"That's why you're upset? We would have understood, they were jerks, they deserved the karma." Mantha stated firmly.

"It such a violent act…I didn't think you'd see me the same again." Casper mumbled, ashamed.

"I mean…the view is a little different now, but we just know more about you. We still love ya man." Ra smiled, patting the top of the blanket mound comfortingly.

"You're gonna take that back when you learn the rest…" the ghost practically whispered, trying to hide a voice crack.

Was he going to start crying again? Most likely. He didn't want to, which made it worse. He felt like all he ever did was cry, it was embarrassing…

"Wait…so did you really…" Ra started to process what his friend meant by that.

"…Fight Kibosh?" Mantha finished the sentence, wide eyed.

"…Yes." Casper answered in a choked up whisper.

There was a long pause.

"…Why would you risk you unlife like that?" the zombie asked, brows furrowed, her voice full of concern.

Wendy chirped up, deciding Casper would want some help with this.

"Because Kibosh was a cruel, unjust, abusive, tyrant. We couldn't just stand by!" Wendy added determinedly.

Mantha snapped around to look at the witch, her eyes burning mad.

"I can't believe you'd drag him into this! He almost died!" She snapped, enraged.

"I wanted to!" Casper yanked the blanket off his head, tears in his eyes.

"Werewolfs were brutalized, vampires had their history erased, zombies are bullied, ghosts are monitored, and witches are banned from most of underworld city! I was sick of seeing everyone I care about being threated so badly, I was sick of being treated badly! I want a garden! I want to be kind! I want a family one day! I could never have those things with him around! He tears up my gardens, he yells at me for kindness, and he treats kids awful! My entire unlife, all he's ever done is threaten me, watch me, yell at me, threaten my family, threaten my pets, control me! I was so scared all the time of what he'd do to me! What he'd do to my family, what he'd do to my friends!...I-I" His sobbing started to get too bad to talk, which he felt quiet ashamed of.

"I just- I wanted to be happy for once…" he sobbed quietly, hiding his face in his hands.

The zombie and Mummy were taken aback, not sure what to say at first.

"I-I was being s-selfish. I'm sorry-" He choked out.

Mantha and Ra exchanged a sad look.

"No, no. You're not selfish…We…I…I knew Kibosh annoyed you a lot, but I guess I never really realized just how much..." The zombie mumbled sadly, ashamed.

"You should be able to have a garden, you should be allowed to be soft and kind. You shouldn't have to be constantly scared of what he would do to you…" Ra assured.

"We're sorry, we're…we're the selfish ones. We didn't listen to you enough…we never thought about how bad it must be for you…we're sorry." Mantha continued.

"Yeah we…we messed up. You'd constantly be threatened to fit in with Underworld, but the second you would ask us to be a little softer, we'd complain. We're sorry, we should have paid more attention…" The mummy frowned, looking off to the side.

"You two don't have anything to be sorry for…I never said anything…" Casper whipped away tears using the back of his hand.

"You shouldn't have had to, you're our friend, we should have noticed how badly he treated you. And we should have done a better job being on your side…" Ra explained.

"You never expected me to be mean or tough." The ghost clarified.

"No, but we didn't exactly defend your personality ether. We helped you lie, and trick, but we never defended who you were, we just helped you hide who you were." Mantha frowned regretfully.

"There wasn't much else you could do." The ghost responded.

"Yes there was. And we're sorry." The mummy stated firmly.

Ra and Mantha proceeded to hug Casper, being careful to avoid his injuries. He wrapped his arms, and unintentionally his tail, around them.

Meanwhile, Thatch and Wendy awkwardly shuffled at the far end of the room, watching three sobbing monsters hug each other.

Krumpus poked his head around the doorway corner.

"Would any of you like to stay for dinner?" he spoke up, politely.

Everyone turned slowly to look at him with confusion.

"Well, it is getting to be evening, and you all look like you could use a comforting meal…" he explained, almost shyly.

"…you took Casper hostage and now you're offering us food?" Wendy looked at the ram in almost offended disbelief.

Casper looked at the witch with much confusion.

"He didn't take me hostage, what are you talking about?" he raised a brow.

"After the fight he said to me "If you wish to see Casper, bring me the Kleptor." In an intimidating voice, and then disappeared with you into a portal." Wendy responded.

"That's not exactly what I said, but regardless, I apologize for the deception. I have no reason to hurt my grandson, and I certainly hope I never will. I care for him greatly." Krumpus explained, a concerned expression on his face.

