A/N: Everyone please read the A/N at the bottom of the page. It's pretty important.
~Chapter 47~
Yes. He was sure he already knew. Any other person, probably not, but Sam's parents? They only ever caused trouble. Obviously this was about Sam. Obviously they wanted to see her again, or at least hear from her. But why? What was their plan? They only ever caused her misery and he couldn't understand for the life of him how she could possibly love them after all these years. But they were still her parents and he couldn't well stand in the way of that, especially if they were the ones taking initiative. Last time he saw her dad, he left without a hint as to what he was thinking. But he was practically wordless and it looked like he was simply done with Sam.
If he was, though, then he wouldn't want to contact her. Of course, there was the possibility that it could be her mother wanting to see Sam. Jeremy explained that they nearly divorced because they disagreed. And he could easily believe that was the truth. When he came back looking for Sam, the Mansons were having a huge argument downstairs. That had to be the 'disagreement' and Sam wouldn't have knows about it since she wasn't in the house...and since he never told her he heard them fighting. But back then he didn't think much of it, being too focused on Sam to care what those demons did.
"Mom, I have to go now. Faye needs to be changed," he lied.
Before the woman had a chance to reply, he hung up and snapped the phone shut.
Sam might've thought it best to be raped the first time but what would her parents have done if they knew she'd been raped a second? Not what he'd done, that was for sure. Even if one of his daughters, raped or not, got pregnant, he wouldn't kick them out. He wouldn't try to guilt them into leaving or imply that they were dead to him. How could Sam's parents do that? And obviously they kept it a secret from the rest of the family otherwise Cole would've known.
He sighed. As if Faye's untimely appearance wasn't enough to deal with, now he had Sam's parents on his shoulders. To make things worse, he couldn't get Sam anywhere, which wouldn't give her much time to recover. That, or perhaps too much time. In the long time it would take for them t-
A screech came from behind him and he immediately prepared to defend himself. Kind of hard to do since he only had one free arm and couldn't simply set Faye wherever. And thankfully he didn't have to, there was no need to worry.
"Oh she's so cute!" Kitty squealed as she jumped out of Johnny's bike, with Johnny soon following her.
One thing he would never admit to anyone, even himself, was that he was starting to trust them. He growled, barked, and yelled, but by now they were practically empty words. Some of them weren't, but he was so determined to come across as harsh and difficult that they were probably already seeing through it. For all he knew, they joked about it behind his back. And they did, as long as he wasn't in earshot. Worse, Sam often joined in.
While Kitty was busy jabbering on about the new baby, Johnny looked him over and asked, "Any particular reason you're shirtless?"
He looked down. True. He'd been so used to having no shirt on that he forgot it was off in the first place.
"It's a long story," he answered. And one that he didn't want to remember. "Anyway, what are you doing here? Faye's not even an hour old and Sam's too weak to be moved."
"Relax, man, we just came by to make sure you guys were okay. We heard from your mom that Sam went into labor. We got here as soon as we could in case you needed help, but...looks like you don't need it."
"As soon as you could? It's been hours!"
Johnny clicked his tongue and shook his head. "Do you have any idea how far away you are? Besides, it was hard to find you. Took a lot longer than we expected."
"There's only one way you can help us. Technus works with all sorts of technology, right? You think he can find out what's wrong with the Speeder and fix it?"
"Oh yeah. He might be annoying but he's the best mechanic there is. Where do you think I go when you blow up my bike?"
True... Johnny's bike always seemed to magically fix itself after being sent back to the ghost zone but now it made perfect sense as to why it came back fully functional. Only Technus could have the knowledge and tools to fix a ghost motorcycle. And while the Specter Speeder had been used for other trips, it was specially designed for the ghost zone. It could be similar to Johnny's motorcycle in that respect.
"Then go ask him to fix this thing. I could get everyone home that way, even if it takes a long time. And just in case, tell him I'll tolerate him while he's working," Danny said. "Also tell him that if he doesn't come, his afterlife will be over."
"Want Kitty to stay here or...?" Johnny boarded his bike.
"Take her with you," he replied.
Faye was already messing up his ghost sense, the last thing he needed was Kitty and Johnny helping her out.
The biker saluted him and called his girlfriend back, revving his bike and turning back the way he came. Hopefully it wouldn't be long before Technus came. And if he didn't come, Johnny would have to find someone else to repair his bike.
But for now all he could do was wait.
