Hello again! I'm proud to announce: PART DOS! I just want to say that Fenton came out kind of...odd...as I was writing him.My fingers have minds of their own when I'm typing, I swear.

Disclaimer: I still don't own the Hardy's...I'll let you know when the deal goes through...

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7:45 PM found Fenton Hardy at his desk in his study, talking on the phone with one of his several operatives. The missing man he had been asked to find had suddenly turned up on his own, only God knows why. Fenton was now trying to figure out (without actually leaving his house) where the man had been and what he had been doing, hoping that it wasn't any criminal activity because that would probably mean more work for him.

When he finally hung up, there was a tremendous BOOM that shook the house. His naturally paranoid mind jumped to explosives and bombs but quickly realized it was only thunder. Now that he was paying attention, he could also hear the rain pounding on the roof and could see lightning flashing every few seconds. BOOOOOM... he jumped at that one. "Geez...haven't seen a storm like this around here for a long while," he muttered to himself.

He was about to go check to make sure they had flashlights and candles in case the electricity went out, when there were footsteps running down the hallway. They stopped right in front of his door and knocked. Well, the footsteps didn't knock, but you get it.

Fenton went to open the door and found Frank standing there, a little breathless. "Hey, Dad. We came back a little early 'cause of the storm."

His father smiled. "I'm glad you made it back in one piece. I was just going to check on the emergency supplies."

Frank nodded as he followed Fenton down to the kitchen. "Yeah, it's raining really hard out there." He was silent for few moments, listening to the thunder shake the house. "Hey, where's Joe? I'm surprised he's not clinging to your leg or something. How did his game go, anyway?"

That made Fenton stop in his tracks. Frank saw him suddenly go pale. "Dad? Are you okay?" Then he got really worried. "Where's Joe, Dad?" he asked softly.

Without warning, Fenton ran to the front door, ripped his coat of its hook, and practically threw it on. Then he grabbed Frank's already damp coat and tossed it to him. "Put it on and get in the car."

"But, Dad "

"NOW."

Frank had never heard his father use that tone of voice before. He hurried out the door and almost instantly his coat was drenched again. He hopped into the passenger seat and had barely shut the door when his father threw the car in reverse and backed out of the driveway.

It didn't take long for Frank to figure out that they were heading to the soccer field. He suddenly felt sick. "You didn't go to Joe's game, did you, Dad?" he asked, almost timidly. There was no answer, which Frank knew was a 'no'. Fenton was driving much faster than the speed limit, but Frank realized that there was no one else out on a night like this to notice, anyway.

Fenton was heading towards the parking lot when he slammed on the brakes so hard Frank thought his seat belt was going to cut him in half. As he parked the car right there in the middle of the road, he said, "Frank, stay here."

Fenton jumped out of the car, running to the bench he had seen with a small, huddled figure sitting on it, hoping against hope that it was his son. Though he couldn't imagine that more than one idiot parent had forgotten their own child in one night.

He reached the bench just as the child looked up. "D-d-dad?"

Joe's shaking voice broke Fenton's heart, and he scooped the boy up in his arms, pressing him close to his chest. "Oh, thank God. Joe, I'm so, so sorry...so sorry." Joe was soaked to the skin and shivering rather violently. Fenton knew his own wet clothes weren't helping him. He carried Joe to the car, set him in the back seat, and quickly climbed in with him.

He stripped Joe of his wet clothes and wrapped him in a blanket that he kept in the car for emergencies. When he was finished, he sighed. He could breathe easier now; Joe was safe. His youngest son's eyes were closed, but he was still shivering (though not as bad). He glanced at Frank, who had been watching the whole scene with his eyes wide and mouth hanging open. That's when the sky decided to let loose its fury once again. BOOOOOOOM...

The thunder had shocked Fenton for a moment, but what shocked him more was Joe's scream. He knew that his son had a fear of thunderstorms before this incident. Now, it was only going to be worse. There were even tears rolling down his face. Fenton was about to comfort the boy when the door on Joe's side swung open and Frank hopped in, which surprised their father because he hadn't even heard the front passenger door open or close.

Frank put one arm around Joe's shoulders and ran his hand through Joe's hair with the other. "It's okay, little brother," he whispered soothingly. "It's okay. I got you."

Joe opened his eyes. "F-f-frank," he managed to say before he started to cough in a way that Fenton knew couldn't be good.

Snapping to attention, Fenton went back to the driver's seat and started the drive home, thinking that Laura was going to kill him.

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Fenton pulled into the double garage and noticed that his wife's car was also there. He sighed. He had hoped to get Joe in the house before she got home, though he knew there was no way to pretend this never happened. Frank would never let him do that.

He carried Joe (still wrapped in the blanket) into the house through the door in the garage, with Frank following. Laura came into the entryway. "Where have you " she broke off with a startled gasp when she saw her younger son sleeping in his father's arms. "Joe! What in the world happened?"

Frank was about to answer but Fenton said, "I'll explain later. Frank, get into some dry clothes and go to bed."

His son looked at him angrily. "But "

"Frank Matthew Hardy! This is not the time argue!" He had that tone of voice again. The boy glared at his father before running up the stairs to his room.

Laura looked extremely confused. She had never heard her husband use that tone of voice, either. "Fenton, what's going on?"

Her husband shook his head. "Just please go find Joe some pajamas."

She went to the laundry room, and when she returned to the living room she saw that Fenton had laid Joe down on the couch and had gotten blankets and pillows from the hall closet. Together, they swiftly dressed him. Then he started coughing again.

"Oh, that doesn't sound good," Laura said. She went to get some cough medicine from the bathroom. "You're going to have to wake him up. I can't give it to him while he's sleeping."

Fenton leaned over his son. "Joe...Joe, you have to wake up. We'll give you something for that cough." Suddenly, Joe gasped and put his arms around his father's neck. "Joe, you're okay," he said soothingly. "Everything's gonna be okay. You're home now. You're safe."

Upon hearing that, Joe opened his eyes. He looked around the room, reassuring himself that he was, in fact, home. Then his mother came back with the cough syrup.

"Here, honey," Laura said, putting the little plastic cup to Joe's lips. "Drink this. You'll feel better."

Without question the boy downed the cup's contents, then settled back into the pillows and fell back to sleep. His father wrapped the blankets around him, noticing that he could no longer hear any thunder or rain pounding on the roof.

He stood up, watching his son sleep. Only now did he let guilt and shame take over his emotions. So many things could have happened to Joe out there; he could have been kidnapped, he could have tried to get home but gotten lost, been bitten by an animal...

"So is he gonna be okay or what?" Laura and Fenton whirled around to see Frank standing on the stairs. They realized he had been standing there the whole time since he hadn't changed out of his wet clothes.

His mother sighed. "He'll be fine. Now, I believe your father told you to do something." As Frank turned to go up the stairs, she followed him. "I'd better make sure you do it this time."

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Okay, this is gonna be A LOT longer than I thought it would be. Part Three (which is the last part) iscoming up soon (if you want it, that is). I'm not quite finished with it so it might be a couple days before I post it.