"No Danny, we've supported everything you do but this? You're crazy, anyway its been two years without him why is this an issue?" Sam was looking at the halfa with one eyebrow raised while Tucker looked queezy.
"I..its not like I can act on my feelings...Vlad is gone." Danny had been having vivid nightmares of this moment but he had hope.
"Danny, we've ordered your binder, and your papacker, taken you clothes shoping, and helped you come out. We fight ghosts together for crying out loud! But Vladimir Masters? Dude how many times have we been almost killed by that man?" Tucker made a good point as Sam nodded along.
"Are you really not okay with this...?" Danny looked up from the deep purple carpet in Sam's room seeing his friends shake their heads. He went intangible and went ghost flying away to his house.
Three months ago Danny looked healthy and his grades were suffering greatly. The first to notice the paperthin ghost teen was his friend Ember.
"Danny have you been eatting?" she looked at his face carefully, "or sleeping for that matter." Tears came to the halfas eyes and he blinked them away.
"I'm fine Ember, I gotta go study for exams tomorrow," with that he flew off to his room.
Stripping down to his binder and boxers he examined himself.He traced the lines on his waist and poked at his stomach, he then turned sideways trying to flaten out his chest more than it already was. He put baggy clothing on and started studying his exam reviews.
He had decided he would stay at what was once Vlads home for the summer. It was quiet and reminded the teen of the man he loved and missed so very much.
"I'll be back a few weeks before school starts mom don't worry," Danny's suitcase was floating behind him as his mother tried to reason.
"What about your birthday? You'll be 18," he nodded a little.
"I'll call mom don't worry."
"Well I suppose you'll do it even if I say no, just...keep your phone close Danny. We love you."
He flew to Vlads and looked around, it wasn't dirty and there was food in the kitchen, not that he'd eat it, he called out seeing if anyone was home.
'It must've been clockwork' Danny thought to himself.
He went to the bed that Vlad use to sleep in and his heart clenched. Tears fell down his face and he curled up under the blankets, weeping for a man he presumed to be dead.
Vlad watched the screen crying out in pain, "Clockwork please I need to help him."
"And why would I say yes now? After all your begging," the older ghost asked, he flinched as he saw screen Danny run to the bathroom searching desperately for a certain silver item.
"Clockwork he needs someone...please, I've been so good." Clockwork snapped his fingers freezing Danny in his search.
"You need to change your clothes and cut your hair...I'll give you half an hour before I unfreeze him, you should also know he is close to finding what he desires."
Vlad sprinted up the stairs to the bathroom, he started with his hair cutting it a little past his shoulders with it slightly shorter towards his face to look like bangs, he shaved his face and jumped in the shower. He tossed on a packers tee shirt and a loose pair of sweats, he ran back down as he tied his hair back with it split down the middle.
"Five minutes to spare,"Clockwork nodded impressed, "listen to me Vladimir, if you stick one toe out of line you're right back here. And if you break Danny's heart...lets just say he's the only reason I even saved you." With a flick of his wrist he opened a portal and unfroze Danny.
"D..Daniel..." the boy froze and slowly turned around.
"Vlad...?" he searched for anything that told him otherwise, "Vladimir..."he ran and huged the man tightly.
"Daniel how I've missed you...how I've wished to help you," he held the halfa tightly. "You need rest, take off your binder please..." he knew it was a touchy subject, the yonger of the halfas being born a female, but he would injure himself.
"H..how did you know...?" Danny looked mortified.
"I have been watching you," he said carefully, "I am sorry it is very intrusive of me...you have had me quite worried Daniel."
"Why...why haven't you helped..." he looked helpless.
"I couldn't little badger, Clockwork said I wasn't ready," he held the young halfas face gently, "please take it off badger, we need to get you to bed."
Danny blushed and turned around to face the wall as he took off his binder. Vlad gasped softly as he saw the slightly discolored skin. "Daniel..." he picked the boy up bridal style before he put the shirt back on, this caused Danny to blush more. Vlad put the teen down on the bed and grabbed ointment out of the bedside table.
"Badger is it alright if I apply this to your bruises?" the teen nodded looking anywhere but Vlads face.
After it was all rubbed in Vlad climbed in bed with Danny keeping a respectable distance of course.
After two days Danny woke up in different clothes and feeling hungry for the first time in months. The smell of pancakes drifted from the kitchen as the teen wobbly stood. Vlad looked up from yhr stove as Danny took a seat at the bar.
"Hungry badger?" Danny looked confused and nodded a little as a small pancake was placed in front of him, it couldn't have been bigger than his palm."I've been phasing food into your stomach to get your health up but your stomach has srunken over the months so it took a while to get this much." He pointed at the pancake with his spatula. Danny nodded a little and tried to ignore his hunger.
"This has a lot of calories Vlad..."
"Yes, I know it does Daniel I added extra butter and eggs as well."
"I cant eat this Vlad I've worked so hard..." the older halfas eyes flashed blue confusing the yonger and he sighed.
"Daniel if you dont eat it I will have to force you, I do not want to do that little badger." Danny nodded a little and started to nibble at his pancake, soon he was shyly asking for another. "Only eat a little so you don't get sick ok?" he nodded and ate a bit more.
"Vlad? You um...you said you were watching me... what did you mean?" Vladimir choked on his pancake and blushed deeply.
"Um...I am ashamed to say that I watched you grow up these past few years, quite closely if I'm being honest," the older man looked away, "some days it was all I would do..."
Danny smirked a little, "what a pervert, you watched everything I did?"
"Im so sorry Daniel...I..I understand if you dont feel comfortable with me here..."
"You're a fruitloop, that just means you've seen me naked...and horny," vlad looked at the teen surprisingly. After a moment he got a sly grin.
"I also saw you confess your undying love for a certain fruitloop," Danny's happy face was replaced with bright pink.
"Stupid fruitloop..." he got up and streached, "imma go watcha movie" Danny slurred out and proceed tophase through walls to the livingroom.