"Let me show you how to properly use this!" Aja growled as she stared down the colonel strewn out before her. Colonel Kubritz just chuckled in response as she leapt for a neurometer which had been tossed aside, and then aimed towards the Akiridion. Aja barely had time to throw up a shield before Kubritz started firing, but when the ionic weapon and the neurometer energy made contact both women were thrown back across the room, in opposite directions. It was only due to their differing physiologies that the Akiridion was able to rise to her feet again, but the human did not.

"Aja! Are you okay, Aja?" Steve rushed inside, whilst Toby continued to distract the guards. "How many fingers am I holding up? What's today's date? What's the capital of Alaska?"

"You came to rescue me"

"Always. That's what incredibly good-looking boyfriends do"

"Ugh! Please!" Krel groaned from where he lay on his upturned bed, still restrained and struggling to get free. "Kill me or just cut me loose!"

"Right" Aja chuckled as she and Steve moved to free her brother.

"Royals! Creepers! Someone! We gotta go!" Toby cried as he ran passed, war hammer glowing orange and hazmat suits trailing after him, just as toxically colourful.


Dan fell in and out of consciousness, unable to tell how much time had passed in the dimly-lit room and only aware of the scientists above him as they grew frustrated with his rapid healing. More than once, one of them had to physically pull back his flesh or reopen a wound to stop it from sealing shut. It wasn't until he felt the tip of a scalpel graze against his core that he jolted from the darkness with a muffled roar, shocking those around him. Where human souls were brittle in their purity, ghost cores were equally as weak in their durability. This was due to, in part, the constant state of flux that one might find themselves in; ghosts were often changing between humanoid, animalistic & monstrous and that didn't even take into account the powers that each core had to adapt to. Any normal person would explode under that much weight of power but death was strange, not even the dead could understand it.

Ice exploded from Dan at the sudden shock of pain, encompassing everything in its path and freezing all to a standstill. Surgical equipment tumbled to the floor as the Vlad-appointed scientists quickly found themselves stumbling for a hold as the ground grew slippery beneath them. The electro-thermal beast which had been stalking the halls fell too to his ice, but the electricity that blanketed him danced along the snow-covered ground and zapped all who touched it before it fizzled out. Then there were those unlucky few which had been in close enough contact to the halfa received a blast of ice to the heart which had them frozen before they hit the ground and when they did, they shattered like glass. With the pain gone, Dan collapsed back against the (now) frozen table, a gentle wisp of icy breath falling from his lips in relief.

And then there were hands on him again. Dan tried to struggle against them, but they pushed back, insistent and wandering. The muzzle went came off first, and for that, Dan was glad. He could taste the metallic tang of blood on his tongue and copious amounts of drool followed after the piece which had been shoved into his mouth; talking was going to be uncomfortable for a fair bit until that too, healed. Next, a familiar voice filtered into his ears. His mind told him that this person had no right to sound so upset; that this person was usually so upbeat that it sounded odd for them to be anything else. "…an? Dan? Can you hear me? C'me on Danny boy, you need to wake up! Oh, please don't make me do this!"

SMACK!

"…Huh?" Dan forced his tired eyes open again, but this time he found not masked scientists nor a smug colonel staring down at him, but the rosy rotund glasses of his classmate, George. A slight stinging pain ached across his cheek, but his mind was too slow on the uptake.

"Good, good, you're up! Are you okay, Dan?"

"Did someone…slap me?" Dan blinked languidly at the brunette as he finally broke the halfa free using nothing but his hands.

"…You must've been dreaming" George lied, eyes wide and sheepish.

"But where—?"

"—Forget about that! C'me on, let's get outta here!"

"My clothes—" Dan swallowed around the cotton feeling in his mouth and his tongue that felt way too heavy. George helped him up into a sitting position before he scrounged about looking for where the halfa's clothes had been hidden.

Dan gagged on a wince when he spared a glance down at his previously open torso, only to find it already sealed shut, thankfully much faster now that the ecto-cuffs were off. He still wore the crisp hospital gown, although now it was splattered in splotches of ectoplasm and blood from where they had operated on him, taking samples of who-knows-what. A barely audible groan sounded from Dan as he began to slump over, unable to keep himself up any longer and falling towards the floor.

"Whoa! Okay! I got ya! I got ya!" George rushed back over to grab Dan before he hit the floor with one hand gripped tight to the bag of clothes that he'd found tucked away in a bag labelled with a 'toxic' sticker. As limp and unresponsive as Dan was, there was no way he was going to able to redress himself without help and he doubted that George was going to help him put his shorts back on. "Here, your shirt will have to do" George offered as he propped Dan back up and then proceeded to pulled the oversized t-shirt out of the bag. With how limp and lifeless the halfa was, George had to help pull the piece of clothing on. Dan wanted to help, he did, but he felt like he was trying to escape from a pool of quicksand. Each limb felt too heavy, each movement way too much effort. All he really wanted to do was curl up and sleep for an eternity.

