AN: So here's the third chapter. Again, I hope you guys can enjoy. Thank you every one who has taken the time to review, it's very thoughtful. I appreciate it. It makes me happy to read people actually enjoying my silly little fic.
When Vlad woke up the following morning, he groaned in pain. His back and neck were stiff; not to mention he was cold. When he opened his eyes, he realized it was because the young halfa had hogged the blanket. Annoyed, the older man yanked the blanket off Danny and wrapped himself in it till he was cocooned. Danny gave a startled yelp and shot up from bed, wondering why he was suddenly shivering. He glared at the billionaire, who merely raised a brow and smirked cockily at him.
"Good morning, Daniel. You look cold." He sounded as if he was actually concerned, that is, until he started chuckling.
"Gee, I wonder why!" he shivered then looked at the time; six in the morning. He groaned and tried to tug the blanket back to him. "Give me some of that!"
"No. You didn't want to share last night, which meant I could have freeze to death, which is highly inconsiderate of you, so I believe I am entitled to warmth."
Danny growled in frustration. "Fine, keep it then!" he kicked Vlad off the mattress. Vlad fell to the ground with a loud "oof!". Danny got up, put on a pair of sweat pants and a sweater as he opened his tent and went to start a fire.
Grumbling, Vlad got up, unwrapping the blanket off him. That little brat! Huffing, he got dressed and quickly went after Daniel. The young half used his ghost powers to get the fire started and began to prepare breakfast. When he was near the log Jazz had been sitting on the night before, Vlad blasted at Danny's feet, causing the halfa to yelp, trip backwards on the log and fall roughly on his butt. He glared at the older man, who merely smirked.
"See if I make you breakfast!" Danny said with an angry huff and glare, standing up.
"I can do it myself."
"Whatever." Danny grumbled, returning to the fire to make the rest of his breakfast. When he finished cooking, he put the food in two plates and handed one to Vlad, who took it in mock surprise.
"I thought you weren't going to make me breakfast?" he asked, not hiding his mocking tone.
"I made extra. Don't get used to it." Danny grumbled, flushing slightly. Vlad couldn't help but think how adorable Daniel looked when he blushed. He growled lowly at his thought and was pleased when the rest of the Fenton family came out of their tents. Jack stretched and yawned loudly.
"Hey V-man, Danny! Is that sausage I smell?"
Danny smirked and ate his last piece of sausage. "Was sausage. There's more in the cooler though. I didn't think you guys would wake up early."
Maddie yawned and shivered slightly from the cold morning. "Your father wants to go swimming."
"Sweet!"
Jazz did not agree with the sentiment. She groaned and started to prepare herself breakfast. "Greaaat. I can't wait."
"That's great Jazzypants!" Her father shouted; ignoring the sarcasm as he eagerly awaited his breakfast. Jazz rolled her eyes.
When the sun finally came out and heated up the area, they made their way towards the river. They had all changed into their bathing suits, much to Vlad's dismay. He didn't want to swim. When they reached the river, he scowled at it in disgust. That water looked filthy! Maddie and Jazz set down their beach towels and were content to just sun bathe. Jack immediately did a cannon ball into the river, splashing water everywhere. Vlad discreetly phased his right leg so it wouldn't get wet. He was about to join the ladies when something clutched onto his waist and dragged him towards the water. Vlad yelled out in horror as a grinning Danny dropped them into the freezing river.
He resurfaced, spluttering, a laughing Danny swimming away. Growling, he swam after the younger halfa. Once he caught up to him, he immediately dunked him under water, only to be tickled and dunked by the raven haired. Vlad splashed water at Danny when he resurfaced, only for the other to do the same. Vlad couldn't believe it, he found himself laughing and enjoying himself. He heard a shout of "BONZAI!" and was hit with a huge splash of water from Jack. Danny also got hit. Vlad and Danny exchanged a look and immediately ganged up on Jack, who was left coughing from swallowing some water, but laughing. Vlad swam towards the surface and started to climb out.
"I think that's enough 'fun' for me." He declared as he walked towards the women with the intention of drying off and enjoying the sun. Jack and Danny climbed out and followed him.
"Oh no you don't." Danny said with a grin.
"Don't be that way, V-man! We're way more fun!"
