I do not own Henry Danger or any of it's characters. This is my longest, craziest story yet! EEEEHHHH I HOPE YOU LOVE IT! Enjoy!:)
"Okayyyy," started Schwoz as they all shook off the morning with yawns and stretches.
"If we're gonna convince these crazies, we're gonna need footage of the old 40s jazz lounge type dance club thing that used to be there. Or something that appears to be footage anyway." he explained.
"Oh ok." began Jasper, who'd only just arrived.
"Just a few things, um, who are we convincing and why and what's going on?" to which he received nothing but eye rolls.
Charlotte was merciful and gave a gracious explanation, despite her head pounding in her ears. "There are some extreme activists that are harassing people for information about the building because they think its been some sort of secret government operation for like a hundred years. If we can prove, or at least convince them that it was inhabited for a short while, that would be enough to shake em'. Hopefully, we can make the footage look old timey and all that, so it seems realistic. I don't know honestly, it was Rays idea." she elaborated, rubbing her temples.
"Yea, so take these costumes and go change." Ray added with a toss of the vintage garments. Henry softly grazed her wrist that led him to her fingers to discourage her from running off.
"Headache?" he said searching for her eyes. She took her time answering with a heavy sigh to replace the silence while he toyed with her fingers.
"My parents decided to get rid of coffee in our household and this is me cold turkey. I'll be ok I just thought it would be a good idea to kick the habit." she said with a wince at the painful light in her eyes.
"Ok." he whispered reluctantly letting the matter go.
While everyone got changed, Charlotte was still working on a device she had invented with Schwoz. It was quite large and had to be kept in a tiny containment room that she was able to build. It was her own sealed lab that would keep out any bacteria or impurities. The months and months of work on it didn't seem worth it to anyone else but her. Most days she came to work and went straight into the little work space, only poking her head out once and a while for food and things. Whether anyone would admit it or not, she was missed. The fact that her explanations of what it was always went over their heads, only made matters worse. Schwoz worked with her on it here and there but the space wasn't big enough for two. Late nights and early mornings, most days time moving on without her. Henry chuckled at how she took every spare moment to tinker with it.
He walked out in a tux and clean cut, slicked hair that made him look some type of way. Once her eyes met his figure she fell into a trance. Twirling her curls around her fingers, she watched him be so cavalier as to look bored as he leaned against the wall. His suave maneuvers left her senseless as her stare neglected the tool that was slipping out of her hand. She was brought back when it clanged to the floor. She shot up and jotted to the back room mouthing "oh my gosh!" at her crush that was only getting bigger.
She lost track of time as she clung to the image in her mind as she changed into a dress. It was beige and the finest silk she had ever had the pleasure wearing. The sleeves flowed beyond her shoulders and the pearl that dangled from the point of the neckline gave her a flutter of confidence. She slipped on the most devine heels that she couldn't help but twirl around in. Her hair and makeup were specific to the time period and she wouldn't have had it any other way.
As she floated out and towards the monitor, she hadn't noticed the four boys stopping dead in their tracks. Every ounce of energy being used to tie ties and polish shoes, was now diverting to their eyes that involuntarily watched her obliviously take their breaths away. Henry shook his head in disbelief. If you asked any of them now, they would have told you she glowed. Whether it was the crisp morning air that refreshed her skin or the gown that swam below her ankles, she was undeniably radiant. She was a timeless, classy, gracious, kick butt babe that couldn't be touched and she knew it.
"Wow" Jasper blurted in a whisper.
"Huh?" she said as they all punched Jaspers shoulder simultaneously.
"Wow, the set looks incredible, how did you get it to look exactly like the old lounge?" he recovered while rubbing his thumping arm. Henry wanted to say something. He wanted to tell her she was a breath of fresh air. He wanted to tell her that she'd stopped his heart. He wanted to say anything at all, or do anything but rub the back of his neck and stare like a fool.
"Good question. Schwoz and I created a device that scans buildings and records their lay out so we could have our own blue prints without any one ever knowing, ya know for missions and stuff. So anyways, we were able to manipulate it and have it interface with this new device that projects a 3-d image of the rooms every detail, down to the last dust bunny. Aaand your not listening anymore... great." she sarcastically concluded to the boy that was cluelessly staring at the ceiling.
