Okay, so I've got a funny feeling that I shouldn't post this yet cause there's something wrong with it. The problem is that I can't figure out what said mystery problem is, if there even is one. But I've kept you all waiting long enough and I'm tired of re-reading this 20 ba-jillion times so...here ya' go.
But if I go back and edit this later, don't say I didn't warn you. Maybe I'm just paranoid...
Danny PoV
Someone was blowing on my face and it was starting to get annoying.
A body that was quickly becoming very familiar was holding me gently. I could feel the lazy heat of the sun on my skin. Vlad's nude, warm body was flush against my own, the comfortable warmth contrasting sharply with the light stream of cold air hitting my forehead.
I groan sleepily, clutching Vlad tighter and burying my face farther into his chest. A chuckle came from somewhere. After a second or two the cold air came back and I pulled my head back groggily, cracking my bleary eyes open with an annoyed frown on my face.
Through the haze of sleep I saw Vlad's ethereal face, shining in the sunlight, loose silver hair glowing. I smiled stupidly, thinking of how perfect he was. Then his ethereal face blew into mine and realization clicked. Oh...that was Vlad. Duh.
"It's almost noon again." he grinned, looking proud. His smooth voice turned teasing, "We even went to bed early."
I grumbled incoherent things, struggling to keep the smile off my face as I remembered last night. Vlad smirked, running a hand through my hair affectionately. Just because we went to bed early doesn't mean we went to sleep early.
I gave up trying not to smile and let the lazy grin spread, using Vlad's shoulder and pulling myself up to kiss him. He responded immediately, cupping my neck and leaning me over. Strands of silver tickled my face as his strong hands stroked my neck. I smiled into the kiss, never wanting to leave.
"We do have to eat eventually, Danny." he said quietly, his breath a whisper from mine.
"No we don't." I kissed him again and he held me tighter. I believe it was several days later when we resurfaced.
"Danny." He whispered playfully, looking at though he enjoyed saying my name.
"Do we have to?" I whined, wanting him to kiss me again.
"Yes, we have to." his replied patiently.
"Fine." I sighed theatrically, rolling over in a languid fashion and pulling myself from the bed unwillingly.
My sluggish muscles were stiff, most likely from all the training yesterday. The sun warmed my bare form as I stretched high to the sky, looking out into the bright blue atmosphere beyond the window. Another great day.
I smiled contentedly, hands on my hips as I imagined spending time in the perfect weather, with Vlad of course. Speaking of which...
I turned around slightly, looking over my shoulder. The lazy hypocrite was still in bed, although instead of sleeping he was giving my body a rather hungry look. I smirked, feeling my ego rise a few notches. The fact that I could get that look from the Vlad Masters? Awesome.
"Well come on lazy, I thought we had to get up." I smirked arrogantly at him.
Vlad rolled his eyes and finally got out of bed. It's funny how quickly the tables were turned and suddenly I was the one staring hungrily. Our shower together was finished in record time and soon I was rummaging through my dresser for clothes.
When I had bought myself a new wardrobe with Sam and Tucker, I'd stuck it all in one of Vlad's empty dressers. He's insanely excessive and has a walk in closet full of enough clothing to cover every child in Africa, so he doesn't use them. After pulling on boxers, jeans, and a random T-shirt, I ran a brush through my messy hair and turned to Vlad.
At the sight of his attire my jaw stopped working and fell open in a gape. He was wearing jeans. I didn't even know he owned jeans. He had his usual white, button up blouse-thing, but that didn't matter cause he was wearing blue jeans.
"What?" Vlad raised an eyebrow, but I was still in shock.
"Uhhh..."
He turned and faced me, raising an eyebrow as he pulled his hair into a pony tail and finished buttoning up his blouse. It didn't take him long to figure out the reason for my staring.
"They're just blue jeans, Danny."
"You probably haven't worn blue jeans in twenty years." I finally closed my mouth and gave him a look.
Vlad waved the comment away and walked over to me, taking me by the hand and leading me out the door. I took his silence as confirmation.
We ate in the outside kitchen this time, the warm sun and gentle breeze brushing past us. It was a bright spring morning and the vibrant flowers that surrounded the patio were in full bloom, their delicate fragrance reaching my nose.
Vlad made a late breakfast of omelets, full of sausage, bacon, peppers, and cheese. I tried to make one myself, but that was just an embarrassing failure. The egg wouldn't flip. Vlad laughed.
We spent a good hour or so talking about nothing and everything, the conversation light and pleasant. We got back on the topic of childhood and Vlad had fun worming out the fact that I've never kissed a girl. I argued that me and Sam had had plenty of fake-out make-outs, but he stubbornly argued that those didn't count. I think he was just jealous.
Eventually we cleaned up and stood together in the warm breeze, neither of us wanting to go inside. Vlad proposed a walk and I shrugged in agreement, following him as he lead the way to the forest surrounding us. There was already a beaten trail that was wide enough for three people easily and it stretched deep, winding around trees and through bridges over pristine creeks.
"Did you make this trail?" I asked, ducking under a low hanging branch.
"Me? No. People I hired? Yes. I came out here and laid out where I wanted the trail to go and they made it. This particular one stretches on for about twenty miles and comes back to the other side of the castle?"
"Twenty miles!?" I gaped.
"Mmhm. We probably won't walk the whole thing of course, but it's the best and most scenic trail I have."
"There's more than one?"
"Oh yes. The rest are much shorter, between three and five miles, but they're still trails all the same."
"Why do you have these trails? Do you even use them?" the man already had tons of things in his castle he didn't touch, so why would he take the time to lay out a twenty mile trail if he wasn't planing on using it?
"Actually," we came to a tree that had fallen elegantly over the path and Vlad dunked under one of it's massive branches. "I use these trail quite often, at least once a week."
"You do?" my voice tinged with disbelief. I jumped over the large trunk of the tree and met Vlad on the other side. We continued walking; the castle had disappeared behind us.
"My mother was a pagan Danny, naturally, I have a slight disposition for nature. It's very calming." he explained.
"So is beating the crap out of the Box Ghost." I threw in.
"Indeed." Vlad agreed with a chuckle.
We walked along in silence. The path we were taking twisted up and around a massive tree, spilling out below us as the forest opened up. I followed Vlad, his feet carrying him on autopilot as he continued to lead me through the sunlit forest. Everything was teeming with life here, right down to the little ants that crawled across the rocks.
"Hey Vlad?"
"Hmm?"
