Much love for your love of my story! *huggles and kisses to you all*
To be perfectly honest, Vlad honestly didnt expect Danny to actually be waiting for him when he rode up to the school in his limo, so he was naturally surprised when he saw the teenager sitting on the school steps with a very pissed-off expression on his face that only got worse when he saw the limo. Still, he stood up and slung his backback over his shoulder and made his way over.
Vlad took a moment to eye the teen over; even though they lived in the same town, the only times they really saw each other was in ghost fighting, and around Christmas. Seeing Danny on a normal daily basis was quite rare. The boy was currently wearing a pair of dark-wash (and dirty) jeans that looked too big on him, paired with an oversized black t-shirt under an oversized grey hoodie. His hair was grown out, as Vlad already knew, but now that it was black instead of white, he could definitely see how long it had truely gotten. In short, Danny looked like a punk, and not the poser type that hung out at the mall after school.
As Danny walked to the limo, Dash walked out of the school and couldnt help but put his two cents in. "Hey, Fenton!" he called over. "The mayor decided to take you in as a charity case?" Around him, all of the jock friends laughed. Vlad expected Danny to blush and hop into the limo as quickly as possible, but he was shocked when the teen threw his backpack down on the ground and whipped around to face the jock king.
"YOU WANT ME TO BREAK YOUR LEGS INSTEAD OF YOUR NOSE THIS TIME, DASH!" he screamed over, holding up one fist threateningly, actually making most of the group back up. "QUIT PISSING ME OFF BEFORE I CRIPPLE YOUR SORRY JOCK ASS FOR LIFE, YOU BI-!"
"DANIEL!" Vlad opened the door and stuck his head out. "Enough! Get into the car before you get into trouble!"
"Like I give a shit," Danny grumbled, turning and picking his backpack up before getting into the limo. He sat down across from Vlad and glared out the window at Dash, who Vlad saw was quite pale and looking threatened. Vlad gave the order to the driver to go home, and looked at Danny, quite shocked at the boy's behavior.
Danny had always been mellow when it came to confrontations in school (this he knew because he'd spied on the boy for years), and always liked to keep a low profile; which meant that unless it was ghost-related, Danny remained invisible and quiet. Today, Danny was ready to proclaim alpha-male dominance over the jock, and didnt care who knew it. And didnt the boy say something about having already broken that jock's nose before? THAT was NOT normal 'Danny' behavior.
Was this what Maddie had been trying to tell him, about Danny being 'different'? If so, then he truely did worry about the safey of his house. Not that he couldnt just by another one or rebuild, but why the hassle? And he HAD promised Maddie that he would try to get along with Danny... He looked up at the teenager, who was glaring out the window like he wished the world could be set on fire and burned to the ground, and wondered what exactly was WRONG with the boy.
This was going to be one hell of a week.
Danny didnt say one word on the way back to the townhouse, and Vlad couldnt bring himself to break the silence. Finally, they got to the house and the two of them went inside, and Vlad couldnt help but notice that Danny was VERY out of place in his home. "Daniel-," he began.
"Just tell me where to sleep, and leave me alone," Danny growled, his eyes a swirl of green and blue behind his curtain of black hair. Vlad felt a familiar bristle of annoyance toward the boy.
"On the roof, if you dont change your tone!" he replied snappishly. "I was only going to ask you what you wanted for dinner. And your bedroom is on the second floor, fourth door on the left." Danny made a noncommital noise and immediately went upstairs. A few moments later, Vlad winced when he heard a door slam shut. "...God help me..." he muttered, rubbing his eyes.
Danny didnt come downstairs until six, when dinner was about to be served. Vlad could at least be thankful that despite the ever-changing nature of the universe, one thing that remained a constant was that teenagers could smell food a mile away, and he didnt need to go fetch the boy. Still, it would have been nice if Danny had changed for dinner; he was still wearing the same thing he wore earlier. Vlad ignored it for the time being. "Wonderful to finally see you, Daniel," he said as civilly as he could. Danny shot him an icy-blue glare from behind his black curtain of hair. "...Do you need something to tie your hair back while you eat?"
