Author's Note: Yeah it's late. School started, I finally got a chance to write. Thanks for the lovely reviewing! Hopefully this chapter flows well, I tried to makeup for it with some stuff... if I dragged this on, though, tell me please! I had to fill in quite a bit of info, I couldn't find a good ending point. If I play my cards right, mid-September should be a good deadline. I heart you all!
You'll all love to read this one...
Black and White
The sun was beginning to disappear under a mountain peek by the time Danny and Sam landed firmly on the deck to their apartment. On their way back, they noticed the herds of people on foot and snowmobiles surrounding the area up to a mile, and a few helicopters as well. Despite all of the effort being put into finding Rachel, no sign of her had been found. That fact was known very well to the girl and phantom on the deck.
"All that time and no clue of where she is," complained Sam. "Except for that nonesense the Box Ghost told us."
"Didn't really help much, did it?" asked Danny, taking this time to change back into human form. He instantly began to shiver. "Man, it is cold out here. I guess I'm used to cold as a ghost. How'd you survive out here?"
Shrugging, Sam reached out for the handle to the glass door. She hesitated and put a finger to her lips, telling Danny to be quiet. She leaned closer to the door...
"If you can't tell me where they are, I'll have to file both of them missing."
"Oh, they should be here somewhere," said Tucker's louder than normal voice. "I'm sure they didn't get far!"
Danny hit his head hard. "Man! I forgot about the double." He grabbed the handle from Sam and pulled it open. Tucker sighed in relief and the man with the clipboard and annoyed expression. "Um... looking for us?" he asked, smiling innocently. Sam stood next to him, copying the look.
Tucker smiled as well, crying out in an overdramatic tone, "Danny! Sam! How did you two slip past me? I thought you were in the bathroom." He said the last part with a hint of a growl.
"I guess you were too absorbed in your precious computer, Tuck," said Sam, smirking. After that, the man didn't ask any questions and left without another word, leaving the three alone.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN MY PARENTS ARE COMING?"
While Sam was almost knocked over in surprise at his outburst, Tucker had had a while to prepare for this. "They called about an hour ago," he explained. "They saw the news and at the first mention of ghosts, you know what they do."
Danny slumped down against his bed and hit his head on the side. Just great. He already had the hotel employees and Ash to worry about noticing they were missing, but now his parents would be here. "What exactly did they say?"
"Well, your double picked up the phone and was talking weird," said Tucker, "so I had to say you'd caught a cold and..."
"Are you nuts?" Danny exclaimed. "My mom's going to check on me every two minutes now, along with the ghost thing! My dad will probably think it's the ghost flu or something."
Sam smiled and rolled her eyes. "But you were right, Tucker," she said. Before Tucker could get too excited, she finished with, "We know what they do. Ghost-hunting. Which means they'll be too busy to bother us, and Danny and you can still search for Rachel."
Leave it to her to point out the obvious again.
This idea put Danny in a slightly better mood, but the knowledge that his parents would still be at the hotel in about two hours dulled it. He sighed and leaned back on his bed. "Good point, Sam," he said. "Tomorrow morning, Tucker and I will start searching for her... but wait," he added, sitting up to look at his friends. "Don't you think that maybe we should search some tonight? Who knows what a few hours will mean for the ghost? For all we know, he could start up an avalanche in five minutes and all of today would be wasted!"
Tucker held a hand up to calm him down. "Chill, dude," he said. "No ghost is going to make a avalanche any time soon. Some guy has to find her first."
"So all we have to do is wait for some sad, lovestruck kid to chase after his crush and then we're all set!" Sam said with sarcastic happiness.
A faint grumbling sound reached Danny's ears at the same time a small pang went through his stomach. He checked the clock on the wall and read that it was nearing six. He hadn't eaten a decent meal all day. "You're right," he said, standing up and walking to his suitcase. The shirt he was wearing wasn't thick enough to protect from the cold outside well, but inside he was feeling toasty. He stripped off the sweater and pulled on a navy blue T-shirt. "Right now, I'm hungry and need something normal to do. Do you know if we're allowed out of our rooms yet, Tucker?"
"At six thirty they're going to let us down to eat one floor at a time, since not everyone can afford room service," he explained. "Lucky for us they decided to go from top to bottom."
"What, you don't have enough junk stuffed in this room to fill you up?" asked Sam, prodding his suitcase with her foot. She had gotten up from her bed and walked across the room when Danny started changing out of modesty.
Tucker laughed as he walked to the trash ridden table that his laptop lay on. "Reasearch works up an appetite," he said, piling the plastic and paper into a trash can. "Plus I have a high metabolism, which is why I eat lots of meat."
Slightly agitated, she replied, "That doesn't make any sense, Tucker, since breads and plenty of veggies have more fiber."
"Let's not get into this, please," Dannycalled from the other side of the room.