"Where do you think we go when we die?" Kind of a morbid question for a nice stroll through the woods, but when your half ghost, nothing is really that morbid to you anymore.
"By 'we' do you mean normal humans or 'we' as in us?" Vlad asked without hesitation, not finding the question odd in the slightest.
"I dunno. Both I guess." I shrugged.
Vlad was quiet, pondering.
"There are so many possibilities." he muttered quietly, obviously to himself.
"What do you mean?" I couldn't help but ask.
He glanced down at me and back to the path.
"Well, for us, we might be doomed to an eternity in the Ghost Zone, seeing as half of us is already dead and still lingering as our ghost halves, like a restless spirit. On the other hand, perhaps we will move on like any other person and only our ghost halves will remain. Fenton and Masters may move on, but will Phantom and Plasmius be left behind as an echo? Or maybe we'll move on like everybody else and there won't be anything different, assuming of course people don't just cease to exist after death."
"Do you think people cease to exist after they die?" It sounded like a really depressing outlook in my opinion.
"I used to. I used to think that no existence would be better than my current existence, and in some twisted way I looked forward to death." Whoa, whoa, whoa. Was Vlad admitting that he used to be suicidal?
"So I had no problem doing whatever I wanted with my ghost powers and shamelessly enjoyed my selfish indulgences." He grinned down at me.
Never mind. Definitely not suicidal.
"Basically, since you didn't believe you had anything to own up to after death, you could do whatever the hell you wanted to on Earth?"
"Basically."
"But what about the people you had to own up to?"
"In that past twenty years, there has only been one person I've needed to own up to, and it has been very recent."
"Who?"
"You, genius." Vlad gave me a look. Duh.
I smiled, a little more bounce in my step. I was Vlad's conscious. Cool. He laughed a bit and shook his head, a hand resting comfortably on my shoulder.
"What about you?" he asked after a while of quiet thinking.
I shrugged.
"I always thought we'd have the choice to move on or not when we die. Does being half ghost make us so different that we won't get a choice?"
"That depends if humanity itself gets a choice. According to some religions, once you move on you've got two options: up or down, and usually you don't exactly get to choose on judgment day."
"Wow. That's happy." I said, deadpanned.
Vlad shrugged.
"It works for most people."
"What is 'moving on' anyways. Where do you actually go?" I scrunched up my face, going deeper and deeper into the unknown.
"That opens up so many ridiculous possibilities I can't even imagine discussing them all." Vlad scoffed.
"Well, what do you believe then?" I was curious.
"Personally, reincarnation makes much more sense to me, although that may be my mother coming out of me. I don't understand how others can live their lives as a test, hoping they'll make it to heaven instead of spending an eternity in hell. Frankly I just wouldn't want to deal with that stress. Besides," He casually threw an arm over my shoulder, a smile on his face as he held me close, "As my mother use to say, the Earth is a beautiful place. As for me, I wouldn't mind coming back and sharing it with you over and over again."
"Aww, that has to be the gushiest thing you've ever said." I smiled, giving him a quick hug while walking.
"Probably." he muttered darkly, looking slightly disgusted with himself.
"What do you think lies beyond death, Danny?" he asked.
"I think I have no idea." Vlad laughed at my answer, but there was no way I could possibly fathom what 'moving on' means. I don't really believe in anything anyways, so I don't exactly have anyone telling me what happens. I kind of like it that way though. I like surprises. That and I'm fifteen, so I don't really care.
"You don't have a set faith?" Vlad asked.
"Nope. My parents are your stereotypical scientists. Never took me and Jazz to church or anything. I don't really mind though. I like sleeping in on Sundays." I smiled, "All those religions sound too sci-fi for me anyways."
"Says the half ghost teenager." Vlad smirked, but curiously, it slowly fell, "We'll probably never know what truly lies beyond the Ghost zone until we experience it ourselves, but that won't happen for a long long long time."
There was something in his voice as he said that last sentence. It held a kind of sad, endless weight to it, but I didn't know what to make of it. And why did Vlad say so many "long"'s? Before I could ask him about it, he seemed to realize what he just said and quickly moved on. Suspicious.
"I suppose it doesn't really matter. Most people need a higher entity to believe in and I don't care if they keep their delusions as long as they leave me out of it. Whether you and I move on to heaven, hell, or the next life, it doesn't really matter. We can't stop it."
"Yep." I replied lightly, looking back out to the forest surrounding me.
"Hey, did you know that Sam is Jewish?" The sudden thought came to me and jumped out of my mouth.
"Daniel, why on earth would I know-or care-about that?"
"I dunno. You've always had a knack with knowing everything about me so I figured you probably knew all about my friends too."
"Not quite, dear boy. You're the only one I spend my valuable time on."
"You mean stalk."
He ruffled my hair and smirked, but didn't deny it. I laughed. The sunlight poured around us as it slipped out between the green leaves high above. We came to a large creek and a bridge. The bridge was a group of fallen trees tied together. We crossed it swiftly and moved on, the trees thinning and more grass popping up on the earth floor.
We didn't say very much anymore but it was okay. Vlad suddenly veered off the beaten path and lead me down a smaller trail; I willingly followed him. The foliage was thinning, leaving lonely trees here and there, all of them thick trunked and very old. There wasn't a whole lot of them and as we walked on, it dawned on me that the forest had slowly turned into a field of soft, fluttering green grass, large trees sporadically growing here and there. Their massive canopies provided the perfect shade, the grass the perfect bed.
"Whoa." I breathed, looking all around me and taking in the beauty of it.
The emerald grass was vibrant against the cool blue sky. Pearl white clouds floated in puffs in the air. The spontaneously placed trees sat on slight hills and dips in the land, their trunks thick and twisted. It looked like something from a picture book.
We walked over to a nearby tree and sat in it's shade, resting. Little flutters of sunlight sneaked it's way through the leaves there and there, reminding me of a disco ball. It was quiet, only the sounds of distant birds and singing winds reaching our ears in the secluded field. Vlad leaned back against the trunk, arm resting on his propped up knee as he looked of into the distance, a content smile on his face.
The scenery was affecting me as well, the surreal feel of it all making this moment dreamlike. It was calm here. There was nothing wrong and nothing but us. Vlad looked over to me and signaled for me to come closer. I happily obliged and settled comfortably in the open space between his legs, resting against his chest. He stroked my hair as we both stared out into the distance, neither of us wanting to break or leave this priceless moment. Everything just felt so...perfect. None of the worlds harshness could reach us here.
