Chapter 9
And now… the end is near… Okay guys, here we go, the very last full chapter of Lilacs. I'm SOOOOOO sorry for the wait and I appreciate your patience more than you will EVER know!
Mmkay! Before I forget, I have to thank Rose Garden twilight because she helped a bit with this chapter. Also, props to my lovely friend Miniyuna because she drew such a lovely fanpic for this story on dA!
The whole story in itself goes out to Me the Anon One. I love you, NONNY! You're such an amazing help to me, I can't even begin to tell you! You deserve this, hun.
I may rewrite this fic… just change some of the style because I have grown as a writer since I started it. The story won't change, just some of the other things.
Also, this chapter is intense in parts. You have been warned.
Danny's eyes widened. "So that means… someone's been making her sick on purpose…"
"Yes, but the question is who, how and why?"
Danny's currently blue eyes flashed green. Suddenly Clockwork's riddle made perfect sense. "I think I have a pretty good idea of who and suddenly I don't really care about the how and why…" Without giving any explanation for his exclamation to his mother, which he assumed she should have been used to, he dashed out of the lab.
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Vlad let out an ear-piercing scream, only slightly less damaging than Danny's ghostly wail. "NO!"
"Sir…?" the Knight asked.
"I should have known! I'm always underestimating that boy…" Vlad muttered to himself. "He figured out what I've been doing to his precious Samantha. Well, no matter, he's still in the dark enough that I can still make this work to my advantage…"
"Sir…?"
Vlad was completely ignoring the Fright Knight, but he usually did. "I just have to get to that poor little princess before Daniel does…"
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Sam, out of boredom, decided that it was time to take up her quest for the library again. She was pretty sure she had figured out how the castle worked. It was quite obviously bewitched, but all one really had to do was trust that one would get where one wanted to go, eventually. So she began to walk through the palace corridors, with only the intention of maybe finding the library someday in the near future. There was no need to find it anymore, she just felt like it.
After about twenty minutes of wandering, she found a doorway that lead into the library. She smiled to herself and walked in, going straight to the first stack of books she saw.
She made a mental note to keep track of the time because there was the final ball tonight. She grinned giddily to herself. As much as she hated to sink down to the so-called "lady's" level, Sam couldn't wait to see Paullina's face when Danny chose Sam.
Sam's breath caught in her throat. She needed to talk to Danny. She couldn't go on lying to him this way. She decided to go find him and walked back toward the door of the library.
"Hello, Samantha…"
Sam looked up at the last person she wanted to see. "L-lord Masters… um… can I help you?"
"Actually, you can." He pulled out a syringe full of sickening dark green ectoplasm. Vlad pulled Sam flush against him, but she barely had time to freak out before he jammed the needle of the syringe into her thigh. "You can help me by ruining Daniel's life forever." He caught Sam as she fainted and carried her back to her room by going intangible, where lay her down in her bed. "Such a waste…" he murmured. It was striking how much of Maddie he saw in this girl. She was like a younger version of his love, but with a bigger attitude. He shrugged it off. Soon, she would be dead and his plan would be completed. Vlad's cloak swished as he exited her room. He triggered the modified ghost shield, the one he'd used to imprison Danny, on Sam's room, but in reverse so that no one could get in, instead of out. He could not have Daniel screwing this up, not when he'd come so far, he was too close to victory. Nearly twenty years of planning, scheming, blackmailing, threatening, bribery, and countless other underhanded deeds were about to come full circle and he would not let Danny's heroics ruin everything now.
Vlad sighed as he walked down the hallway before falling against the wall, finally wondering, after a little over seventeen years, what was in this for him. Sure, he would see young Daniel's life completely ripped apart, but it wasn't really revenge. Danny would surely never become his ally. Jack still wouldn't be dead. Jazz, confident and capable, would take the throne. And Maddie would still not be his. He hadn't ever stopped pining for her, dreaming of her constantly, but he had given up hope that they would ever be together. She was completely devoted to Jack and the kingdom. So what was the point? Why go through all the trouble just to make Danny's life hell? When had he become so vengeful towards a boy who hadn't ever really done anything to him?
He was a villain. That's what he had become. A villain, so corrupted by life and what he couldn't have that he was taking out his rage on a boy who was really no different than himself. His true self, not this self that was evil. Evil enough to make that boy suffer, just so someone would suffer just as Vlad himself had. He really had nothing to speak of against Danny. Danny was his godchild, after all. He'd helped raise the boy, even when he'd already set to work on killing the girl he knew Danny would one day love. He'd always cared for the prince and treated him like a son. But Daniel wasn't his son. He never would be.
Oh, when had he become such a nihilist! Nothing mattered to him, so therefore he should destroy it all, even everything he loved!
Vlad stood and silently renewed his resolve. No. It was too late to stop now. The plan had to be carried out. Moment of weakness: over. Daniel had this coming. If only that stupid boy had just done what Vlad had asked of him, this wouldn't have had to happen. But it was happening now and there was no way to stop it.
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Danny didn't care who saw him. He flew intangibly all the way from the lab to Sam's room. Only to be stopped. He turned human and tried again, even though he knew he would still be blocked.
He swore loudly when he realized Vlad had gotten to her first.
