Speechless
Consider this a prequel to my Danny x Lydia one-shot on how Danny told Sam and Tucker about his relationship with the mute, tattooed woman. R&R and Enjoy!
***In the halls of Casper High***
"It's my turn to pick what we order for dinner tonight." Sam said in an annoyed tone as they walked down the hall.
"No way! You picked last week. And whatever that stuff was chapped my ass for the entire weekend! I'm picking." Tucker shot back, equally annoyed.
"Maybe if you ate better, your body would be used to good food for once. Besides, the week before last, I couldn't eat anything because it was all covered in meat!"
"Guys!" Danny interrupted as he stopped by his locker to drop his books off. "Its actually my turn to pick dinner this week."
There was a moment of silent embarrassment between the goth and the geek before they meekly replied, "Oh. Right."
"Pizza." He stated simply, locking up his locker before turning back to his friends with an amused look on his face. "One Meat Lovers for Tucker, one Garden Lovers for Sam, one plain cheese for the three of us, and one white pizza topped with chicken and creamed spinach for me."
His two friends nodded their heads, his logic being sound.
"You guys really let this food thing go too far sometimes." The halfa chuckled as he continued walking with Sam and Tuck following close behind. The two grumbled under their breath but didn't bother starting another argument since the issue was resolved.
"So, after dinner, do we wanna have a movie night or gaming night?" Tucker asked.
"Actually…I wanted to talk to you guys about something serious after dinner." Danny said, stopping at the foot of the stone steps outside of Casper High.
"Is this related to ghost hunting?" Sam asked.
"Or are your parents catching on to you."
"No, no." Danny said. "It has to do with…us…and our friendship." The boy said, now looking away from his friends, trying to find the right words to say.
"Its not necessarily bad…but its gonna change things, for all of us." He said. "Look, I'm going on a round of the town then I'll meet you guys at Sam's place. That ok?"
"Yeah, sure." Tucker said while Sam nodded her head.
"Thanks." Danny said before jogging into an ally and going ghost to begin his patrol.
"You think…" Sam said slowly, not wanting to get too excited.
"He might be asking you if you want to be his girlfriend?" Tuck finished. "I think so."
The two cheered before high fiving.
"Finally! I didn't think this day would come!" The geek said as the two made their way to Sam's mansion.
"I know." The goth replied. "I got goosebumps just thinking about it."
"He does seem really nervous about this, though." Tuck said as they calmed down.
"My guess is that he is afraid that I don't feel the same way." Sam replied, shrugging her shoulders.
"To his defense, you haven't been very forthcoming with your feelings either." He countered. "The few times he did mention liking you, you kinda brushed him off."
"Yeah…" she sighed. "I'll take that. Guess we were both scared of the other's reaction." Then she smirked and playfully punched the nerd in the arm. "Why didn't you give me a heads up about this? Wanted to see the look of shock on my face."
To her mild surprise, Tuck replied, "I didn't know. He never told me anything about wanting to talk to us at all."
Then he chuckled and shrugged it off. "Probably thought that I would either tell you or that I had a thing for you already."
That caused the two friends to laugh a little as they continued on their way. Yet, while they were walking, more thoughts and questions continued to form in their minds.
"Has he seemed a little more distant with us lately?" The goth girl finally asked.
"Eh…not really. Maybe in regards to doing more solo patrols rather than having us help but that's about it." The geek answered.
"Yeah…I just chalked it up to him being able to cover more ground since he can fly." She said.
"Look." Tuck said, stopping and gripping Sam by the shoulders so she was facing him. "We are thinking about this way too hard. Why are we looking this gift horse in the mouth when we should be celebrating? You'll have a boyfriend and then you two can help hook me up!"
Sam chuckled and rolled her eyes as the horndog in Tucker showed its face once again.
"Yeah…your right" She said before they continued on their way.
***Meanwhile, in the Ghost Zone***
After doing a quick sweep of the town, Danny snuck his way down into his parents' lab before entering the Ghost Zone. Flying past the various floating rocks, doors, and shapeless specters that inhabited the Zone, he made his way over towards one door in particular. The door in question was covered in hand painted tattoo flash while the plaque on the door said,
Lydia Davidson, Tattoo and Piercing Artist
Upon opening the door, he was amused to find the ghostly strongman and midget combo know as Boris and Dimitri respectively, sitting on her couch and watching tv.
"Comrade Danny! Come sit with us!" The strongman called out.
"Not today, guys. Lydia and I have plans." The boy said before walking to the woman's room.
The two grumbled but said no more. Upon entering her room, Danny smiled and leaned on the door frame as he watched Lydia sketching away in a notebook. For her, this was a way to both pass the time when she had no customers and to test out any new tattoo ideas she had. Finally, when she came to a stopping point to look up at her doorway and smile.
"I didn't want to break you from your creative stream." He said.
She nodded her head before setting aside her sketchbook and motioning for him to sit by her.
How was school? She asked, the spectral, cursive lines of tattoo formed before him.
"Eh, not too bad. No unwanted visitors." He replied before leaning in and kissing her lips, to which she returned.
