Bonjour, mes chers! I'm finally back and settled in and looking for a job, but until that has to be worried about enjoy the latest chapter!
Just a reminder, I've made a new blog to support me and keep up with all things Guardians! It's a tumblr blog under the name theguardiansseries and it contains chapters, art, and everything else Guardians. It also contains behind-the-scenes drabbles and snippets from other character's point of views - all of which can be found under the tag 'ftb excerpt'
With that out of the way, enjoy the chapter!
"I'm pretty sure most people would label this as torture, you know!" As promised, Danny had come to the library the next day at around ten- Okay, he had woken up a little before nine, but then he had to eat, reassure his parents, talk to Jazz, and then he had to eat something else where his mom's food had looked poisoned, and then he had to actually find his way to the library considering Clockwork had just formed a portal for him the last time. Still. It was already almost three, probably, and Danny was dying. "Why do you have so many books!"
"Surprising as this may seem to you, there's quite a few books that exist out there in the world." Ghostwriter seemed to be as cheery as Sam when a new Hot Topic opened, which, yeah, pretty terrifying. "Those go over in the spiritual growth section."
Looking down to the glowing books he was currently killing his back with, Danny stared for a solid five seconds before he looked back to Ghostwriter. "Is that… Is that a joke?" It was almost bordering on a pun. Ghostly spirit-y books being put in a 'spiritual growth' area.
"Unfortunately, the Ghost Zone doesn't seem to have a system when it comes to filing, so I'm forced to make do with what I can. Second floor, fifth shelf from the northeast corner." Wha… What? "Oh, honestly. It's right past the section on Geography."
"I'm pretty sure that's not how the Dewey Decimal system works," Danny grumbled, flying the books up to the second story and, seriously, this library looked way smaller on the outside. The second story was even more pretentious than the first one, too.
Like, okay, the library was covered in purples and whites and all that, but the second story had white railings that looked to have carved flowers or vines or something like that on them. It was stupidly pretentious. Not to mention the bookcases on the first floor were arranged like a goddamn maze, Ghostwriter using his powers to levitate them around to different places whenever he felt like it. Danny could get re-organizing, but this was just ridiculous.
Danny ended up staying there until at least six judging by how worried Jazz was when he finally got back, and the second day wasn't much better. It seemed that he was there eight hours a day easy - although it was nice that Ghostwriter managed to find non-poisoned food for him to eat around 'lunch.' So, yeah, free, non-poisoned food. It definitely could have been worse.
By the third day of his guilt apology offer, it wasn't so bad. The library was quiet and peaceful, which, yeah, kind of surprising in the Ghost Zone, but it was nice. It was also kind of fun to get lost in a simple task like shelving and ordering books. Yeah, alright, so, okay, maybe he had mis shelved a few books here and there, but Ghostwriter seemed to always find them quick enough, so that was something.
His back had even adjusted to the stupidly heavy books he was always flying and carrying around, and after that it really was kind of nice. Maybe he'd even get a part-time job in a library back in Amity Park if the whole ghost fighting thing ever settled down. It really wasn't all that bad.
It was even nice making a ghostly friend who wasn't totally batshit crazy - okay, so, maybe the guy got lost in his books pretty easily and tended to slip into rhyme and sometimes forgot Danny was even there until he almost crashed into him or tripped over him due to having his nose stuck in a book while he was walking, but, really, they all had their quirks - even if Ghostwriter's had ended up leaving Danny near crying of laughter when the man had tripped over him and ended up on the floor in pure confusion. Just the thought had Danny snickering to himself again.
"I know what you're laughing about." Shit. Putting on as innocent an expression as he could, Danny huffed when the man didn't buy it for a second. "You should be more careful where you choose to sit-"
"Dude, I was bending over to pick up a book I dropped." Danny couldn't be sure, but he was almost certain that Ghostwriter was blushing. It was great.
"My point stands." Sure, it did. "Now, you were telling me about your sister before you went away with the pixies."
