Chapter 53

Dash pulled his old motorcycle out of the garage. When they went off to college, he left it with Kwan's family, and every year when they came back for Christmas, Dash would check up and do any maintenance on it when he got some free time. It also allowed him to get around when he needed to without having to borrow someone's car. After a quick check, he climbed onto the motorcycle, put on his helmet, then drove away from the house. His mother's apartment wasn't too far away, but Dash lazily took his time reaching the building.

He parked outside and sighed as he pulled off his helmet. He shouldn't dread this little Christmas brunch, but there was always this uncomfortable awkward air hovering around them when the three of them got together. Climbing off the motorcycle, he walked up to the front door and entered the building then took the elevator up to the sixth floor. The hall almost felt endless with every inch of it looking the same. Near the end of the hall, he knocked on the door of his mother's apartment.

"You're late!" Izzy said the second she opened the door.

"Good to see you too." Dash ruffled her hair as he passed her on his way into the apartment. "And we don't exactly keep to a schedule with this brunch thing. Hi, Mom." He walked over and gave his mother a hug, and she gave him a quick peck of a kiss on his cheek.

His mother's platinum blonde hair was pulled up in a tight bun. Her clothing was simple but elegant, as always, with a white blouse and light gray dress slacks. "I was just finishing preparing our brunch. If you two will go sit down, I'll bring it in."

"Mom, we can help out," Izzy said, rolling her bright blue eyes. Her long blonde hair was tied off in a braid she had draped over one shoulder. Her Christmas sweater was nearly as bad as the one Kwan's family got Dash. The difference was Izzy loved wearing those terrible Christmas sweaters. She would probably wear one all year around if she could.

Before their mother could grab anything, Izzy picked up the casserole dish then shot a glare to Dash. With a sigh, he picked up the plates of pancakes and bacon. They walked into the other room and placed the dishes in the center of the dining table as his mother brought in a plate of toast and a bowl fruit salad. Syrup, jams, and butter all sat out on the table.

"You really didn't have to make so much," Dash said as they sat down.

"I don't mind." His mother unfolded a napkin and laid it in her lap.

They all grabbed some from the various dishes to pile onto their plates. Then the awkward silence fell over them. Izzy glanced between Dash and their mother. She was normally the chatty one at these little gatherings, but the awkwardness was even getting to her.

"Okay." Izzy poured herself a glass of orange juice. "Can we please put an end to this? I'm tired of every year, we meet for Christmas and then don't really do any talking. Every time I try to make conversation, I'm met with grunts and one words answers. So let's get it out in the open and put whatever the issue is behind us."

"What issue?" Dash bit off the end of a strip of bacon. "Any issue we had is dead and buried now."

Their mother slammed down her fork. "I am sorry I wasn't strong enough to stand up to that man. He wasn't always like that. When we first met, he was a loving man. The change-" Her mouth pursed tightly. "It wasn't something that happened over night, though sometimes it felt like it came out of nowhere. It was little things he got angry at. Things only seemed to escalate after he started drinking."

"Mom." Dash sighed tiredly. Her story reminded him of what Paige told him about her relationship with Bryce. He didn't start out as an abusive jerk, but once the change started, it was hard for either woman to escape the relationship. "I don't blame you for anything that happened. And honestly, I'm glad he hit on me rather than throwing any punches at you or Izzy."

"And I always thought Kwan was the self sacrificing one." Izzy shoved a forkful of the casserole into her grinning mouth.

Dash rolled his eyes. "Maybe some of that rubbed off on me." He looked back to his mother. "My point is you don't have to keep putting the blame on yourself or seeking forgiveness from us. He was the one to blame. He should be the one seeking forgiveness. Instead he continued to spiral down the path of a shitty father, husband, and human being. I shouldn't say it, but I was glad when he died. Because it meant you were finally free from him."

"We were all free of him that day." His mother frowned.

Izzy expression was grim, thinking back on that day too. "Okay," she said, trying to force a little cheer into her voice. "So now that's out in the open and talked about. Is everything good now?" She grinned, shooting hopeful looks between the two.

"Maybe not completely good," Dash frowned, "but it's a start."

Izzy's smile faltered, but she pushed forward. "Well, I have some good news anyway. I," her cheeks turned pink as she shyly lowered her gaze, "am pregnant."

"What?" Dash stared, stunned.

"Oh!" Their mother covered her mouth with her hands.

"I found out two and a half months ago." She shot a glare at them. "And yes, I know I'm not married and blah, blah, blah. The guy's okay. He's going to help out, even though we aren't dating. He's not a bad guy, and our breakup was mutual. But I wanted to fix whatever's wrong here." She gestured to all of them. "Because I want this child to have happy Christmas memories with their grandmother and uncle."

"Are you sure you're going to be okay?" Dash asked then quickly added, "I mean financially. It's a lot of responsibility having a child. You'll have buy a lot of things for them, not to mention medical bills and education down the line."

Izzy rolled her eyes. "Yes, I'm well aware of all that. Maybe not every little detail, but I get this isn't like getting one of those cute little baby bunnies for Easter then giving it back a week later because I didn't realize the responsibility in taking care of it. And, like I said, I'll have Roger to help me out. He's actually pretty excited about being a dad."