"I beg to differ." Vlad grumbled, but was immediately tackled. "What the-get off of me!" He struggled as Danny pinned him, a vicious grin on his face. Vlad squirmed underneath the man, trying to keep his body from reacting to being so close to the younger halfa.
"I got his legs!" Danny called as his father rushed over and grabbed onto Vlad's arms. They hauled him up and carried a struggling Vlad back to the edge. "Put me down this INSTANT! DANIEL! JACK! I'M WARNING YOU!" He shouted, but the Fenton men paid no heed. They swung him, grinning, counting down.
"One…two…THREE!"
They tossed him back into the river, Vlad making a big splash. He glared at them as they jumped back in. Sighing, Vlad joined them and swam around, but not after dunking them until he was satisfied with his pay back. After about half an hour, Maddie got out a volley ball net and put it up. Danny and Jack immediately got out and went to join. Vlad reluctantly followed and decided to watch from the side lines. It was males versus females. Jazz, although initially reluctant, soon became competitive with her brother. Whenever Jack or Danny scored, they would cheer loudly and even pound their chests mockingly at the women. In turn, when the women scored, they cheered just as loud, if not more obnoxiously, and rubbed their victory in their faces. Vlad barely paid much mind of keeping score, he was busy watching Danny's taunt body glistening in the sun light.
He found it odd that he was enjoying himself. He wasn't scheming, he wasn't trying to take over the world or do something manipulate that would benefit him…Here he was on a vacation with the Fenton's. To some degree, he felt intrusive; after all, this was supposed to be a family vacation. However, an opportunity had opened up at Vlad's door and he would have regretted it if he had let it slip by and he already had enough regrets in his life. This wasn't exactly what he had in mind when he thought he would see Daniel again, but it wasn't unpleasant, either.
When the game ended, the Fenton women victorious, they made their way back to their camp site to shower and change into fresh clothes. Vlad was heading towards the RV when Danny stopped him.
"Where ya going?" he asked with a raised brow.
"To shower. Surely you have a shower room in the RV?"
"Nope. It's broken."
Vlad stared at Danny in surprise. "Well then fix it."
Danny snorted. "We tried. You try cleaning out all the ecto plasm in there and then fixing all the broken pieces and tell me how that goes."
Growling in annoyance, Vlad asked, "So where are we going to shower?"
"In the river, duh."
"What?!" Vlad's eyes widened in horror. "Surely you're joking! We were just in there! That water is filthy! It isn't a sanitary place to use as a shower!"
Danny couldn't help it; he laughed. "You'll just have to get used to it and it's not that bad. Besides, we're going back to go canoeing."
"Canoeing?" Vlad asked, biting back a groan.
"Yup! It'll be fun!"
Vlad took a very long and deep breath. He seriously considered just leaving and going home. He could be home and… and be doing what? Reading a book, drinking tea, mourning over his life and how dull it is? He just got Daniel back after 3 very long years…was an activity such as canoeing really so bad that he wouldn't use it as a chance to spend time with Daniel? After all, he didn't know what would happen after they returned from their trip. Surely, Daniel would go back to New York and Vlad wouldn't hear from him again for who knows how long!
Scowling, Vlad muttered, "Very well." Jack and Danny hauled the canoes to the river, leaving them parked so that they could all shower. They parted ways; the women going left and the men right. Vlad sincerely missed his private shower room. He was supposed to shower in nature? How disgusting. Danny and Jack didn't seem to have a problem with it. In fact, they quickly got out of their bathing suit, Vlad having to close his eyes because he did not want to see Jack.
"Really! Do you two have any humility?!" Vlad asked, making the two Fenton men glance at each other in confusion.
"What's wrong?" Danny asked. "It's not like anyone's here."
"I'm here."
"So? Our parts are the same as yours; it's nothing to be shy of." Danny teased with a grin.
"I am not shy!" Vlad said angrily, glaring daggers at Danny, forcing his eyes to stay on Daniel's. To prove his point, he casually removed his bathing suit and jumped into the river with the Fenton's. He quickly showered, although he couldn't help but cringe in disgust and quickly got up and dried off. He finished dressing and went over to the canoes to wait for the rest of them. He didn't have to wait long.
"Okay so who's taking the canoe with who?" Maddie asked.
One canoe was a two persons and the other could fit 4 people. Jack jumped at the chance. "V-man and I can have this one!" He pointed to the two persons, making Vlad pale. "It'll be just like our old college days; when it was just the two of us, eh, V-man?" He couldn't resist slapping Vlad's back. Vlad's eyes almost flashed red. He barely suppressed a growl.
