Author's Notes: I am sorry.
Fans of my work: I am terribly sorry for the hiatus. A few things hit me at once last month which sorta slowed me down: mainly finals from last semester and just a bout of the infamous writers block/ dry spell. I was working on a chapter, but I rewrote a few areas a few times and got stuck at other places. Thankfully, I was able to bust this one out for all of you. For those who were patient, thank you for waiting.
More after the story.
Lost and Found Chapter 6: Homecoming
Morning soon came somewhere in Oregon as the Fenton ghost RV sped along the interstate. Inside, one Danny Fenton slowly awoke from a night of fitful sleep. The teen hero rubbed his eyes as he surveyed his surroundings: he found himself lying in one of the bunks in the back of the vehicle. He didn't know when unconsciousness had claimed him the night before. The halfa had been stubbornly resistant to getting any rest, much to both Jazz and his father's protests to the contrary. They had argued that his time during the trip would be better spent recharging. He had argued that even he wanted to, he couldn't. There had been just too much clouding his mind. Sometime last night, however, the exhaustion from the previous day had caught up to him.
The first thing he noticed this morning as he rubbed his eyes was the loud snoring emanating from the other side of the enclosure. Its source was his father, Jack, who was in the middle of blissful slumber. If he and his Dad was back here, that meant that Jazz was at the wheel. He reasoned that explained the rather smooth ride, something that he couldn't necessarily attribute to his father's driving. Rising to his feet, he took a peak past the front seats. Danny could feel the warm rays of sunshine hitting his face, causing him to squint from the sudden change in brightness.
"Morning, sleepy head," the cheery voice of Jazz greeted him. "Have a nice nap?"
"Not really," he replied sourly. Climbing through the partition, he took a seat in the passenger's side. "Where are we, exactly?"
"We should be a few hours away from Amity Park," she clarified. She continued, answering his unasked question, "And if you're wondering about Dad, he tried to pull the same 'I don't need to sleep' routine you pulled last night. I was able to persuade him otherwise."
"Promised him fudge?" he asked flatly.
"Works every time," she confirmed with a grin. "The stuff knocks him out like nobody's business." She glanced to her brother, gauging his reaction. Although a small smirk could be seen, his face remained otherwise impassive. "Hey, could go wake Dad up? We're going to be stopping soon."
Danny looked back at her quizzically, "I thought you just said we were hours away from home?"
"We are. We're just going to be making a little pit stop first."
"Wait, what?" His brows furrowed in defiance, "No way. We don't have time to just lollygag."
"First of all, lollygag? You've been spending too much time around Dad. Second of all I'm tired and we're all hungry, not to mention that we're low on gas. We definitely need a break. And besides, we're already here." Smiling, Jazz pointed towards the windshield.
Danny, following the direction she pointed, becoming aware of the fact that the RV had just pulled over into a truck stop. The vehicle parked in front of a diner next to two semi trucks. The halfa growled indignantly as Jazz cut off the motor and pulled the key from the ignition. "Jazz…"
"Come on, Danny; I know you're hungry. You haven't eaten anything since yesterday."
Danny raised a finger in order to object to the allegations brought up by his sister, but his dissent was cut short, however, as a loud rumble reverberated inside the front compartment. Danny blushed as he clutched his stomach guiltily.
A knowing smile erupted from Jazz. "See, I told you. You're not going to be helping anyone on an empty stomach. And it's not even going to take that long, I promise. And besides, I hear they make some nice fudge cake here."
"Fudge?! Where?" Jack called from his resting place, now fully alert at the utterance of his favorite snack food.
Danny grumbled in defeat. He knew that it was never a good idea to get in between his father and food, which was probably Jazz's intention from the start. He gave her an accusatory look, which she promptly ignored as she stepped out the driver's side.
A bell on the door announced the three Fenton's presence as they entered the quaint establishment. The diner was noticeably quiet, save for some music playing from a radio in the cooking area. Two truckers occupied seats at the counter, sipping their coffee silently. Jack, Jazz, and Danny took a seat a few booths away from the door. A young
blonde waitress in her twenties appeared small notepad in hand. Her blue uniform matched the old fashion décor of the truck stop and her nametag proudly displayed the name 'Jenny', "What can I get you folks this morning?"