Wait, think...and worry. To set off his ghost sense, Faye had to have some kind of ghostly trait to her. It didn't necessarily have to be ghost powers, but the fact that she did, as his mother even said, have ectoplasm in her made her part ghost. And for the one who had been protecting everyone from ghosts all this time, it was confusing to a level and clashed harshly with an instinct he'd developed over time. He wasn't used to raising a ghost, he was used to fighting them. Now a ghost rested in his arms and despite that ghost being his daughter...it would take some getting used to. A very tiny portion of him, upon seeing white hair and the activation of his ghost sense, was screaming, "GHOST! KILL IT!" but he loved her. It was easy to shove that voice aside but it wasn't so easy to ignore...after all, he'd depended on that voice for years. He was so used to fighting ghosts and she looked like one, and was part of one anyway, but how could he bring himself to fight his own baby girl?
Stupid voice...it was time to go away now that Faye was here. She used her other hand to slap at the air. And she wasn't afraid to remind him.
He held his head higher to avoid having his chin slapped again.
He hadn't held such a tiny baby since the twins were born, and that was three years ago. Compared to them now, Faye seemed about an inch tall. And compared to them, she sure had a lot of energy. Normally babies would fall asleep by now but she'd been awake since before he woke up. If she had that much energy maybe she could give Mommy and Daddy some...sure could use it right now, especially Mommy.
Knowing it would probably take some time to get to Technus' lair and a little more time to do some convincing, possibly even bribery along with all the promised threats, he sat down Indian-style and allowed himself to bathe in joy. He was finally holding his little daughter in his arms. And boy was she an active little thing. He wished he could call it an entirely new experience but having already gone through this same emotional phase with the twins, it wasn't entirely new. The only new thing about it was that there was one new Fenton in the family, and this time Sam didn't have to suffer to get pregnant.
He smiled. That news was so shocking he'd nearly had a heart attack from it. One time was all it took to create this little bundle of energy he now held. Just once, that was it. And that one little time had turned into this little girl. His little girl. And the woman sleeping right across from him was Sam. His Sam. Who made his family. Even his parents and sister were just...elated. Although he was pretty sure Jazz was a little jealous; she was older and normally would've had a child before him, yet he now had three children, all before her. She really had no reason to be jealous at all. Being a parent was hard work. She didn't seem to understand that very well...and she still had the gall to say she was more mature. She also still corrected him-and Sam as well-on the way he parented the twins. While she babysat from time to time, he was the one raising them. Him and Sam. They were the ones who reported for duty every time one of them had a nightmare in the dead of night about a cat crying because it lost its ball of string, they were the ones who cleaned up the accidents on the floor, they were the ones who fed them, bathed them, changed their clothes, etc. The worst part was getting Junior to take a bath though.
So honestly, she had no right to say he was being too protective... And Sam had no right to say he was overprotective! He wasn't overprotective. If anything he could stand to be more protective. He was the dad, that was his job.
And it amazed him that this job once intimidated him. He knew it would be hard and once he had time to let his mind process it-that he would end up raising kids he really didn't want-a cold feeling formed in his gut. Then time passed and he watched Sam get herself into so many bad situations, watched her make so many wrong choices...and he realized what an idiot he was being for allowing her to do all that. And as the days went on he found himself thinking more and more about the twins' lives and less of his own. His love for Sam became all too apparent even to himself...but his concern was most likely directed more to the babies inside her. His friend got pregnant, he fell in love with her knowing that if he kept this up he would end up with unwanted kids, and now he was more concerned about them than Sam? It didn't make any sense to him until he began despising the thought of playing Daddy...that was when the moment of clarity struck. He was more concerned for the babies because he did love them, he did want them, and he did relish the idea of being a real dad. It helped greatly that everyone already thought he was the dad. And when Sam didn't want to give them up, when she accepted him as their father-or at very least a surrogate-he knew what he was really meant to be.
Looking back, though, it was an awful feeling to know he started out hoping there would be some way out of raising twins. Did his mind ever change since then... The same twins he didn't want at first were now what gave him two reasons to live. And now there was little Faye, his third reason.
His ghost sense went off and once more, he took a defensive stance, scanning his surroundings. His first question wasn't where the ghost was, it was who set off his ghost sense...Faye or someone else? With Faye capable of triggering his ghost sense, he would have to make up an excuse as to why his breath was cold and blue sometimes.
He turned all the way around to find a ghost he was well acquainted with.
"Clockwork?"
The ghost smiled and looked at Faye. "I've been looking forward to this day. Even the master of time can become impatient."
Danny held her tighter and turned his body away, practically glaring at Clockwork. For the first time in his life he heard the ghost laugh.
"What?" he spat.
He shook his head. "Just thinking..." he cryptically replied. "You're quite the overprotective father, I see."
