A/N: Hello, everybod-eeee! And Happy Birthday, good ol' USA! Tomorrow, of course, is the Fourth of July for all us Americans out there in reader-dom land; and we'll be undoubtedly celebrating our country's Independence Day! I can't wait, too! We're going to have a HUGE barbeque and a HUGE fireworks display! Oh, how I love parties! And, hey! I was thinking. I'm history-challenged, but I am also very curious…Could you wonderful readers out there from other countries tell me when YOUR country's birthday is? I sure would like to know and wish your country a Happy Birthday, too! No, I really mean it! And thanks-ahead of schedule!
And now, it's time to get serious. We're still in the throngs of woe with our young heroes, but we all know that comes with the romance package. So, are you ready for more? You are? Well, I just so happen to have that update for ya, then! So, anyway, don't forget that 'IDNOAC' thing, and here comes Chapter 42. Enjoy!
TrueHeart—Chapter 42—Unplanned Discovery
Valerie hurried to the school office, anxious to call her father as soon as possible. Thank goodness it was still her lunch time and she wouldn't need a pass to go to the office. She really couldn't handle being here anymore now that her stomach was in knots. And that, of course, was because her heart was broken over Tucker's announcement that they were through.
She stood with hunched shoulders, long face and reddened eyes at the desk, waiting for the school to call her father. The office secretary, who was a very sweet middle-aged woman, readily made the call. She could tell most definitely that the girl was sick. She looked just awful!
Valerie watched the woman closely as she dialed her father's phone. In no time, the office clerk was explaining the situation to the voice on the other end.
"Mr. Gray? This is Mrs. Matterhorn from Casper High….I am sorry, but Valerie just came in and she looks very ill….No, I don't think it's serious, but I think you need to come and get her…You would like to speak to her? Oh, certainly! Please hold a moment…"
She handed the phone to Valerie.
At first, the girl was ready to talk to her father, but as soon as the phone was in her hands, she felt her throat hitch with her turmoil. But she had to get on with it.
"Uhm, hello, Daddy," she barely croaked out. "I really feel bad, so bad that I don't think I can talk much right now. I'll explain it all to you when I get home, okay? And could you, uh, ask Uncle Red to come in my favorite red vehicle for me?"
Damon frowned a moment. She had no 'Uncle Red'. But then, it dawned on him what she meant. "Oh, sure, Honey. Okay. So then, please let me talk to Mrs. Matterhorn, again."
"Okay, Daddy, and thank you! I'll tell her," she was able to choke out.
She handed back the phone and gingerly said, "He would like to talk to you again, Mrs. Matterhorn."
The woman took the phone to her ear once more. "I understand, Mr. Gray…Yes, she really looks very ill…..I agree….And, yes, that is unusual, but that would be alright under the circumstances. I hope she'll feel better soon."
The middle-aged woman hung up. She then turned sympathetically to Valerie and gently said, "If you like, you can wait here until your uncle comes to pick you up."
Valerie smiled weakly and replied, "No, that's okay, Mrs. Matterhorn. If you don't mind, I'd like to wait by the door. I think I'll be all right, thank you."
"Okay, dear. And please try to get some rest."
Valerie smiled a little once more and nodded just before she turned to leave. But she didn't wait by the door. She quickly left the building, and as soon as she was outside, she darted behind a nearby wide tree. She was a little thankful that it was now snowing because it was heavy enough to effectively shield her from anyone's direct view. Nevertheless, she scanned the area to make sure she was alone. Satisfied that she was, she pushed the hidden button on her bracelet. She instantly transformed into the Red Huntress, and without hesitation, soared upwards, easily penetrating the rapidly falling snow as she headed toward her home.
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Danny continued to soar in the random direction he had chosen when he had left his home. It had begun to snow rather heavily, and he could tell that a snow storm was not too far behind. But he didn't care. His mind was already in its own 'snow storm'. It kept churning over all the events that had happened in the past couple of weeks, and especially today. Everything had happened so fast! He desperately searched for the answer to make any sense of the complete non-sense that had unfolded. But his rapidly mounting headache from trying to figure it out muddled his thoughts. He knew what he plainly saw and heard. Yet, somehow, he couldn't accept it, either.
