CHAPTER 12 - Damage Repair I
Clockwork sighed, shaking his head. That had NOT gone well, he thought to himself. Of course Pariah Dark's complete lack of foresight would cause trouble, and Danny's natural tendency to panic at physical contact would kick in. And now things had just gone completely South, and Clockwork knew Pariah Dark was too proud to apologize again, and Danny would be too frightened to approach Pariah Dark.
...Sometimes, he honestly wished he had an assistant to carry out some help in the Timeline. But he didnt, and he would have to once more piss his bosses off by 'cheating'.
...Ha, like he really cared. This would be fun.
Pariah Dark sat in his chair, staring into the fire with morbid fascination, as though the flames would give him answers to the riddles floating around in his head. Of course, the fire, though his element, didnt speak to him, so he was left with unsolved questions.
It had been nearly a week since he had last seen his fiance; Phantom refused to leave his room for anything, and so meals were brought to him. The only two people who even saw him were the lady-in-waiting Dorathea, and Fright, but even they had little to tell to him. Dorathea informed the Ghost King that Phantom did little more than sleep and eat, which was somewhat worrisome. Fright had tried to coax the boy out for some sparring sessions to no avail.
All Pariah Dark wanted to do was stalk up to the boy's room and demand Phantom start socializing again, but his common sense told him that it would have the very opposite effect. And now his hands were tied, and he had no clue how to fix what he'd apparently broken with his thoughtlessness.
He was so busy pondering over what to do that he didnt notice the other person in the room until he heard the sound of tea being sipped. He jerked his head to the side to see a ghost in a purple cloak sitting in the chair Phantom occupied when he visited these rooms, sipping from a set of fine china that didnt really fit the room; the flower pattern was a strong attest to that.
Clockwork looked up and smiled at the stunned Ghost King. "Hello, Pariah," he said, his tone respectful, though laced with humor. Pariah Dark stared for a few moments more before making a move to get up, only to be halted by Clockwork holding up a hand. "Pause, please." He pointed to Pariah Dark's chest, and the Ghost King looked down to see a medallion hanging around his neck.
"What is this?" he demanded, pulling at it.
"It negates the effects of Time Out," Clockwork replied, looking into the fire, which was frozen in time. He glanced over at the Ghost King, who was looking about two seconds away from a total Time Ghost Holocaust. "I need you to listen to me, if you wish to make up with Daniel."
THAT got Pariah Dark's attention. "What do you know?" he growled, forcing himself to remain calm. Clockwork smiled at him.
"He hand I are closely acquainted," he replied, taking another sip of tea. "I am also the Ghost of Time, so...I saw this little snag in your relationship coming, and decided to help."
"Why couldnt you have just stopped me from kissing him, if it was going to have such an...adverse effect?" Pariah Dark demanded. Clockwork shrugged.
"I dont fix every little error in the Timestream," he said. "Best let humans and ghosts make their own mistakes and rectify them...however..." He sighed. "...You have no clue how to rectify this. And I do hate to see my protege hurt, so I'm here to help." He smiled. "So, here I am."
Pariah Dark scowled at Clockwork. "You try my patience," he said tersely.
"Cant try what you have none of," Clockwork shot back, leaning back in the chair. "I'm here to help you, Pariah, so I highly suggest you take what I am offering, lest YOUR timeline ends on another sour note." Ignoring the death glare the Ghost King was giving him, Clockwork banished the china away and laced his fingers together. "First, let us focus on what happened: you neglected to give Daniel details about the marriage, consummation, et cetera. Second, you make things worse by putting him into a panic. And Third, you're too much of a stubborn jackass to apologize and sort things out."
"HOW DARE YOU - !"
"I dare just fine, Pariah!" Clockwork suddenly snapped, looking about 100 times more dangerous than he should. "I am the Ghost of Time! I see all that you were, all that you are, and all that you can or will be! I am only telling you things you already know! I am trying to help you and Daniel, so if you truely and honestly wish to fix your mistakes, I HIGHLY suggest you be quiet and take my advice!"
Once more shocked at someone taking such an authoritative tone with him, Pariah Dark was stunned into a precious few moments of silence as Clockwork settled himself back into the chair.
"Now," he continued, "there are a few things about Daniel that you should first know before proceeding with any forms of compensation." He stared Pariah Dark in the eye. "For one, he has spent his entire life in combat against some bully or tyrant of sorts, and he does NOT need his next one to be his husband. When he's up against someone who is bigger, stronger, or meaner than him, he naturally takes a defensive demeanor, and refuses to back down as the weaker subject.
"What you need to do is stop emitting your 'Kingly' aura around him." Clockwork snorted. "He KNOWS you're the King. You dont need to announce it every second of every day." He gestured to Pariah Dark's person. "Tone down, is all I'm asking. Revert to your natural ghost form. Tone down the battle armor. Stop glaring at everything like it's going to attack at any moment. RELAX around him, and he'll relax around you."
