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Chapter Thirty Six

::

"My, I've certainly become popular today." Vlad Masters looked up with a hard stare, Randy feeling a feral smirk curl onto his lips. It had always been so interesting when he talked to this man. "If you're looking for Daniel then you'll find he already returned home for the evening."

"Actually, Plasmius, we're here to talk to you." Andrew sat himself down in the chair in front of the man's desk with a clear message that he wouldn't be leaving anytime soon.

"And just what makes you think that I want to waste any of my time dealing with you two? In case you've forgotten, it's Daniel I've made a truce with, not you."

"Indulge us," Randy grinned, bracing his hands on the desk and feeling energy and life thrum under his skin. This was where he belonged. Searching for information and tearing it out of people who wanted nothing more than to hold onto it. As much as he hated his part of himself, this was who he was. "We have a few questions about half ghosts."

"Don't all of you." Vlad's heart and pulse were steady as could be and there was suspicion lurking in his eyes but it was the curiosity that was there that Randy played upon. "Tired of a teenager trying to explain things he doesn't understand?"

"Ooh, temper, temper." Andrew's voice was a sweet purr around the words, Randy feeling - for a single moment - like blood was pounding through his veins. "Does your sweet godson know how much anger you still have boiling under the surface there?"

"Does he know about you two?" Vlad sighed, flicking his hand out as if batting away the question. "Unimportant. What kind of information is it that you two want this time?"

"It's about your sweet little badger." Randy shouldn't be so cruel. Vlad cared just as much about Danny but he had spent too many years flitting around lies. This was no time for him to be lied- Vlad's breathing had picked up. "You've noticed it too, haven't you?" The swirl of power Randy felt let him know Vlad was just as worried. "What's happening to him." He didn't let it be a question.

"I don't… I don't know." Vlad leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers as he studied the pair of them. "How often can he use his powers like that when he's not transformed?"

"More often than he used to." Andrew near mirrored the position, his legs crossed and fingers intertwined as the only difference. "There's always been the separation of sides, but now it seems as if there's hardly any. Could this be him finally accepting his powers?"

"Doubtful." Oh, but there was something there. Something he wasn't quite telling them. "As you know, his powers have alway been stronger than mine and no doubt they'll continue that way. It's possible that with his truce among the ghosts and his need to use his powers as much, they're simply manifesting and bleeding through so as to not allow his body to be overwhelmed. He still has sensory attacks, doesn't he?"

"Not as often as he did a year ago. One every few months or so, perhaps?" Andrew was relaxing a small amount, but Vlad was still tensed. Randy didn't like it. "So this could be his body adjusting in a new way?"

"Quite likely. Even among half ghosts Daniel is utterly unique. I wouldn't be surprised if-"

"Plasmius." Randy could feel it. Cool metal under his fingertips and a buzzing in his skin that now allowed him to make himself deadlier than ever before. "You really don't want to withhold information from me today."

Silence. Sweet, blessed silence and then- "It's possible he's dying." None of them seemed shocked by the information. Didn't that just tell them everything they needed to know?

"Possible." Andrew was smiling weakly, hope fading in his eyes that he only just managed to cling to. "As in you're not sure. Like you said earlier, this could be his body adjusting."

"The fact of the matter is that I don't know nearly as much as you think I do." Damn this man for being right. "As great as you think my powers are, I can't predict the future."

"You can't." Glancing to Andrew, Randy looked him over before faking a smile. "Why don't you go back and see if Danny is raiding Vidya for reading material? I'll keep going." If the news was for the worst… Randy could protect them from it a little longer.

"As if I'd ever be able to stop him." Andrew sighed, standing up and brushing himself off lightly. "Thank you for your time, Vladimir. I know you could have easily chosen to fight us on this."

"I don't think Daniel would appreciate me utterly destroying his mates in a battle." As Andrew scoffed and opened his mouth to fight back, Randy froze and gave Vlad a sharp look. Mates? "Don't you have someone to be, Randall? Best to be on time."

"I'll be sure to let Danny know you have a sense of humor next to that stick up your ass." Turning on his heel, Randy gathered his power around him and pictured the inside of the Clock Tower clearly in his mind. A blink of his eyes, darkness, and Clockwork was in front of him. "Bonjour."

"Bonjour, jeune." Young one, hm? Never before had Randy felt like such a child looking up to someone far older and wiser than him. "Do you really wish to know?"

"I can't protect them without knowing what's happening to them. If the worst is true and I have to live with that knowledge… So be it. You know how I am."

