And I bring forth, Part 2 of Ranger's Christmas Carol.
As always, I own nothing, nadda, nilch, not even the freaking plotline. Plotline goes to Dickens, and the rest, to the wonderful JE.
And a warning for language. Ranger gets a little upset.
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Ranger's Christmas Carol
Part 2 - The un-welcomed visitor.
Ranger stood at the ready, this bastard was going down. No one entered his domain. No one. Except for Babe, of course. But she was different. She was babe. The door swung wide, creaking and moaning on its hinges. Ranger stared at the open doorway, eyes narrowed, every muscle poised for the takedown. He stared at the entryway. It was empty.
"Show yourself." he growled. There was no answer, and no one stepped into the doorway. The hairs were standing on the back of his neck, much like his babe's would when he was near. It amused him when he affected his Babe, but he found he did not, at all, like the sensation when it was present in him. "Show yourself." he growled again.
"R-r-r-r-r-aa-a-a-a-a-n-n-n-n-n-g-g-g-g-e-e-e-e-r-r-r-r...R-r-r--r-r-r-a-a-a-a-a-a-n-n-n-n-n-n-g-f-g-g-g-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-ee-e-r..." A milky form appeared in the doorway. Ranger's complexion changed to a ghastly shade of pale, sickeningly white to the point of blue-ness - quite a feat for cuban coloring. "Ah, Man." The ghost said, slapping a hand hard onto his sheer thigh. "I've always wanted to do that." His incandescent face grinned from shimmering ear to shimmering ear.
Ranger's finger hit the trigger, and a shot fired. It went straight through the apparition, leaving a hole that shimmered and floated like smoke as it filled in, slowly. The bullet lodged in the far wall, plaster and drywall crumbing around it. The ghost warped himself into a circle, sticking his head through the bullethole in his chest. "Man. Check that out. Cool. Never been shot at as a ghost before." he stood back upright, then twisted his neck 180 degrees to look at the hole in the wall, head on backwards. He twisted back and looked at Ranger, grinning like a chesire cat. "Ranger, man, how's the tree floating?" he asked.
"Joker." Ranger stated, voice flat. "You're dead."
"Er than a Doornail, buddy." the ghost said cheerfully. "Gotta admit this haunting stuff is kinda fun. I mean, floating around, scaring the piss out of big, tough men like you. Men who build a fortress around themselves so no one can get in without permission. But hey - I don't follow those rules, cause I can go ANYWHERE. Nice fortress, by the way, buddy. Kinda cold and empty though, don'tcha think?" He laughed.
"Joker." Ranger warned.
"What? Shut up or you're gonna shoot me? I heard that a lot in training, man. And you never followed through then, why would you now? The last shot was just cause I took you by surprise, wouldn't count."
"I suppose the same thing would happen if I shot you again, anyhow." Ranger groused.
"Yup. Waste of another bullet, man, but hey, you've already got a repair bill coming for your wall over there." the ghost spun his head around again to look back at the wall a second time, admiring the hole, before spinning his neck back into a normal position. "Although the bullet hole seems to improve it, lends some deviation to such a cold, unfeeling pattern." he mused, then grinned at Ranger's answering scowl. "Now Pal, Buddy, Boss. Oh esteemed team leader. We have to have a little heart to heart."
"No dice. I don't do those."
"And there is your problem. And the reason we must have one. But first." The ghost's voice softened. "Thank you for taking care of my family. It means a lot to me that you would help Missy and Jeremy along, and make sure they could stay on their own feet."
"Least I could do." Ranger shrugged it off.
"Man." Joker read between the lines with ease - a benefit of being a ghost, it's been said. "What went down wasn't your fault. If I had stepped with more caution, well.. But sometimes you just have to jump headlong into something, and hope for the best." Cryptic advice, and advice Ranger would shrug off, but nevertheless one of the best he'd ever get.
"But buddy, we gotta talk."
"I. Don't. Talk. Particularly not with ghosts."
"I talk. You listen."
"You don't even exist. I have no reason to listen to things that don't exist. It is a waste of my time and mental effort." It must be noted that though Ranger's words were firm, he firmly refused to turn his back on the ghost that doesn't exist, nor did he put down the gun, which vibrated ever so slightly with the minute trembling of his hand.
Joker suddenly began emitting loud, machine-gun like noises. Ranger couldn't curb his reaction and he jumped, chills invading his skin at an alarming rate. "Alright, ALRIGHT." he yelled. "Say what you came to say and begone!"
"Oh, but is that the way to treat an old pal, a comrade?" Joker displayed his ear splitting grin once again. It could very well be that he was antagonizing Ranger on purpose, enjoying the show of being able to put his buddy on the spot. But that speculation would be to admitted by no one.
Curbing himself, Ranger spoke through gritted teeth. "Why, exactly, are you floating around being a hellish hound anyhow?" he demanded.
The apparition named Joker became suddenly serious, wistfully sad. "It's required of every man. Those who's spirits have walked forth in life don't need to in death. And I...I did not treat my wife and child well, I did not walk forth in life and life it with all of myself, and so I am doomed to be fettered to this existence."
"You treated your wife and child fine."
"No. I withheld my heart. I cheated on her. I was a womanizer. I was a lot of things, I never grew up. And now I pay, I wear a chain of my creation, one I forged with the life I lead. I provided well for them, yes, but it is not the same. Generosity of coin is not the same as generosity of thyself. I lived with my body, with my brains, but not my heart. Sound familiar, Carlos?"
"Can you not find reassurances?" Ranger snapped. His arms raised goosebumps, and he became uneasily aware that there was a message he must heed. No. The mighty Manoso would heed no shade.
"No. there are none."
"Then why the fuck are you here?" A voice laced with anger, but Joker merely raised an eyebrow.
"To offer you a chance. An opportunity for guidance, to seek the correct path, so you do not end as I have done."
"Take you chance and go to -"
"Now, Ranger, don't be rash. Silence. Hear me out, my time is nearing its end. Tonight you will be haunted by three spirits."
"And this is my chance?" he asked, cynicism and disgust evident in his voice.
"Yes. Without their visits, you cannot hope to step away from the path you've chosen. You are, quite simply, entirely too stubborn." Joker grinned at him, chuckling as Ranger tightened his lips into a thin line. "Expect the first when the clock tolls 1. And the second at 2:30, and the third at 4. Each will take you on a journey, each will show you what needs to be shown." Joker started to fade away. "This is for your own good, Ranger, man. Please, I beg you, open your mind to it, and take it seriously. Buddy, please..." and Joker's spectre faded from sight, leaving Ranger alone in his room, gun cocked and ready, fingers trembling, blank face firmly back in place.