And even though he knew it wouldn't work either, Danny collapsed to the floor and began pounding his fist against the door. He didn't know for sure, but he had the utterly sickening feeling that Sam, his friend, his beloved princess, his love, lay on the other side of that door, dying and all alone. Danny didn't even try to stop the tears that came flowing down his face. "Sam! Sam! Please!" He called her name endlessly, futilely. She wouldn't hear. "Oh God, why!" he cried, not caring who heard, not caring who saw, not caring anymore about anything except getting to Sam. "Why? Why, why, why, why, why! Why Sam! Why did it have to be her!"
A shadow was suddenly cast over him. "Because you love her, Daniel. That's why," a cold sinister voice that Danny wished he didn't know so well answered.
The young prince stood up, went ghost and whirled around to see Vlad. "You!" He bellowed, lunging at the older man and shoving him up against the wall on the other side of the hallway. "YOU! Why did you do this to her! Why couldn't you have just killed me and gotten it over with! Why did you have to kill her!"
"There are things so much worse than death, Daniel. I wanted you to suffer."
Danny just glowered harder, his green eyes flashing red for a moment. "Let me in there or you'll pay! I swear I'll make you pay!"
Vlad just gave Danny his wicked smirk. "Resorting to idle threats, my boy? You and I both know you don't stand a chance against me."
Danny growled. "I'm willing to risk it. Let. Me. In." His face paled as the extremely muffled sound of violent coughing and retching reached the two halfas. Danny broke down; he didn't care what happened to Vlad, he just wanted to get in there and save Sam. "Please, just let me in there! Just let me save her! I swear, I'll marry anyone you want and never see her again as long as you let me save her first!"
"No, my boy. It's too late. She'll be sick all day, I'm afraid. And when she doesn't show up at tonight's closing ball, she'll be disqualified. And then she's going to die. Tonight, perhaps, in her sleep. After, of course, she hears the news that you'll be marrying someone else. That you were just playing with her. That you never really loved her; she'll die brokenhearted and hating you."
Danny released Vlad and began to run off to find his mother. She'd never let Vlad get away with this.
"And if you tell your parents, I'll expose your secret to the entire kingdom… and with hatred of ghosts being as high as it is these days… well… let's just say your debonair, Prince Charming act won't be enough to save you from the wrath of your subjects."
Danny growled again. "You're low. You're lower than low," he spat, "You're so full of hate, even the Devil himself can't stand you!"
"Foolish boy!" Vlad punched him in the gut, backed by a little bit of ectoplasm that put a good sized bruise on Danny's torso. "I am the Devil!"
Danny groaned in pain and clutched his stomach as he fell to the floor in agony.
"You stupid, stupid, stupid boy! You don't realize at all! I've been planning all of this since before you were born!"
The young prince gaped at the elder lord. "H-how?"
Vlad threw his head back and laughed maniacally. "I tortured Clockwork until he showed me your future. Showed me everything. Even your precious little princess. And as soon as she was born, I began injecting her with a poison ectoplasm of my own creation, so it would slowly, painfully torment her, make her sick until at exactly this time, when I planned for this contest to take place, she would die. Everything leading up to this moment, Daniel, has been planned by me… except for that bastard, Dr. Li… he nearly ruined everything."
"All this? Just to get back at my dad? Just because you couldn't have my mom?"
"Yes, my boy."
"You're sick," Danny spat. "Sick and obsessed. You're killing an innocent girl just to make my life hell! That doesn't sound just a little bit crazy to you?"
Vlad just gave Danny a severe look and answered, "No." He grinned evilly at the younger halfa. "You can stay here and brood all you want, my boy, but I expect you at that ball tonight."
"Go die."
"Oh… scary. Just remember Danny, there are worse things I could do to that girl than kill her." There was a lusty look in Vlad's eye that filled Danny with rage he'd never experienced before in all his life.
"Fine… I'll be there," he muttered disdainfully.
"Good boy," Vlad Plasmius' cloak swished dramatically as he turned and walked away from Danny, who was still trying to nurse his throbbing wound.
And Danny finally broke down completely and wept. He fell back against Sam's door and kept crying. Silent tears. No sobbing, no trembling shoulders, just silent tears streaming down his cheeks. Before, at least there had been a chance that Sam could be saved, but now… even his mom did find the cure, he couldn't get it to her. As much as he hated to admit it, Vlad was right. Danny's power was great, but he couldn't hold a candle to the elder, much more experienced halfa. And he couldn't tell his parents. Jack wouldn't believe him in the first place and Maddie was just as powerless as Danny. Even if Vlad was in love with her, he wouldn't hesitate to kill her too. He was willing to destroy everything, that much was clear to Danny now.
But then it hit him. Clockwork. Surely, Danny's mentor and friend could do something! Even if Danny was angrier at Clockwork than he had ever been in his entire life. The time ghost had betrayed him… But if torture worked once, Danny thought bitterly, maybe he's weaker than I thought…
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"Ahh, Danny, I was wondering what was keeping you."
"Why would you tell Vlad about my future? You knew he would just try to do something evil!"
"Danny, I know you're upset, but-"
"Upset! Clockwork, I trusted you! More than anyone!"
"There's a reason that I told Vlad everything that I did. But I didn't tell him everything."
"Like?"
"Sam's more resilient than both of you are giving her credit for. She's a remarkable young woman, Danny. Did you think the universe would decide to pair you with anyone less? No, a truly exceptional, slightly misguided boy like you, Danny, needs a truly exceptional guide… and love."