The albino slumped forward again, this time his head landed in the crook of George's neck and he felt hands come up to hold him. Dan blinked and then he was being hauled onto George's back, his head falling limply and returning into the crook of the brunette's neck with limbs that drooped loosely like noodles over his classmate's shoulders. Hands grappled at his thighs and the two spent a minute or two trying to readjust themselves before George was on the move again and they were dashing across the ice with surprising surety that would've made Dan pause if he was in the right state of mind.

Soon enough, the pair of graduates rejoined with the tail end of the stream of escaping students who had been captured and imprisoned for the 'quarantine'. George didn't even blink when he found Toby being chased by a couple of hazmats armed with neurometers, instead his foot kicked out to the side and booted a discarded weapon up into the air. The neurometer rose into the air and the brunette easily plucked it up with one hand whilst the other remained wrapped around Dan's thigh. He then pulled the trigger of the weapon aimed at the hazmats trailing after the stocky boy. All actions were made with minimal movements, all appearing like a graceful dance even as he tossed the firearm none-too-gently aside when he was done.

"Wha—?" Toby gasped, out of breath and eyes shining in awe & thanks as his eyes flittered back and forth between the brunette and the downed hazmats. "How did you do that? That was awesome-sauce!"

"Er, thanks" George smiled bemusedly at the stocky boy.

"Is that the Daniel?" Krel asked as he, his sister and Steve trotted over to where the three stood cluttered out in the hallway. "Is he okay?"

"He's…he's a little out of it, but he'll be okay" George replied, hesitant to say that his classmate was okay, when he clearly wasn't. "You guys good?"

"Yeah—"

"—Hey!" The sudden cry came from behind them, startling the group into action.

"We should go" George shooed. "Go, go, go!"

"Ah! Run!" Toby gasped as he turn and fled, the others right behind him.

"Brats! Hey! Hey!"

BANG!

"The hazmat guys have blocked all the exits" Toby panicked as he and Steve threw themselves up against the double doors in an attempt to keep the hazmats out. "Get to the roof!"

"We cant' leave you guys here!" Aja complained as the door bulged on its hinges.

"Go, we'll be fine" George added as he hoisted Dan higher. Still they hesitated; it was clear that these juniors really cared for his classmate, despite being different ages. "What is it?"

"It feels wrong to leave you behind…" Krel mused, brows furrowed in confusion as to how he could miss someone he didn't even know and barely interacted with. Save for the mumbling halfa he had draped over his shoulders, there was really nothing outwardly special about the brunette. "Even though I do not know you"

"Of course it does, I'm part elf" George shrugged as if that explained everything.

"Huh?" Dan perked up slightly behind him. The action was small, but it warmed the brunette to know that the albino was recovering.

"Wha—since when?!" Toby demanded.

"Since always" George replied as he pushed his hair back to show the juniors his pointed ears. "See?"

"So cool!"

"Yeah, everybody loves elves" George smiled knowingly, "You just can't help it"

"That doesn't make any sense!" Steve grunted as he pushed back against his side of the door.

"Elves have this magical quality that makes people love them" George explained, shifting Dan's weight. "It's also in babies, puppies, cats and pizza"

Dan hummed into his shoulder as he made a noise in agreement, which seemed to be enough to assuage any further concerns that the juniors had. And with that, the two Tarron siblings raced off after Aja pressed a kiss to Steve's reddened cheek. At his side, Toby snickered at the goofy grin that the blonde sported.

"My warrior oaf!" Aja cooed a farewell.

"Really not the time, Aja!" Krel scolded as he paused to see what was taking his sister so long.

"You're just jealous" Aja sneered as caught up with her brother and the two raced off around the corner.

"Of that? Unlikely" Krel scoffed.

"Hey! You kids are in a lot of trouble!" Hazmats appeared from the opposite end of the corridor, catching them off guard.

"RUN!" Toby screeched as the two holding the doors skittered away and down the hall. George hoisted Dan higher still and chased after the fleeing boys.


It was dark when they all emerged from the school that evening, Coach Lawerence leading the pack of bedraggled teenagers and over towards the commotion out in the courtyard."…I'm sure you'll find out detention center quite comfortable—" Kubritz purred threateningly at the two Tarron siblings, the only students not accounted for.

"—Hey!" Coach called as he strode forward. Protectiveness gleamed off of every inch of the broad-shouldered man as he placed himself between the scientific division and his students. "The only one who gets to send these kids to detention is me!"