"Speaking of the computer, did you learn anything?"
In an instant Tucker was back at the computer, clicking on an icon on his desktop. "I compiled all the information I could in as little space as possible," he said in quite the excited tone. "I have like four people who are helping me full time now when they found out that it was actually on the news. Maybe they think they'll get credit or something, but anyway… I have one person sending me the names of all the people who were killed in the avalanches, another trying to find a pattern in the mountains the avalanches occurred in… all sorts of stuff!"
The sight of Tucker's childish excitement at the cooperation of the forum members, which was a little impressive, even to Sam, made her smile. She crossed her arms and leaned toward Danny, whispering, "He looks like he's ready to wet himself, doesn't he?" Danny laughed loudly and Tucker looked up in confusion, causing Sam to laugh as well.
"Okay, okay, anyways," Danny said once he'd calmed down, "that's all good. Did you find anything new, though?"
Tucker's brow furrowed and he turned back to the screen, scrolling down the list. "Um… well, I looked at the efforts made in the last five kidnappings to find them. They seem to have added considerably more resources every year. Before then I couldn't find enough information. They've gone full out this time, which I'm sure you guys probably noticed. Helicopters, snowmobiles, and I think that on one report I streamed, if they don't find her by tomorrow they're bringing in the National Guard…. Also, I think you should know this," he added, pointing to a spot on the screen. "Ghost hunters from around the state are coming here, apparently, not just your parents."
Danny's hand connected with his face for not the first time that day. "Brilliant. Man, if someone ecto-blasts me thinking I'm the Specter I'm gonna be pissed."
"Do you think," Sam said thoughtfully, "that if your parents heard about it, that maybe Valerie has? Or maybe Vlad?"
"Vlad's probably known about the Specter since forever," Danny said. "You know how creepily ominous he is. As for Valerie, dear God I hope her dad keeps her from coming here." Even over a year since the Pariah Dark incident where he and Valerie had had a temporary truce (which he most likely ruined when he revealed her identity to her dad), she still chased him through the skies of Amity. As Danny's powers evolved, so did her skills, so the two had been a nearly even match for longer than Danny cared to relive.
Tucker turned in his chair to Sam and Danny. "So, what? Once we're allowed downstairs, do you think we can get a good grip on what's going on?"
Nodding, Danny thought aloud, "And maybe afterwards I can go intangible and listen in on what the police are saying."
"Good idea," said Sam. She looked at him with concern. "Just make sure that you get to bed before three or something… we don't want you half asleep tomorrow when you and Tucker look around."
Despite himself, he smiled and turned away. Why did such a small comment suddenly make his stomach flip? "I'm used to late nights, Sam," he said. "No worries."
"You have a point."
Tucker coughed loudly, catching Danny's attention. "And the dinner bell is ringing," he said, indicating the time. 6:28.
The three of them entered the hallways, seemingly at the same exact time as most of those staying on this floor. Something occurred to Danny and he turned to Sam. "What floor is Ash on?"
Sam raised an eyebrow. "Second. Why?"
He shrugged and tried to act cool, walking ahead of Tucker and her. "I dunno," he said. "Just wondering if he'd get to eat with us."
"So you don't get some kind of bad vibe from him anymore?" Sam asked, smiling hopefully.
Tucker took the shining opportunity and spoke before Danny could. "No, Danny's cool with him now," he explained. "The whole over-protective brother thing, you know?" Under his breath he mumbled, "I still say you're just working him." Sam rolled her eyes and glared at him.
"Am not, and you might want to silence yourself. I sleep in your room, and I know where the kitchenware is, if you catch my drift."
"Hey, Danny!" Tucker yelped. He ran ahead of her to where he stood, leaving Sam to smirk behind them, hands in the pockets of her hoodie.
Danny hit his head against the windowpane repeatedly. Tucker stood next to him, shaking his head at the pathetic sight, while Sam stood at a distance. "You're overreacting," she sang for the twentieth time since they ate dinner.
Danny paused for a moment to look at her and say, "I know," before busying himself with self-inflicted pain again.
At that moment, the lobby filled with cameras and police officers was now filled with two more people and enough bags and weapons to take the space of four.
"Where's that blasted ghost?"
"Still think I'm overreacting?" Danny mumbled.
"Yep," said Tucker. "You should be used to this after sixteen years."
Two pairs of arms wrapped around Danny's neck. "My baby, why are you down here if you have a cold? You should be upstairs!"
Danny ducked from under his mother's arms and backed away. "I'm fine, mom, really! I think it was just, like… a two hour cold. You know, there have been cases reported everywhere, you know… yeah." He rubbed the back of his neck and smiled.
Maddie leaned forward, examining her son's face. "Well… you don't look sick. You don't have a fever," she said, placing her hand on her head. "I suppose… are you sure you're okay?"