"Alright, time to dance. Henry and Charlotte pair up and Ray and Jasper you guys fake it, I'll put your partners in later." explained Schwoz to which he received unenthusiastic groans from the two boys. Henry stuttered toward the girl that glided flawlessly toward him. He extended a shy hand and was received by a warm smile and a gentle touch that smoothly found its purpose around his palm.
The music began and they both relaxed into each others hold. They swayed to the slow pace, succumbing to the comfort they found in one another's supportive arms. After many songs began to take their toll, they sat down as Henry began to speak.
"I don't care, I'm cold and I'm putting on a sweatshirt." he babbled as he traded in his jacket for the puffy thing. His white undershirt now peaked out beneath it. Very cute.
Ignoring his mumbles, Charlotte shared her inner thoughts.
"I don't know if this is gonna work Henry. Even if we convince them, which I'm not feeling great about at this moment, their numbers are growing. At this point their just an angry mob, fighting without a cause. They might come after us." Everyone knew Captain Man and Kid Danger had been against the hoax from the start, and Charlotte hadn't stayed exactly silent either. Henry scrunched his eyebrows with a readied response when Schwoz shook their ears with a demand. "DANCE!"
He took her dreary hands with a heavy sigh as they stood and found each others heavenly compatible bodies, once again. He was surprised how he had to do all the work as if she didn't have the strength.
"What would we do?" she posed rhetorically as she placed her head on his chest. He removed the hands that held hers and coiled them around her torso as they slowed their sways despite the tempo. The whole ordeal had been more stressful than any mission they'd had for whatever reason. Even Schwoz was irritable and he was usually so slow to anger, but he looked sick with it.
Just as their thoughts of him concluded, he burst out in incoherent angry spouts. He threw his hands up in the air and everyone's eyes were on him.
"This isn't gonna work!" he said, throwing his glasses and rubbing his eyes roughly. Everyone stood around without words for the completely unfamiliar outburst. After many seconds Charlotte choked out a whispered, "What do you mean?"
"I knew this would hap- ugh. We gotta go to the real place." he responded as he shut his laptop and began packing up the equipment.
"Charlotte, did you think to double check the schematics, or were you too busy working in your little hideaway?"
"Hey, that's not fair."
"You hardly come out and you don't help much when you do. Can you deny that?" Swells of passion clashed between them as he glared with a face of contained rage and hers of confused sorrow.
"Yes I can! I always put a hundred percent into what I do here, I care what you guys think of me so much. I'd never do anything to jeopardize what I have here, I can't believe you'd say that." she began to yell back as her final words tripped over unshed tears.
Henry, Ray and Jasper stared without a clue of what to do in the situation they never dreamed would happen. Both parties were sweating and suffered from bloodshot eyes. Both Ray and Jasper looked to Henry to step in. He reluctantly inched forward, slipping a guiding arm around her waist with caution as Ray yanked Schwoz away.
"Let him cool down ok, everything will be fine. He's just stressed or something, I don't know but I won't let him do that again ok?" She took a deep breath and nodded in understanding as she rubbed her wet and tired eyes. He slowly pulled her in under his chin and she sank her cheek into his sweatshirt.
He let his hands fall down her back as he pulled away to look in her eyes, with a wrinkle of worry between his own.
"Char your shaking."
"Let's go ya good for nothing's!" commanded Ray. In a sluggish herd, they all followed him to the elevator.
"Alright losers, let's do this thing." he uttered as they all glared at their strange friend in the cramped space.
"Can one of you absolute worthless failures please press the button?" he continued as Henry and Charlotte turned to each other in uncontrollable snickers.
On the drive there, Jasper convinced Ray and Schwoz to stop at a fruit stand that was infrequently visited in the suddenly barren country. Henry and Charlotte stayed in the car for lack of motivation to leave the warm space. The sun that painted the rolling hills had sunk into the seats, making them terribly sleepy.
The engine shutting off and the chaos of the highway far behind them, they were pleasantly surprised by the sudden silence. Henry closed his eyes and took in a content sigh through his smile. He turned around to check on his girl. Her head had found much needed rest on the seat and her eyes had dropped closed. She slept so soundly and was more comfortable than she had ever been. He slapped a grateful hand to his chest, watching her find a moment of relief. In this contentment he let his mental restraints slip and, he himself, gave into slumber.