"You tell her, Dad—! I—I mean, Coach—uh, Coach-Dad—uh…D-Daddy-o?"" Steve cheered before quickly back-pedalling in embarrassment as the other students joined their friends.

The students lined themselves up almost self-consciously, with the graduates encircling the juniors like penguins guarding their chicks. George stood at the back of the pack with Dan gently pressed against the side door behind them to alleviate some of the weight. It also served to hide the tired halfa who had instinctively turned himself invisible upon catching sight of the colonel and her many toy soldiers. The brunette had no doubt that the albino could have easily taken her on any other given day, but right now he was weak and tired, he could barely hurt a fly. Despite (or in spite of) his invisibility, George was just thankful that he could feel his breath tickling at his neck and the crisp hospital gown that crinkled beneath his grasp from where he held onto the boy's thighs.

"Stand down, sir!" Kubritz growled as she pressed in close to Coach. "You have no idea how dangerous this situation is!"

"Dangerous?" Darcy scoffed, hands on her hips. "These are our friends! What have they even done?"

"You lied to me once, and now you're lying to me twice!" Coach snarled, "I'm not dying, so what's this medical quarantine really about?"

"These children aren't from around here. They may be carrying diseases and need to be removed for the safety of this community"

PING!

"Sorry, could you repeat that?" Mary smirked as she pushed her way to the front of the group and shoved her camera up into the air as she recorded. "Y'know, the part about how the kids 'who aren't from around her' are 'dangerous' and 'sick' and 'need to be removed'? I'm sure that's gonna sound great in a viral video!"

PING! PING! PING! PING!

And just like that, every student plucked their cellphones from their pockets and aimed their camera phones at the suddenly nervous soldiers. The elf peered over the shoulders of the Tarron's human glamours, gleefully watching as the colonel was threatened and driven out by teenagers, armed with nothing more than their cellphones. Even Coach joined in. But Kubritz refused to stand down, it was only until the colonel was nudged by one of her own men that she found her resolve wavering. "Colonel, we need to go!"

"Take a hike, lady!" Coach growled. "Before I call the school board!"

"…Move out" Kubritz grit out in reluctance between clenched teeth and white knuckled grip on her neurometer. "This facility has been cleared"

"You heard her! We were never here! Move it out!" A hazmat called, rounding up all of the wayward soldiers.

"This isn't over!" Kubritz shot over her shoulder, intent on having the last laugh no matter how weak it was.

"Yes! We did it!" Steve laughed in relief as the scientific division retreated.

"Yeah! We're great!" Darcy & Mary shared a secret handshake as others shared high-fives, hugs and exclaimations of relief.

"Together! All of us!"

"Yeah! Good job!"

"Thank you!"

"That's my boy!" Coach clapped his stepson's shoulder as Aja hugged the blonde tight.

"Coach—Dad—ugh! Dad—Coach—Dad—whatever, please!"

"I can't believe you all came to help us!" Said Krel.

"We don't know what to say" Added Aja.

"Aw, it's nothing" Toby grinned as he slung a hand around the prince's shoulders. "The only way to survive all of Arcadia's weirdness is it you—"

"—Stick together!" Eli ended as he popped up between the two gobsmacked siblings. "Yeah! High-five!"


They dispersed not long after that to collect their things and wander home. In all the commotion, the elf was able to easily slip away and head back home with halfa in tow. He was unwilling to leave him alone by himself in his current condition and he worried that the alien siblings wouldn't know how to handle him, so George thought it best to bring Dan home with home, Babylon Towers, was a block of apartments that sat nestled in between the two local high schools (apparently adding an 'S' made it sound more professional and less biblical). It was an odd sort of place, even for Arcadia. It wasn't the horde of elderly citizens and live-in nurses or the single parent families that usually caught the eye, but the throngs of students who occupied the mysterious level thirteen. Mysterious, only in the fact that it didn't exist. Technically.

Level thirteen was a magical floor available only to those of the supernatural variety. It was managed by a wrinkly old changeling who tutored some of the younger tenants outside of school. Here, you lived among (hedge) wizards, elves, changelings and werewolves. There was even the odd gorgon or two, but they mostly kept to themselves.

George's apartment, 13F, was a cute little thing that was overrun by houseplants of both the mortal and magic variety, making it appear like he was living in the woodlands instead of a little studio apartment. Sparing a nod to his neighbours as he passed, the elf took a moment to wiggle the key into the lock before making his way inside and ever-so-gently dumped the semi-conscious halfa down onto his couch. Dan mumbled a thanks as George threw a checkered afghan blanket over him and the halfa curled up around a wayward cushion like it was a teddy bear. The brunette smiled fondly down at the picture and shuffled over to the kitchen where he set about putting the kettle on, mindful of the widower's ivy that crept along the windowsil.