We didn't speak because we didn't need to. Somehow, were were in perfect sync with everything we felt. I looked up at him and met his lips, knowing they were going to be there. My hands glided up Vlad's chest as his moved smoothly down my back. I slowly turned around as Vlad laid me in the cool grass below him, our kiss never breaking. Like a dance, we moved fluidly, driven by more than just mere desire.
Vlad was above me, my hands blindly possessing his body. His hair was floating on the warm breeze and my fingers claimed it. I felt the skin of his fingers run up my chest and then back down, something desperate in the touch.
He deepened the kiss, holding me closer to him; my arms were already holding him tight. I felt his wet tongue slip into my mouth and I returned the gesture. There was a certain vulnerably between us here, I felt completely exposed before him. It was different than usual, trust had to be present, and it was, unbound and flowing.
I'm not sure when my shirt came off or when I unbuttoned his, but somehow it got that way and I was trailing light kissed up his chest, soon pressing my lips against his neck. Vlad moaned, holding my head with one hand and the small of my back with another. Then he was leaning back against the tree again and I was straddling his hips, my lips moving against his, my hands still possessing.
The kiss melted, Vlad moved down my jaw line and past my neck, kissing my chest sporadically as he leaned me back. His lips came back up, moving over my ear. I was clay in his hands, willing to do anything he wanted. His hot breath sent shivers of pleasure down my spine, his words doing worlds more.
"I love you, Danny." he whispered, nuzzling my hair.
I love you. I've always been taught that those are the three most intimate words that can be said to a person, and Vlad's said them to me twice now. Unfortunately, I wasn't good with words at times like these, even simple ones. The most I knew how to do was howl in pleasure. But I needed to tell him, to let him know.
He pulled me in for another kiss, his hands moving like water over the bare skin of my back. I clutched his loose blouse, deepening the kiss myself. His hands molded my chest flush against his, heat spreading between us. I broke the contact of our lips, moved my fingers through his hair and whispered,
"I love you, Vlad."
A wall that I didn't even know was between us fell away. With my proclamation, there was nothing between us anymore. In that moment we'd never been so open and vulnerable, and I loved it.
Vlad immediately pulled me into a very passionate kiss. The sun was high in the sky above us and the world moved on, but we stayed in our timeless, perfect, surreal bubble, reveling in the moment as everything was truly unbound.
XxX
Sweat poured down my bare back, my muscles were aching. My breathe was heavy, the soft mat under me provided no distraction. Vlad eyes bore into mine, his breathing labored as well. This momentary rest was nothing. I was sure, in seconds, we'd be back at it again.
Yep, we were training.
It had been several hours and one late lunch since our time spent beneath the tree. We were sparring again, as we had been for the past hour. Vlad wasn't as tired as I was, and the previous days work out was finally catching up to me. My limbs felt like total led.
A flash of intuition charged through me and I raised my arm in defense automatically, barely blocking Vlad's lighting attack. He smiled proudly.
"Your getting faster." he said, his voice steady.
But two seconds later he managed to flip me around and I was on my back, staring at his gloved fist.
"But your also getting very tired." He stood straight, turning around and removing his gloves.
"Hey, I can still fight!" I argued, forcing my dead legs up.
"I have no doubt of that Danny. You can make yourself do anything if you have enough will, but seeing as there no need to fight and the only result of continued sparring would be a torn muscle, I suggest we finish." he replied smartly, jumping over the boxing ring and leaning against a pole leisurely.
I huffed but saw the logic in his words, regretfully removing my own gloves and walking right through the ring, too tired to jump it. Vlad watched me, unexpectedly throwing a full bottle of water at my head. I caught it instinctively, not even looking at it. I'd been hit in the head one too many times to fall for that one ever again. He smiled, pleased, and headed for the door. I dragged myself after him, feeling heavier than ever.
"Ugh. I'm so tired." I gasped after downing half the water.
"And you wanted to keep sparring." Vlad muttered, shaking his head.
"I totally could have kept it up." I mumbled back.
"Yes, I know, but as I said before, the only result would be injury."
"But it'll heal by morning." I argued.
"You need to know your limits, Daniel." Vlad pulled his hair out of the pony tail and ran his fingers through it to get the tangles out. I watched, a random thought coming to me.
"How long did it take you to grow your hair that long?"
"About three years for the even length." Vlad took the random question in stride, pulling the silvery strands back and binding them again, breathing deeply and exhaling his fatigue away.
I yawned, trying to hide it and failing.
"I can't believe your this tired. You sleep more than a bear during hibernation." He lead the way to his room and I automatically followed, not even thinking about it.
I shrugged, hoping the nice shower would loosen up my stiff muscles.
"I probably shouldn't have been so insistent on practicing for four hours straight yesterday." I winced. "I'm finally starting to feel it."
Vlad laughed and we phased through the bedroom door, his elegant quarters laid out in front of us as if in waiting. He opened his windows and the French doors, letting the warm air float in and out. Another cool shower later and the setting sun was casting fiery rays across the furniture. I pulled on some comfortable pajamas and Vlad returned to those stupid dress pants.
"What day is it?" I asked, suddenly realizing that I had no clue.
"Wednesday." he answered lightly.
It bummed me out a bit that there were only two days till I had to leave, but remembering my waiting family uplifted my spirits.
"What are we going to tell them?" Vlad didn't have to ask who I talking about.
"I figured we'd just tell them it was a ghost. That wouldn't raise too many questions. We'll say I found you wandering through the woods and that you can't remember what happened."
"Convenient." I replied flatly, knowing the story was lame but not really caring. "My mom won't bite as fast as my dad will." I warned.
"What's she going to do? Call me a liar? I think, after missing you for two weeks, she'd take just about any answer from anyone, as long as you're safe."
"True." I agreed, hiding my guilt.
But Vlad, ever the master at reading emotions, held a softer look in his eye. He placed his hands square on my shoulders and kissed my forehead, giving me a reassuring smile before walking over to the couch. I watched him walk away, aware of the smile on my face and the warm glow in my heart. I followed after him.
"I suppose you don't mind if I play a bit?" He looked over his shoulder, picking up one of the violin cases.
"Not at all." I plopped down on the couch, waiting. I loved hearing him play.
Vlad set the hard case on one end of the couch and pulled out the same, dark wooded instrument, dragging the bow across the strings lightly. I listened as the sounds danced on the air, a smile slipping onto my face. He dove right into an energetic little tune, his fingers moving fluidly over the neck of the instrument, never breaking pace. I watched, amazed as always.