15 minutes later they were brutally awakened by the slamming of car doors and Rays immediate complaints.
"Well you were right Charlotte, they didn't have grapefruit."
"I literally said nothing the entire ride here."
"Oh, must've have been your voice in my head. I guess all the years of lectures, you've finally weaved your way into my brain."
"Then maybe I've done you a favor."
"Yeah, if that favor causes headaches.." he uttered under his breath.
"Hm?"
"Nothing."
Hours later, they approached the deceivingly ominous building that was barely standing. Charlotte was at it's entrance before she realized. She was seduced by it's alluring, and almost ancient, architecture. It's beauty was supported by weak walls. She feared the brush of her finger tips would reduce it to rubble. As the others dawdled behind, she turned the doorknob with delicacy. Henry surprised himself with his own appreciation for the charming structure.
He couldn't help but reach out for a column that had aided in bracing the frail construct, for so many decades. Each pattern and intricate design was so specifically placed. With each golden brush stroke of her walls and every flutter of her white curtains, Charlotte and Henrys love for the edifice grew. Meanwhile, so did her fatigue as gravity clung tighter to her with every stride. She rubbed away the water that was sent to heal her weary eyes that stung mercilessly. She wanted stability as much as these walls did.
As they advanced further in, the architecture shifted into blank grey walls and high tech machinery within them.
"What's going on here? I don't get it." inquired Jasper.
"Well," started Schwoz "rather than knocking down the building, some tech company was converting it. But construction was halted. No one was sure why." he elaborated as he painfully itched his crazy-haired head.
"You better not have lice, I'm not going through that again." poked Ray.
"No, I just... UGH I CANT STOP! My heads KILLIN ME!" he growled through his gritted teeth as he ran his hands all over his head in what looked like a futile attempt to quench the itch.
Ray peered at Jasper to find the same wide eyed with perched eyebrows look on his face for the weirdo they walked beside.
As they advanced further and deeper into the building, the endearing qualities were gone. They were replaced by dead lights and dusty mechanics. Henry noticed Charlotte lagging and fell behind to take a closer look. She watched her feet as she slowly sauntered down the corridor and barely noticed when Henry laid a loving hand on her shoulder. When she looked up with doe eyes filled with tears not yet fallen. He felt a gut wrenching ache for this.
"What is it?" he spoke in a breathy hush.
"Nothing, I'm just tired." she said just before she bit her lip with a wince as she involuntarily shot a hand to her temple. Her head felt like it was full of her boiling blood that was rising and would soon overwhelm her.
"Char, whatever it is we can go right now, I'll take you home." His words were the most wonderful sound to her desperate ears. She was more than tempted to take him up on his offer, but her better judgement won.
"I'm ok, let's just get this over with." He saw right through her and she knew it. His look encouraged her to stop resisting him, but she was too dutiful for her own good. He felt her skin with that nearly burned the back of his hand.
"We can go right now Char, we can just leave. You wouldn't have to worry about anything, I'll take care of it." She sunk into the relief of his grasp and of his bewitching words.
She opened her mouth to give in to him when they ran into the gang that had come to a sudden stop. They stood at a door that, with many clever jiggles to the handle, appeared locked.
"Well, this is where we need to be so, find a way in please." Schwoz demanded, eyes never leaving his tablet.
"Oh sure, I'll just go grab a locksmith, be right back." mocked Ray as he pretended to walk away. Before any one could retaliate, Jasper forcefully kicked the door down. Without breaking a sweat or drawing the slightest flush of red to his face, he was able to unblock their path.
"There." he said, without a trace of cockiness.
"Well well well. Thank you my young ward." Ray said, drawing a proud smile from the boy.
"Hey, I thought that was me!" whined Henry.
"Break the next door down and we'll see."
Everyone but Charlotte stepped through just before large steel bars came shooting for the ground. They clicked into place as alarms began blaring. Systems were heard booting up and lifeless lights began blinking again. Quaking shook the dust off the walls as sparks flew from abandoned stations. Pipes burst with steam as they looked around for a cause.
"We're trapped!" Jasper grunted as he shook the bars with calloused fists.
As Schwoz was lost for an explanation, they all looked with hope to Charlotte. She studied the room around her when she saw something eerily familiar. She opened her mouth to reveal her discovery but all she could utter was what came to mind.