"So why-" the grandfather interrupted her question.

"You had no reason to trust me, and I've seen how smart you are. You're a girl who's full of tricks. I had to make sure you'd bring the items I asked for, and the only way you'd do such a thing is if you were worried for a friend. I've seen how loyal you are." He explained.

"You're so powerful though, you're a netherbeast. Why would you want the Kleptor?" She asked quizzically.

"To get rid of it. It can steal the powers of even the gods, it is far too powerful for the mortal world. I'm taking it back to its creators, where it will be destroyed, or at least severely weakened." He further explained.

"Oh…Wait, why didn't you give it to them while they were outside?" the witch raised a brow.

"I want them to enjoy the evening. It's not every day you're reunited with a daughter after 200 years." Krumpus chuckled slightly.

He then looked at Wendy as if he recalled something.

"Young Wendy, I was planning on taking them the gemstone to tomorrow evening? Would you wish to accompany me? Usually mortals are not allowed in the greek Underworld, but Since you were such a big part of getting their daughter back, I believe they'd wish to talk to you." He smiled.

She went wide eyed, and a bit pale.

"You want to take me to go visit some gods?"

"Don't worry, they're polite." He smiled.

She looked off to the side for a moment, considering it.

"…well, I don't have much planned tomorrow evening, besides helping sort out the chaos of the rebellion." She smiled, chuckling a bit.

"Wonderful! I shall call them and ask what time we shall visit!" he beamed.

He would have asked Casper if he wanted to go, but he was pretty sure his grandson wanted to spend the next month mentally resting.

"Oh, and would someone please go out to the garden and gather some heart bells? They are needed for dinner…provided any of you want to stay for dinner, of course." He explained, almost sheepishly.

"I could eat." Ra chirped up.

"As long as Casper thinks it's safe, I guess I'll eat too." Mantha answered hesitantly.

Wendy nodded.

"I'll go get the bell things, I need to stretch my legs. What do they look like?" Thatch stated, straightening from his position against the wall.

"Palm sized pink hearts, they're on a bush. There's a label next to it." The ram replied.

"I'll make sure he gets the right ones." Wendy chimed in.

Krampus, Wendy, and Thatch proceeded to leave the room. Mantha, Ra, and Casper were left alone. After a moment, the zombie side eyed the ghost suspiciously.

"Sooo, why is Thatch here?" She asked with an eyebrow raise.

"Uh…" he chuckled nervously, hoping they couldn't see the blue shade across his face. "I'll tell you later…So, how are you two?" he quickly tried to change the subject with a far too large grin.

Ra hid a smile, while Mantha just looked a bit annoyed.

Thatch boardly approached a vegetable and fruit garden, Wendy behind him.

"So which one of these is-" He stopped mid-sentence as he felt something poke his back.

"I know how much Casper likes you, and I'm not dumb. You'd have to like him back, else you wouldn't be here. I want him happy, and I don't want his heart broken. So, you're gonna tell me why you like him, else, I turn you into a toad." The witch threatened, pointing her wand at the others back.

"You know, it's not really your business-"

"10, 9, 8-" she started to count down threateningly.

"Fine, nosy! I like him because…well, uh…" he trailed off, squirming a bit from embarrassment. He didn't like talking about this kind of stuff.

"7, 6, 5-"

He spun around to glare at her.

"Alright, look! I don't like talking about my feelings, especially the more sappy ones. I could spend all day telling him how I feel, but I don't have to tell you anything! I've already had a stressful day without little red riding hood threatening to turn me into a frog! I spent this afternoon drowning in anxiety, thinking I might never get to see him again!" He snapped stressfully.

There was a pause as he breathed heavily, calming down. The witch backed away, giving him some space. After a moment, he spoke up quietly;

"I like him because… He makes me feel…content…" He replied quietly, looking at the ground.

She thought about if for a moment.

"…An acceptable reason." She put her wand away. "But remember, if I think even for a second that you're treating him bad, you'll spend the rest of your life as an amphibian." She glared at him.

"Noted." He responded unenthused.

Krumpus fixed them a warm dinner of vegetable stew with biscuits. It took some assurance from Casper to get Mantha to eat it, as she still wasn't sure if she trusted the ram or not. But if Casper insisted it was ok, then she'd trust him.