Much as he was still angry—no, hurting—about what Sam had said and did, his heart wouldn't let him believe it. He knew her! She had been his best friend since he could remember! They had understood each other. More than that, they really had felt the same way about things, agreeing on things that many people thought silly, repressive and old-fashioned now-a-days. And they had been even closer now, in sync in a truly special way that people could only dream about. What about that? Didn't that mean anything to her? He had thought so. Then, why did she throw it all away?
"I don't get it!" he suddenly yelled into the grayish-white, snow-filled sky, startling a nearby flock of birds. He tried to come up with some answer, but only one thought kept insisting on being heard. "That isn't the Sam I know!"
He stopped in mid-flight at that realization. It wasn't the Sam he knew! Even when she was angry at him—which was usually for good reason—she wouldn't hit this low. She just wouldn't! He knew it!
"So, why did she do it?" he uttered out loud.
Then, like fire burning in his heart, he knew… Still, he tried to deny what he felt. It didn't make sense. After all, the evidence was too much against her. But there was something inside him fighting against the cold facts. And it relentlessly plagued his mind even as his mind told him to ignore it…But he couldn't ignore it. He couldn't deny… a truth, the truth. It was imprisoned in his very bones and he grew weary holding it in. He could feel his soul grow desperate to be heard even when everything that had happened told him to reject it. But then, like a tide breaking on the sand, his heart finally forced his mind to listen.
Immediately, he knew what this truth was: there had to be an explanation.
She said she didn't do it,' came the reply from his heart. 'She couldn't,' it still insisted, echoing its message to his very soul. 'Remember her face', it commanded….And he searched his mind. During those times when he saw her with Armen, she had looked…looked as if she were in a daze. That is, until she spoke this last time. And come to think of it, Armen looked dazed, too. And he didn't even speak once during both encounters that he had witnessed! In fact, he didn't even respond! Again, it hit him. Armen looked like he had looked as if he was...overshadowed!
Danny shook his head as his mind began to make him remember the cold facts again! And they said that the innocence his heart was proclaiming for Sam couldn't be right! His ghost sense would have alerted him. But then…his ghost sense had been wrong at least twice in the recent past. When it went off in front of the school a few weeks ago, and right before his big fight with Valerie, there had been no ghost. He shook his head and he suddenly remembered Sam's face a little over a half-hour ago…The one she had when she had said all those cruel things. He had never seen her look so evil or be so happy that she hurt him. The last time he saw that look on her was when….
Jiva!
But how could that be? He would have known the shadow ghost—or any ghost—was there before, during and after she had overshadowed Sam!
Now he was totally confused. His headache was getting worse. But it couldn't be from the cold air. It had never bothered him before. He tried to resist the pressure he was suddenly feeling in his mind. But this was an oddly familiar pressure. And he resisted even more. But right after he had some success, his heartache lifted a little and he suddenly felt remorse for having destroyed all those things at home. He didn't know why after all that happened. He shouldn't after all she had said. But he did.
Still, he wasn't sure. And as his logic mercilessly buried the truth echoing from his soul, he muttered, "People change. They get tempted all the time. Sam is no exception, and neither am I, for that matter. But we've been able to resist so much pressure about things that a lot of other people don't think are important any more. What about that? Didn't that count for anything?"
Then another thought crept up. "Maybe, she just hadn't realized that she didn't want to get any more serious with me until that temptation presented itself. And that temptation was Armen. After all, she had fallen for a guy with an accent before…Maybe she just likes the exotic kind of guys…But what about me, then?"
But the next thought only made him feel more crushed. She had called him a freak! She sure had made that clear. Not the kind of 'exotic' kind of thing to which he was referring.