"Oh boy."
"What?" the boys said synchronously.
"There's been a system installed to keep things out, like the lab I built back at the cave. Bacteria, impurities, anything that could interfere with the tech. In this case, you guys." she said gesturing to the fear-filled boys. An automatic antibacterial spray covered every inch of the room. The wet foursome jumped back as a heavy, titanium blockade was lowered and slammed to the floor, leaving not even a sound to peak through to the other side. Just before it hit the ground, Henry and Charlotte stared into each other in a way that was deeper than deep. They looked at one another with glances of paralyzing, irremediable fear. It scared her how final it felt. She was on her own now, without communication or leadership.
The guys were perfectly fine as they had each other. They began to look around for a way out. They stopped where they stood when another quake began, but it was quickly over. Schwoz examined the expensive equipment, wondering why it was never retrieved.
"Hey, I know what this is." he drew their attention, holding up a deceivingly small circular device. He fiddled with it and proceeded to press a button that immediately enveloped him in a blue dome.
"It's a forcefield! This is gold! Not as good as mine of course."
"Can you expand it? I mean in case these quakes make the room cave in on us or something." Without a word, he began tinkering with it and was able to modify it per Rays request within minutes. Charlotte was not so fortunate as to have even the beginnings of a plan.
Before she could formulate one, another quake began. It grew larger and larger as she steadied herself against the wall with tightly shut eyes. She felt like a child, trembling when the thunder shook her room. Her fear became real when she felt the rumbles coming from the other side of the wall. She could hear the room completely crumble, her defenseless friends inside. A massive wave of grief swept over her as she found everything she loved was now lost. Her whole body lost will as she fell to the floor. Her chest felt hollow as if all air was ripped from it. It tightened as wretched screams escaped it, leaving her abandoned and breathless. She choked as she tried to suck back in any remnants of oxygen. The concrete was cold against her feverish skin as she wept more violently than she knew possible.
Another quake picked up and she had to run, whether she had the sturdiness to or not. She tripped over her weary feet, but continued despite the tears that clouded her vision. Every rock and piece of rubble did not miss her. She stumbled to safety as the hallway behind her collapsed, the wall and bars falling without support. She laid flat on her back as she searched for the wind that the ceiling had knocked out of her. One hand on her side and the others knuckles rested against the remorseless concrete. The now shelterless building revealed the night sky.
She lay absolutely motionless as if adrift in the space she stared up into. There were so many stars visible, she wasn't sure how. Peace threatened her, but her distraught guilt quickly rejected the idea. Fire lit up half of her tear, sweat and blood stained face. The other half was lit by the blue lights of broken machinery. Ash floated down but she did not flinch. She had no real reason to move, let alone get up and continue on. Everything that mattered to her was ripped from her, for no purpose at all.
Then she heard a voice. Her deluded mind was unaware of whether it was internal or not. It was Henry's, she recognized the tender tone of true love. It told her to get up. It told her what she knew she needed to do, but encouraged her in a way she could not do alone. With a hiss she pulled her head off the ground and eased herself into a sitting position.
As her vision cleared the dust settled. She squinted down the hall towards what looked like a light. She did her best to climb over the rubble with her quivering legs. The hopeful light extinguished, revealing four bodies, unscathed.
The air was given back to her body and the crushing weight on her chest was lifted. New tears fell, but now they were warm. She covered her mouth with a horribly shaking hand. They approached the frail girl with fear for the terror in her eyes and her ravaged dress that hung on her beaten limbs. Henry closed the distance between them and wrapped his strong body around hers extremely delicately. Her features were dwarfed in comparison to his powerful form that made her disappear completely. After many seconds, their coil only tightened. She buried her eyes in his sweatshirt where she inhaled his scent that comforted her every fiber.
All that was heard was residual rubble that scurried to the floor and the flicker of sparks. He stood up straight and gave her a scan. As he wiped her wet and smoky face she looked at him woefully for the words she held back. She wanted to tell him that her soul didn't exist when his was proven dead. She wanted to tell him that she needed his presence to feel whole. That he was the voice that gave her stability when she had none. With a patient, regretful, and very sweet look towards her, he waited for the words he sensed. Before she could fulfill his desires, another quake began. It was thankfully short, and as it ended she unclenched his shirt from her fist.