"I know that you would do anything for them." Clockwork gently ruffled his hair, Randy trying not to laugh. When was the last time someone had done that to him? "You might not like the answers."

"So be it." There was a steady silence between them, Randy closing his eyes as he heard the ticking of hundreds of clocks. It washed over him in waves, the steady passage of time carefully moving around them in moments and seconds. For once, the world stopped and Randy let himself drown.

A shame such a thing could never last. "Tell me." A single moment suspended in time with the possibility of entire futures held within it.

"He's not dying in the way you think he is." Breath exploding out of him, Randy opened his eyes to see Clockwork giving him a warm smile. "It might be more technical to say that he's becoming what he was always supposed to."

"So he's… He's going to be okay?" Randy couldn't be White Fang in this moment- He couldn't even be the Mercenary. He could only be… Mates, huh?

"He's going to be okay." Taking another breath, Randy shook his head. "I can tell you more, but I have a feeling…"

"It's Danny's life. I know the value of secrets more than most and how heavy a price they can bring. Just tell me he'll really be alright."

"He will be okay, Randall. No matter what happens it will all be okay one day. You have my word not as Master of Time, but as someone who cares deeply about all three of you."

"You said… You said he's becoming what he was always supposed to be." Randy stared at Clockwork, eyes narrowing. There were no tells in his stance. His core was calm and steady, there was no hitched breathing, and no straying eyes. It was so easy to tell that Clockwork had never been human. "What do you see for us?"

"A future." Clockwork was a powerful being who saw and controlled all of time. Oh, he was human in nature, Randy would never deny that. He genuinely cared for Jazz and he loved Danny like this own, but there were parts of him that were so alien. "White Fang learned not to trust early on, but I hope you can trust me as Randall Beaumont. I only want the best for all of you. Please believe that much."

This ancient being had a plan he was working towards. One that had been in motion since before Randy was even a thought, if he was right about his guess. Everything in him screamed not to trust Clockwork, but… Danny trusted him. "Keep him safe."

"Always." Clockwork rested a hand on his hair, smiling softly. "Go be with them. You need to see them for yourself, don't you?"

"This conversation isn't over." Randy might not want to pry, but he knew that this conversation would come up again. "And we're not mates."

"I never said you were." Just like that, the tense moment passed and Clockwork was nothing more or less than a friend and guide. "Although if you'd like a sneak peek-"

"Goodbye, Clockwork." Pulling his powers around him, Randy closed his eyes and focused on the ghostly signatures that were more familiar than his own. A rush of breath and he was stepping off of stone before landing on soft carpet.

"Randy! Hey, so, uh, can you tell me what's going on?" Danny was on the couch with Andrew- Well, it would be more accurate to say that Danny was sitting on Andrew while Andrew was sitting on the couch and tightly wrapped around Danny. "Andy got here and then, you know, this."

Too insubstantial. There was something about Danny that was so insubstantial. There was a glaze to the eyes that made them look green in the low lighting, there was a sharpness to his teeth that could never be human, and his entire being seemed as if he could disappear at any moment. "Randy? Hey, you alright? I mean, I'd offer a hug, but I'm a bit too wrapped up in something at the moment. Well, someone."

"That was horrible," Andrew mumbled, Randy seeing how tense and uneasy he still was. His arms were tight around Danny and hands had slipped under his shirt, lips pressed against the teen's neck. Danny probably didn't realize Andrew was keeping close tabs on his pulse. "I can't show you affection for no reason?"

"I mean, I'm so not against that, but- Is this you finally realizing you've become a permanent teacher? Because I have other ways to-" Danny's breath hitched and caught in his lungs, Randy only absently realizing he was half kneeling on the couch and had cupped Danny's cheeks. "Randy?"

"'S okay." Randy pressed closer, leaning his forehead against Danny's and exhaling a slow breath. When he breathed in, there was a sharp, crisp cold that reminded him of winter days. "It's okay." Kissing at Danny's cheek, Randy slipped a hand down to link with the one Andrew was holding out towards him. "You're okay." He wondered if Danny could hear the relief in his voice as clearly as he knew Andrew could.

"Um, yeah? I don't think you are, though." Mind stilling as hands settled on his own cheeks, Randy stared into blue eyes that shined just a bit too bright. "What happened?"

The barest trace of a smile crossed his lips, Randy pecking Danny on the very corner of his lips. "I got some reassurance about something that was worrying me."