Danny opened his mouth, ready to decline any breakfast. Jazz, however, was quicker to the draw. The redhead had already taken a quick survey of the menu and had planned a meal for each of them, "We'll have three of your morning specials, along with three cups of OJ and…" she glanced at her father as he looked at her expectantly, "You guys don't sell any fudge, do you?"
The waitress smiled in response. "We don't have any fudge, but will some chocolate muffins do? They're fresh out of the oven."
Jack's eyes lit up brightly, nodding in approval.
"Alright, then," she said, scribbling in the remainder of the order, "Food will be right up." She gave a welcoming grin before heading off to the kitchen.
"Feels like ages since I've had a good meal," the Fenton patriarch boasted as he rubbed his tummy in anticipation. Danny mumbled something under his breath, clearly not as enthusiastic as his father was. Jazz simply gave a cheery smile, hoping to get her brother in a better mood.
Moments later, the waitress returned, deftly balancing three trays of food in both hands. "Here you go. Enjoy the meal." Each tray had a plate topped by a stack of pancakes with a side of scrambled eggs, sausages and hash browns.
Not needing any more encouragement, Jack Fenton went to work. After slathering the pancakes in syrup, the ghost hunter grabbed a knife and fork and began to devour his meal heartily. Jazz enjoyed the meal as well, although without as much gusto. Danny resisted at first, though even he couldn't deny the hunger that had been growing the night before. The halfa reluctantly took a few bites of the meal, stealing glances at his sister as he did so.
"Seconds!" Jack cried out. The large man's hunger was far from being satiated. A small blush of embarrassment appeared upon Jazz's cheeks at her father's outburst.
Jenny suddenly appeared once again, balancing two more trays of food. "I figured you'd want more, she replied with a small giggle as she skillfully replaced Jacks empty plates. "There more where that came from."
As their father continued to have his fill of breakfast, Jazz quickly put the plan she had been concocting into action. Hastily finishing off her plate, the girl cleared her throat, "Dad, is it alright if I go get some fresh air outside with
Danny?" A muffled reply and a nod was all she got for an answer. Taking it as a yes, Jazz got up and headed for the door, grabbing Danny's arm along the way.
The halfa gave a yell in protest as he was dragged out the door. "Hey, what's the big idea!" he was able to croak as he forced a mouthful of food down his throat.
"I just wanted to talk, that's all. Away from Dad." She watched as Danny folded his hands and glared, "You know, how we used to talk; back when we were little. You remember that, Danny?" Jazz noticed Danny's eyes softening up a bit, though his brow never wavered.
"Jazz, we don't have time for this. I appreciate the concern, but I'm fine, really. Nothing to worry about."
"You're not fine, Danny," she countered calmly, "How can you be fine after what's been happening the last couple of days?"
"Ok, so I'm not fine. Happy?" he retorted. His voice dripped with frustrated annoyance as he turned towards the RV. "Seriously, Jazz, we're wasting time here. The faster we get back to Amity Park the better."
"Danny, you're doing it again."
Her words caused him to stop in mid-step. His body spun back towards her, revealing his now confused face. "I'm doing what again?"
"You're closing yourself off again," the psychologist-to-be explained, "Look, I know I'm not Raven or Sam or Tucker, but you know you can come talk to me, right? Keeping it bottled up is only going to cause you more problems in the long run."
"You want to know what's wrong with me?" he replied suddenly. Anger once again painted his face as he continued, "Maybe it's the fact that my cousin is dying and I can't do a damn thing to help her or protect her from the crazed up fruit loop I call my arch nemesis. Or maybe it's the fact that I'm going to see my best friends again; the same friends, mind you, that I treated like crap for a year." The halfa was pacing now, walking back and forth beside the parked RV. Jazz watched her brother intently, not daring to butt in, "I mean, yeah, we've talked on the phone and everything, but what happens when I meet them face to face? I screwed up royally with them. What happens if they change their minds and they dump me like I dumped them?