Danny blinked, very taken aback. It made sense. Before Sam, Danny had been completely reckless. He'd run off to fight ghosts, ditch important events, generally be the bad boy, the rebel of the family. He thrived on disrespect for authority. Then, of course, he'd turn around to face the public with a charming smile and all would be forgiven. He wasn't lying when he told the Princess that his job was to cause trouble. But the moment Sam had walked into his life, that had all changed. Well, not all of it, he still disliked people telling him what to do and he still liked to cause trouble, but he didn't want to be so reckless anymore. He wanted to be there for Sam.
"I also didn't tell him that the cure would be extremely easily found by your mother. I also never told him about Dr. Li," Clockwork continued.
"What about Dr. Li?"
Clockwork gave Danny his nearly-reassuring, omniscient smile. "His bloodline has passed along a resistance to anything run on ectoplasmic energy."
Danny gave his mentor a confused look.
"Think about it Danny, time is running out."
Danny looked desperately at Clockwork's screen, the one the time ghost used to monitor the world. "Can I see her? Please? Just one little peek?"
"I don't think that's a very good idea, Daniel," Clockwork said seriously. He only used "Daniel" when he really meant it. "I think even you know that she doesn't want you to see her when she's like this."
"Clockwork, please…" Danny begged. "I love her, I just want to know that she's not dead yet."
The time ghost smiled. That was one of the few things he hadn't expected: just how far Danny would fall for Sam. The boy's passion and love for the princess had sincerely surprised Clockwork, something that had only been done a few times before. "Alright, but just be prepared, Danny. Vlad has actually been killing her. When she's like this, she's not the Sam you know."
"I don't care. I just want to see her."
Clockwork waved his hand over the screen and it was as though a camera were zooming in on Sam's face from the ceiling.
Her body was writhing in her bed, obviously in pure agony. Her skin, everywhere, was an almost sickly green color, from the ectoplasm. As it got closer to her face, Danny could see that her sharp, beautiful features were clenched on her face; eyes squeezed shut, mouth twisted in an odd manner. Her fists clutched so tightly at her blanket that her knuckles were white. She was sweating, her face was pale-ish green, and her normally shiny black hair was duller and matted to her forehead.
Danny's own face paled when he fully realized what he was seeing. He'd known. Known that she was dying, but seeing her like that… gave it more reality than he was ready to accept. And acceptance of things that he considered wrong, unjust or just plain didn't like was not in Danny's nature. He was a lover and a fighter. He loved with all his heart and fought just as hard for those he held dear. He reached out and his fingers graced the screen where her flushed cheek was displayed, disturbing the liquid that the screen was made of. Tears threatened to fall from his eyes again. It nearly killed him to see Sam like that… "Oh… God…"
Clockwork said nothing about how he had indeed warned Danny. "She's strong. Stronger than this, trust me."
"Just tell me, is she going to die?"
"Danny, you've already asked me that. And my answer is the same as before."
"I know… I just keep getting this overwhelming feeling that if she dies… I won't be far behind."
"It will be what it will be." Clockwork removed the image of the tormented Sam from the screen. "Daniel, I want you to do something for me," he began seriously. "I want you to go out into the lilac grove and sleep. Just think and take a little nap."
"Clockwork, with all due respect, I don't think I can sleep at a time like this."
"But you must. It is only when we are falling asleep and waking up that things are most clear to us."
Danny sighed. "Alright… I'll try."
Clockwork smiled fondly at his young friend and pupil as he flew off to the lilac grove. "Don't worry, Danny… all is as it should be." The time ghost wasn't worried. Vlad may have had carefully calculated his evil scheme for nineteen years, but Clockwork had been working on this since the moment he'd come into existence. He wasn't worried about Sam, whatever happened to her was win-win. If she died, she would finally be put out of the misery she lived in, not just with her illness, but living surrounded by people who despised her. If she lived, she would have happiness with Danny, whom Clockwork knew she loved with all her heart, just as passionately as Danny did. But Clockwork wasn't worried about Danny either. He was merely a little concerned with how much Danny had fixated himself on Sam. It wasn't necessarily a human thing to do… He watched as Danny settled himself on a branch in the lilac grove. Yes, all was as it should be.
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Danny landed comfortably in a lilac tree, leaning against the trunk. He tipped his face to the sun that was peeking through the purple blossoms. It was strange that they were still in perfect bloom this late, but he supposed at least one thing should be going right for him… then again… He was one of the rare few that actually fell in love with someone who loved them back. Even if she did die, at least he would have had this time with her. It wasn't as much time as he wanted, but… it was some, at least. More than most people got. More than Vlad got. And that's when it suddenly hit him that he had had what Vlad never did. Time with the girl he loved. Vlad couldn't make ruin anything now because Danny had had time with Sam and no matter what happened, he would always have memories of this past month with her.
The speckled light warmed his face and Danny closed his eyes, thinking about Clockwork's riddle pertaining to Dr. Li. A resistance to anything dealing in ectoplasm? Hmm…
It was then that Danny fell into a light sleep, dreaming of every single time he'd met Sam in this same place.
He slept almost happily for about two hours before waking up with a sudden revelation. A resistance to anything ectoplasmic! Of course! The shield, no matter what it blocked, was powered and maintained with ectoplasm, therefore, Dr. Li could open the door as easily as if it were any other.
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Sam woke up in severe pain. She thrashed against her sheets as though they had bound her. "Oh… help… Danny…" she moaned in agony. "Help… please…" Her mind adjusted to functioning under the pain and some form of coherent thought returned to her.