"Surely, Jack, you rather have Maddie or one of your children there?" He prayed that he would change his mind. He rather be in the canoe with Jasmine and Daniel; at least Daniel would be there.
"Nah, she doesn't mind, right baby-cakes?"
Maddie waved them off. "Not all." She dismissed, hopping on the canoe, Jazz following her.
Vlad sighed and went into the canoe after pushing it off with Jack, realizing he had no choice. Danny jumped into the canoe with his mother and sister, and in sync, they all paddled across the river. Vlad, however, didn't have the luck.
"No, you fool! Just paddle when I do-! No, that's a log, Jack, we're heading towards that log, CHANGE SIDES YOU IDIOT!" But it was too late, Jack, in his foolhardiness, accidently slammed Vlad's side of the canoe into the log, causing the silver hair man to grunt in annoyance.
"Whoops! Sorry about that!" Jack apologized with a large grin. "We have to catch up to them! Look how far they are!"
Danny, Maddie and Jasmine were a good distance away; they were enjoying their casual stroll in the lake. They had a lovely view of everything and went down the river with ease.
"Yes, well, perhaps you'll try listening to me if you want to so much as catch up—"
"NO TIME!" Jack shouted before he paddled with all his might.
"JACK!" Vlad shouted as they were propelled forward. Not in a straight line of course; Vlad found himself getting slammed into passing logs. Jack didn't pay mind; he merely sped up until he caught up to the others and sped past them.
"HA! BEAT YOU!" he shouted at them, but didn't stop.
"Jack," Vlad called. "Jack, stop, JACK, STOP-!" Having enough, Vlad leaned forward, dangerously rocking the boat, but grabbing the paddle from the other man and taking it away.
"Huh? Oh, what's wrong V-man?"
Vlad hit Jack on the head with the paddle. "We're well passed the others now, Jack! Don't you think we can simply paddle at a normal rate?" he growled, frustrated. He was annoyed; he had slammed into at least five different logs and was holding himself back from blasting the man with his ghost powers.
Jack looked back at his family and was satisfied with the distance. "Sure V-man! Not a problem!"
Sighing, Vlad handed Jack the paddle back. They rowed for a bit, and it was calm. For a few minutes, Vlad actually found himself enjoying it. It was peaceful, and rather relaxing. Jack looked in every direction in awe. The man sure seemed to enjoy nature. After a few more calming, peaceful minutes, Vlad felt the canoe rock. Frowning, he dismissed it until he felt again. Sighing, he pinched the bridge of his nose and said,
"Jack, stop rocking the boat."
"What? That's not me."
The boat rocked again, this time, harsher. Vlad dropped his paddle and gripped the sides of the canoe. "Jack! Cease this at once!"
"V-man, I swear, it's not me!"
"Then who—"
The canoe was flipped over. Vlad quickly removed himself from the canoe and swam around it to get to the surface. When he did, he coughed out the water that had gotten into his mouth and heard laughter. Jack resurfaced and spotted his family laughing at them. Danny was in the water, Maddie and Jazz remained safely and dried on the canoe. Danny had flipped them over. Unable to help himself, Jack laughed along with his family.
"Hahaha! You got us! Good one, son!" Jack said proudly.
Vlad, grumbling, flipped the boat up right. Daniel swam to him and chuckled close to his ear. Vlad couldn't help the pleasant shiver that shot up his spine.
"Don't be mad, it was just a joke." Danny said with a playful smile. He looked into the man's eyes to see if he had truly angered him. Vlad, for once, found it difficult to be angry at him.
"I'd sleep with one eye open tonight if I were you, Daniel." Vlad warned.
"Aw, come on. Here!" Danny suddenly dove under water. Confused, Vlad climbed onto the canoe and retook his spot, waiting for Daniel to resurface. He couldn't see him; the river was dark. Danny came back up, holding the paddle Vlad had dropped earlier in his hand. Danny swam towards him and handed it back.
"See? I got your paddle back!"
Vlad smirked. "That was of your own doing. I did not ask."
Pouting, Danny helped steady the canoe as his father climbed back in, who was grinning proudly at his son. Danny childishly stuck out his tongue to Vlad and swam back to his mother and sister. They resumed their canoeing.