"And then there's the thing with Raven. I mean, what if they don't like her? It's not like they've liked any of my other girlfriends before. What if they can't stand her? Even worse, when the whole thing with Danni is over, what
then? I can't ask her to stay, when she has a city to protect back in Jump City? How is the whole dating thing supposed to work when we're so far away? Heck, we haven't even been on a date yet!" Danny's shoulders slumped over as he vented his last bit of hostility. He let his body lean till his back hit the side of the RV. His hands covered his face as he let out a frustrated sigh. "Why does my life have to be so complicated?" He suddenly felt a hand lay itself upon his shoulder. Looking up, he was greeted by the warm, comforting smile of his sister.
"Listen, Danny," she began, "I know things have been rough for you. They've been rough for everyone recently. The thing you have to remember is that you aren't alone anymore. Mom, Dad and I are here. I'm also pretty sure Sam and Tucker still have your back as well. We may not have all the answers all the time, but we'll at least be there to listen." Her smile grew even wider, "Don't you feel better now that you've let it out?"
"Actually, now that you mention it…" he paused for a moment as something clicked in his head. He turned to sister, a critical look in his eye, "You planned for this to happen, didn't you?"
Jazz stuck out her tongue in confirmation, "Guilty as charged. Hope you didn't mind me pushing your buttons like that, but it's the best way to get you to spill your guts."
The glare on Danny's face returned, though it was much softer than before.
"And you're welcome," Jazz spoke, "Now let's get back inside before Dad eats this place out of business."
Danny observed his sister walk back to the truck stop. He wanted to be angry at her, but he did feel a lot better than before. The underlying current of worry was still there, but he felt it was greatly lessened now. "How the heck does she do that?" he wondered to himself as he followed her inside.
TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT
Something was missing.
In the dark recesses of his evidence room, Robin growled in frustration. The Boy Wonder had spent what felt like days trying to make heads or tails of the pieces of evidence staring back at him from the corkboard. He knew this was the hardest part of his job; putting together the pieces of a mystery like that of a puzzle. The problem right now was that there very, very few pieces to work with, as was evident by the board in question. On it were a few scraps of paper, mostly police reports from the past couple of weeks, held up by pushpins. Some colored string was tied in between the push-pins, illustrating what the Boy Wonder thought were connections. His eyes traced the links towards where they converged. A single paper that held a single name: Julian Marcus.
Robin's fist connected his desk for the umpteenth time. Marcus was good, if that was really his name. He left no traces of his existence. The museum had no record of a Julian Marcus working for them, whether as curator or otherwise. The warehouse where the first ghost attack took place was also a dead end. The space that the Box Ghost had searched for Xanthus Pyre's book was indeed leased by the museum. However, the workers there had no recollection of meeting Marcus or of the shipment from the library that mysteriously disappeared. It was as if he and the books never existed.
Robin knew better. What infuriated him the most was that all of this was done right under his nose. Robin should have seen that something was amiss the moment the library was mentioned. That wasn't the case, however. He and the other Titans were so preoccupied with Phantom and the ghost attacks that he hadn't bothered to follow the dots. Because of his ineptness, hundreds of books were now missing, each of which had the potential of being very dangerous.
He let a sigh of solemn defeat: if it was Him, this would not have happened. No matter how much he tried to differentiate himself, no matter how hard he tried to stand out, Robin couldn't help but compare himself to his old mentor. Batman would have stopped the ghosts and caught wind of whatever Marcus was planning. The fact that Robin hadn't figured out something was wrong until now was proof of that. No matter how hard he tried, he felt as if he was always in the Batman's shadow. Even after he had moved out of Gotham and came to Jump City to start things fresh, he couldn't shake off that particular curse.
His thoughts were interrupted by a beep from the door, indicating someone wanted entry. Who was coming to him at this time of night? Robin looked up at the clock on his wall and did a double take. Seven o'clock in the morning? When did it get so late… or rather early? He was so caught up in trying to find a breakthrough in his case that he didn't even notice the time go by. The door beeped again, this time followed by a knock.
"Robin?" a familiar voice called from the other side of the barrier. "Robin, are you there? I could not find you in your room, so…"
The sound of Starfire's voice caused the boy wonder to tense, though only for a brief moment. In all his wandering through the clues, he had completely forgotten about that 'thing'. Shaking off the exhaustion he had and putting on an alert face, he walked over to the door and activated the opening mechanism. With a swoosh, the door opened, revealing a worried Starfire.
