::
"You know, when they told me who was subbing for me, I couldn't quite believe it." Lancer had to suppress a laugh at the startled looks he saw given to him. He had arrived back at the school just at the start of the lunch hour, and so he wasn't too surprised to find Andrew Riter and Danny Fenton in the classroom alone together. "Somehow, I shouldn't be that surprised about the matter."
"Oh, aha, look at that. The thing. I'm late for. That I need to go to." Danny didn't even get a foot towards the door before it was closing with a snap, the teen sulking and retaking his seat. "An argument could be made that you are being unbearably cruel, sir."
"I suppose it could," Lancer nodded, not letting the smile fall off of his face. "I didn't actually know your ghostly tutor had his teaching degree, however." At the looks, one startled, and one scared, the older man rolled his eyes with a smile. "Mr. Fenton, I figured things out near the end of your freshman year. You weren't that sneaky about things, when it came down to it."
"I-! Alright, so, okay, I kinda wasn't that great in the beginning when it came to keeping everything quiet," Danny admitted, small blush on his face as he scratched the back of his head. He supposed if Lancer had managed to connect Fenton and Phantom, it wouldn't be that hard to connect Ghostwriter and Andrew. "I've gotten better, at least-" He was interrupted with a quiet chuckle from his mate. "I have!"
"The only thing I haven't been able to figure out is how you can appear human," Lancer looked over to Andrew, who gave a small smile.
"One of my powers. I was able to mask my ghost signature in the beginning, as well. Very helpful when his parents didn't first know about me- And to be fair, I didn't actively seek to substitute. My brother, however, decided to sign his death warrant by submitting my resume, and an application in my name. Also, the last few lessons I did with them I wrote down in your planner, so you have a record of what was covered."
"Why, thank you. That's very helpful," Lancer smiled, Danny slowly inching his way towards the door as the man headed for the desk. "Huh… I don't seem to see my sylla-"
"Oh, look at the time! Gonna be late for the thing- Bye, Mr. Lancer!" Grabbing his mate's hand, as well as their bags, Danny was quick to drag Andrew out of the classroom and down one of the empty hallways, Andrew looking more amused than anything. "So, those papers you threw out on your first day here?"
"His lesson plans for the next four weeks, and the syllabus." Sighing, the teen leaned into his mate's side, handing over the man's messenger bag. "Hardly my fault if the lessons he left were ridiculous."
"Oui, oui, because of course we all know you know best." At the raised eyebrow, Danny gave a sunny smile. "I only speak the truth, mon ange."
"Mhm, I bet. Speaking of the truth, however… How are you with him knowing your secret?" Good question, one he didn't exactly know how to answer. Thinking on it… He was already well into his junior year, and if Lancer had known that long, and hadn't told anyone else, or exposed him, well...
"I guess I'm a bit freaked out, to be honest. If he figured it out, so could others. But… He hasn't said anything so far, and he's a good teacher when you get down to it, and really does kind of care about us. So, I guess I'm doing fine with it, since I know it's not as bad as it could be, you know?"
"Rather mature of you," Andrew mused, smiling at the teen's scoff. "You can hardly say I'm wrong. Usually when talk of your secret being exposed is discussed, you get quite agitated."
"Yeah, yeah, you and your big, fancy words." Pausing for a moment, Danny lightly bit his lip, gaze trained on the linoleum floors. "So, I, ah, I guess you'll be going back to Vidya, huh?"
"Somehow, you're sounding more upset about this development than I am-"
"So you admit you're upset about the substitute job being over!" At the amused look, Danny whined as dramatically as he could, wrapping himself around the other's arm. "Andy! I'm being serious, here!"
"Of course you are, since dramatics and seriousness goes hand-in-hand with one such as yourself." Another whine. "Aw, are you going to miss me that much, mon cher?"
"Oh, shut up, nerd. I just…" Words trailing off, Danny sighed, shoulders dropping. "I guess it was nice seeing you so happy and doing what you love, and what you always wanted to do. It was just… It was nice." Blinking at the hug he was pulled into, he curiously looked up at his mate.
"I am happy I was able to teach like this for the past few weeks, and it was nice, but I'll be happy just the same even if I don't teach again. You know why?" A small shrug. "Because I have you, and that's worth more to me than anything else."
"See. This. Right there. This is why I say I'm second best at sap. Cause of moments like these, and comments like those! That- That has to be cheating! I accuse you of cheating with that-" The rest of his rant was cut off by a sweet kiss, Danny rolling his eyes and returning it, hands wrapping around the other's shirt and pulling him closer. "You are utterly and completely ridiculous."
"So says the one who still screams 'going ghost'-"
"Rude!"
::
"Danny, seriously, you gotta stop this thing where you block the doorway," Sam sighed, pushing her friend the rest of the way inside Creative Writing. Pausing at seeing just who was behind the desk, she slowly shook her head. "Every damn day with you two."