He paused, letting Pariah Dark swallow that pill before moving on.
"You should have told him about the consummation in the beginning, when you were discussing terms of engagement." He gave Pariah Dark a firm stare. "Daniel despises surprises; his 16th birthday party was a surprise party, and he nearly blew his secret to everyone because he was shocked into defensive mode." He turned to the fire, waving his hand and making it flicker again. "That kiss you gave him was a...tender gesture, but you really should have asked his permission. Daniel...he doesnt like to be touched."
Pariah Dark noticed that Clockwork was looking quite sad now. "...Why?" he couldnt help but ask.
"...Not only has he been fighting ghosts who have not only wanted to cause him physical harm, but they HAVE caused him physical harm." Clockwork's hands clenched into the arms of the chair. "...It doesnt show because he possesses speed healing...but he's been hurt badly...almost mortally, sometimes. It has gotten to the point where any unwelcome or unprecedented touch jerks him into an almost violent defensive mode. Even his best friends and his sister dont touch him anymore unless he can see it coming and welcomes it."
That would explain why Phantom was so jumpy, Pariah Dark thought back. The boy was on the verge of a panic attack just from a kiss.
"Now, take into consideration that Daniel is almost phobic of touch," Clockwork continued, "and try to guess how he feels about the act of sex, when he can barely stand to hug his friends anymore."
Pariah Dark looked into the fire, scowling to himself. He could almost empathize, he really could; but it was difficult. "...What can be done to help?" he found himself asking the Time Ghost. Clockwork smiled softly to himself.
"Patience," he replied. "Patience and trust. You are working on your patience, I will give you that, but it's TRUST Daniel needs most of all. He wasnt just talking about the rest of the Ghost Zone when he spoke of gaining the ghosts' trust, Pariah. He was trying to tell you that you needed to prove yourself to HIM as well."
"What else CAN I do?" Pariah Dark demanded, mostly to himself. "I give him free reign of the castle, my personal wing included...I allow him to give his opinion of the issues...I allowed him to set his own terms to the engagement! What else can I do?"
"You can start by trusting HIM first," Clockwork replied bluntly. At Pariah Dark's confused expression, he elaborated. "You too have trust issues, Pariah. You dont fully trust ANYONE in this world other than yourself. How much have you actually told Daniel of yourself? What have you told him of your past? What responsibilities have you given him to show that you trust him? Nothing and none. You can gain his trust by giving him YOURS first."
"That sounds risky," Pariah Dark replied slowly. Clockwork scoffed.
"Of COURSE it's risky," he said. "What you and Daniel are attempting to do is risky. This marriage is risky! Everything about this entire arrangement is risky, so why should THIS be easy?" He folded his hands together in his lap and stared Pariah Dark down again. "And while we're on the subject of 'risk', Pariah, I highly suggest you take a good look at what Daniel is risking, just being here with you."
"What are you talking about?" the Ghost King growled. Clockwork scowled.
"His FAMILY, Pariah!" he shot back. "He is risking his relationship with his family. When he goes to visit them for that allotted week, he will be telling them his secret, something he was worked SO hard to keep, and in doing so, is risking his own safety. His parents are ghost hunters. They have actively been hunting HIM without realizing it. What do you think will happen if they do not take the revelation that their son is the Amity Park Phantom well? Not only will he be harmed, but his heart will be broken!"
"Then I will - !" Pariah Dark began his threat.
"You. Will. Do. NOTHING." Clockwork emitted a powerful warning in his ghostly aura, something he didnt do often, but almost always worked in subduing other ghosts. This time didnt fail, either. "Daniel has always told himself that no matter what, nothing will keep him from protecting his family, or his home. If you do ANYTHING to harm them, Daniel will NEVER forgive you, and you can kiss any hope of a good reigning monarchy right on the ass goodbye!
"THINK before you resort to violence, Pariah! Daniel is NOT a violent person by nature! But because of rash, harmful, thoughtless actions of ghosts like you, he is slowly integrating violence into his nature, which is NOT a good thing at all! I have seen the rotten fruits of what evil entering his soul does to him, and I REFUSE to let it happen again!"
"THEN TELL ME WHAT I'M SUPPOSED TO DO, TIME GHOST!" Pariah Dark shouted, his own aura flaring like a firestorm. "I DO NOT KNOW WHAT TO DO! I DO NOT KNOW HOW TO TALK TO HIM! I DO NOT KNOW HOW TO GET HIM TO TRUST ME! I DONT! KNOW! WHAT! TO DO!"
Silence resounded in the sitting room for a long time.
"...That is why I'm here, Pariah," Clockwork said softly. "To help. All I'm asking is that you put some iota of trust in me, and take my advice."
Pariah Dark calmed himself down and sat back in his chair. He stared off into nothing for what seemed like hours before sighing, visibly relaxing tiredly into his chair.
"...I'm listening."
Step 1 is admitting you have a problem.