"Robin!" she cried, her anxiousness dissolving into her usual cheerful demeanor. She smiled brightly, something Robin always loved about her. "I am happy to see you are conscious. I thought that I might have been too early."
"You're not early at all," he lied deftly, a nervous smile plaster on his face. In truth, he didn't think she would be here so soon. He had hoped she might have come in a little bit later, giving him enough time to prepare for her arrival.
"May I… enter?" the Tamaranian asked cautiously, peering past his shoulder. He reluctantly moved to the side, allowing her access to his evidence room. With a muffled cry of joy, the girl entered, her feet never touching the ground.
Robin silently wondered how in the world he got into this predicament. The evidence room was the young detective's unofficial domain. If Robin wasn't with the others or training or out on patrol, he was in there. It also earned the reputation among the other Titans as being 'No Man's Land'. No one dared to enter the room, for risk of suffering Robin's wrath. This was where Robin honed his skills as a detective, or so he liked to think. The unfortunate truth was that this where Robin practically lived. Robin was known as sort of a perfectionist, pouring over every single detail, leaving no clue unexamined until he had the whole picture. He had spent hours holed up in the evidence room, with nothing more than a desk lamp for lighting, as was the case last night. This was also the place where he went off to brood after an unsuccessful battle, especially when it came to Slade; then the hours he spent would multiply into days. During those times, no one was permitted to enter, not for any reason. So how did Starfire managed to gain the honor of entering in such a place?
To put it simply, Robin lost a bet.
A few weeks ago, Cyborg had put a friendly wager into play among his fellow Titans. The metallic teen had theorized that Raven and Danny would make a cute couple and due to some similarities between the two that they would eventually hook up. Both Robin and Beast Boy had rebuffed this idea, thinking that Cyborg was reading too much into something that wasn't there. Cyborg, knowing fully about Robin's competitive nature, decided to stake a bet on his theory; a bet Robin couldn't help but accept.
After the conditions were set, Robin, being the detective that he was, decided a little investigation was in order. So he decided to use a source that he could trust: his girlfriend, Starfire. He knew that she and Raven were practically sisters and hoped that she would be able to divulge whether or not something was happening between her and Danny. Although Starfire denied having any knowledge of a relationship, pending or otherwise, she did express her wish for one. So much so, that once she found out about the bet, she decided to join in herself.
Robin wanted to kick himself, repeatedly, for letting his competitive edge get the better of him. He should have seen it coming, but who would have thought that Starfire, of all people, would corner him in such an obvious trap? It was one thing he was always doing: underestimating her. He always saw her how she was when she first joined the Titans: innocent, naïve, and cheerful to a fault. His perception of her caused him to be caught off guard
whenever she revealed another facet of her personality. Getting to know her was both a blessing and a curse, as she always seemed to surprise him with something new.
When she voiced her desire to join in the bet, Robin deduced it was because she wanted to try out another Earth custom, as she was known to do. She agreed to the terms of the wager: the loser would have to agree do something that the winner requested. Starfire decided not to reveal her terms if she won, stating she would need time to think about it. Robin never gave it a second thought; it never crossed his mind that she would win. Even if she did, he thought it would be something akin to trying out her latest alien dish. That was something he could handle, despite the… uniqueness of some of her cooking.
Unfortunately, as he learned yesterday, her conditions were much different than that: she wanted to spend the day with him. At first glance, this wouldn't seem to be a bad thing. The two hadn't had enough alone time recently. The bad part was where she wanted to spend time with him: the evidence room. The room he spent more time in than even his own bedroom. Robin tried to talk himself out of it, but Starfire, being too good of a learner, stuck to the rules of the bet to the letter. There was no way for him to escape now.
"It is very dark in here, is it not?" the alien girl commented as she entered the room. Robin, not uttering a word, flipped the switch by the side of the door, immediately bathing the room in pale white light. After blinking due to her eyes adjusting, Starfire's eyes widened to the size of saucers as they darted to and fro. She had only been in here only a handful of times, mostly to try and fish Robin out whenever the others and herself felt he had been brooding for too long. Even then, the room was always dimly lit. Seeing it with the lights on was a whole other experience. Around the perimeter of the room were pedestals, each housing familiar trinkets from cases past. What caught her interest the most was the obviously busy desk and the large board behind it.