"Yes! Yes, I am a-okay, Mom!" he cried, relieved that she was buying it.
From behind her, his dad suddenly appeared, holding a rather large weapon threateningly and looking around suspiciously. Behind him a male officer glared with authority. "Sir, if you would please holster your weapon. If you're here to join the search parties, we need you to sign a few forms on your area of…" he looked the Fentons up and down. "Expertise."
Just as suddenly as they're made their entrance, his parents were ushered to another room. Danny sighed and leaned his head back. "Did I mention how much I love road trips?"
"A few times, yeah," Tucker said from behind him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Let's go, man. The next floors are supposed to be coming down soon for dinner… hey you think we can get another plate of that lasagna? It was the best!"
"No, Tucker," reprimanded Sam. "This place is full of authority figures. I'm disturbed. Let's go back to our room."
The next morning, Sam was awakened by the annoying jingles from Tucker's PDA. She buried her face in her pillow and tried to recall her dream so she could slip back into it… something about the mountains… only it was warm… and someone was there… Ash? She smiled into her pillow. At least, until her canopy was pulled back and light flooded through her eyelids. "Wakey, wakey, tofu eggs and bac-y!" sang Tucker's voice.
She groaned and reluctantly sat up, eyes closed tightly. "Quit watching cartoons once in a while, why don't you?" she mumbled, referring to the quote he'd used.
"Sam, it's ten," said Tucker, pointing at the clock. "And I need you to wake Danny up somehow. I think he's dead."
Sam rolled her eyes. "I told him not to spy on the police for so long," she exclaimed. She crawled over to his bed and sat next to him. She leaned towards his ear and mustered all of her agitation into two words.
"WAKE UP!"
Screaming, Danny jumped up and fell sideways, his head and one arm hanging over the side of the bed. He pulled himself up and stared at Sam in utter shock. "Holy Christ, Sam!" he cried. "What was that about?"
Standing up and pulling a random outfit out of her suitcase, she said, "If I have to go through Tucker's sun-shiny torture, so do you." She looked at Tucker and tried to tame her tangled hair. "You owe me coffee. Make it now." With that she entered the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face.
Well, it was better than the way her parent's woke up. Slightly.
Once everyone was awake and more-or-less happy, the three made their way downstairs. Danny and Tucker would check in with the Fentons before going back upstairs to search for Rachel. Sam would man the fort, keeping up with all the emails Tucker was sent and doing a bit of searching of her own. However, since the initial shock of the kidnapping was over with, they were allowed to enter other rooms. She had every intention of inviting Ash into their room so she wouldn't be lonely… and she had every intention of keeping him at a distance most of the time.
Danny poured himself a cup of coffee, aside from the one he'd had in their room, and sat at the table with his friends and Ash, who had joined them yet again. "I talked to my parents. They are about to leave with the first group. I think they've gotten enough ghost hunters here to have at least four accompany every party."
Ash nodded from across the table. "Your parents hunt ghosts. I knew that if you guys were from Amity Park, you'd know a ton about ghosts, but a family of hunters? That's sick." He turned to Sam and ran his fingers over her hand. "I bet you've had loads of fun living in that town."
Sam shrugged. "Never a dull moment with Danny as your friend," she said, winking at the other two boys. Danny and Tucker exchanged glances when she looked away.
"Danny and I are going to head back upstairs," Tucker said, setting his silverware down and yanking Danny by his shoulder. "I need a shower and Danny's gonna take a nap or something.
"I wish," he mumbled under his breath as the two walked away, leaving Sam and Ash alone. Comforting thoughts.
Sam followed Tucker and Danny's backs until they disappeared from view. It was now about eleven o' clock, and she wasn't expecting those two to be back until late afternoon. She felt a cool pressure against her cheek and turned, her lips connecting with Ash's. She closed her eyes and let him kiss her softly for a few moments before pulling back. Taking a final sip of her juice, she took his hand and led him away from their table. "Air hockey?" He nodded and wrapped an arm around her waist, leading her to the arcade.
Just as Sam and Ash were about to begin playing, she felt someone tap her shoulder. She turned around and found herself eye level with Mrs. Fenton. "Oh, uh... hi, Mrs. Fenton," she said, slightly surprised. "I thought you were joining the search party?"
"There's been a postponement," she explained, frowning. "Where's Danny?"
"He's taking a nap... he didn't get good rest last night," she explained.
Maddie sighed. "That sounds too much like him," she murmured. Turning her attention back to Sam, she said, "Well, I'm not supposed to tell anyone this. It's suppsoed to stay away from the media, but you're a good kid. I trust you, and I'd like for you to tell Danny."
Now Sam was interested. "Tell him what, Mrs. Fenton?"
"A young boy who was in the group with Rachel Kline has snuck out somehow," she said solemnly. "Paul Kahler. They're reorganizing the parties to search in the areas they'd searched yesterday. Jack and i are going to be on the teams searching for Rachel. Can you tell Danny."