"I am not overprotective!" he argued. "I'm just the right amount!"
"Of course. I meant to say 'loving'. My apologies."
"What did you come here for? It isn't like you to pop up randomly like this."
"I know you harbor a deep hatred towards ghosts, but rest assured you can relax with me. I came to see Faye with my own eyes...and to propose a deal."
"You? Propose a deal? What happened to not messing with time?"
"If I recall, I was the one who intervened and allowed your friends and family to live. If not for me, she wouldn't exist. Sometimes altering time can be a good thing."
Danny growled but knew it was true. If Clockwork hadn't spared everyone, Sam would've died and neither the twins or Faye would ever have been born. And him? He would never have gotten the chance to know this feeling.
"What deal?"
"I can get you out of here and back to your family. In exchange, you bring Faye to me-"
"What?! No! You're not taking her!"
"It was never my intention. You bring her to me simply so I may see her again when she's older. Fourteen, to be exact."
The halfa frowned. "Why fourteen? What are you planning to do with her?"
"Nothing. The real question is, what will you do with her?"
What...? Him? What...what would he do with her? Why him? He wouldn't do a thing!
"I have a schedule-"
"You're the ghost of time, you already know my answer," he mumbled. "And you already knew Sam would give birth here. Thanks for the heads up!"
"She-"
"Wasn't meant to be born here! I have no idea what the ghost zone will do to her! I wouldn't have brought Sam with me if I'd known the Specter Speeder would break down in the middle of nowhere!"
The timekeeper merely smiled at the comment. "If only to put your mind at ease, the ghost zone will have no effect on your child. You have other things to worry about; it's Junior's bath time."
Oh great...
"Deal. Get us out of here and I'll come back with Faye," he decided.
Clockwork nodded and raised his staff. A soft glow surrounded the Specter Speeder-to which Danny finally noticed all the useful items Johnny and Kitty had brought, probably when he was still unconscious-and the little shuttle started up again, hovering just above the ground. He'd reversed time around it, causing whatever damage it had to undo itself. Finally...a way back home.
A way back to a place Sam could recover in, where she could be treated safely.
A/N
I'd really like to thank the people who DID review but I do have some bad news. I'm losing so much inspiration for this story that it's just... I have a whole future planned out but at this point I'm just ready to make a crappy, rushed chapter to get it over with because honestly, does anyone remember why I asked for review replies to begin with? If you don't allow me to remind you: I can't get inspiration for ANY of my stories without lots of reviews flowing in to inspire me.
For those of you who have followed/favorited The Boy With the Rings, I'm pretty sure you noticed another update in LESS THAN A WEEK. That's fast! 14 chapters now...158 reviews. I'm almost halfway through the next chapter! So see? I do read your reviews, I do VERY MUCH appreciate them, and I swear I try. Writing a mute character that only speaks Esperanto and doesn't know English? You know how daunting that is? And then to plan it out and pace it? That's just...no words...
NOW how many of you have browsed through my stories? Did you notice how many were dropped? How nearly every one was incomplete? I have very few active ones...but this story here, I'm getting the feeling that I'll end up dropping it because of the stories that people find worthwhile. This thing has declined, I've tried to make it interesting by leaving a cliffhanger about Sam's parents, but now I just don't know what else to do. To go from ~20 reviews per chapter to ~6 reviews per chapter is rather disheartening.
I won't lie, I'm starting to think writing out another chapter is a waste of my time. Reviews aren't just inspirations, they're how I gauge the level of of my stories, from "terrible" to "AMAZING!" This story is quickly reaching "terrible". It used to be "AMAZING!" What happened?
Now for review replies:
The Talent- :P Nice to know someone found that interesting. And sorry for the slow update. I'm just finding this story to be all but worthless now. Started out great, now it's not.
ObsessiveFanfictioner15- Well now we know she sets off his ghost sense. :/ She still had ghost DNA, so I needed SOME kind of trait in her. Figured that would be perfect. Yeah, I'm not sure what happened with Whatshisface... :( I know what I'm doing and where I'm going. Same with The Halfa Factory. I've already updated The Boy With the Rings twice. :) Proud of that.
beautifullove521- Yuppers, cliffies.
TripleAAA1183- I thought it would be. :( I really did, especially since Cole is not completely unimportant. Sorry you had to wait. It took me a long time to just muddle through this thing. I'd rather work on my other stories... :/
HeroAce- He would...or would he? Faye sets off his ghost sense, which would make it very difficult for him to tell whether it's Faye or a ghost. Clockwork left his post to come. Why? Hm...
purpledragon6- :P It's okay. Most people who now read this haven't read FWB first, if at all.