"O-Oh! Oh, well, uh- I don't know- Um, I mean, not that you're wrong, but, uh, I don't- Oh, boy, I so expected to have more time to plan some kind of speech out or something. I mean, it's pretty easy to see how you got that reassurance, but, um-" Randy couldn't tell if Danny had cut himself off from sheer embarrassment or if it was because Andrew was trying to stifle near hysterical laughter. "You, uh, you weren't talking about that, were you?"

"No, but having that reassurance is rather nice, too." Grin wider, Randy properly sat down on the couch before pulling Danny into his lap, the teen's legs still in Andrew's own. "You know, you sometimes blush blue when you're not Phantom."

"Shut up! I'm not blushing!" Danny's entire face was flushed a splotchy red with dashes of blue here and there. "Just- No. Desist. Hey, homework- Celebrate! We should celebrate, because, you know, Andy got made Creative Writing teacher officially. Let's go out. You want to go out? We should go out to eat somewhere for once."

As Danny continued babbling and rambling, Randy propped his chin up on the teen's head and looked to Andrew, giving a small smile. They would all be okay. Andrew must have seen the message since he relaxed even more, lightly rubbing at Danny's ankle as he nodded along to whatever Danny was saying.

Clockwork may have not been human, but then, Randy hadn't been for a long time, either. Besides, unlike himself, Randy trusted Clockwork. They would be okay.

::

"Are you guys really okay?" Looking up from the book he was reading, Randy blinked as he saw Danny floating in front of him. "You've been off since I got back from Vlad's."

"Like I said, we got reassurance over something we were worried about." Randy moved his book to one hand, holding his free arm out towards Danny. It was hardly a second later that Danny was straddling his lap and curling his arms around Randy's shoulders, pressing close to kiss at his neck. Suppressing a shudder, Randy tugged on a lock of Danny's hair. "Stop that."

"Never." Rolling his eyes, Randy kept a hand tangled in Danny's hair before going back to his book. "Whatcha reading?"

"Research for my next job." As if he had just been waiting for that, Danny squirmed and wiggled until he could read the book - or at least, read it as well as he could when it was upside down for him. "Can I help you?"

"Yeah, can you tilt it towards me a bit more?" Snapping the book shut, Randy set it aside before quickly dragging Danny forward, the action quick enough to throw Danny off balance and have him collapsing against his chest. "I mean, this works too."

"And here I thought you'd be upset." Trying not to let his amusement show, Randy kissed at Danny's cheek quickly. It was so hard to keep his distance when he had been worried over this since Danny's school year started. It didn't hurt that Danny always had the most delightful reactions.

"Ra- Randy?" Even with how much of his powers slipped through, Danny was still so human. There was a chill to him but warm skin still flushed under his fingertips and lips still brushed against a pounding and racing pulse. The teen was full of life as he squirmed against him, air swirling and trapped in his lungs before he forced it out through hitching breaths. "Randy."

He wanted to keep this teen safe. As he felt each dip and curve of the spine, Randy realized the he wanted to keep Danny as safe as he had fought to keep Andrew for all those years. As his palm rubbed against warm, flushed skin and felt expanding ribs, he wanted nothing more than to always have this sweet little phantom in his life.

The pulse racing in his neck fluttered against Randy's lips, Randy bringing Danny close and pressing a reverent kiss upon the spot. He felt Danny shudder and arch into each of his touches, face flushing red and blue and eyes bleeding into a shimmering green.

Forcibly stilling himself, Randy fought to keep control of himself as he pinned Danny down and kept him from wiggling anymore than he had been. When his eyes caught on the younger's, he saw Danny was completely and utterly lost. "Oh, mon douce." Randy captured his chin and brought him in close, lips so close to touching. "You and Andy are going to be the death of me."

"I think that's my line," Danny gasped out, breathing as if he had just run a marathon. "I swear to God one of these days one of us is going to break."

"But where's the fun in that being today?" Randy pressed a kiss to Danny's cheek and bundled him close, soothingly running a hand through his hair. "Okay?"

"Oh my god, this is worse than Andy ever was." Danny's flush was still prominent, the teen shifting and moving until he was tightly tucked up against Randy. "This can't keep going on."

"Mm." Kissing behind Danny's ear, Randy looped an arm around him and gave a little nudge. "Want to learn more about ancient Ghost Zone history with me?"

There was a long silence before Danny sighed explosively, slumping in what was clearly defeat. "You know I do. And this isn't over."

"I'll keep that in mind." It was getting so hard to keep protesting about the jokes of them all three being mates when he felt like this. He had long known his feelings and obsession for Andrew, but this… This was new. This was interesting.

He couldn't wait to see how this game of theirs ended.