You are worried about tonight, aren't you. Lydia said when they separated.
Danny nodded his head.
Will worrying about it make it any easier? She asked, an eyebrow raised and a smirk playing at the edge of her lips.
"No, probably not." The boy chuckled. "But…It is hard for me not to worry. I don't have an on/off switch for when I can and cannot worry."
I know. Lydia replied. But you don't have to worry about it by yourself.
Danny smiled before leaning in and kissing his girlfriend. Their lips remained locked while their tongues danced with each other. They kept making out for a few minutes before deciding it was time to get ready to reveal their relationship to Sam and Tucker.
***30 Minutes Later, The Manson Mansion***
Danny and an invisible Lydia arrived at Sam's place after one more sweep of the town. The boy powered down and knocked on the door while the tattooed woman, now invisible, squeezed his hand gently to let him know she was still there for him. Jeeves the butler answered the door and nodded his head before guiding them to where Sam and Tucker patiently waited at the dining table. Pizza boxes were open, plates were set, and fine wine glasses were filled with the fizziest of carbonated beverages.
"About time you showed up." The goth said with the geek nodding enthusiastically.
The halfa merely rolled his eyes before going to sit with his friends. He 'accidentally' bumped the chair beside him so Lydia could sit before he took his seat.
For the most part, dinner was a quiet affair, only the sounds of cardboard boxes being opened and closed, and soda being refilled.
When the teens finally had their fill, Danny plucked up the courage to tell his friends his secret.
"So…guess you guys must have been wondering what I wanted to tell you." He began slowly, feeling his lover squeeze his knee to encourage him.
"You've certainly left us wondering." Sam replied, trying not to jump up and down in her seat.
"Don't tell us your going to leave us hanging now?" Tuck added.
"I'm not. Don't worry." The boy said, taking a deep breath in and a deep breath out. "Well…I guess the best way to do this is to just be direct and rip it off like a band aid."
"Exactly, Danny! Just say what you want to and know Tuck and I will still be your friends no matter what."
The boy smiled at his friends. "Thanks Sam. That means a lot, coming from you."
The goth blushed at her friend's comment.
"Ok. Sam, Tucker…" Danny said, gently squeezing his girlfriend's hand. "I want you to meet my girlfriend, Lydia."
As he said her name, the tattooed ghost revealed herself to them. She smiled and waved at him while her line of tattoo said Hello to them.
"What?" The two said, their smile of excitement frozen on their faces as their brains were processing this new and unexpected information.
"Yeah, I know this I probably a shocker to you guys, especially after the whole Circus Gothica thing but it turns out her, the strongman, and the midget were under Freakshow's control as much as I was. She came and explained everything to me and…things just kicked off from there." He chuckled, leaning in to peck Lydia on the lips for turning back to Sam and Tuck.
"What?" The two repeated, their faces finally catching up to their minds and emotions.
"And while I'm at it, she is why I've been doing more solo patrols of town. I wanted to see her when I could without being caught by you two. I was afraid what you might say or think." Danny finished, a content smile on his face. "Man, I can't tell you how great it feels to get that off my chest, guys."
"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" Sam bellowed, her nostrils flaring and eyes glaring. Tucker, having never seen the goth enraged like this before, grabbed his empty plate to shield himself from the fury that was about to be unleashed.
"Sam?" Danny asked, his confidence fading as his fears seemed to come true.
"Why…You…Her…HOW COULD YOU?" She sputtered, pointing an accusatory finger back and forth from Danny to Lydia.
Look, let me explain. The tattooed woman said, placing her hands up to try and calm the girl down.
"Stay out of this! I'll get to you later!" The goth yelled before turning back to her crush. "I thought all of this was you going to tell me that you wanted me to be your girlfriend!"
Lydia frowned and crossed arms over her chest while Danny became a little indignant.
"Then why, the few times I showed interest back to you did you brush me off? I get that I was a little slow to some of your hint dropping but then you said I was imagining things when I tried talking to you."
"He's got you there." Tuck added, peering out from behind his plate.
"Not helping, Tucker!" The goth seethed.
"Sam…" Danny said, disappointment and doubt in his voice. "I told you guys this because I thought you two would be supportive of this…or at least understanding."
"I…" Sam said, her anger deflating on seeing the hurt look in his face. "Its just…I guess I…But I'm still…" She sputtered before turning and quickly leaving the dining room and heading to her bedroom.
Danny got up to follow her, but Lydia put a hand on his shoulder.
Let me.
Danny sighed and nodded his head. They shared a quick kiss before she flew off to follow Sam.
"Wow." Tucker said, watching this all play out.
"So, I'm guessing you didn't expect this to happen either?" Danny asked.
"Nope." The nerd replied.
The halfa chuckled before asking. "Was there anything else you thought may have happened instead?"
Tuck thought for a moment before shrugging and saying. "You coming out of the closet?"
Danny gave Tucker a look that said, 'Really?' before the two friends burst out laughing.
"Are you ok with us being together?" Danny asked when they finally calmed down.