In unison, the group let a breath of relief out.
"Thank goodness." Jasper rejoiced with a laugh. Not a moment after his thanks were expressed, did the last standing wall fall to pieces. Schwoz, Ray, and Jasper were now blocked off from Henry and Charlotte. Henry slowly stood after having sheltered her from the debris. He yelled in hopes of a voice of affirmation that his friends were ok. Her heart tossed and turned like an oceans force, caught in the jaws of the under toe.
"RAY!?...
Anyone?"
Nothing. Nothing but mass emotion filled eye lines that met amidst the silence.
"Please..." he tried again.
"Hello? That you kid?" came a speckled voice through the roughage.
"Yes, yeah, it's us!"
"Great kid, but I can barely hear ya. Head for safety ok? We'll meet ya there. Oh and hurry, this place won't hold much longer." he faded off as another quake, that proved his point, was heard from a distance. Without another word, Henry and her got moving. Her running became more than insufferable when she felt herself unwillingly slowing. What was going on! Now she was frustrated beyond words. She cried out with prayers that he'd understand.
"Henry I can't!" to which he whipped around to a stop.
"Im sorry." she sobbed. "I feel like I'm slipping, I can feel it, Im losing." ending in a fit of retched coughs. Pipes bursting around them, steam and sweat layering their skin. Alarms blaring and rumbles from beneath cause an overwhelm within her. She lacked the simplest determination. She was a rudderless vessel.
"Please Char. I know it hurts but we will get through this and I can get you to Schwoz and we can figure out what's wrong. Take my hand." he offered with his words that dripped with angst. "Ya know, so we can run twice as fast." to which she couldn't help but chuckle at. A weepy, weak chuckle, but he'd take what he could get.
"Ok." she relented with a deep breath. Her reached out hand revealed a bloody palm. He took it in his, flipping it around gently, looking for a source. He shot his eyes up when it hit him and her face drooped with the same realization. The same scarlet stains riddled her elbow, the only other place she coughed into. Now there was really no time to waste as she took her other hand in his. They raced up steps and down corridors. They weaved through destruction and climbed over the columns they once admired.
The others were running the same race against time. Sliding passed broken doorways and leaping over fallen obstacles. Their two paths led to each other as they nearly collided in the lobby. Both leaders opened their mouths to give orders when the ceiling began to crack. They turned towards the doors to find the opening was blocked off.
"Roof!" Jasper blurted as he led the way. The rush saved Ray from having to say it was smart thinking.
They quickly gathered atop the fragile structure.
"Could we repel down?" suggested the boy.
"No time, everyone huddle up. Schwoz, you still got that forcefield?" asked Ray as he wiped his brow. With a nod, they all came together, knitting their arms around each other. Just as the protective dome surrounded them, the building shattered, slipping beneath their feet like sand.
There was nothing left standing and all was settled. The forcefield blinked off and they poked their dusty heads out. By now there were swarms of reporters, police, and curious bystanders.
"This isn't the Swellview prison! Must've taken a wrong turn somewhere. When did breakin someone out become such a drag?" Ray shamelessly toyed with the crowd, "Don't mind us people, just lookin for a friend." Henry would have laughed if he was listening for anything other than her breath.
"We can take our time now Char, everything will be ok." Henry consoled as he removed his head from the crook of her neck. His hands moved from her back to her waist before they rushed to her neck where her head fell back. He pulled her to his chest with an irrefutable demand to the others.
"We gotta go." Turning to see the situation that he cradled so carefully, they immediately rose.
"Well, it was nice meeting you all! Sorry about the building!" distracted Ray as they sneaked into the van.
"Wait! We have questions!" said the many that chased them as they hopped in and drove off. They reached the man cave in no time at all. The same drive that seemed so long before was cut in half. Although it was still too long for him. Him who held her in the back. He was wrapping her in a blanket as they arrived and carried her down to the cave, not wanting to release his grip when it was time.
He lowered her down on the med bay table in the med room they hardly ever used. After mere minutes had passed, Schwoz deducted an explanation for everything. He shared how the irritability and other symptoms were caused by radiation poisoning that came from same tech they found in the building and that's most likely why it was abandoned. He elaborated on her poisoning and how his was less severe due to far less exposure. All Henry wanted to do right now was watch her peacefully sleep, knowing she was out of danger. How had the day begun? What was their mission again? These questions made a brief entrance into his mind but we're ignored for lack of care for them.