"So, this is it," the boy wonder stated reluctantly. One arm rubbed the other as he watched her take in her surroundings. He felt quite vulnerable at the moment. This was his sanctuary; his place to think, to deliberate. It was also his place away from the others. Don't get it wrong: he loved hanging out with his teammates, but there was only so much he could take from Beast Boy's mischief or Cyborg's video game challenges or even, much to his shame, Starfire's surprise alien cuisine. He felt like this was somewhat of an invasion of privacy, a fact that made him feel a little bit guilty. It was then that Robin noticed the picnic basket that dangled one of Starfire's hands. The direction of his stare caused her face to brighten somewhat.
"Oh! I hope you do not mind. I knew it was early, so I was hoping we could partake in the breaking of fast this morning!"
"…Great…" he answered with as much enthusiasm as he could muster. He forced a smile as she tried to find a spot to lay out their meal. Robin cleared a spot on his desk and prepared his stomach for another alien delicacy. He
found himself greatly surprised at what he found. "Wow. This is actually…" He caught himself at the last moment, before he could say anything he would probably regret. Starfire looked at her boyfriend earnestly, awaiting fir a response. "Uh…Earthy?"
Her answer was a resounding shriek of delight. "Glorious! I am overjoyed that you approve! Cyborg spent much time teaching me how to prepare the typical Earth morning meal." Robin silently hoped that the lessons paid off. At her beckoning, he carefully took a forkful of her cooking and placed it precariously into his mouth. The room was filled with silence as his face revealed nothing to Starfire's curious gaze. "Was I successful in creating an authentic meal?"
Robin didn't answer verbally; instead the Titan began to dig in. He found the meal quite delicious, actually. True, it wasn't exactly what he was expecting. Starfire had somehow added her own style to the cuisine, but it wasn't bad. It was just unique. He had to admit, she had become much better at it than he realized. He really did have to thank Cyborg later on, even if he had to face his ribbing in the process.
Starfire soon joined in, taking a seat next to him as they finished their meal together. She pulled out their beverages: a bottle of orange juice for Robin and a yellow container of mustard for herself. Sipping the spicy yellow liquid, the Tamaranian girl watched as he ate. "Robin?" she asked assiduously, gaining the attention of her boyfriend, "I am truly glad we are able to spend this time together. Lately, it feels as if we have not seen each other in a long time."
Robin stopped chewing and looked back at Starfire. He felt himself getting lost on the twin oceans that were her eyes. He also felt the large waves of guilt crashing down on him. She was right, of course: the two haven't seen a lot of each other lately. He let out a heavy sigh and placed a hand onto hers, "I'm sorry about that, Star. I guess I've been letting my work get the better of me."
"Is it…" Starfire hesitated as she wore a conflicted look on her face.
"Star?" Robin asked as he gave her hand a tight, reassuring squeeze.
Her pause lasted a few moments more before she responded, "I…I was just wondering if your work is something I may assist you with?" Indecision was written all over the girl's face as she trained her gaze to her lap. "I know that I may not be as knowledgeable as you at the crime solving and the cracking of the cases, but perhaps…" She shook her head. "I am sorry; it was a foolish request." She began to stand up.
"Star?"
"Forgive me for intruding. You must very important work to accomplish." She began walking away, hiding the tears in her eyes as she did so. She didn't get very far because a gloved hand held fast to her wrist.
"Star… I'm…. I promised I wasn't going to do this to you again. Looks like old habits are still hard to break." Starfire still faced away from him as he continued, "I'm sorry about not spending time with you, Starfire. You mean more to me than any crime or case. And even more importantly, I'm sorry if I made you feel that you can't help me or that your opinion isn't important, because it is. It's just that sometimes I get so caught up that I forget that all of you can help me, especially you." He paused for a moment, his face appearing as if he was deciding something. "Star, I was wondering if you could… give me a hand on something."
"You truly wish for my help?" she asked. She turned back to him with tear filled eyes that nearly broke his heart.
"Of course I do," he replied with a smile, "Your perspective might be what I need to crack this case."
"You truly mean it?" She was greeted with a smile and a nod. Squealing in delight, the Tamaranian girl gave her love a large, warm hug, knocking the air out of him in the process.