As they ate dinner, they listened to the Underworld news. It was chaos from Anti Ghoul's take over, which was to be expected. They had to tweek a whole society that had been brainwashed for decades, it was going to be slow, and it was going to be complex.

After dinner, it was time for everyone to go home. Casper sat on the couch and watched as Krumpus opened up a portal in the center of the living room.

"This will take you back to the school attic, it's getting late, and I'm sure you all need your rest for tomorrow. Underworld is going to be on edge for a while. Casper should be well enough by tomorrow evening to return home." The grandfather fam responded.

"Are you sure you're ok with us leaving, Casp?" Ra asked with concern.

"Yes, I'll be alright. You guys have stuff to do, and like my grandfather said, you need your rest too. I'll be going to sleep soon, I'm really tired. No point in having you guys stay over just to watch me sleep." The ghost chuckled.

"Are you absolutely sure?" Mantha asked, raising a brow.

"Yes, go on now. I'll talk to you guys tomorrow, I promise." Casper smiled sweetly, reassuring them he'd be ok.

"Are you sure-"

"Yes, I'm ok. Go on back to the school and get some sleep."

"Ok, if you're sure… We'll see you tomorrow, sleep tight." The zombie smiled.

Wendy walked over to the couch and took a hold of Casper's hands. She mumbled something in Latin before leaning forward and kissing his forehead sweetly. He tilted his head at her as she stood up straight again.

"A spell for sweet dreams and a good sleep." She explained warmly.

He thanked her with a warm smile and she walked over to the portal, stepping through. Mantha followed, and then Ra.

The mummy paused halfway through, noticing Thatch making no movement towards the portal.

"You comin?"

"I'm gonna have him drop me off at my house…" The vampire replied hesitantly, gesturing to the large nether creature next to them.

"Oh, ok. Sleep tight, Casp!" And with that, Ra left.

The portal closed, and Krumpus opened up another one with a tap of his staff. Thatch looked back over at Casper, who waved for him to go on through. The ghost had a smile on his face, but his eyes looked disappointed…he looked a bit scared. And frankly, the vampire didn't want to go...

"Casper, do you want me to stay?" Thatch asked seriously.

The ghost made a pff sound and waved him off.

"Well, I'm sure you need to be getting home, your folks are gonna be worried, and-"

The vampire cut him off.

"No, no. Do, you, want me to stay? I don't mind ether way. So, what do you want?" Thatch asked again.

Casper paused, his expression changing to a sad one, looking off to the side before looking back up at the vampire.

"…I want you to stay." He replied with an almost desperate tone.

"Then I'll stay." Thatch replied simply.

"But only if my grandfather does mind, It if his house after all."

Krampus closed the portal behind them.

"If his presence comforts you, I don't mind, of course he may stay." He responded with a gentle smile.

"But no hanky panky, Casper is much too hurt for that." Krumpus stated casually, as if it wasn't a really embarrassing thing to say. The ram netherbeast then turned and walked away, heading for the kitchen to clean up.

Casper made an embarrassed noise, and Thatch just sort of stood there wide eyed and taken aback.

There was an awkward pause.

"So, uh, ready to go to bed?" the vampire cleared his throat.

"Yeah, I'm still exhausted…" the ghost chuckled, softening.

"Yeah, I'm pretty tired too, it's been a long day…"

"Sorry." Casper smiled apologetically.

Thatch walked over to the ghost. Casper's leg was mostly healed, but he was still very weak, so walking was not recommended.

"Apology excepted." Thatch chuckled as he gently picked up the other. "You're a bit heavier in this form." He pointed out.

"I get beat up, and then you tell me I'm fat, what a lovely day." The ghost joked sarcastically.

"That's rich from someone who's basically a stick with arms." The vampire smirked warmly.

Casper chuckled.

It was a short walk from the living room back into the bedroom, where the vampire carefully placed the ghost onto the right side of the bed.

"I hate not being able to brush my teeth. I feel gross." The ghost chuckled.

"Priss."

"Jackass." The ghost commented playfully.

"oh, you said a curse word~" Thatch mocked playfully, mimicking that tone kids use before they go tattletale to a teacher.

The ghost rolled his eyes with a smile. The vampire turned and walked over to the chest of drawers, and then started looking through them. The ghost raised a brow.

"What are you looking for?"