She remembered Vlad and then a sharp pain in her thigh. Every cell in her body was screaming for relief from the pain and her body told her that she was dying. She knew she was dying too. Her bouts of sickness had never been this bad. "Danny… I need to talk to you… please Danny…" she called out in her delirium. She twisted back and forth against the mattress, desperately trying to find some way to alleviate the pain. The only thing she could think of was somehow getting to Danny, or getting him to come to her. She had to talk to him.
Dr. Li had told her to hang on, not to lose hope. But now seemed like a pretty good time to lose it. She was going to die alone in that bed, while ectoplasm slowly ate her away. And Danny was never going to know. He would forever remember her as a liar. She rolled onto her side and closed her eyes, praying that if she fell asleep, she would not wake up.
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Flying up to his mother's lab, where he guessed the doctor would be helping his mother with a cure, Danny landed stealthily. It was better not to draw any attention to himself because this was his mother's top secret lab. The one Vlad didn't know about. He realized now why Clockwork had suggested having one.
Danny chuckled to himself. That time ghost… always helping even though he claimed he couldn't… "Mom?"
"Hi sweetie! You'll be happy to know that Dr. Li and I," the doctor smiled at Danny, "are very close to a cure. A few more hours at most!" Maddie said happily. She had never it expected it to take such a short amount of time.
Danny's eyes lit up. "That's great, Mom! But, could you spare Dr. Li for a moment?"
"Yes. I'll be fine on my own for awhile," Maddie answered.
"Good. Dr. Li, could you come with me?"
"Of course, your highness," Dr. Li turned and bowed to the Queen. "Your majesty," he acknowledged and followed Danny down the hallway. "What do you need, Danny?"
"Well, I know who's been making Sam sick."
"Why didn't you tell the Queen?"
"It's complicated. In any case, Sam's room has been shielded by ectoplasm so that neither ghosts nor humans can get in."
"I see. And how do you know that I can get through it?"
"There's a ghost called Clockwork. He told me."
Dr. Li smiled. "You went into the Ghost Zone, even with your powers, that's very dangerous. And yes, I know about your powers. Your mother told me. Yet, even with that danger, you went in. You must really love Sam."
Danny sighed. "Like you have no idea."
"So, you can't get into see her?"
"Yes, and the bastard who's been making her sick has accelerated the rate at which the poison ectoplasm is killing her. I just want to know that someone's in there, watching her."
"It's nice to see someone else who actually cares about Sam and not the princess."
"What do you mean?"
"I've known Sam since before she was born, your highness, and before she came here, I was the only one who ever actually cared for her well-being. She's always been like my daughter," he sighed heavily. "Sam didn't have a happy life, Danny."
Danny smiled, chagrinned. "I kinda figured."
"Her parents were cold to her because the complications that occurred during her birth had made her mother unable to have anymore children. No more children, no son. She actually has intelligence and therefore, all of the stupid lords in Casper hated her and the girls in Casper… well, let's just say that Sam is quite a rare find there. She has morals." Dr. Li ran a hand through his brown hair, which was slightly graying at the temples now. "I'm so glad that she found you."
"Dr. Li, don't take this the wrong way, but is it possible that you're Sam's real father?"
Dr. Li laughed. "No! Not a chance! For one thing, I was the doctor on-call in the hospital when she was born. I hadn't known the King and Queen personally until that night. And second, that would entail me having to be attracted to the Queen, which would have to involve me NOT hating her."
Danny laughed. "And this woman is going to be my mother in law?"
Dr. Li smiled. "Had no idea what you were getting into, did you?"
A vision of Sam smirking at him entered Danny's thoughts and an almost goofy smile tugged at his lips. "It's worth it…"
"Even all this?" Dr. Li stopped them in front of Sam's room.
"Yes," Danny said firmly.
Dr. Li smiled and grabbed the doorknob and entered Sam's room, utterly immune to the shield. "Sam?" He asked tentatively as he sat down next to her pale, clammy body on the bed. He affectionately brushed her matted bangs back from her forehead. "Sam?"
"Dr. Li?" Sam questioned groggily.
Outside the shield, Danny sighed with relief as he watched, still unable to enter.
"How're you feeling?"
"I dunno… there's pain… everywhere. And… I have to talk to Danny!"
"He can't get in here right now."
"Why?"
"Someone has shielded your room using ectoplasm. An old family trait allows me to pass through unharmed. Danny, being both ghost and human, is not so fortunate."
"But… he doesn't know… he doesn't know that I'm sick…"
"He does."
Sam's eyes widened. "You… told him?"
"Yes. Samantha," Li said sternly. "He had the right to know. He's worried about you and he loves you. He wanted to help, so I told him. So if you're going to be angry with someone, be angry with me because, Sam, that boy cares for you more than anything else in this whole world and I'm not going to let you do anything rash because I betrayed your trust."
"I-I'm not angry," Sam whispered softly, turning her head toward the window.
Dr. Li smiled at her. "And, I have good news."
"What?"
"Queen Madeline and I are hours away from a cure."
Despite the pain that was still throbbing in her body, Sam nearly beamed at the doctor. "Really?"
"Yes," he took her cold, clammy hand in his. "So you have to hang on just a little bit longer, Sam. Just a little bit longer and then you'll be healthy."
Sam smiled weakly. "Is Danny out there?" She gestured to the door.
"Yes. Do you think you can stand? You can see him through the shield. He can barely hear you though, and you can't hear him."
"I can stand," Sam said.