"Danny, whether or not you and Lydia get Sam and my approval is irrelevant. As long as the two of you are happy and not at each other's throats, I'm ok with it."
The halfa sighed in relief, feeling as though a great weight had been lifted off him.
"I don't think I can tell you the turmoil I felt in whether or not I should tell the two of you about my relationship. And seeing Sam react the way she has…it only confirms my fears to some extent."
"Look. You know Sam. Know that she can get easily frustrated and annoyed if she doesn't get her way. Try as she might, she can still be a spoiled brat when she doesn't get what she wants." The nerd said while Danny nodded in agreement. "Sooner or later, though, she'll come around. She may not like it and the two of you may be on the receiving end of her snark for a while, but she will warm up to you and Lydia being together eventually."
Meanwhile, Lydia had finally found Sam's room. The girl in question was on her bed, back against the bed frame and her knees pulled close to her chest, while she doodled away in her notebook. The goth merely glared at the tattooed ghost for a second before returning to her sketching. For her part, Lydia let out a silent sigh before slowly floating around the room, inspecting the décor and furniture of the girl's room.
"Would it kill you to wear more clothing besides a cloak and a bikini?" Sam finally grumbled after a few moments of silence. "Floating around like a ghostly punk pornstar."
A few seconds later, her sketchbook was yanked out of her hands by two of the ghost's bat tattoos and brought to her waiting hand while the ribbon of tattoo formed words.
You're one to talk. Slap some ink on you and you could be a Burning Angel as well.
When Sam blushed and huffed at the statement, the tattooed ghost smirked, having both gotten her point across and the satisfaction that Sam knew what she was referring to.
"Fine. What do you want?" The goth asked, folding her arms across her chest and glaring at the ghost.
To get you to understand Danny and I being together and to maybe…
"Will you stop with the tattoo schtick and just speak normally?" Sam interrupted, a bit of annoyance and exasperation in her voice. "We get it! You can do cool shit with your tattoos. Now quit trying to impress me and just tell me what you want!"
Lydia's shoulders slumped before she slowly floated towards Sam. Once in front of her, she released the clasp on her cloak and let it fall to the ground, revealing the scar on her neck to the girl. Immediately, the goth girl groaned and closed her eyes at having made a fool of herself.
"Great…way to make yourself out to be even more of a bitch, Sam." She said to herself, dully hitting the back of her head against the wall.
Lydia shrugged, putting her cloak back on before sitting on the bed to face the goth girl. When Sam finally looked back at her, she at least looked sorry the way she came off.
"Was that…" Sam began, motioning her finger around her throat.
Freakshow Lydia replied. Long Story
She nodded her head in understanding before settling into an awkward silence for a few minutes before the tattooed ghost started the conversation again.
I understand you are frustrated. Can't be easy for you to take this in all at once.
Sam said nothing, merely huffing.
It hurts your heart and pride very much to see me with Danny. Lydia continued.
Still Sam ignored her, merely staring ahead as if the floating words before her weren't there.
Finally, Lydia had enough and punched the stubborn girl in the shoulder.
"Hey! What was…"
Are you going to stop being Danny's friend because of our relationship?
"What? Why would you…"
I get that you don't like this situation. I get that this is a tough pill to swallow. But are you going to be so bitter and stubborn about this that you would either cut Danny out of your life or hurt him by trying to split us up? Lydia cut her off, gazing intensely at her.
"I…No…" Sam sighed. "Its not worth losing Danny over petty jealousy…" But then she looked stubbornly back at the ghost. "Doesn't mean I'm gonna like this. Or that we are suddenly going to be best friends."
The tattooed ghost relaxed as well.
I can live with that. And I know Danny will be happy to still have you by his side.
The two remained silent for a moment before Lydia began perusing Sam's sketch book.
You've got some cool ideas in here.
"Thanks." Sam replied neutrally. "It…calms me down. Takes my mind off things."
The ghost pointed to a few designs.
Symbol for Danny?
The goth chuckled this time. "Yeah. Thought it would look cool. And also, so people would stop calling him Inviso-Bill."
Lydia silently laughed before looking back at Sam.
Ready to talk to him now?
"Guess I have to." She replied before the two went back downstairs to where the boys were awaiting for their return. Upon entering the room, Danny got to his feet and slowly walked towards them. He opened his mouth to speak before Sam stopped him with a raised hand.
"I'm not happy about this." She said bluntly. "Still annoyed and know that this is going to take a while for me to get used to…"
Danny slumped his shoulders.
"But…you and…" Sam sighed. "Lydia…being together…shouldn't mean the end of our friendship. We've been through so much just for me to throw that all away."
The boy perked up and smiled before hugging the Goth.
"Thank you. I never wanted our friendship to end."
Sam sighed contently into the hug while Lydia and Tuck watched.
Author's Note: Not much for me to say other than thank you all for your patience. Writer's block sucks. I know you all are anxious for me to continue my other stories. Fret not for I haven't forgotten about them. Just need to finish up one more one shot I've been sitting on before I continue.