Other students slowly trickled in and settled down, the warning bell ringing before someone was brave enough to ask the question they were all thinking. "Mr. Riter? What are- I mean...are you subbing this class, too?"
"Apparently, I am," Andrew sighed, looking exhausted and worn as he sorted through the papers left behind on the desk that looked like an utter wreck. "During your typical lunch hour the previous teacher for this class was found by authority figures. They seemed to have had a warrant for his arrest that spanned 48 states." A silence settled over the class, Andrew giving another sigh. "My last life seems almost normal compared to this one, sometimes, I swear.
"Anyways, until a new teacher can be found for you, I was sacrificed- Apologies, volunteered by one of the teachers to act as a substitute." Sam was the one to break the silence first, amused smirk on her face as she kicked her feet up on the desk.
"Let me guess, you couldn't escape?" Beside her, Danny was giving a brilliant smile, and looking overjoyed.
"I had almost made it out the door when I was caught." Half the papers that had been sorted through went into the trash bin, Andrew looking uncaring of the two binders that followed. "This class is a mess I intend to fix. Now, any other questions of shock or surprise?"
"Are you, um, qualified to even teach this class?"
"Ask my degree and multiple best selling novels," Andrew snorted, rolling the chair over to the board to grab one of the markers before rolling back to the desk, three folders being tossed into the trash. "I'm sure at least one of those can vouch for my competence."
"You have published books? Like what?" Andrew paused at that, mentally going through the books he had written.
"Let's see… There's Star Gazers, A Thousand Steps, Dirty Paws, The Soundless Clock-"
"Wait. The Soundless Clock- You mean that book Fenton hasn't shut up about since middle school?" At the shocked question, Andrew paused before shooting a happy smile over to Danny, who had groaned and was sinking down into his seat, hood pulled over his head. "You wrote that?"
"Yes, I have multiple pen names. Feel free to guess them, if you wish," Andrew grinned, wicked tinge to the smile. "I'm curious to see how many you connect together. Now, your last assignment in this class was utterly terrible, and I feel no regret in saying I hope that teacher is caught and prosecuted. Honestly, who gives lessons like these…"
Pausing to flick on the computer, he raised an eyebrow at the way it whined loudly before freezing on the load up screen. Sighing, and unplugging it from the wall, he pushed open a window next to the desk, shoving the computer and all out.
The class was silent for a long moment, someone finally speaking up very hesitantly, "Mr- Uh, Mr. Riter- Was that a good idea?"
"There's a dumpster below us and I am in no mood to deal with computers from the 80s again. Living through it once was enough of a pain." A few students shared looks at that. There was another clue that their teacher had been alive in the 80s, at least, so that definitely put him at around parent age. "Now, let's teach you lessons you'll actually want to know when it comes to Creative Writing. Luckily, the last four weeks of lessons I taught in English can also tie into this class. Wonderful, no?"
Flipping the marker, Andrew gave the class another grin. "Now, open your notebooks. I'm not letting any of you leave this class until you actually learn something."
::
"You're telling me the second you opened the door, they approached you with another job offer? One that might last months?" At the nod, Randy's smile was much wider than it should have been. "That was the best plan I have ever had in my afterlife."
"Considering most of your plans consist of you angering others and ending up lost in a sewer system somewhere? I would have to agree," Andrew hummed, absently marking things down on the planner in his lap. It was a bit of a challenge, since Danny was leaning against him, and sound asleep. His reading glasses were still on his face, as well, and the book he had been reading open in his lap.
"Fair point, I guess. Okay, but, how did petit mec take the news? Happy you get to stay, or panicked at the possibility of being discovered and so on and so on." Seeing the small smile on his brother's face, Randy raised an eyebrow. "There were sappy domestic words spoken, weren't there?"
"He was upset the job was over, because he was worried I wouldn't seem as happy. He said he found it was nice that I was able to do what I had wanted and studied for."
"Like I said," Randy snorted, standing up to rustle around for a blanket. "Sappy domestic things. Any idea how long it's going to take them to find a new teacher?" Finding a warm blue blanket stashed behind a shelf, he gave it a quick tug, catching the three books that came tumbling with it. He had learned long ago to make sure no books were harmed in Vidya due to his actions.
"Not too long, I suppose… They're a rather small district, and teaching jobs can't be easy to come by in today's economy," Andrew explained, smiling in thanks as Randy threw the blanket over Danny, putting away the teen's reading glasses and book as well. "It'll most likely be only a few more weeks I'm there."
"You're really enjoying yourself, huh?" At his brother's look, Randy grinned. "Nothing, just… He sort of has a point. You are happier like this, whether you want to admit it or not."
"Yes, well… It's only for a bit longer."