Dr. Li helped her get out of bed and walk over to open door, Sam was grimacing in pain the entire time. The door didn't look shielded, but if touched, a slight green shimmer would radiate in the doorway.
Danny's face lit up when he saw Sam and he touched his palm against the shield and she did the same. "I love you," he mouthed.
Sam gave him another weak smile. "I love you too," she mouthed back. Pain surged through her again in an enormous wave and she collapsed against the invisible barricade. Dr. Li caught her and Danny watched, his heart clenching when he looked at her face. The doctor mouthed that she was okay, she just needed more rest.
Danny nodded and waited until the doctor came back out of the room, after helping Sam back into her bed and administering some pain medication.
"She says that she's sorry she didn't tell you sooner. It killed her to lie to you, Danny, physically and emotionally, but she loves you so much and she didn't want you to reject her just because she was dying."
"I don't care. I love her too much to hold anything against her. There's only one person I'm mad at and I'm going to make sure he pays for what he's done." Danny began walking off in the opposite direction of Maddie's lab. "And Dr. Li, don't count on getting back in there. He'll know by now. There'll be a guard posted there. One of his; something non-ectoplasmic."
"Right. If anyone moves her or anything anyway, it will only spread the poison faster. It's better for her to just lie still," with that, Dr. Li turned back toward the direction they had come and half-jogged back to Maddie's lab.
Danny, though completely consumed with worry for Sam and rage toward Vlad, was still trying to maintain rational thought, for Sam's sake at least. He wasn't sure whether or not to confront Vlad. If he did, there was the possibility that Vlad might just kill Sam right then. But there was also the possibility that he wouldn't. That he really did want her to die thinking Danny didn't want her. He knew under normal circumstances that Sam would never believe such a thing, but Vlad could be very… persuasive. In the end, Danny decided it was best to follow Clockwork's advice and trust in Sam and her own willpower. Danny knew her; she was not some damsel in distress, she was strong willed and independent. She would be okay until they could get her the cure.
For now, he was just going to have to grin and bear it. He was going to have to go along with Vlad. Danny stalked off down the hall toward his room to get ready for the ball. His face paled.
The ball.
Sam wouldn't be there. She would be disqualified. Danny shook his head. This contest was stupid and whatever the outcome of the ball, he could always convince his father to undo whatever Vlad had up his sleeve.
As much as Danny wanted to convince himself that as long as Sam was alive, he would be happy, but he knew that it wasn't true. He knew it was selfish and wrong, but he wanted her all to himself. He didn't want to share her and he certainly didn't want her to waltz out of his life just as easily as she'd waltzed in… well, fell in, technically. He couldn't live without her. Being this far away from her now was driving him evermore insane. He had to be able to feel her skin beneath his finger tips, her lips pressed to his, her eyes gazing at him and filled with love. He absolutely needed all that.
The young prince could remember life before Sam, and quite frankly, he wished that he couldn't. Compared to now (well, before when she wasn't lying in her deathbed), life before her was dull. Black and white. He supposed that if he'd never met her, he wouldn't know the difference, but something in him was nagging that he would. He wouldn't be so happy without her.
By the time he'd finished changing, the ball was almost about to start and it was then that Tucker showed up in his room with a sort of nervous, surprised look on his face.
"Dude, I went to Sam's room so I could take her down to the ball and I couldn't get in…"
"Vlad put up the new shield of his around Sam's room. No one can get in. She's dying in there…"
"Dude…" Tucker breathed.
"Dr. Li and Mom are almost finished with a cure for her though, and Dr. Li can get in," Danny explained.
"Yeah, but what about the ball?"
"I don't care about the contest anymore. It's a waste of my time. I can get my mom to undo whatever Vlad does. She knows how I feel about Sam."
"I don't know, man, I think you might be underestimating Vlad…"
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Vlad had vowed long ago that he would not do it. He would not use his own form of ghostly hypnotism on his love. When he'd first discovered his power of "persuasion," he had been tempted to do it, but it didn't feel right; which was uncharacteristically sane of him, but there it was. He didn't want to win Maddie over just because of a spell. That would be doing his love a disservice. She would come to him of her own free will or else he would not have her. Besides, all he really wanted now as to make Daniel's life hell.
He purposely on accident ran into Maddie as she came around a corner. "Hello Maddie, my dear."
"Vlad," she replied curtly.
"I wanted to talk to you about Daniel," Vlad was going to try to get her to agree with him of her own freewill first, but if that didn't work he would have to put her under his spell. Just to make her agree with him about Daniel. Nothing else.
"What about him?"
"It's actually more about Princess Samantha. I'm sure you are aware of her condition by now."
"Yes, and Dr. Li and I are very close to a cure for her."
"Maddie, my dear, that may be so, but we have no idea what the lingering effects could be. She could still be sick. It's not good idea for Daniel to have a queen who may not even live to see her twenty-first birthday."
Maddie thought Vlad was being unusually harsh, but didn't say anything. "Dr. Li assures me that Sam is perfectly healthy, apart from the ectoplasmic infection."
"Yes, that is true, but the cure could do more harm than we know. And the infection could have lasting effects. Daniel needs a queen who can provide him with a rightful heir; a son. For all we know, Samantha could be sterile."
Maddie gaped. "Sterile? That's cold, Vlad, even for you. And you know that I don't care about any of that. All I want is for Danny to be happy. And Sam makes him happy."
"I know you don't care, Maddie, my dear, but that's why I'm here. It's my job to make sure that the royal bloodline is carried on."