He flew on, slowing with the weight of his heart. Though she seemed to have made everything crystal clear back then, that was the root of the problem. She hadn't been up front with him about Armen—until she had so brutally thrown it all at him just now. That hadn't been like her, either. Yes, she still had trouble sharing her feelings with him, but maybe that was the best she could do, and she couldn't do anymore…
He blurted out, "But it was getting easier now that we have…"
He didn't want to complete that thought. The hurt had begun again. He resumed his flight, more slowly this time. It felt once again as if his heavy heart had dragged his efforts as he flew onward. And his next sad thoughts also pulled on him…Maybe she felt that they wouldn't ever have any privacy like everyone needed...And there was that other thing. Sam had told him at least before all this about her fear that he might burn out with her, or grow bored should they get too use to each other's thoughts. And, man, she sure hammered that point in that very short while ago! Maybe knowing that got too much for her after all. He could understand that a little. He almost lost his own mind when he first got his ghostly powers, especially in the first year when he could hardly control them. But he had worked it all out, and it was partly because of …Sam—and Tucker. But mostly, Sam.
He sighed. Maybe she couldn't handle her new power and dealing with that change and his own changes. With a 'regular' guy, she wouldn't have that problem…except for 'regular' problems. He paused. But wasn't he a 'regular' guy, except, of course, for his superpowers? And except for this unique power they both shared, and their very special love? He had never gotten the impression from her she had thought otherwise…until now.
His head began to whirl with the millions of other thoughts that tried to wrestle for his attention, as he felt his heart grow weary from the emotional bombardment. But one emotion managed to pull itself from the rest of the mire: Misery.
Suddenly, he could feel a sudden drain of strength again, and once more, he stopped in mid-flight, reflexively pulling himself into a tight ball as he hovered in the pain he suddenly felt in the pit of his stomach and the dizziness he felt envelop his brain. And he felt sick at heart. What was this all about?
But what he didn't know was that Bertrand had finally found him, using that neat little tracking device he had built into his little machine. And Spectra's assistant had gone right to work when he had located his prey before the boy could increase his speed and escape. But now Bertrand knew that he would be able to prevent that same speed and immediate escape.
The shape-shifter quickly siphoned off even more of the boy's pheromonal energy, now that he had brought not only plenty of vials, but much larger ones. And he had carried them all in a new larger satchel that securely held at least a dozen of those vials. He worked very quickly, even as the boy slowed his flight pace down. In no time, that satchel was over half full of the glowing ghostly pheromones.
Danny groaned in pain, wrapping his arms around himself as Bertrand gleefully bled the boy of more of his precious commodity. This sudden attack had surprised Danny, as it had come so out-of-the-blue. Maybe he had better go home. He had been gone for almost an hour and he still had a ways to go before he would get home.
He turned and headed back.
But, of course, by the time Danny had decided to head home, Bertrand had filled up all the vials in his satchel up to the brink, plus the extra one in the little machine. Now all the shape-shifter needed to do was transfer the contents of all of them to a larger bottle and return for more. He hurried to do that.
When Danny finally flew into his room, he became intangible, allowing the snow that had settled on his head and shoulders to drift to the floor. Without hesitating, he floated right to his bed, plopping hard on it as he did. He really didn't know how he had gotten here, he felt so weak.
Danny looked up at the ceiling and groaned, "Great! Didn't I have enough problems without getting sick on top of it?"
Suddenly he heard a strange rustling nearby. He jolted up out of his bed, ignoring the pain that shot through him. He quickly scanned around him and noticed the slight movement in the corner of his right eye.
He then spied the bird still in her cage.
"Oh, sorry! Forgot you were here!" he said to the ebony dove with a slightly embarrassed, but sad, chuckle. He slowly walked over to her, where she still lay at the bottom of her cage. He said in relief, "But I'm glad to see you're finally awake and that you seem to be all right, right?"
