behind him, peeking over his shoulder to see he was writing on paper instead of skin. "And what are you working on now, little writer?"
Novan had expected a few different responses considering how much he had learned about them, but he hadn't quite expected to be pushed down to the floor before Andrew was kissing him like it was the first and only kiss they would ever have. Not to say Novan was against it, of course, but it was just unexpected.
"Why am I not surprised that you would kiss him as soon as you met." Ah, Randy had finally found them. "Andy, meet our mate, Novan." Novan half expected Andrew to pull back and say something, but Novan was also very okay that he wasn't. "This is where you say it's nice to meet you."
"I'm making up for lost time." Andrew didn't even fully pull away when he did speak, words brushing across Novan's lips as he held him close. "You, Novan, are late."
"A sentiment I'm sure we share." His little humans were put into the world far too late, for his liking. Andrew huffed, nuzzling up to him and ah, such shifter behavior, in these two. His mates were perfect, and yet…
There was almost the sense of something still missing even as the two curled up around him, tracing out words and shapes on his skin that was pressed into their own. It wasn't that anything was wrong with them, but it was as if something was missing from all of them. Novan had his pack, now, yes, but it seemed as if it were incomplete.
Ah, well. He would have time to worry about it later, he supposed. Now was a time for telling his mates everything he could and letting them know that he had wished for them just as much.