Maddie glared at him. "If it really comes down to all that, Lord Masters, then I'm sure any children Jazz will have will be able to assume the throne. If Danny wants to marry Sam, then he will do so."
"But the contest, my dear Maddie, Sam will not be able to attend the final ball tonight, and therefore she will be disqualified. Danny will not be allowed to marry her."
Maddie rolled her eyes and glared at Vlad. "Lord Masters, you know I usually appreciate your input and you invaluable to the people of Amity, but I don't like you. I don't like that you seem to be trying to hurt my son by separating him from his love. I don't care about your stupid contest. Danny has found someone whom he loves more than anyone in the whole world. I'm not going to let it slip away from him because of contest rules. The contest is off."
Vlad had really hoped it wouldn't come to this. He faced Maddie and gripped her by the shoulders, his blue eyes glowed fierce red as he stared at her. "Maddie, the contest will not be called off. You will trust me to do what is right for Danny. You will not question me. Do you understand?"
Maddie nodded her head. "Yessssss…."
Vlad pulled away, his eyes returning to their normal blue color. "Good. I should go to the ball now. Would you care to come?"
"No…" Maddie said, shaking her head. "I'm going to get back to Dr. Li. I trust you to do what's right for Danny."
"Thank you, my dear Maddie." He tried to forget that she had confessed to disliking him and walked toward the ballroom. Not everything was going according to plan, thanks to that damn doctor, but Vlad had been planning for almost nineteen years. He'd left room to wiggle. He would let Maddie and Dr. Li find their cure. He would let Danny's hope build. And then he would crush everything in one fell swoop. Vlad was still having reservations about killing the innocent princess, but it had to be done. No matter how exquisite she was, she would have to sacrifice herself.
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The ballroom could not have been more contrary to the dire situation outside of it. There were very few girls left, about twenty or so, including Paullina. They all looked very stunning. Though, of course, to Danny, none of them could ever compare to Sam. The ballroom was decorated beautifully in rich, royal indigo, crimson and gold. The orchestra was playing beautifully, the wine had been poured. It looked the like the making of a perfect evening, but it was to be far, far, far from that.
Danny glowered at Vlad as the older man sauntered up to the stage as though he were as innocent as a child, but more smug than ever. "Rest assured, Uncle Vlad, when this is all over, I will be coming after your blood."
The stoic lord was not thrown by the entirely serious threat at all. "Oh, Daniel, I'm shaking. You'll have your cure, will you not? She will live," of course, no matter what happened, Vlad still had every intention of killing Sam. He had to. That was what would really destroy Danny: her death. He finally turned to face the crowd. "My dear noble ladies, I would like to welcome you to this, the final ball of the contest. Prince Daniel is ready to make his decision," Vlad cast another smug look at Danny. "The wedding will take place tomorrow in the…" Vlad stifled a laugh, "lilac grove," he said it as though it were petty and silly and cliché, which only served to infuriate Danny all the more. How dare that stupid lord violate the place where Danny had spent so much time with Sam? It was where they'd fallen in love.
Danny stepped forward, with an grin smug enough to rival Vlad. He couldn't wait to see the looks on the shallow gold diggers' faces when he announced that he would be marrying Sam. "I choose to marry, Sam, Princess of Casper," he said clearly.
Some girls fainted, others seemed to grow faintly homicidal. Paullina herself, was now imagining every cruel way she could think of for Sam to die. Vlad nearly laughed. Why hadn't he thought to just use the jealousy of these girls? It would have saved him so much time. Of course, Vlad knew that Danny liked to be in control and the situation he'd developed put nearly everything out of Danny's hands. All Danny would have had to do was say the word and these girls would've forgotten that Sam had ever existed.
"Ah," Vlad said, placing what appeared from the outside to be a comforting hand on Danny's shoulder, "I'm so sorry, my boy, but it appears the Princess has declined to join us tonight… which means she is disqualified."
Danny glared at Vlad so fiercely his green eyes could have illuminated the entire dungeon, but in the well-lit ballroom, no one seemed to notice.
"I'm afraid you'll have to choose someone else."
"There is no one else," Danny spat.
"Ah, well, then I'll just have to choose for you."
"I will marry Sam," Danny protested ferociously.
"No, no. When all the girls entered this contest, they agreed to be present at every ball unless they wished to pull themselves out of the running. Sam has obviously done so. Maybe she didn't love you all that much anyway, my boy," Vlad smirked. "Now, if there's no one else you'd like to choose, then… Lady Paullina also of Casper."
Paullina nearly flew to the stage and would have tackled Danny with all her might if Vlad hadn't stopped her. "Dannykins! My love!" She squealed.
Danny rolled his eyes. "This is so stupid. You're so stupid," it wasn't clear if he was talking to Vlad or Paullina. "The girl I love is dying in her room as I stand here and all you want me to think about is this whore?"
Paullina scoffed indignantly. "So that wretch told you about my affairs, did she? Figures."
Danny folded his arms over his chest. "No, but you just did."
Vlad, nor anyone else in the room for that matter, seemed terribly shocked by the news.
"This contest is officially cancelled," Danny bellowed. "Go home! Go home and find yourselves some other poor bastard to manipulate," again, it wasn't clear if he was talking to the girls or to Vlad. He stormed out of the ballroom and back toward Sam. He began to fly as soon as he was sure no one could see him. He really didn't care what Vlad did now, as long as Danny got to Sam first. Vlad could tell the whole world Danny was half ghost and he still wouldn't care. He just had to get to Sam now.
