Hi again, dorks!

Thank you so much for your reviews. I really hope you guys enjoy it - hopefully Vlad and Danny aren't OOC. It's hard to find the balance between making them feel authentic and putting them through the psychological consequences of being trapped in a giant Christmas tree ornament for days on end.

Also, "Child of God", your review was particularly sweet. My humor is really sarcastic and often bleeds into plain cynicism. Your kind words are greatly appreciated.

Until next time!

- Chapter 4 -

Time slowed to a halt.

The fog swirled around our prison, licking at the smooth barrier and creating intricate whorls and wisps. The empty howl of the ghost zone died down at some point - something I had never been still enough to notice before. My ears felt plugged when the eerie noise faded, and my head began pounding when the congested feeling wouldn't go away. The hum of the forcefield rattled into my teeth and my ears again began ringing. I'm fairly certain that I spent some time with my head buried in my hands, muttering to myself and fighting to block out the excruciating buzzing of the Fenton Ghost Globe.

Sometimes the green mist outside moved so quickly that it felt like I was lost in some tiny pocket of space where time ceased to exist; like everything was moving and happening and passing by while I was immune to it. At others, nothing moved. Panic leapt into my throat and I quickly phased back into my human form to press a hand to my chest. My heartbeat felt faint and fluttery, but I counted the thumps, reassuring myself that the world around hadn't screeched to a halt.

Freedom was less than an inch away. Cold and soupy and beautiful.

I had never wanted anything more than to be able to break through the barrier and fly.

It took what felt like hours to convince myself to collect my thoughts and breathe deeply. I looked at my rings and told myself what each was made of, what store they came from, and how much I paid. I rubbed the back of my neck until it stopped feeling like a block of concrete and tried to remember which investors I was meeting with for the rest of the week.

To think that I had only been missing from home for a few hours - that it was completely unlikely that an assistant would have tried to call or that Skulker would've appeared with some request - made my stomach seize with horror. But why would anybody be looking for me?

After all, I often went half a day without communicating with anyone.

"Vlad."

Startled, I looked up to see Daniel hugging himself tightly, his eyes red and his bottom lip marred with ugly teeth marks.

"Vlad, I'm losing my mind."

His brilliant green eyes stood out painfully against the swollen red and he shuddered as I watched him. A tiny sound slipped past his lips, faint and hoarse.

The anxiety that sent sharp stabs through my middle as I lifted my arm climbed into my throat and made my voice crack. "Just - for a minute - you should come here."

A flicker of sanity passed through him, making his gaze narrow with suspicion. "No."

"I'm serious. Just-"

"Are you crazy? Like I could possibly-"

"Come here."

Danny clamped his mouth shut and froze at my tone.

After a long moment, his lips parted once more with a shaky breath. He unwound from the ball he'd shriveled into and awkwardly pitched forward to crawl across the small space between us. The boy bumped against my side, cold blossoming from every point of contact, and I wrapped my arm around his lithe shoulders. Eventually I rested my hand on his bicep and gave him a small squeeze.

For a long while Daniel remained tense, his hair brushing against my collarbone, his arms rigid and wrapped tightly around his middle. "I want out of here," he mumbled, his voice thrumming beneath my hand.

"I know, Daniel." His body was freezing cold, and I concentrated some of my heat into the arm I had draped around him. "We'll get out of this. It's just a matter of time."

"Mmmn."

Silence settled over us and I became aware of my heartbeat thudding in my ears. He shifted against me, relaxing ever so slightly against my side.

"You suck, Vlad."

The token insult caused a flare of amusement in my chest, momentarily interrupting the crawling anxiety that was steadily resurfacing beneath my thin veil of composure. "Thank you."

Evidently, the pitiful attempt at witty banter was enough to satisfy his conscience. Daniel let out a shuddering breath and the tension drained from his limbs. The cold of his ghostly core seeped through my clothes like ice on a bruise. My heartbeat slowed, thumping hard in my throat.

The smell of the hazmat suit that had become his uniform was strangely soothing, and I found myself staring at his thick hair, amazed at the glossy sheen of each snow-white strand. Being this close to him without being Plasmius - without aiming an ecto-blast at his chest or having my hands around his throat - was completely bizarre.

It suddenly occurred to me that I hadn't been this close to another human being in longer than I could remember.

The flash of light as he transformed into his human self startled me, and I gawked at him as he fell asleep in a matter of seconds.

Contact with another living being had a sudden, powerful effect on the terror lurking deep in my gut. Perhaps it was the rhythmic sound of Daniel's breathing or the simple chill of his ice powers dulling my own fire, but the desperation grew quieter.

I watched my nemesis sleep, fascinated by his long eyelashes and his slender fingers. There were dark circles beneath his eyes and he flinched as his sleep deepened. Idly I wondered if the hum of the forcefield would be less maddening to non-ghost ears … the field itself was designed to trap ghosts, after all…

Daniel twitched against me, fisting a hand in the fabric of my dress shirt and letting out a pained sound. What was he dreaming about? Samantha? The constant fear of a ghost lurking nearby?

Had fear and tension just become his default?

"Shhh." The boy grunted when I rubbed his arm comfortingly, pressing his cheek against my shoulder. "You're safe, little badger. Sleep. There will be plenty to worry about later."

As I uttered my nickname for him, the boy's grip tightened on my shirt and then loosened. I rubbed his arm until he stilled once more.

My skull thumped against the barrier and I stared upward at the darkness creeping overhead.

How long had we been here?

A day and a half? Four?

The projection of Jack's face lit in my memory and I bit back a snarl. The complete, utter idiot.

So strange that such an imbecile could make someone so extraordinary.

Closing my eyes, I let out a long breath. Daniel's fingers twitched against my side, and my stare eventually fell upon the device that buzzed maddeningly above us.

There was only one thought within reach, and I grasped onto it and cemented it in my mind.

No matter what, I could not let my sanity begin to slip again.

The ghost zone was silent and the hum of the forcefield drilled into my aching teeth, and I closed my eyes once more, willing myself to sleep.