"This is your grandfathers house, and this is a spare bedroom, I'd be willing to bet-" Thatch cut off as he pulled an unopened toothbrush and toothpaste out of a drawer. "Here we go." He mumbled to himself, tossing the two items over to Casper. "I'll go get you a cup of water."

Thatch opened the door, and Krumpus was standing right outside, a tray in his hands.

It took all of the vampires willpower to suppress the intense fight or flight instinct that just caused.

"I'm sorry, did I startle you?" Grandfather ram asked.

"…I won't lie, a little bit, yeah." Thatch responded stiffly, still frozen in place as his heart beat went back down to normal.

"I'm sorry, I just brought some night time things." Krumpus responded with a smile.

The vampire made an 'o' sound as he was handed the tray. The tray had a pitcher of water, a pack of paper cups, several unopened toothbrushes, an unopened tube of toothpaste, and a mini towel.

The grandfather looked over at Casper and saw he already had a toothbrush in hand, or rather, in claw.

"Oh, I see you found the one I left in the drawer. Well, goodnight you two. Sleep well, Casper." He smiled warmly before closing the door.

"Well, I guess I don't need to go get water now."

The ghost chuckled.

They brushed their teeth, and Thatch dropped the paper cups of water into a trashcan. Casper playfully patted the right side of the bed. Thatch smiled and took off his jacket before turning off the light, and climbing into the bed. The vampire laid on his side, an arm lazily over the ghost's waist.

The ghost wasn't able to sleep on his side due to his wound, which was quite annoying, he preferred sleeping on his side. Even more so, he preferred being able to press himself into the wall with his back facing the rest of the room. Maybe it was a safety thing…

But Thatch's arm felt pretty safe too.

There was a soft moment of silence, then the vampire broke it.

"Are you ok?" he asked quietly.

Casper didn't respond right away.

"…I'm worried that I messed up." He admitted.

"What if things get worse somehow? What if Kibosh was a lesser evil, or was right? What if someone worse takes over?" I mean, I think Wendy might eventually take over the leadership role, but what about in the meantime? Or what if someone attacks her?"

"Wait, why would Wendy become queen?" the vampire raised a brow.

"She's Kibosh's daughter." Casper explained matter a factly.

"…excuse me?"

"Story for another time."

"But I just….I'm scared that maybe in my head I justified my actions purely because I wanted him gone…" the ghost ran a hand through his own hair calmingly.

Thatch sighed thoughtfully.

"I don't have an answer, maybe you did, or maybe you were right, I don't know. But, if it's worth something, If I had to pick a side, yours or Kibosh's…I'd…pick yours…" this took a lot for Thatch to admit. He had always respected Kibosh highly…or at least, his rule, and the whole scaring thing. That's how it had always been, so why question it?

But he meant what he said.

And it meant a lot to Casper, it really did. The ghost smiled warmly before chuckling.

"You're just saying that because you like me."

"Yeah, I am. You're far cuter than Kibosh, why ever would I pick his side when a pretty little thing like you exists?" Thatch replied smoothly.

The ghost giggled and blushed in a fluster, covering his face. Thatch smirked, finding the others reaction quite amusing, and very endearing.

"and Mantha wasn't wrong by the way…" the vampire continued, switching to a quieter tone.

"Humm?"

"It's not selfish to wanna live your life…"

Casper was silent for a moment before replying quietly.

"…Thank you…And thank you for staying with me…"

"I wanted to. I would have just been awake all night if I went home right now…" Thatch chuckled.

Silence again.

"Oh, and I lied by the way." The vampire spoke up again.

"Huh?" the ghost raised a brow, listening closely.

Thatch fought back a smile as he answered quietly.

"I already knew how to slow dance…"

Thatch laughed as a pillow was smacked over his face.

Am I crossing over Lore Olympus with this? Not necessarily….But, I can't picture Persephone and Hades looking any other way at this point, and they were necessarily for part of the plot, at least lore wise. XD I realized a while back, that if gods are going to be real in this fic verse, then I needed a good reason as to why none of them haven't gone after Kibosh yet. That was simple enough, make the Kleptor strong enough to take away their powers too. But then was the question of who MADE the Kleptor. If it could steal from gods, then it had to be made by a god. And no god would willingly do that, it'd be chaos. They'd have to be forced to make it…

And what better a way to force the gods to do you're bidding, then kidnap one. And who would be the best candidate for that? The goddess he was most likely to encounter; Melone, Goddess of ghosts.

So, it wasn't intended as a crossover, but it's basically what happened. XD