When they made it back to their site, Vlad was famished. He was also in need of a bathroom. The RV had one. He climbed in and made his way towards the bathroom. The door was locked. Frowning, he tried to yank it open, but it wouldn't budge. He considered just phasing through it, but surely that would bring up questions. Groaning in frustration, Vlad exited the RV and walked towards Daniel.
"Daniel dear, where is the key?"
Danny, opening a bag of chips, looked at Vlad in confusion, but said nothing to the term of endearment. "The key to what?"
"The bathroom."
"Oh. You can't use the bathroom in the RV."
Vlad felt a vein twitch. "And why not?" he asked slowly through clenched teeth. This family was seriously testing his patience!
"Part of the camping experience." Danny explained calmly. "You can either go behind a tree or go to the outhouse. There's one not too far from here." The look of utter horror on Vlad's face caused Danny to laugh.
Vlad, however, did not seem the humor. Oh no. No, no, no, no! Use the bathroom outside, or in an outhouse? This was it; this was the day Vlad would forfeit a challenge. No, his pride would not allow him to sink so low as to use the bathroom in an outhouse, that … that was just unsanitary in so many ways than one.
"Oh, by the way," Danny munched on a chip before he continued. "Here's my advice: don't look down, and don't look up, if you decide to use the outhouse."
Vlad almost vomited. Perhaps he could away with some kind of dignity? No, there was no way to walk away from this and not have Daniel rub it in his face. The great Vlad Masters, unable to handle camping. It would be all over the news and ghost zone within minutes. Vlad sincerely thought about leaving a clone here to deal with the rest of the trip while he would go home and live in his luxurious mansion with his sanity intact.
But…Daniel…
Butter biscuits.
Swallowing past the lump in his throat, he nodded and walked towards the outhouse once Daniel had handed him some toilet paper and directed him to it. When Vlad saw the outhouse, he felt nauseous. Taking a deep breath, slid the door open and walked in. Immediately, his body rebelled, and Vlad was thankful his stomach was empty. He opened the lid, and taking Daniel's advice, simply closed his eyes as he used the bathroom. He ran out when he was finished, into his and Daniel's tent, grabbed his hand sanitizer and rubbed it on his hands over and over again until he was somewhat satisfied.
When he stepped out and sat down on a log, Danny joined him, handing him a plate of beans and hot dogs. It almost made up for his horrendous day. Good lord, this was just the first day? He still had 3 more to go?! How would he survive?! He was Vlad Masters! He shouldn't have to sink so low as to camp outdoors! Not only that, Daniel got rid of his perfectly cozy and reasonable tent!
He felt a loose strand of hair being brushed back and put behind his ear. He looked up and stared at Daniel in surprise, who was smiling faintly. "Didn't want you to get ketchup on your hair." He explained with a shrug, trying to appear casual.
"Of course…"
Daniel glanced at him and blushed, and for the first time since he had gotten himself into this nightmare, he felt … happy. Perhaps…he was exaggerating. It wasn't a complete horror; it was sometimes, dare he say, fun? He ate his food silently, listening to Jasmine and her parents bicker about ghosts. Well, Jasmine was scolding her parents for bringing it up while they tried to explain about their new weapons. Daniel seemed to have overcome his shyness and resumed acting as if nothing happened. Well, can't have that, now can we? Vlad scooted over to Daniel, pressing his side to the other halfa's, feeling a sense of satisfactory wash over him when he heard the other's startled gasp. He continued to casually eat his food, noticing the other halfa was now squirming uncomfortably in his seat but trying to keep up a calm façade. He chuckled. Poor little badger, Vlad thought with a chuckle.
Vlad didn't know how he made it till nightfall, but he did. Of course, Jack decided to try to get his family to sing camping songs. When Danny said he was going to go for a walk, Vlad jumped at the chance and asked to join him. They walked side by side out into the woods, Maddie's warning of not going too far lingering in their heads. Once they were a good distance away from the family, Vlad suddenly found himself roughly pinned to a tree.
"Alright, who are you and what have you done with Vlad Masters?" Danny asked with a glare.
Vlad raised a brow at the younger halfa, wondering where this came from. "What do you mean, little badger? It is me, I assure you."
"Pft, yeah right. You were alone with my dad, who Vlad hates, and didn't try to kill him? Vlad wouldn't have missed the chance."