"Before I- What?" Went away with the- What did that even mean? Was it some kind of ghost phrase that maybe meant-
"It means you were lost in your thoughts," Ghostwriter laughed. Danny was still getting used to the fact ghosts could laugh and not sound evil. "It's something you do remarkably often."
"Yeah, well… It's just that Jazz is always trying to help with all this ghost stuff, but it's not- She's not- It's not safe, you know? At least me and my friends have had time to get used to fighting ghosts, but she hasn't."
"You haven't thought to help her get to the level you're on now? From the stories I've heard, it seems you were rather bad at all of this yourself when you first started."
"That's the point, though. I don't want her to start ghost hunting period!" It was dangerous. At least Sam and Tucker knew how to use the weapons, and Danny had ghost powers! Jazz was- She was great, but she wasn't ghost fight great.
"You should be fighting with each other, not against each other," Ghostwriter tsked. He tsked. "My older brother was always further along in physical attributes than I was, but he always took the time to help me catch up, so we could fight alongside each other."
"Why would you two even need to know how to fight- Nope, no, nevermind, too long a story and I need to prove a point." Ignoring Ghostwriter's 'cough,' Danny shook his head. "Look, Jazz is- She's not a fighter, you know?"
"However, it sounds like she wants to help you. You're siblings. No one is going to understand your struggles better, and the important part is to keep each other safe while fighting together." Yeah, but-
"Look- Look, okay, you're a younger sibling, right?" Waiting until he got a nod, Danny continued. "You should get it, then. Sometimes we have to protect the idiots who never even think of protecting themselves."
There was a long moment where Danny was ready for Ghostwriter's next argument before the ghost gave a small nod. "I see your point." Ha! That was a win! A win on a technicality or something or whatever, but still a point! "I still believe that you should allow your sister to help, however." Ghostwriter hummed, tone of voice turning casual. "She seems smarter than you, after all, and certainly a little more intelligence could never hurt."
"Oh, ha, ha." Still… Ghostwriter kind of had a point, himself. Jazz was smart, and she probably could help them without getting involved in an actual ghost fight. Maybe… Maybe he should start bringing Jazz more into the ghost side of his life. "Alright, c'mon, where are these books going now?"
Following Ghostwriter's directions and random conversation starters was pretty easy after getting over his initial wariness, to the point that it felt like hardly any time at all before he was on his last day of break.
He had meant to help finish with the entire main level and get all the cases and shelves looking great, but, well… He may have gotten distracted reading the books rather than actually sorting them- It wasn't his fault, though! They had finally gotten to the fiction books and there had been a pile of sci-fi books and, okay, look, Danny wanted to be an astronaut for a reason, okay, this was basically training for that.
"So, this is where you disappeared too, then." Shiiit. Ghostwriter had found him. "Oh, please, I'm hardly going to take away a book you're actually reading."
"Hey." Danny frowned up at the man, ready to argue and complain before he saw the plate of food he was holding and oh, yeah, he could eat.
"Honestly, you're like a puppy the way you just perked up." Wha- He was not a puppy! "Which book did you get distracted by?"
"In my defense, this was a danger the second you wanted me to shelf the science fiction stuff." Danny tilted the book, so Ghostwriter could see the title before he was carefully setting it away from the food. He was kind of wary about damaging books after everything, which, yeah, definitely not gonna hurt a book when Ghostwriter was right there.
"You like science fiction, then?" There was no need to sound so surprised about it. "Mm, I shouldn't be too shocked. Your parents did build a portal into a world full of ghosts."
"I still have trouble believing that, some days." Like, yeah, okay, ghosts. Ghosts were a normal, everyday part of Amity Park, now. So, ghosts, but also ghosts.
"If it helps, I still have trouble believing what I am, now." Ghostwriter picked up the book Danny had been reading and started flicking through it, Danny staring at him and… He had forgotten, but the ghosts had been human once, too. He was used to the nutjobs like Skulker and Technus, but how many ghosts were like Ghostwriter who were still human? "I'm curious, what would you say was your favorite book?"