DPDPDPDPDPDPDPDPDPDPDP
Maddie Fenton fought off a migraine as she tried to focus on the data on the screen in front of her. The ghost huntress was overwhelmed, to say the least, not to mention that she was operating on very little sleep, which made it nearly impossible to concentrate. Even so, she continued to pour over the data, trying to find something that stood out. Earlier that day, Danielle had been awake and well enough for Maddie to perform a few scans. Luckily, Dani had been strong enough to transform a few times, though doing so drained the girl immensely. Although it gave her much needed information, Maddie couldn't help but feel a little guilty for having her exert herself like that. The girl was now resting in her makeshift medical bed on the other side of the lab.
The sound of porcelain hitting the metallic table caught Maddie's attention. Looking away from the computer, she found a fresh, steaming cup of tea sitting beside the keyboard. The benefactor of the beverage was none other than Raven, who gave a small yet warm smile.
"Thought you might need a 'pick-me-up'," the girl stated.
Maddie smiled back in return, picking up the cup and giving it a sip. Though Maddie, like her daughter, had always been a coffee person, she was quickly beginning to appreciate tea. The blend Raven had brought with her had a soothing effect and at the same time made her alert enough to concentrate. "Thank you."
Raven simply nodded. The sorceress then made her way over to Danielle's bed to check up on her status.
"Are Sam and Tucker still upstairs?"
"Last time I checked they were," the Titan replied. "They're still waiting for…" She cocked her head and then smiled. "They're here."
"How did you..."
"Honey, we're home!" a booming voice echoed throughout the Fenton household.
Maddie soon had a matching grin of her own at the arrival of her family. Both woman got up to head upstairs, Maddie by conventional means (climbing up the stairs) while Raven took a more direct approach by floating upwards and phasing through the ceiling.
DPDPDPDPDPDPDPDPDPDPDP
"Honey, we're home!" Jack Fenton bellowed as he entered the back entrance into the kitchen. Jazz and Danny followed after him, both of them cringing at the volume of his voice.
"Jeez, Dad," Danny complained, "Could you be any louder?"
"You can't really blame him," Jazz interjected, "It has been a while since we've been home."
"That's true," the halfa had to admit. He took in the sight of the kitchen and realized how much he himself missed it. He couldn't wait to go back to his room and visit his favorite places and just hang out with Sam and Tucker…
Sam and Tucker. The worry that he seemed to have forgotten during the last leg of the trip was back in full force. He didn't really have a reason to be nervous, did he? They were still his friends and they were still important to him. Sure, it would take a while for things to get to the way they were, but to him, it was worth it. They were worth it.
"I'm going downstairs to check on your mother," Jack stated as he headed towards the entrance to the lab.
"I'll come with you, Dad. I bet Mom needs the help." Jazz turned to her brother, "Are you coming, Danny?"
"Go on ahead. I'll catch up. Just give me a minute to catch my breath."
Jazz smiled knowingly as she followed her father down the steps. Danny decided to take a seat, heaving a heavy sigh.
"Alright, Danny, get a grip," he uttered under his breath. "You're home now. Nothing to worry about."
"Maybe I can help you calm down?" a voice stated, catching the halfa by surprise. He turned, only to find Raven's mouth colliding into his. The reaction was immediate: all the tension in his body seemed to melt away almost instantly. The sorceress pulled back, eliciting a slightly disappointing whimper from Danny. "Looks like it worked."
Danny found himself speechless and grinning. Their tender moment was cut short, however, as a gasp and a shattering of a plate was heard from the living room entrance. The couple turned to find a wide eyed Sam and Tucker.
"Uhh…surprise?"
AN: hehe. I love Cliffies.
First things first. I'd love to thank the lovely and talented Cordria for beta-reading. She's been extremely helpful in couching me on my writing style. She also got me through some writing dry spells. I thank you very much, Cor. You rock. And everyone: read her stories.
Second of all, I'm going to be doing a bi-weekly schedule (once every two weeks). That'll give me some time to churn out some chapters and hopefully I can hopefully build up some sort of buffer again. For those who want a more consistent sched, be happy! I hope you enjoyed and keep on reading.