It was a clear, calm day in Amity Park. The sun shone high and bright, just warm enough to be comfortable in cool clothes. The wind blew every so often, making the trees dance.

On a day like this, it wasn't unusual for the park to be as busy as it was. Several families and couples were sitting on blankets and enjoying the good weather. Children were running around, playing several games of tag at once. There was even a dog or two, running back and forth in a never-ending game of fetch.

One of the many people enjoying this beautiful day was a young girl. She was very petite, managing to look a couple years younger than she was. Her crossed legs swung underneath a white free-flowing skirt, and her flat black shoes had been kicked off at some point due to a mix of absent-mindedness and comfort. She also wore a light green tank top, and her bare arms looked thin but surprisingly muscular as she turned a page in her book. Under a white and green newsboy cap, a few black hairs poked out. Her smile was content.

She continued to read her book, enjoying the entirely too-perfect day, when she felt a sudden weight around her neck and heard every backround noise come to a halt. She blinked a few times, breathing out a sudden burst of cold air, and managed to keep from rolling her eyes when she realized what happened. She closed her book with a thump and turned vibrant green eyes to the company she gained within a literal instant. "Hi, Clockwork," she said, sounding fond and exasperated at the same time.

The Ghost of Time smiled at her, though it very nearly came out as a smirk. "Hello, Danny," he replied, shifting in form from middle-aged to a young boy. The smirk-smile didn't look any less out of place. "I see you've been practicing."

Danny shrugged a little, placing her book to the side. "Yeah, I have. Finally got rid of my glow, though on such a bright day it barely matters. My hair though..." She trailed off, reaching up to pull off her hat. A tumble of braided hair fell out, mostly stark white but tipped with about two inches of black. Danny looked back to Clockwork with a slight smirk. "But then, you knew that already."

"I did," Clockwork said, as though he needed to confirm what they both already knew. He absent-mindedly stroked a long white beard. "However, I wanted an excuse to visit, since you'd neglected to come to me."

It wasn't said in a scolding way, more teasing, but Danny still blushed and looked away, contrite. "Yeah, sorry about that. This has been my first ghost-free day in a month - well, relatively ghost-free," she said with a grin, looking back at the now middle-aged man. "I wanted to see how long I could pass for human like this. I've been out here for hours!" The girl's excitement was practically visible, and it warmed the ghost to see it. But as she leaned back and let the satisfaction of a successful test run warm her through, he knew he needed to douse it, if only a little.

"This is not a solution," the boy said solemnly, and the girl's smile faded. She looked down, green eyes dark as she played with her hair.

"I know," she said softly, and almost against her will, a set of rings came to life around her waist and split in opposite directions, leaving behind a very human, very male figure in jeans and a t-shirt. In the absence of her hair, Danny instead began to pick at the edge of her shirt.

Clockwork looked the young half-ghost over with wizened eyes. Her hair was pitch black and cut short, her eyes were ice blue and her pale skin had turned tan. This child was very nearly the polar opposite of the one who sat there a moment before, the only constant being the bronze and black time medallion hanging from the neck. But they both knew which form the young girl preferred.

"Daniel..." he started with a sigh, but Danny cut him off with a slight growl.

"You know I hate that name," she said with a glare. The blue, while human, was just as potent as ghostly green would've been. "You know, Clockwork."

"I know," said the Ghost of Time, and instead of being a teasing exchange it was now an attempt to placate the child. "Yet it is your name. One you do not change."

Danny did roll her eyes, now. She knew why she never picked a more feminine name for herself. Nothing seemed to fit. She had never wanted to be called Danielle, and she willingly left the name for her cousin to keep when she showed up. Yet she had rolled hundreds of other names in her head for years, and nothing worked. She stuck with Danny because that was who she was.

So long as no one called her Daniel.

They sat in silence for a long while. Danny slowly began to fidget under both the weight of the Time Master's stare and the unnatural silence of the world around them. Finally, she slumped forward and dropped her head in her hands. "I hate this," she whispered. "I hate it so much."

Clockwork's red eyes softened, but he said nothing, knowing that the girl needed to get this off her chest without interruptions.

"It's not fair," she moaned, "being trapped in the wrong body for so long. Being called 'son' and 'boy' and being to scared to say anything. And then the accident happened and for a moment... For one moment, I thought I was free. I mean, yeah, I thought I was dead, but if I had been it would've been worth it, just to wake up in the right body."

Danny sniffed a little. "And then I change back and it's almost a win-win situation, 'cause I'm still alive and I get to be a real girl whenever I want, except I can't! And it's like I have to choose between being a girl and being alive and I know which one I want more, Clockwork, and it scares me!"

With little warning, a heavy hand placed itself comfortingly on her shoulder. She looked up through blurry eyes to see a real smile on the man's face.

"You have been placed in an overwhelmingly difficult position, young one," he said softly. "A position that would've been far easier to bear had anything been different. I've seen worlds where you were all male, all female, all ghost, all human, and everything inbetween. But fear not." Clockwork's grin grew wider. "All is as it should be."

Danny snorted, wiping her eyes and smiling despite herself. "I'm beginning to think that you only ever say that to keep from saying anything that makes sense."

The old man chuckled warmly. "Perhaps. You'll find out soon enough, either way."

"And there go the cryptic hints again. You can either tell me the future or not, but don't hint like that, it drives me nuts!"

Clockwork smiled softly. "Keep practising. It may not be a solution, but it does bring closure." Danny blinked at the sudden straight-forwardness, but transformed into her ghost form without another word, picking up her hat and winding up her hair.

Once her hair and glow were fixed, she turned again to her companion. "Hey, Clockwork?"

"Yes?"

"I... I can't really say you cheered me up, since I wasn't depressed until you showed up, but I can guess that it was part of some plan that I won't know about until after the fact and - anyway..." She paused, blushing slightly at her word vomit. "Anyway. Thanks, Clockwork."

"You're very welcome, Danny." With another smile of all-knowing encouragement, his voice echoed through the world with the words "Time In." In the very next instant, the welcoming sounds of an active spring day filled her ears again.

And all anybody saw for the rest of the day was a collection of families playing in the park, the trees dancing in the wind, and a young girl reading a book with her bare feet absently swinging to a silent beat. Her smile wasn't quite as content as before, but it remained as peaceful as ever.

Okay, so... I'd kinda disappeared all last year. If anybody was actually looking for me ('cause don't lie, I'm not the most popular author in the fandom), I apologize. School was a bit of a mess.

But I do have something new, a concept that's been bugging me for weeks, months even. If anyone has one-shot ideas or any tips to share from those who are or know a transgendered person, I'd appreciate it. If I can, I want to build a world out of this.

So, anyway. Please enjoy it!