"I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure asking that question is, like, blasphemy for a book lover." Mostly because he had asked Jazz that question once, and she had looked at him as if he had asked her to murder a child in front of him. "Shouldn't you hate that question?"
"You would think," Ghostwriter laughed, taking a seat across from Danny at the table. "I actually find that asking someone for the name of their favorite book reveals a lot about a person."
"Yeah, alright, Sherlock- And that's not my favorite book." Watching the man bite back what was probably a laugh, Danny sighed and leaned back in his seat and, right, favorite book… Nn. "Does favorite author count?"
"Oh? That right there says even more about you." Ghostwriter was fucking with him. He had to be. Looking up, he saw a grin that showed the man was definitely fucking with him. "I'll accept it just this once."
"Ha ha." Leaning forward and grabbing his sandwich, Danny took a bite and swallowed before glancing up to Ghostwriter again. "Don't laugh."
"I would never." Somehow, that was a hard one to believe. Still, it wasn't like his favorite author was bad, just not that well-known.
"My favorite author is M. J. Anderson." Seeing the expression forming, Danny pointed at him. "I said don't laugh!"
"I wasn't going to." Oh, wow, he denied that rather quickly. "I just- I suppose I'm surprised that of all the authors you could pick, you choose that one."
"Hey, Anderson had a lot of really great books- I mean, have you read The Soundless Clock?" The other's expression looked like some weird combination of embarrassment and amusement, Danny crossing his arms and choosing to ignore him. The Soundless Clock is one of the best books to have ever been written, and Star Gazers isn't very far behind, either." That had Ghostwriter laughing.
"Star Gazers? That book read like it was written by a sleep-deprived college student who had one too many cups of coffee! It's riddled with small plot holes, grammatical mistakes, and the narrative seems to switch from Star to Ches at some places!"
"You mock it, yet you've read it?" A helpless little shrug was the only response he was really given. "Okay, yeah, the book doesn't read the best, but that doesn't- That doesn't affect the story, you know?"
"Oh? What do you mean?" The ghost was up to something, but dammit, Danny had a point to prove!
"It's- Ah, jeez, man, it's hard to explain, but it's like- The book isn't the best, but the story is. Like, okay, yeah, it reads like it was still a rough draft, in some places, but it was a great story. It was all about being scared to leave home and leaving anyways because of the idea of what's out there. It was about being sheltered and alone and not knowing what it was like out there but wanting to find out! It was a story about- About exploring the galaxy and being able to one day say, 'Ah, yes, I know that star, and that one, and that one, and I know all their stories.' It's- It was a book about adventure and space and- And- Dude, that book is what made me want to be an astronaut!"
"Did it, now?" Ghostwriter had a small, silly little smile on his face, one cheek propped up on his hand as he stared at Danny. Deciding that he didn't even want to ask, Danny quickly took another bite of his sandwich. "You seem to adore Star Gazers, but you still think Soundless Clock is better?"
"Well, yeah." Right. Time to defend his books again- God, he had become his sister. "If you say anything bad about that book, I think I might have to fight you again."
"Alright, then. Tell me what's good about it." That- Well. That was a very long list, but it was one Danny was willing to share- Or… Maybe not a list.
"Andrea didn't want to be a hero." Ordering his thoughts, and, yeah, okay, this was actually a good way to start it. "Yeah- Yeah. Andrea didn't want to be a hero, but she became one because no one else was going to do it, you know? She was a kid off the streets, but she got into trouble and lied about it and then- Oh, man. She ended up on possibly the coolest ship in the entire world and she hated it just until she stepped on and realized she loved it. She was shit at every job they gave her, but then she worked on the ship and fixed it up, and that ship- That ship isa main character the same way Hogwarts is a main character in Harry Potter.
"But, Ghostwriter, man, dude, she basically went from this little kid who didn't know what she was doing to a hero because she could help, because- Because she could, you know? She was there, and she knew she could help, and so she did." That… The Soundless Clock had always been his favorite book, but there were even more reasons to love it, now. "She became a hero and even though she went through some really horrible shit, she still kept going. That… It was a great story."