How long had it taken him to learn that? Years? Months? His hand seemed to have a mind of it's own, as if he'd been doing this all his life. It would probably take me years to learn the violin, much longer than I had in my life time.
The notes turned slow and long in the middle of the fast melody, infinitely stretching across time and space. It was one immortal line of music, sounding oddly melancholy and yet happy at once. I paused in my musings, listening to the important sounds until it finally changed, and my thoughts resumed.
Vlad was staring into the fireplace, not even concentrating on his jumping fingers, his mind else where too. I watched him, thinking. A year ago we were at each others throats, and now look at us. Well, I guess we still kinda are, just in a whole different way. I smirked to myself.
He stopped the quick warm-up tune and started playing something that sounded familiar, though I couldn't name it. It was something I used to hear when I was younger because Jazz played it all the time before she went to sleep. She always told me it made her smarter. I remember asking if I could listen to it too, but she had told me it didn't work for boys.
I smirked, thinking of the memory. I never understood why she liked it so much. It had always made me sad when I heard it and I used to have the irrational fear that it would somehow take her away in her sleep. Eventually Jazz had stopped listening to it, declaring herself "smart enough." I had been so relieved.
It's funny how I used to be so concerned for her and now it's the other way around. I mean, yeah I still worry about her, especially when she gets caught up in ghost fights, but it's different. Maybe we've both come to watch out for each other.
...I wonder...what she would say about...
I decided I didn't want to find out, instead transferring my thoughts to a more consuming topic to distract myself.
It wasn't difficult to come up with one. Vlad's comments during our walk were plenty enough to keep me thinking for hours. He had brought up several good points that I had never considered. What was going to happen to us after we die? I'd always assumed we'd go with everybody else after death, where ever the heck that was. But what if being half ghost means something different for us? I suppose our ghost halves already come from the Ghost zone, so are we already anchored to the restless world, doomed to wander through it forever? It would be horrible to be stuck in the Ghost zone for all time. I don't think I could handle an eternity of Skulker. Or Spectra. Or Walker. Especially the Box Ghost.
I can only hope that we'll get to move on like everybody else, no strings attached. Unfortunately that seems about as likely as Sam wearing pink. When it comes to ghosts, there's always some weird side effect or something.
I grumbled for a moment or two, blowing a stray hair out of my face. Vlad's playing slowly brought my mellow mood back, chasing away the grumpy thoughts.
Oddly enough, it was the subject of death that swallowed me in a serene state. Maybe it's because I'm fifteen and death is too far away for me to really worry about. All I have are speculations, and that's all I'm going to have for a long time, but it didn't bother me. All my time just left room for more speculations, leaving my hyperactive mind to run free.
I wonder why I didn't get ecto-ache. I didn't even get a single blemish, yet Vlad got an entire face full. Maybe it's because only his face was hit? But my entire body was caught in the blast and nothing bad has happened to me. I guess it was something that went wrong in the initial experiment or something. After all, it wasthe proto-portal. But still, it seems off. Vlad got ecto ache and ghost powers and I...just got ghost powers? That doesn't sound right.
Maybe it's another hidden side effect that will randomly pop up when I least expect it. Like in the middle of dinner. I hated all the side effects of being half ghost when they first started. First there was the month where I couldn't pick anything up. Then my clothes started falling off and I kept sinking through floors. The problems only increased when ghosts started popping up and mom and dad felt the need to ramp up their arsenal. Yes, the initial side effects of being half ghost did suck.
Luckily, this is all pointless speculation. I'm sure, after having my powers for almost a year and a half now, I'm done with the surprises. Except for the after death surprise, but that's a surprise for every one. I just hope nothing different happens to us just because we're half ghost. When your dead, your dead right? Everyone goes to the same place, right? So does it really matter if were already half way there?
A sudden thought occurred to me. A horrible, terrifying thought. I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner. It's so obvious. If we're half ghost, and half our life is gone...then...
"Vlad." He stilled the music in the middle of a measure, looking up to meet my worried face with confusion. "Since we're half ghost, does that mean we're going to die soon?"
I watched him freeze for hardly a second, so fast that I barely caught it. He slowly lowered the delicate instrument, his expression hard to read.
"What makes you think that?" He asked calmly, not answering my question.
"Well, being half ghost means being half dead, right?" I'm such a ray of sunshine. "So, since part of us is already dead, wouldn't that cut our life span short?" I wished it made less sense. I'd never admit it, but the whole concept was starting to scare me. Was I even going to make it to 30?
"You would think so, wouldn't you." He said so very quietly, talking to himself. I furrowed my brow in confusion, but before I could ask him what he meant, he continued on.
"Think of it as..." he was choosing his words carefully. "As though part of us is...frozen. The half dead part isn't necessarily speeding things up, it's more...existing." I had more trouble than usual spotting it, but there was something nervous in his eyes.
"Do you understand?" he asked, his tone ever so slightly colored with apprehension.
He was hiding something from me.
"No." I replied, my suspicion slipping into my once worried tone.
He knew I was on to him. He took a moment to answer, debating what to say. His nervousness became more pronounced when he put the violin back in it's case and brushed invisible dirt from his immaculate shirt, all a temporary distraction.
"We aren't going to die soon." he assured me, and then paused again. "Our ghost halves won't accelerate death for our human halves."
"Why?" I frowned, not understanding.
"It's not very important, the point is-"
"Not important? Of course it's important." My frown deepening. Vlad started getting more agitated.
"It's not the point, Danny. All that matters is that our life span isn't cut short." He was still evading the explanation.
"Your hiding something from me." I stated bluntly, my eyes squinted slightly.
I had expected Vlad to get defensive or angry at my accusation. I didn't quite expect him to agree with me.
"How'd you know?" He asked in honest curiosity, an eye brow raised.
"I know how to read you better than most." I answered, a little smug. Hey, being able to read Vlad Masters is a serious accomplishment.
Vlad scoffed, rolling his eyes.
"Nonsense. If there's one thing I'm good at it's hiding my emotions. I'm simply more lax around you is all."
"Lax like you were about two minuets ago? Cause I gotta say, Vladdie, I could read you like a book." Okay, maybe more like a very fine printed business card, but whatever. "Now stop changing the subject. What are you hiding."
Vlad stared at me with a sort of defeated expression, sighing heavily. I waited for an answer and eventually he gave in, coming to sit next to me on the couch. The silence between us stretched on, Vlad's demeanor growing more melancholy by the second. I almost regretted asking, but he finally spoke up before I could say anything.