Vlad had to pause. Kill Jack Fenton? He tried to think of a perfectly logical reason as to why he didn't try to kill Jack or at least maim him. Nothing came to mind. The man frustrated him, that was for sure, and he supposed he still held a grudge over what Jack did to him, but, it did give him his ghost powers. He supposed the real reason he no longer felt like getting rid of Jack was because he was no longer in pursuit of Maddie. No, his affections were gone for the woman, and he was starting to realize why.
"Well?" Danny asked, his eyes glowing a neon green.
"Really Daniel, I thought you were going with the whole 'innocent until proven guilty' aspect?" He smirked. "Besides, I told you I may have bigger plans."
Danny let him go and pointed a finger warningly at him. "Don't try anything funny. I got my eye on you."
"So you've told me."
They resumed their walking. Vlad found it peaceful. Too bad the sky was covered in clouds. The only thing that shined was the moon, which provided them with light. He found it odd that he and Danny could walk in compatible silence. Danny felt the same. He was still suspicious of Vlad but not so much as when he was fourteen. He had more of a right to be at that age, to be fair. When he left for college, he found it odd that his thoughts often drifted to the man in Wisconsin instead of his family in Amity Park. He would go through the Ghost Zone so he wouldn't lose his touch in fighting, and always hoped he would catch a glimpse of the other halfa. His luck, however, in the past three years, were not well when it came to Vlad. When he finally visited Amity Park after so long and his father suggested inviting Vlad to their trip, Danny was ecstatic. He tried not to show it, and hoped the man didn't notice how eager Danny was to spend time with him. He would never live it down if Vlad figured out Danny had actually missed him!
They walked back to camp, not realizing they had been gone awhile. The fire was put out and the family had returned to their tent. Danny crawled into his tent, Vlad following behind him, and they got ready for bed. Vlad groaned as he sat down on the lumpy air mattress, his body already aching.
"What's wrong?" Danny asked, not even masking his concern.
"My back isn't made for these type of things, I'm afraid." He glared hatefully at the air mattress.
"Your back hurts?" Danny frowned, feeling a bit guilty. After all, it was sort of his fault Vlad was sharing his tent.
"It's nothing to worry your pretty little head of yours, little badger." He smirked. "Although I'm flattered you care."
Rolling his eyes and flushing, he crawled towards the center of the mattress and patted the side of it. "Lay here."
Vlad whipped back. "What?"
"Lay. Here." Danny repeated slowly, as if speaking to a toddler.
Hesitantly, Vlad did what he asked and laid on his stomach on the mattress. Danny, wanting to do this comfortably, straddled the man's thighs. Vlad's breath hitched and he tried to control his rapidly beating heart.
"Daniel? W-What are you doing?" he winced. Did he really just stutter?!
Danny placed his hands on Vlad's shoulders and instantly began rubbing the muscles. "Just let me do this." He was pleased when Vlad let out a surprise moan.
Not going to question his luck, Vlad allowed Danny to continue his ministrations. Every now and again, he couldn't help but let out a moan when Danny would smooth out a particular spot where he was most tense. The young halfa's hands were like heaven to his body. Danny couldn't help but notice how stiff Vlad was on the neck and lower back. Once he smoothed out Vlad's neck, shoulders, and upper back, he made his way towards the lower and focused there. Danny had to frequently remind himself to keep his hands above the waist. He gulped when Vlad let out a loud moan.
"Ah, right there!" Vlad couldn't help but say, not caring for his dignity.
Danny froze for a moment before focusing on the spot Vlad had asked him to.
Vlad groaned. "That's perfect." He let out a blissful sigh.
Danny continued to massage Vlad's body. Once he was satisfied he had worked out all the tension, he slowly made his way off the man's body. He silently wished he was on it again and promptly blushed at the thought. Little did he know, Vlad was thinking the same exact thing.
"Thank you Daniel." Vlad said humbly, his body feeling pleasantly jelly-like. He didn't want to move.
"Not a problem. If you feel that sore tomorrow, just let me know."
For once, Vlad was looking forward to waking up uncomfortably, especially if it meant Danny would put his hands on him again. Danny placed the blanket on for both of them and fell sound asleep. Vlad followed after, thinking his first day wasn't as terrible as he thought.
a/n: So…yeah. ^^. Hope you guys liked it!