"Come on." Dash grinned, nudging her under the table with his foot. "I'm your big brother. I'm allowed to worry about you. But I know you'll be a great mother."

"If you need, I can fly out sometimes to help out," their mother offered.

Izzy relaxed, the tension of their usual awkward Christmas brunch melting away after her announcement. They continued talking and enjoying their time together. It almost felt like things were normal, or as normal as they could be with their history. Dash hugged his mother and sister when it came time to leave. He demanded pictures after his nephew or niece was born, and Izzy promised with a roll of her eyes.

When he stepped out of the building, Dash checked his phone to see he had a message from Kwan. His friend had contacted Fenton about their gift exchange and set it for tomorrow afternoon. Pocketing his phone, he climbed onto his motorcycle. He hoped Fenton liked the gift, even if it was nothing special.

Fenton.

Dash shook his head as he drove back to Kwan's family's house. He needed to work on not calling him that anymore. Hadn't they become good enough friends for him to start calling him by his first name?

Danny.

Even thinking it felt strange to him. For too long, it was Fenton. The habit wouldn't be easy to break, but like anything else, he could work on it over time. What would Fenton's reaction be if Dash suddenly called him Danny? Dash imagined him being so surprised he sat there imitating a wide mouthed fish. He snickered at the image as he pulled into the driveway and parked his motorcycle.

"Just in time," Kwan said, sitting on the front step. He was all bundled up in a heavy winter coat with a scarf covering half his face and a knitted hat tugged down to cover the tips of his ears. "Kim just finished making some of her famous hot chocolate."

"Maybe we should save some," Dash suggested, grinning as he walked over to his friend. "We can bring some to Fenton."

Kwan smiled when he tugged down his scarf. "That's a pretty good idea. Let's go tell Kim set some aside."

Dash held out his hands, and Kwan grabbed hold, letting his friend pull him up to his feet. They entered the house together. "So Izzy is having a kid."

Kwan snapped his gaze toward Dash, his mouth gaping open and his eyes widening. "What? No way! That's great!" He threw an arm around Dash's shoulders, hugging him. "Wow! It's crazy to think little Izzy is having a baby." He shook away the awed expression as they walked into the kitchen.


Next day, Dash and Kwan played with the children in the morning, having a giant snowball fight in the backyard. Kwan's cousin Ryoo managed to nail Dash right in the face with one. Kwan laughed until Kim knocked him in the side of the head with a snowball. By the time they decided to call it, Dash was out of breath from running around and laughing so much. Their clothes were damp from all the snowballs that hit them. Dash and Kwan climbed the stairs to their attic room to change into some fresh clothes before they headed over to Fenton's house.

"We'll be back later," Kwan told his family when they came back downstairs. "We're going to meet a friend for a bit." He got a few goodbyes from those that were downstairs at the time. They left the house and climbed onto Dash's motorcycle. Kwan settled the bag with the presents between them then wrapped his arms securely around Dash's waist. "You still remember how to get there?"

Dash rolled his eyes. "I went there enough times for tutoring. Besides, it's hard to miss that giant eyesore of a sign."

"Don't say that out loud to them."

"I won't." His mouth twitched, trying to grin. Dash tore out of the driveway, Kwan squeezing his arms around his waist and pressing in closer.

"Do you think he'll like the gifts?" Kwan asked, shouting over the wind whipping past them.

Dash chuckled. "You worry too much." But he did worry a little, too. "I'm sure he'll like it." Hopefully, the uncertainty couldn't be heard in his voice.

When they pulled up to the Fenton house, Dash shook his head at the sign still posted outside. It wasn't the same one. Sometime over the years, they updated the sign, but it still looked tacky in his mind. They climbed off the motorcycle then walked up to the front door. Kwan pressed the doorbell, and they waited for someone to come to the door. No surprise, it was Fenton who opened the door.

"Hey." Fenton smiled, despite wearing an obnoxious green sweater with the logo of an F with a ghost. Dash guessed it was for the whole Fenton Works thing. Somehow, it didn't look all that bad on Fenton. "Come on in." He stepped back, opening the door wider for them. "Um," Fenton scratched at the side of his head as he closed the door after them, "do you want anything? To eat or drink?"

"Actually, we brought something." Kwan dug into the bag and brought out a large thermos. "It'll need some heating up though."

"Oh, sure! Yeah! The kitchen's this way." Fenton headed down the hall.

Dash bit his tongue before pointing out he knew exactly where the kitchen was. Unlike him, Kwan only came over to Fenton's house once during their four years of high school with Fenton. When they entered the kitchen, Fenton showed them where the cups and mugs were kept.

Kwan got down three mugs then popped open the thermos. "My cousin makes some amazing hot chocolate," he explained as he poured some into each of the three mugs.

"I love hot chocolate." Fenton smiled. "Oh!" He walked over to another cupboard and got down a plain, round tin. When he opened the tin, he held it out to show off little chocolate squares. "My dad loves fudge. This is his special Christmas batch. Just a hint of peppermint."

Dash plucked out one of the little squares and popped it into his mouth. "Mm, that's pretty good!"