"Danny, have you ever wondered what it means to be half ghost?"
The question seemed kinda odd to me, but I went with it.
"Not really. Why?"
He was quiet again, choosing his words carefully.
"There are...certain side effects that aren't quite as apparent as dropping 32 beakers in one month." the corner of his mouth twitched.
"Hey, how did you know about that?" I furrowed my brows.
The weary look left slightly, only lingering in his eyes as he turned to face me with an amused smirk.
"Stalker, remember?"
"Oh yeah. Creep."
"Love you too, Danny." Vlad half-smiled, his tone playful, but weighted.
I smiled softly back at him, the firelight hiding my light blush as I automatically committed those words to memory. Three times.
The momentarily light air between us faded as he returned to his drawn expression, causing my own smile to slip away too.
"What is it Vlad?" I asked quietly, feeling an odd urge to whisper.
He breathed in slowly and exhaled, shifting and sitting up straighter.
"Being half ghost means being half dead." he stated in a business tone, "This affects every part of our being, right down to the cell count in our body. We have ectoplasm running through our veins just as we have blood cells. Ectoplasm isn't like oxygen carrying blood cells. Ghosts don't have a heart or body that needs oxygen. That's why you don't breathe when you're in your ghost form. Ectoplasm is an ever existing substance that carries energy through the body at a ceaseless rate. It's the ectoplasm that keeps ghosts 'alive' for practically an eternity, if not forever."
I listened intently, my nervous fear beginning to return.
"You were worried that we were going to die sooner because we are half dead, but it's the opposite. Since we have blood cells and ectoplasm in our veins," he hesitated for a moment, but plowed on. "We're going to live for at least a thousand years."
I felt like someone had just punched me in the stomach, sending me spiraling down into a deep, endless pool of impossibility. There was no freak'in way. It was impossible.
"That's-that's crazy. There has to be a mistake." I shook my head, unable to believe it.
Vlad looked at me mournfully and that was all the answer I needed.
"How the heck do you know? Where did that number even come from?" I demanded, hoping my questions would somehow disprove his words.
"It basically comes down to this." he explained. "It takes us twenty years to live 365 days, or one year for a normal person. Calculate that by seventy-five, the average life span, and you get over a thousand. Technically it's around one thousand five hundred." he winced.
It all sounded so practical, so simple. It was one big math problem. Except people don't just croak at seventy-five. Most live far beyond that, which means there's no telling how long we'll live. It's all about the numbers.
"This is impossible." I muttered, my frozen gaze locked into the fire, my body still numb.
Vlad was quite for a moment, until he spoke up with a lighter tone.
"It could be worse." I slowly grated my neck to give him a heavily disbelieving look.
"Initially, you were the one supposed to live for hundreds of years, not me."
I felt my heart start to accelerate, turning to stone. My chest was full of helium, making the room spin. He was lying. He had to be lying.
"Danny, calm down! I was just saying initially! Breathe, Daniel!" He shook my shoulders frantically.
I took a huge gulp of air, not realizing that I had stopped breathing. After several huge gasps I managed to send him a pained glare.
"How the hell was that supposed to cheer me up?" I coughed.
"Well I didn't expect you to take it so harshly. It's not like I was saying you are going to live hundreds of years without me. I said initially." he said, looking relieved that I was breathing again.
"Yeah, well that little word kinda slipped through at the "not me" part." I muttered, annoyed at my panic attack, "I swear if I was stuck living alone that long I'd go crazy." My heart rate was slowly decreasing, my tense body relaxing.
"Imagine actually thinking you were going to live hundreds of years alone for twenty years." Vlad said bitterly, causing me to still.
Oh. Ouch.
My pained empathy must have shown on my face, because Vlad smiled softly, the momentary dark cloud in his eye dissipating. We were quiet for a moment, giving me time to soak up the enormity of the situation. I was still so unreal to me.
"I don't understand." I began slowly, "Why was I supposed to live that long and not you?"
He looked thoughtful for a moment.
"I'm not entirely sure, but I believe it has something to do with the amount of ectoplasm soaked up during our separate blasts. I was only hit in the face, receiving a smaller amount. You, on the other hand, were entirely consumed from within the portal, attracting much more ectoplasm into your body than I. I believe that explains why I only contracted ecto-acne, while you received a significantly longer life span."
"But...you have a significantly longer life span too, right?" I asked, clarifying.
"Yes, but that's not because of the accident. You see, when I first received my powers I spent ages studying them, and when I learned that ectoplasm cycles energy, I decided to test it out on myself to see if I could extend my life."
"Are you crazy?" My jaw dropped, "You didn't even know if it would extend your life? You could have killed yourself!"
Vlad shrugged.
"Perhaps." A mischievous grin wormed it's way on his face. "But I did just the opposite."
"You really are a fruitloop."
"I take chances I deem worth taking, and at the time, an extended life was worth it."
"Why?" I frowned.
Vlad shrugged again.
"I figured the longer life I had, the longer I could rule the world." he said, nonchalant.
I stared at him.
"Why do I even talk to you." I muttered, shaking my head.
"You do a lot more than 'talk', Danny." Vlad grinned, tousling my hair till I swatted his hand away.
"Yeah yeah, so how do you know it takes twenty years for us to live one normal year?" I asked, getting back on topic.
"Mathematics, my dear boy. Once I find the amount of ectoplasm per cubic centimeter in the blood stream, I can multiply that by-"
"Never mind. I don't wanna hear it." I interrupted him loudly. I hate math.
Vlad smirked, waiting for more questions.
"So, I'm guessing you injected yourself with ectoplasm-"
"Concentrated ectoplasm."
"Is there a difference?"
"Definitely. If I had injected myself with the normal ectoplasm from our ectoplasmic rays, for example, I would have killed myself." he informed.
"Oh. Well it's a good thing you didn't."
"Indeed." he agreed solemnly.
"So you extended your life by injecting concentrated ectoplasm into your blood stream, and miraculously, it's the same amount as mine? Wait, how do you even know how much ectoplasm I have per cubic-whatever in me?" I raised an eyebrow.
"I picked up some blood during one of our many fights." he said shamelessly, "And no, we don't exactly have the same amount of ectoplasm per cubic centimeter, but it's so close it has the same effect."
I nodded, not knowing what else to say. What do you say after learning your going to outlive your friends and family by hundreds of years? I guess the only reason I wasn't going insane was because at least I wouldn't be alone. But still...