He suddenly flew through someone. He stopped and turned around to see who it was. "Dr. Li?" He asked, relieved in more ways than one.
"Your highness? Aren't you supposed to be at the ball?" The doctor was more than obviously bitter about something.
Danny was taken aback. "I-I called it off. I couldn't tolerate it anymore… I'm going to marry Sam, that's all there is to it."
"But your mother said that Lord Masters was going to take care of everything. Sam's disqualified after all," Dr. Li didn't relent.
Danny paled. "Sh-she said what!"
"Sam's disqualified and that Lord Masters was going to take care of everything. That's what her Majesty said."
"Oh… no…" Danny breathed.
"I should have known," Dr. Li said. "I should have known that you were just like everyone else."
"No! Dr. Li, you don't understand…" Danny wanted to explain, but he couldn't. Telling the doctor that Vlad was also half ghost was just not a good idea. He had to buy them more time.
Dr. Li continued storming down the hallway. "I'm going to tell Sam."
"No! Dr. Li, you can't!"
"She deserves to know the truth."
"Fine, you've got it all-" Danny stopped and stared at a needle full of bright, healthy green liquid. "Is that the cure?" Relief flooded through him in waves, as if half of the burden had been lifted off his back.
"Yes," Dr. Li said tersely. "And the moment Sam is better, I'm taking her away from here. Away from Casper, away from Amity, away from her parents, and far away from you. I can't believe you, your highness, I really thought you cared about her."
"But I do! You've got it all wrong!"
"No, I don't think I have."
Danny knew what Vlad had done then. Hypnotized Maddie. It was low, even for the psychopath. Danny wondered if he should ask Dr. Li if he'd noticed anything usual about the queen, but Dr. Li wouldn't have known what to look for. "Please, Dr. Li, my mom wasn't herself when she told you whatever it is she told you! I'm in love with Sam, I swear!" Danny didn't think he'd ever have to prove that to anyone, especially not Dr. Li. "Please, you have to believe me! My mom was being hypnotized by Lord Master's. He's half-ghost too…" Danny didn't care what secrets were revealed now or who they belonged to. All that mattered, all that he could focus on was Sam's health.
"Is that the truth?"
"Yes. Please, I love Sam."
"I believe you." It had seemed strange to him that Danny would go through everything he had just to lead Sam on. Very few people were that cruel and Dr. Li didn't consider Danny to be one of those people. Dr. Li walked into Sam's room (where there was surprisingly no guard) and Danny was able to follow him.
Danny stopped in his tracks the moment he realized that there hadn't been a guard and that the shield was down. "Oh… no…" Both he and Dr. Li looked toward Sam in time to see Vlad sitting next to her on the bed, disturbingly brushing Sam's matted hair out of her face, gazing at her with the most unnervingly creepy tenderness the prince and the doctor had ever seen.
"It is such a shame…" Vlad muttered. "Oh and Daniel, just so you know, she died thinking that you were marrying someone else. Maybe if you two had spent a little less time arguing and more time getting here, you could have saved her. But then again, maybe not." He threw his head back and laughed maniacally.
Danny couldn't breathe. All of his vital body functions ceased. Initial shock washed over him. He knew it. He'd seen her sick, he'd heard Vlad's threats and even after all that, even after knowing that she was going to die, he couldn't bear the thought of actually losing her. In the past month, she'd become his world, become the thing that made all the other areas of his life fall into place. He couldn't lose her. No matter how much he'd tried to prepare himself for it, the thought of her actually being gone was too much for him to comprehend. But there she was. Lying dead in the room that had been designed especially for her. "YOU BASTARD! I'll kill you! I swear I'll fucking kill you!" Danny bellowed. The rage flooding through him was simply indescribable. Killing Vlad just didn't seem like enough.
"Over the edge," Vlad murmured. "Just as I expected. You know, it really is a shame, Daniel. Such an exceptional girl like Samantha: lost all because you loved her…" he said, only serving to incense Danny further.
Danny lunged at the older man and twisted his hands around his neck. "I swear to God, you're going to suffer."
"Killing me won't bring her back, Daniel. Really, you must learn to control your temper."
"AHHH! I don't care! You deserve to die! And then, when you're a ghost, I'll blast you everyday until you wish you were nothing! I'll blast you within an inch of your afterlife! You'll beg for hell, Vlad! You'll beg for it! I'm going to fucking kill you!"
Vlad merely phased out of Danny's grasp and disappeared under the floor with a smug grin on his face.
Danny made to go after him, now blinded with fury and tears, but he was stopped by Dr. Li.
"Danny, she's not dead."
"What?"
"She's not dead," Dr. Li informed him with a small smile. "Her condition has worsened… she may not make it, but for now, she's not dead," he injected Sam with the healthy green ectoplasm. "This should help at least a little. I don't know if he changed the strain or the concentration of the poison he injected her with earlier, but this should still help…"
Danny sat on the bed and pulled her limp form into his arms and bit back hot tears of anger, sorrow, and relief.
"What happened?" Came a feminine voice from the doorway. "I heard that my stupid daughter went and got herself disqualified from the contest and now the prince is marrying some whore from my court!"
Dr. Li growled when he turned and faced Stella, knowing full well that he couldn't do anything or else he would be removed from caring for Sam.