"No." Danny picked up his fork and began eating the lasagna, something Vlad KNEW Danny liked. At least the younger halfa wasnt complaining about anything. Yet. Vlad felt a tick of annoyance over his eye, but pushed it back and attempted more civil conversation.
"...How was school?"
"Shitty."
"Language, Daniel!"
"English, Vlad." Vlad took a moment to register the smartass comment, and seriously resisted the urge to punch the boy in the face. Danny seemed to notice Vlad's restrained expression. "You asked."
...To be perfectly honest, that WAS true. "...Yes, I did," Vlad replied, though a bit tersely. "Though I would greatly appreciate less vulger language at my table, thank you." Danny made a noncommital sound as a response, and Vlad witheld a sigh of relief that he didnt recieve another 'comment'. They both ate in silence for a few minutes before Vlad remembered something. "Daniel, I-"
"So sorry I'm late, Vlad, my novel kept me..."
Danny's ghost sense went off, and he whipped around to see the Ghostwriter step into the room. The halfa and the 'Writer stared at each other for a few minutes before Danny literally leapt out of his chair, transformed mid-air, and threw an ecto-blast at the ghost, who yelped, flew out of the way, and charged up one of his own. Vlad quickly teleported between them and held his hands out to stop the other from attacking.
"Daniel! Andrew! NOT IN MY DINING ROOM!" he shouted. Andrew glared at Danny, his glasses slightly askew from dodging the blast.
"Outside then, Ghost Child?" he asked. Danny's green eyes flashed even brighter.
"Bring it, bookworm!" he shot back.
"NO!" Vlad cried exasperatedly. "Daniel, sit down. Andrew, I asked you NOT to egg him on! Take a seat." The two green-eyed ghosts still glared at each other. "NOW!"
Danny dissapated his ecto-charged fist and sat down, still staying in ghost form. The Ghostwriter did the same, keeping his eyes on the younger one as he took a seat closer to Vlad. Vlad heaved a sigh and brushed a stray lock of silver hair out of his face before sitting back down as well. "Now then. Daniel, I invited Andrew over for dinner. He's...a good friend of mine, and is a frequent visitor here. If you dont start anything, he wont start anything. Andrew, for the love of God, PLEASE do not instigate Daniel. I value my house and my sanity. Now, can we finish our meals in peace?"
Niether of his guests replied, but Andrew began eating and Danny continued glaring.
"...Can I be excused?" he asked, giving the Ghostwriter a most evil glare. To preserve the peace, Vlad nodded.
"Yes, Daniel, you can," he sighed. Danny immediately pushed his chair back, grabbed the plate and fork, and went intangible before flying up to his room. "I DIDNT MEAN TAKE THE-! ...Oh, whatever, just take it...!" He gave Andrew a sidelong glance. "What?"
"...I cant believe you let me back over without telling him I was here," the 'Writer complained, taking a bite of lasagna. Vlad sighed again.
"I didnt really have the opportunity, Andrew," he replied. "And I sort of forgot and was about to tell him when you walked in. My mistake and apologies."
"Apology accepted. You can make it up to me tonight."
"...Andrew, not with Daniel just down the hall!" Vlad hissed, as though Danny was listening in. Andrew gave Vlad a glare.
"I am NOT going to dispel our sex lives because the brat 'might have a problem with it'!" he replied tersely. "NOT happening, Vlad." He snorted and took a sip of wine from his glass. "...Besides, he might learn a thing or two. From the way he's acting, it looks like he could use a good lay..."
"ANDREW! He's SEVENTEEN!"
"I'm just saying..."
Vlad put a hand to his face and groaned. "WHY did I take you on as a sexual partner?" he asked rhetorically.
"Because you find intelligence attractive," the Ghostwriter replied matter-of-factly. "And because I'm quite possibly the least insane person this end of the Ghost Zone."
"...Right."
Silence.
"...So, if we're extra quite as so not to taint the brat's poor virgin ears..."
"ANDREW!"
*snerk* I crack myself up.