"This kinda sucks." I managed to croak out.
Vlad smiled softly in understanding.
"Your right though." I looked up at him, "It could be worse. At least I'll always have you."
Vlad nodded, pulling me closer and leaning back into the couch. We sat in silence for a while. Vlad seemed relieved about something, probably that I finally knew about the whole longer life deal. He was smiling contentedly, stroking my hair at a steady pace.
"You know, we're actually only ten years apart." He said off handedly.
"What? How the heck does that one work out. Wait a minute, how old are you?" I looked up at him. Vlad gave me an impish smile.
"Well technically I'm 24..."
"No way." I grinned in half-disbelief, although it would explain a lot. No forty year old could have that kind of body.
"I am. The accident happened during my senior year of college, when I was 21. Then I spent three years studying my condition, and finally, at 24, I preformed the injection. Actually, I suppose I should be turning 25 hear soon."
"Aw man. That means I'm still fourteen." I sighed, bummed. I was gonna be 14 for the next 19 years. How messed up was that?
"Uh Vlad? What are we gonna tell my parents when I still look like a 14 year old in twenty years?"
"That, my boy, is up to you. Although I'm pretty sure keeping your secret will be rather difficult if you wish to stick to the truth."
"Crap." I smacked my hands over my eyes, dragging them down my face. I can just see the ecto-guns pointed at my head.
"Relax Danny. You don't really think they would hurt you, do you?"
"Maybe. I dunno. I'm an anomaly to their entire life's work. I'm afraid they'll forget that I'm also their son." I sighed forlornly.
"Nonsense. If I know your parents like I think I do, you'll be fine. Besides, I'd never let them hurt you." He assured me, kissing the crown of my head.
I gave a small smile and snuggled closer to Vlad's chest, thinking of all the things I'd have to deal with in years to come. Dash will never stop picking on me. I'll be puny till way past high school. I wonder if I'll be able to drive? Good thing I can fly. Ugh, no one is going to take me seriously till I look older, and that's not gonna happen for years. It's a good thing Sam's stopped growing. Tucker would never let me live it down if she got taller than me.
"Your taking this better than I thought you would." Vlad said quietly from above.
"I don't think it's completely sunk in yet." I shrugged.
"I don't think all the implications have quite sunk in yet." Vlad muttered.
"What'd you mean?"
"I'll know you've figured it out when you start hyperventilating." He said lightly, causing my brows to furrow in confusion. What was he talking about.
I shrugged again and snuggled closer to him, deciding not to worry about it for now. Vlad's lithe fingers were trailing over my hip, his thumb brushing the skin under my t-shirt. I casually threw one of my arms across his lap, a content smile humming on my lips. The good thing about living for so long was that I'd get to relax like this for years and years, and Vlad would be right there with me. Although it's gonna take years for me to get taller than Vlad, assuming I ever will. Bummer.
Wait a sec-
"I'm gonna go through puberty for 60 years!"
Vlad burst into laughter.
"Took you long enough!"
"This is so not funny!" I glowered, crossing my arms and turning to face him.
Vlad continued to laugh, clutching his stomach weakly.
"I cannot tell you how much I don't envy you." He grinned with mirth, wiping a fake tear away.
"Vlad, you're a jerk."
"Why are you blaming me? It's not my fault your voice will be cracking for the next 60 odd years. Technically, your father-"
"Don't even go there." I glared. Vlad smirked, but said no more, leaning back into the couch with a smile still on his face.
I continued to glower at the universe, pouting for all I was worth. This was so not fair. Stupid portal.
"Oh Daniel, stop moping. It could be worse. It could be eighty years." There was a laugh in his voice.
"Yeah Vlad, you're right, it could be eighty years!" I yelled. The fire was alight only by the intensity of my glare.
I felt a pair of hands wrap around my hips and pull me back, nestling them between the couch and Vlad. I was still pouting, my arms firmly crossed. Vlad hugged me closer, grinning as he planted a kiss on my protruding lip.
"You're so cute when your angry."
"So I've heard." I replied dryly.
Vlad leaned back into the couch and it wasn't long before I was leaning against him once more. I sighed dramatically, my arms finally unwinding and hanging limp.
"What a bummer." I grumbled.
"For you."
"Shut it."
I wasn't really angry though. Well, yeah, I was kinda annoyed about the whole puberty thing, but I couldn't stay mad in Vlad's presence for very long. I eventually got tired of keeping the whole act up and went back to snuggling to his chest, feeling the soft fabrics rub against my face. Vlad returned to stroking my hair, watching the dying embers.
It...it was painful to know that I'd live on to see my friends and family pass away. I've never experienced that sort of pain, and I don't think I could deal with it on my own. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have Vlad for the years to come.
"So what time am I leaving on Friday?" I asked, the thoughts of my family making me miss them more.
"I believe the best plan would be morning, or by how we've been waking up, noon. We shouldn't keep your family waiting."
"Vlad Masters, I think that is the most selfless thing you've ever said."
"I mean for you boy, not them. Personally, I'd prefer it if you never went home, but that wouldn't be in your best interest."
"Figures." I smirked.
Vlad didn't reply, but I looked up at him and he was smiling down at me, his blue eyes glinting in the meager light. I breathed deeply, returning my gaze to the red rocks buried under ash. My thoughts strayed to my family, mostly to my parents crying in the living room. It was better to leave early on Friday. Sam, Tucker, and Jazz will be happy.
"Hey, what time is it?"
Vlad glanced at his wrist watch.
"About 7 o'clock. Do you have to?" he asked reluctantly, already knowing why I was asking.
"Yes Vlad, I have to. And I gotta actually talk to them tonight, not blow them off for a hot billionaire. That makes me a bad friend."
"Only if they know." He grinned cattily, holding me a little tighter.
I rolled my eyes.
"We need to work on your morals Vlad." I mumbled, forcing myself up.
"Nonsense, we simply need to adjust yours." He stood, stretching his arms.
I called up my ghost form and all its ectoplasmic goodness, floating on the air and letting my spectral tail loose as usual. Vlad smirked smartly at me, transformed into Plasmius, and sunk through the floor. I dove after him, twisting through halls and flying through floors till I finally came back to the same computer room from last night.
"For a moment there I thought you got lost." Vlad quipped.
"Your mansion is ridiculously huge, you should be surprised I didn't discover Atlantis."
I floated over to the computer and fell into the chair, transforming as I did so.
"I suppose you don't need me to talk with your friends. I have the distinct feeling their uncomfortable with my presence." He said sarcastically from above me.