Sam bit her lip. The final warning had come sooner than she'd thought. "Uh... yeah. I'll tell him. Good luck."
"Oh, thanks sweetie," she said before walking out of the room toward the main lobby.
Sam sighed and leaned against the table. Behind her, Ash whispered, "Everything okay?"
At the door to their room, Sam put a hand on Ash's chest signaling him to stop. "Look, I have to go in here by myself real quick, okay? I'll come back out and let you in later." She pulled the key out of her pocket and unlocked the door. "I have to stay in the room for a while to do stuff. Do you want to stay, too?"
"What do you think?" he said, smiling deviously.
She opened the door and slipped in. No signs of the boys, so she knew they'd already left. On the table was a walkie-talkie. Danny had the other. She picked it up and pressed the talk button. "Danny! Tucker! One of you, pick up!"
"What is it?" came the quick reply of Danny's voice. "Do you need us to come back?"
"No," said Sam, "but we have another problem. The second part of the equation's gone."
Danny cursed into the walkie-talkie. "The guy's already missing?"
"Afraid so. I don't think the media knows yet. Your mom told me. The good news is that they're researching the areas they searched yesterday, so less traffic where you'll be looking. The bad news -"
"Our deadline just got shorter."
"Exactly. Look, Ash is outside waiting to come in. He thinks both of you are here. What do I tell him?"
There was a breif pause on Danny's end. Finally, he answered, "Say we went down before you got there and joined a search team with my parents." They exchanged their good-byes and Sam rushed to the door to let Ash in.
Hours later, Sam sat at the computer, impatiently waiting for whatever email was supposed to come through. The two had watchedthree movies and talked about more things than she could recall. Now, Ash was channel flipping, laying back on Danny's bed (it just so happened to be the middle one). It was just past five, and they'd spent most of the day in their room, save for a late lunch downstairs and breaks for when Sam talked to Danny or Tucker.
"Alright," Ash finally said, setting down the remote. "I've been patient. I have to know now. What the bloody hell are you waiting for?"
Sam shot her eyes to the side, not moving her head from the screen. "Stuff for Tucker."
"You seem awfully eager to get a look at it."
"It's important... in fact..." The closed mailbox suddenly popper open with a yellow envelope. "Success," she whispered, moving the mouse.
Ash leans back on the bed and gazed at her with polite interest. "What stuff exactly?"
She shrugged. "Just ghost stuff. Tucker took an interest in the legend, and he wanted something from a friend." She clicked the icon and read the new email.
Sender: Victims List - Sorry Late
Hey, MM! ProudTechLover asked for these and told me to just email them to you. Knew you two were tight! Anyway, this is a list of all of the victims of kidnappings/avalanches around this date every year since they began. Some years are missing. I have links to the place I found the name. I hope this somehow helps you!
Below was a long list of names per year, one boy, one girl. She scrolled up and down, scanning before she seriously began to read it. The first year was in the 80s, around the time the legend popped up.
The first name was Alice Tollison. The second name was Ashton Highlander.
Sam sucked in a breath and stared at the name. She glanced to the boy sitting on her friend's bed, the boy who looked hardly older than herself. And very not dead. He was looking at her with concern. "Are you okay?"
Must be the same name, she thought. However, something told her to click the link next to the name. Following her instincts, she moved her mouse to the blue words. An archive of obituaries appeared, and the third down, next to a very pretty girl with shiny hair, was a boy of seventeen. A black and white photo, but she knew that the eyes were a piercing green.
She turned around defensively, suddenly realizing the truth. Ash was standing behind her, staring at the floor and frowning.
"I knew you'd figure it out," he whispered silently. "You're smart. You're strong. Just like Alice." He looked up slowly and smiled. "Just like her."
Sam glared. "What do you want with me? Where's Rachel? Where's Paul?" She took a step back from him. "What are you if your not a ghost? WHY DID I TRUST YOU?"
Ash's smile grew more crazed, but his eyes were huge with an emotion that did't fit: fear. "I'm not the only one not worthy of trust," he hissed. Before her eyes, he transformed in a cloud of fog. Pale green skin, hair blacker and deeper than before, and eyes that seemed caught somewhere between green and red, as if they couldn't decide.
Sam opened her mouth to scream, but suddenly hands reached out from behind her and clamped over her mouth. Ash raised a hand toward her, his insane grin fading, and then all she knew was blackness.
Author's Note: Well... I think I did the scene justice. Long chapter, longest I've written to date I believe. Okay, everyone knew from chapter three who Ash was: now it's confirmed. Yay! No, wait, not yay! Bad! I hope you all have a lot to say. I'm proud that I wrote this in one night... whle it's been waiting for two weeks... oops. Well, I love you all! I'll try to update faster!
XKismetX