On the other hand, even though Danny was only a prince, Amity was the largest and most powerful kingdom on the planet, he was of higher standing than Stella and could say whatever he pleased to her. Still clutching Sam against himself, he turned his head and glared heatedly at the queen of Casper. "Fear not, Madame," he said icily, "you're daughter is not disqualified. She is nearly dead. I would think you could show a little more compassion!"
"Your highness!" Stella said, noticing him only now because his face had been obscured from her earlier. "I'm so sorry…"
But the apology was coming about seventeen years too late. "I've heard a good many things about you, dear Queen, none of which have painted a very flattering portrait of you. You don't deserve to call her your daughter, you know that? She's amazing and kind-hearted and loving. From what I can tell, you are none of those things. So if you would kindly go away and leave the care of your daughter to those who actually love her."
Stella was taken aback, too shocked to speak.
Li gave the queen a smug, satisfied look. "I believe his highness just told you to get out, your majesty."
Stella backed out of the room, horrified that someone had dared to speak to her in such a manner.
Sam's eyes fluttered open. "D-Danny…"
"Yes, Princess, I'm here," he whispered softly as he held her tighter and kissed her soundly on the lips.
Sam felt a little better just knowing he was there, knowing that he hadn't rejected her, but still. "Danny… Lord Masters said…"
"Forget what he said. I love you, only you. Sam, he's the one who's been plotting to kill you for the past nineteen years."
"What? How?"
"A time ghost called Clockwork that told him everything about you and me, well, not everything," Danny threw a quick glance at Dr. Li. "But you're going to be okay, I promise, Princess, you're going to be okay."
"But I feel so weak, Danny," she confessed. It was more than just telling him that she was drained, fatigued. She was letting him in, letting him see her with all her defenses down.
Danny just held her closer and stroked her hair comfortingly. "You won't die, Sam. I need you. I love you." He threw tender, soothing kisses along her jaw line and neck. "You won't die." He wasn't going to lose her again. He'd already thought it happened once and his world had completely fallen in on him. No matter what, Sam was not going to die. He just wouldn't allow it.
"I love you too…" she whispered softly.
"Vlad hypnotized me!" Maddie suddenly burst in. Dr. Li almost laughed.
"We know, Mom," Danny informed her. "He's also the one who's been making Sam sick."
"I sucked him into a Thermos. He's not getting out of that." Maddie was outraged that Vlad would go so far only to hurt her son, but at the same time… she couldn't just dispose of the man who was still helping her with her ghost research. As much as she wanted him gone, it simply wasn't an option.
"But what're we going to do with him?" Li asked.
"Mom," Danny pleaded, "we can't let him live… we just can't."
"We have to Danny, we still need him."
"Are you telling me that after trying to kill Sam, we're just going to let him live."
"Danny, we need his brain power. We'll keep him locked up, but… we can't kill him."
Danny growled. "But I want to…"
Sam kissed Danny's cheek lovingly. "Danny, if you kill him, than you'll be worse than he is. He may have tried to kill me, but that doesn't mean you should kill him. You'd be stooping to his level."
"But Sam, he-"
"I hate him too, Danny. I hate him so much, but I don't want to know what kind of person you'll become if you kill him. I love you and I don't want you to have anyone's blood on your hands. No matter how much that blood deserves to be spilled."
Danny smiled at her. "Now I know what Clockwork meant. Look at you, Sam, even when you're dying, you're still thinking of me. How can you do that?"
"The same way you'd even consider becoming a murderer on my behalf." Sam grinned. "I'm feeling much better now." And for the first time in seventeen years, she really meant it.
Maddie and Dr. Li smiled fondly.
"Oh! That reminds me of the other reason I came in here," Maddie said. "I developed a more potent form of the cure, just in case." She walked over to Sam and carefully injected the new cure into the princess.
Almost instantly, relief flooded through Sam. For the first time in her life, she felt healthy. She didn't feel pain, she didn't feel like the life was being sapped from her every second. She felt wonderful. In the arms of the boy she loved and who loved her, as her body was finally healing, she felt wonderful. "Thank you, all of you. So much." She didn't care about her mom. As far as she was concerned, Maddie was her mom now. Stella could go jump off a cliff for all Sam cared.
"No need to thank us, Sam," Li told her. "We care about you."
"Of course, dear," Maddie agreed, before motioning to Dr. Li that they should probably leave.
Danny gave Sam a mischievously playful smirk. "Sam… do you think you're up for a little trip?"
"To where?" Sam asked.
"You'll see…" Danny lifted both of them up and flew them out the window, toward the garden. He touched down softly in the lilac grove. This was where it started… it seemed only fitting. "Sam… now that you're not dying anymore… I just have one tiny question."
"Yeah?" Sam asked, her heart rate accelerating as the familiar and fantastic scent of lilacs filled her nose.
Danny took Sam's hand in his. "Princess, will you marry me?"
Tears welled up in Sam's eyes. "Yes, oh God, yes Danny. I'll marry you." She allowed herself to be swept up into his arms and kissed quite thoroughly.
Watching somewhere from a window, Maddie and Li grinned at each other while Jazz and Tucker exchanged a kiss (much to Maddie's pleasant surprise) as well because even though Vlad was not dead, even though it was not all perfect, even though Sam was still a little weak and even though no one ever lived happily ever after, they were all pretty damn close.
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High up in his tower, Clockwork watched the entire scene with a sense of pride and satisfaction. "I told you, Danny. All is as it should be."
Fin.
-wink- Epilogue to follow. Please review!