"Yeah, I get a similar feeling."
Vlad smiled, bringing his face closer to mine.
"Don't stay up too late." he warned.
"Are you going to drag be back to bed if I do?"
"Perhaps." he grinned mysteriously, kissing me good night.
When I opened my eyes he was gone, and it didn't take long for me to feel very lonely. The silence around me was compressing, broken only by the hum of the computer monitor. I quickly dragged open the web cam box, hoping the sight of my friends would chase away the emptiness.
It wasn't long before I had three familiar faces staring back at me.
"Danny!" they all grinned.
"Hi guys." I smiled.
"Good to see you again little bro." Jazz smiled.
"Where's Vlad?" Sam frowned.
"Upstairs. He figured you guys didn't like his presence too much."
"Maybe he's a genius after all." she muttered.
"So hows it go'in, dude?" Tucker piped in.
I shrugged.
"It's fine. Nothing too exciting."
"You're coming home Friday, right?" asked Jazz.
"Yep. Probably around noon."
"You better."
They were watching me with relief clear on their faces and it was starting to make me a little uncomfortable. That fact that I was worrying them was bad enough. Did they honestly think Vlad would hurt me? Well, I guess from their perspective, yes. Sam interrupted my thoughts.
"So, what'd you do today, Danny?" she asked.
"Not much. It was kind of a slow day. More training, went for a walk, not much."
"You went on a walk with Vlad?" Tucker asked in disbelief.
"Yup." I said shamelessly. There was nothing suspicious about a walk.
"Uh-huh. So how goes the make-Vlad-a-better-person-plan?" Sam asked, sounding unhopeful.
"Great. He's not so much of a fruitloop anymore. He even promised not to try and kill dad." I smiled.
"Really?" Jazz looked surprised.
"I guess that's a step." Sam said flatly.
"Unless he's lying." Tucker threw in.
"What happened with you all today?" I quickly asked, deterring them from expanding on Tuckers comment.
"School, Homework-you're gonna have a ton of makeup work when you get back by the way-the usual." Tucker replied.
"What! But I've been kidnapped! No way Lancer's gonna pile it on after that. I've gone through a traumatic experience!" I grinned.
"Oh yeah, so traumatic you wanted to go back for more." Sam rolled her eyes, but he bitterness in her voice was palpable.
I didn't know what to say to that, so I said nothing, feeling a little uncomfortable again.
"So why'd you really pick Vlad over your friends and family, Danny?" she asked suddenly, her voice sharp.
I winced inwardly, feeling low and wishing she wouldn't do this. She wouldn't understand.
"Sam." Tucker breathed, a little surprised by her tone.
Hard headed and stubborn as ever, she said nothing, continuing to glare at me. She's never glared at me like this before. I squirmed in my seat, wishing Vlad was behind me.
"Sam it's not like that." I started.
"Yes it is. Everyone is worried sick about you. Your parents are going crazy. Even Dash is a little depressed."
"Only cause his favorite punching bag is gone." I mumbled. She ignored me.
"Come on Danny, Vlad's not worth it."
I felt a swirl of anger at her words and barely restrained it. What did she know?
"Yes he is." I said icily, feeling my eyes glare neon green.
Sam looked as though she'd been smacked. Tucker and Jazz mirrored her surprised expression, blinking wide eyes. I realized my mistake and quickly felt my flare of anger extinguish. Jazz was giving me a funny look again.
"Sorry." I mumbled, ashamed.
They slowly came down from the high of surprise, resettling back into their usual cautious selves, although a slightly wary look still lingered in their eyes.
"Vlad really isn't all bad you know." I wanted them to understand this, but I wasn't sure if there was much hope.
"Danny, all he's done-"
"Yeah, I know. He's a fruitloop. Believe me, I remind him on a regular basis, and I'm not saying all of his nutty schemes in the past were okay. But people can change and Vlad is a person, contrary to popular belief."
Sam and Tucker exchanged a glance from behind Jazz's back, still looking unsure. Jazz was trying to hid her worry. I got the feeling I was dooming myself to brainwashed in their eyes.
"He's teaching me stuff about my ghost powers."
"Yeah, I know. Training." Sam pursed her lips.
"Not only that, but other things. Things you wouldn't believe." I ignored Sam's tone.
"What'd you mean?" Tucker asked curiously.
"Okay, this is gonna sound crazy, but you know how my blood is a weird, greenish-red?"
Tucker and Sam nodded apprehensively. Jazz looked confused.
"In both your human and ghost form?"
"No, in my ghost form it's just green, but in my human form it's a mixture."
"A mixture of what?" She asked.
"Ectoplasm."
The looked at me blankly.
"Right. Ectoplasm is what keeps a ghost alive for almost an eternity, if not, an eternity. It like, cycles energy or something." I added flippantly.
A look of growing horror was passing over Jazz's face. It was easy for her to put two and two together.
"Danny," she breathed, "Are you saying..."
"Kinda. I'm not gonna live forever or anything, just for a really really long time."
Their jaws hit the floor, an odd squawk of disbelief emitting from Tuckers throat.
"No way." Sam shook her head.
"How...how long in a really really long time?" Jazz asked, her voice shaking.
"Over a thousand." I winced.
"WHAT!"
"Danny, this is crazy, it can't be true."
"Come on dude. Seriously?"
"Who told you this? Wait, it was Vlad, wasn't it? He's got to be lying."
"This is just too crazy."
"Guys!" I yelled, bringing them back to earth.
They settled down, all three of them looking at me with heavy disbelief in their eyes, refusing to accept it.
"I'm not kidding." I said simply, my tone dead serious.
I met their suspicious glares, watching each one widen in horror as it slowly sunk in that I was telling the truth.
"But...but he could be lying." Sam tried.
"Trust me. He's not."
"How do you know?" Jazz asked.
I didn't reply, not wanting to remind her that I trusted Vlad. I think she remembered though.
"The way it works," I began, "Is that I'm gonna age one year for every twenty it takes you guys."
"WHAT!"
"I'm going to be 14 for the next nineteen years, and then I'll be fifteen for twenty years and then sixteen and so on." I continued as though they hadn't interrupted.
They stared at me with horrified faces, totally silent. I stared calmly back, feeling sadness as I watched them figure out all the problems this was going to cause.
"How are we going to explain you looking like a fourteen year old in twenty years?" Tucker asked.
"Probably the truth. I couldn't keep my ghost half a secret forever anyways."