"Not including the plot hole in the chapter on the Airship Gala-"
"Fuck you, that was not a plot hole, that was foreshadowing." That got the man's attention, Danny smirking. "Looks like you don't keep up with the fan forums. I mean, that guy- Oh, man, you don't create a character like that and never use him again."
"I suppose, and yet, there's no sequel." Yeah, and considering the book had been published in the eighties… "I like to think that the man she met was actually the friend of her mother's and the Admiral."
"Really?" Huh. That was- That was actually a pretty good theory. "I can see it. Oh, man, a sequel would have had so much potential."
"There's always hope," Ghostwriter grinned, leaning back in his seat. "Thank you, by the way, for telling me why you love those stories."
"Oh, uh, sure?" Such a weird ghost. "So, right, okay, shelving the sci-fi books. Where are these going?"
Much to Danny's surprisingly disappointment, the end of the day came far too soon, Ghostwriter and Danny managing to talk about their favorite books before circling around to talk about their siblings and then ghosts and everything in between. It was great, and then the entry area of the library was clean and looked amazing.
"So, uh, I guess that's that, then." It looked a lot neater and a lot less dusty after everything, so Danny supposed Ghostwriter sort of knew what he was doing. "Five days of library cleaning."
"You did better than I would have expected." Oh, jeez, that was a compliment. Startling as Ghostwriter lightly touched his shoulder, Danny looked up to him to see the man giving a smile. "Apology accepted."
"Good- Good. Now I don't have to worry about being trapped in another poem, at least." He was actually pretty sure he had seen that book when cleaning. He was also pretty sure he hid it under a couch somewhere. Maybe. Probably. Could have been behind a stack of books on one of the shelves. "So, uh, guess I'll… Guess I'll head out, then."
"Danny." Oh, shit, wait, Ghostwriter knew his first name? Well, technically all ghosts probably did, but all of them just called him 'boy' or 'Phantom' or 'whelp.' "You really should talk to your sister."
"Oh- Oh, right, yeah. Yeah, I should." Jazz… She deserved a real explanation for everything, and Danny was sure she could help them in her own way. Probably. Maybe. "Right, so, um… Bye?"
Ghostwriter chuckled and gently pushed Danny out the door and- "If you ever need a quiet place to read, my library will always be open for you." With that, Danny found himself floating outside Ghostwriter's library, the doors closing shut behind him- No, not closing. There was a sliver of a crack that showed he could easily push them back open.
"Always open, huh?" Danny had just made a friend who was a ghost. That was… That was great. "See you soon, then, GW."
::
"Door's open!" Opening the door, he had just knocked on, Danny poked his head into Jazz's room and took a quick look around. She seemed to be organizing her backpack for when they went back to school and honestly. "Hey, Danny. What's up?"
"Oh, well, see, I kind of- I maybe thought- It's actually pretty funny-" Danny babbled as Jazz grabbed him by his wrists and effortlessly steered him into sitting down on her bed. "Rude."
"Yes, I am. Now, what's wrong?" Oh, boy, that was a question. "Anything you want to talk about?"
"Yes- No- Yeah. No, yeah, yes, there is." Right. He just had to tell her… Well. "I… I kind of think there are some things we should talk about. It… It might take a while, though." Everything would mean over a year of ghost fights, worries, fears, and injuries. "Will you listen?"
"Always." There hadn't even been a second of hesitation, and that was all the courage Danny needed to relax against the bed and give a grin.
"Well, it all kind of started last year. You probably remember when Mom and Dad couldn't get the portal to work, yeah? The whole accident? It- I mean, you've probably figured it all out by now, but there's a bit more to it all…"
"You have my attention for as long as you need it, Danny." Right. That- Well. That was all he really needed, right now.
"Okay, so it all started with Mom and Dad's bad engineering and this stupid button."