"Right?" Fenton grinned as Kwan took a square of fudge too. "I'm tempted to ask him to make another batch to bring back with us." He placed the tin on the kitchen table then took the mug Kwan held out to him. He blew on it before taking a sip. "Mm!" His eyes widened. "That is amazing!"

"So, uh, are we doing the gift exchange?" Dash rubbed the back of his neck.

"Oh, right." Fenton set the mug on the table. "One sec. I need to go get them." He disappeared from the kitchen and returned a moment later. He looked a bit nervous as he handed them each their gifts.

"These are from us." Kwan grabbed the gifts from the bag, and the gifts were handed out.

"So," Fenton shifted as they stood there, "who should open first?"

Dash glanced to Kwan, who shrugged. "Everyone at the same time?"

"That sounds good." Kwan nodded.

"Sure," Fenton agreed.

On a count of three, they tore into the wrapping paper. Dash let his snowflake patterned Christmas paper drop to the ground as he held up his gift. His mouth parted in surprise. It was a hooded sweatshirt in Casper High School colors. In the center of it was the Casper High Raven logo, and above it read COACH. When he flipped it around, he saw BAXTER written across the top with his old football number printed below it. Kwan received a similar gift but with his own name and number.

"What the heck, Fenton?" Dash couldn't believe Fenton would get them something like this.

Fenton flushed. "Um, I was struggling a bit with what to get, and then this idea came to me." He shrugged. "I hope you like them." He worried his lower lip.

"I love it!" Kwan grinned, hugging Fenton.

"Oh, good!" Fenton placed a hand on his chest as he sighed in relief. Then he chuckled. "Thanks for my gift." It was simply a pair of knit pajama pants decorated with constellations and a black shirt with white ghost inside of a red circle with a line through it. "I love the moon pies." He chuckled when he saw the box. "These are great."

"Well, you know," Dash shrugged into the hooded sweatshirt, which was a good fit on him, "we figured since you like space and all."

Fenton rolled his eyes, though he seemed pleased with the gift. Dash almost sighed in relief. "Uh, so," Fenton hesitated, "well, my family's out for the moment. Do you want to hang out? We could make some popcorn, grab our hot chocolate, and watch a movie. Uh, that is, if you don't need to get back."

Dash checked with Kwan.

"I think we can hang out for a bit," Kwan said. "A little break before diving back into that chaos."

Dash chuckled but agreed, and Fenton grinned. After the popcorn was in the microwave, they walked into the front room to look through the movie collection to pick out something to watch.


xXRainbowCleoXx: That's okay! XD If they did anything else, they'd have to be extra quiet so the rest of the family doesn't hear them! XD Danny certainly isn't enjoying sharing his room. XD But at least he can be fairly sure Vlad isn't up to anything bad.

Kimera20: Thanks! Haha, yeah. XD Sam always like to be in the know. Vlad works too much! XD;;

YumiStar: Woo! Danny nearly missed it this year!

jayswing96: XD Well, at least they aren't fighting anymore.

Tetractys: XD Vlad may not be evil anymore, but it doesn't mean he and Danny get along 100% of the time. XD

Casper97: Should be interesting! I hope! XD

Will: Yeah, original stuff is tough. I'm still kind of grabbing at what the actual plot of one story is, and many other ideas seem to crumble in my hands short after I think of them. orz ;;; Definitely be wary of someone with older siblings. XD They are protective and won't like it if you hurt their sibling. But Danny is the same with Jazz. *looks at he reacted to Johnny 13* I can only see it making sense back in the old days before we had good medicine and stuff. Like the kings kept remarrying hoping their new wife would produce a male heir because the other wives all had their children die. But that was more of a one marriage at a time. Not multiple spouses each with a couple of kids. Also, we're already kind of overpopulated. Which is another reason I hate people screaming about anti-abortion. Look. We already have enough people in this world. And they only care about controlling the woman's reproduction because once that baby pops out, they no longer care about what happens to it. "Oh, but they could always put it up for adoption." Do they even realize how many children are already in the foster system? I don't know the answer, but I do know there are cases where the kid outgrows the system because no one would adopt them. And a bunch of parents looking to adopt will only look at the new born babies, leaving the older kids ignored until they're of legal age to care for themselves. Let's hope 2017 will be a far better year! Danny got pretty wrapped up in stuff. First the whole necromancy case, then tracking down Sawyer's spirit, then hunting for Sawyer's body. It's not like he meant to keep everyone out of the loop. He just gets too focused on a task sometimes. But having Dash and Kwan in the know could help with that in the future, like they could reach out to the others and inform them of what's happening if Danny forgets to. XD;;; Tucker's only like that with Sam. XD If he was being held by the GiW and threatened to talk, he wouldn't rat out Danny to them. Some of the older ghosts probably knew about it, if anyone actually talked to them. XD;; "Oh, necromancy? That's still a thing? Thought the last one died centuries ago!" The newer ghosts like Ember probably never had an incident like this happen in their time as ghosts. If Jeremy and Cameron's grandfather ever used it, he probably did so sparingly and didn't do anything that would get him noticed by anyone.