"You're gonna tell everybody?" he gaped.
"Of course not, just my parents. Everyone else can think I have some weird growth deficiency for all I care." I shrugged.
There was quiet until Sam spoke up, her voice smaller than I've ever heard.
"Your going to out live all of us, Danny." Sam said quietly. "I'm going to be fifty and you...your still going to be a teenager." She sounded unbelievably depressed, weighed down by anguish.
I watched her fall into herself, not understanding why she was taking this so badly. Tucker and Jazz weren't. But still, I felt my guilt triple, wishing I had never told them. Tucker was shaking his head, muttering "clueless."
"Why are you so calm about this, Danny?" Jazz asked, looking confused herself.
I grimaced slightly, wondering how they'd take this. I didn't really want to tell them, worried that Sam might fall apart, but I couldn't lie to them anymore than I already have.
"Well," I began hesitantly, "I'm not exactly going to be alone for all the hundreds of years I'll be alive."
I watched Jazz's eye narrow into slits.
"Uh...yeah, Vlad doesn't age like normal either." I spit it out in a jumble, watching them all snap their head up at me.
"Your kidding." Sam said in an icy voice, her previous depression replaced by hard anger. "You're going to be alone, for hundreds of years, with nothing but that fruitloop for company?"
They all seemed unnaturally angry, like they were blaming this on Vlad or something. I narrowed my own eyes.
"Look, it's not like this is Vlad's fault."
"I'll bet you he planned this. It's way too convenient to be chance." Sam said heatedly. I raised an eye brow at her.
"How could he plan me getting ghost powers? He didn't even know about me till the reunion."
Sam simmered, Tucker looked between me and Sam nervously, trying to keep an all out fight from exploding.
"Well, your coming home in one day, so then this'll all be over." he smiled painfully.
"No it won't. It won't be over for the next thousand years. And then...then..." Sam's anger rapidly fell, the aching sadness washing over her again. I was a little dizzy at the rapid change of emotion. "Then we won't be there to help him." she whispered.
An thick silence settled between us all, misery clinging to their forms. I wanted to tell them not to worry about me. I wanted to tell them that Vlad would take care of me. But that was out of the question. Instead we sat there, awkward and distant, not talking to one another. I didn't want to leave them like this.
I met a glance from Jazz and for a split second I thought she was going to say something, but then she settled back into the silence without a word.
It was constricting. I searched for anything that would crack a smile or two out of them, wanting to see them happy again, but I couldn't come up with anything.
"Guys. I'm sorry about all this." I forced out, not knowing what else to say.
Tucker shrugged, but that was all the reaction I got.
"You will be home on Friday though, right?"
"I promise."
He nodded, brushing a thumb over the screen of his PDA. I searched for a topic of conversation, settling on the stupidest one because it was the only thing I could think of.
"So...when you say I have a lot of homework to catch up on..." I trailed off, hoping one of them would pick up.
Like a savior, Tucker looked up at me with a smirk, giving me a look.
"That bad?"
"Totally."
I groaned.
"And don't even get me started on the Math load." Tucker grinned.
It was slow, ungodly slow, but eventually Sam and Jazz started to unwind from all the bad news and bitter feelings, returning to their usual selves. I listened to them talk and asked as many questions as possible, wanting to know how the town was doing and how many detentions Lancer's assigned. The Danny Phantom store wasn't doing so hot because of the lack of ghosts, but that would quickly change by Friday. The Mayor had been sick with the flu when he went to visit the elementary school and had caused the entire fifth grade to turn into puking little snot monsters. Sam demanded that we go see the new Nightmarica movie coming out, conveniently, this Friday. Jazz told me the first I was to do upon returning home was clean my room. I told her she was crazy.
I lost track of time, listening to my friends talk and subtly evading questions about my life at Vlad's. It almost felt like we were back together, except for the fact that we were talking through a computer screen. It wasn't until I looked at the clock that I was truly brought back to reality.
"What's wrong Danny?" Tucker asked in response to my gasp.
"It's almost ten o'clock!"
"Wow, it got late fast." Sam commented.
"Mom and Dad are gonna be worried sick. I gotta get home." Jazz stood from the chair, looking sad about having to leave.
"I'll see you on Friday, little brother."
"Night Jazz." I called to her as she left Tucker's room.
"I'm gonna head off to bed too. It's late." I yawned, wondering if Vlad was still awake.
"Alright." they sounded kinda glum, but tired themselves.
After a few good-night's and several clicks later, the computer was shut down and my friends were off to bed. I stood from the chair, stretching my used muscles and sighing into the silence. The window was dark, little stars poking out of the blackness. I watched them twinkle for a moment before letting a pair of bright, white rings slid over me.
If the air was chilly, I didn't feel it. Almost casually, I floated through the large, silent castle. The rooms were dark and not a sound was heard as I made my way to Vlad's room. It was strange, being in such an enormous place and not hearing anything.
The ornate doors soon came into my line of vision and I floated through them, making sure to be extra silent. Vlad's room was open to the elements, the French doors to the porch wide open. A breeze was floating in, causing the thin, transparent curtain around the doors to billow like a ghost. The fire was completely out, not even a whisper of smoke trailing up from the ash.
My eyes were drawn to the monstrous bed, where I found Vlad's sleeping figure lying beneath the silk sheets. Curiosity took over, and I floated like a timid water snake to his unconscious form, barely a breath above him. He was calm in his sleep, yet he still managed to retain that dignified air about him. His silver hair was glowing in the moon light, and I couldn't stop myself as I reached out to touch it, half expecting it to fade away like a dream. The strands matched the gloves of my ghost form perfectly, blending together until they were indistinguishable from one another.
A thought crossed my mind that this was kinda creepy, but I'm sure Vlad's done this with me plenty of times so it's not like he can complain if he happens to wake up.
Sighing quietly, I twisted in the air and touched back down to the floor, letting the rings pass over me quickly as I shifted back into Fenton. Vlad's eyebrows twitched from the light and he rolled over, mumbling something. I held back a laugh, pulling my shirt over my head and slipping my pants off. Just because I'm wearing pajamas doesn't mean I actually sleep in them.
Tentatively, I crawled onto the bed, watching Vlad for any signs that I was disturbing him. He slept peacefully though, even as I crawled over to his front and slipped under his arms. He mumbled something else and his arms tightened around me, holding me closer. I smiled, kissing his chest and resting my head against his skin. It wasn't long before I was out like a light.
Ugh. I fell Vlad is going OOC. Crap.