About an hour later, Charlotte peeled open her eyes. She felt an unexplainable emotion when she felt no other presence. She quickly sat up as she wrung her hands with a whimper.
"Hen?" she squeaked.
"Im so sorry!" he expressed genuinely as he rushed back in. He had strayed for only a moment to grab coffee when he heard her scared voice that barely broke through to him.
"I'm so sorry," he repeated, "that must've sucked. You won't wake up alone again, I promise."
Now that she'd awoke, Schwoz explained the science of it to them. All Henry was steadfastly focused on was how her delicate fingers were laced, intertwined and placed so softly on her knees. She wasn't focused either as she was drawn to the ambience of the room. It held an evening light that she'd never seen before, giving her a mood contradictory to her day of chaos. Shades of tan, warm sun and hints of red made her wish she sat on carpet so she could fall asleep right there. The light that painted her face changed her stormy eyes of umber into warm pools of honey with flecks of gold. Henry noticed these eyes and how they fluttered, wanting to close.
He interrupted Schwoz by taking her hand and giving it a kiss.
"Sleep." Is all he said before he left, yanking Schwoz out with him. Before she could think of a way to thank him, she was falling back into a deep sleep. Her cheeks bloomed with red in the heated room as she slumped down, sinking into the hoard of pillows. As Henry and Schwoz entered back in the cave, a very guilty pair of boys scrambled to cover the monitor with their bodies.
"What are you hiding over there?" ordered Henry.
"Nothing at all and you know what, it's not even interesting, so you should just go do whatever you were doing and not look over here for, like, the next three minutes and thirty seven seconds." Ray urged while doing his best to obscure their view.
"It's a video of Charlotte we pulled from the security cameras."
"DUDE!!!" Screamed Ray towards Jaspers inability to be stealth.
"Secrets do not encourage unity my friend."
"Why are you like this?"
"Enough" roared Henry as he shoved them both aside. The footage should have been lost when the building collapsed which led him to conclude that only a great hacker could have gotten this clip. With an accusatory glare, he turned his head towards the only person it could have been. Schwoz attempted to avoid eye contact until Henry demanded answers with merely the tone of his stare.
"Fine! I was curious ok! Don't you want to know how she reacted thinking you were dead or whatever?"
Henry turned back to the monitor with hesitation. They all watched with hope that his curiosity would overcome him. After many seconds of silent contemplation, he pressed the space bar without a word. They quickly gathered around as they watched the debacle unfold. They saw themselves get trapped and jump back when the wall came down. They felt a twinge of guilt seeing now how clearly ill she was then. They watched as they scurried under the forcefield and the room that caved in on top of it.
They watched as her knees and hands struck the ground, not of her own will as it appeared. Heavy hearts dropped and sweat threatened brows as they studied the scene before them. They stared at her feeble form sob uncontrollably as her spirit visibly fell from her body. They watched her choke on tears and dust that riddled her already damaged lungs as she wallowed in stranded defeat. The abyss of loneliness and despair reached through the screen and ripped out their hearts. Horrible loneliness that broke her beyond recall. Then they watched her run and narrowly avoid very few rocks and bits of ceiling that knocked her down to the floor, where she gave in to rest, and they didn't blame her.
They couldn't blame her for how long she laid there either. Although it made their cores churn wickedly, seeing how lifeless she looked. Then came the reunion that made them all feel better. Life was bestowed upon her again when she fell into Henry's embrace. Their wide-eyed stares had trouble leaving the monitor when it flickered black. Distraught sighs and low hanging heads made their ways to Charlotte's room. They all needed to see her content and cured in her sedation.
Quiet and warm in this room that sheltered her. She lay as motionless as before but now it had pure goodness. Those stained cheeks were now filled with color again. Those knuckles that scraped the shattered concrete were now clean and wrapped. The arms she lacked the energy to move, we're wrapped around herself in the wild cocoon of blankets they threw on her. The scrapes on her face and bruises on her back were reminders of her strength and nothing else. They would not have her write a mission report, despite her job description and it's mutually dutiful nature. But they'd worry about all that tomorrow. For now they'd just sit in the warmth of the sinking sun, under a roof they knew wouldn't crumble