She didn't answer him. For some reason, she was suddenly frightened of him again and because of it, didn't have the courage to say anything. And then, she thought about Derek. She jolted a little. Where was her husband? Did this…this ghost boy know? Did he have something to do with her husband's absence? She shuddered a little. Her husband had warned her that the injured parties would be angry if they ever found out what they had done. And he had also warned her to be more careful about trusting anyone. She paused…But what about doing the right thing? Still, she knew that Derek wouldn't have wanted her to say anything, either. Maybe he was right. Nothing good had come from their dealings with other ghosts. And now that she had witnessed so much, especially of this ghost's power and of that other event, maybe he wouldn't be so understanding if she tried to explain. Maybe he would be angry and throw his wrath at her! Still, her core told her she must tell him. Now, she could not decide. She pressed her head down in shame.
But Danny hadn't noticed any of her reactions. His eyes had inadvertently drifted over toward the pictures and mementos he had destroyed. He heaved a sorrowful sigh.
He started to walk back to his bed when, all of the sudden, his ghost sense was activated! Still facing his bed, he charged up two energy orbs. His eyes quickly darted back and forth, searching for the source of what had triggered his ghost sense. He saw nothing, but heard only the bird as she shifted a little in her cage.
But then, his ghost sense warned him again. His hands still charged with energy, he soared over to his window this time, thinking that maybe the ghost was just outside. He searched frantically to the front, and then above and below his window. But there was no ghost in sight.
Once more, his ghost sense eked out of his mouth. He jumped quickly around this time, his ghostly eyes seeming to peer right through the minute areas of his room, just as he poured more energy into his hands. Then, he heard a small gasp, but he couldn't tell from whence it came.
He searched quickly; still, nothing revealed itself to him. "Darn it" he muttered with frustration. The ghost had to be here! But no matter how many times he looked around, he still came up empty-handed.
But it was then he remembered how his ghost sense had been failing him as of late. In fact, counting these three times right now, this was the fifth time his ghost sense had failed in the past few weeks!
The boy frowned worriedly, "Man, my ghost sense must be going haywire…" But, as he gazed around once more for what now seemed to be an imaginary ghost, his shoulders drooped in disappointment. He just knew he had to be coming down with something awful. But the worry he now felt about this just as quickly jumbled into what he felt was much more awful than being sick: losing Sam. Still, he tried to steal himself. The ghost must be here! But he came up empty-handed once again.
He reabsorbed his energy orbs and, heaving a heavy sigh with his failure, finally turned slightly back to the bird in the glowing ghost cage. Still again, his ghost sense triggered and he startled once more.
"What's with this?" he blurted out, exasperated, while charging up two large energy orbs in his hands yet again. But he said it in front of the bird and this time, his gaze finally drifted over to her. He hadn't even given her a fleeting glance when searching for the ghost before. But now, he noticed.
The bird…its body…was partially glowing! How did that happen? And why hadn't it done that before?
He walked closer to her and his ghost sense only confirmed his suspicions.
"Y-You? Y-You're a ghost?" he stammered in shock, his face eerily glowing from the reflection of his still active energy orbs.
The dove shivered in fright before unconsciously and slowly backing up against her ghost cage when he yelled like that and threatened her with his power. She was sure he was angry at her now that he had discovered that she was a ghost! And now, she grew even more frightened when she remembered how he could change from a ghost to a human just like that evil Spectra creature. Maybe she had been wrong about him and he was just as evil as that hideous ghost? And now that she thought about it, why had he kept her prisoner here and what did he wanted from her? But still, none of that matter since he seemed to be angry at her.
Suddenly, she felt a small electrical shock and she jump away from the bars. One of her tail feathers had just touched the anti-ghost bars and gave her a small jolt. What kind of magic was this? Then he really must be angry with her since he just gave her a warning zap!
But when Danny saw how frightened the little animal looked, and that it had gotten a small jolt from the ghost cage, he sighed just as he extinguished his energy orbs. Still ignoring how badly he felt, he gently said, "Don't worry, little one. I'm not going to hurt you, even if for some reason you're already a ghost! Uh, when did that happen? You weren't glowing before, —and by the way, why is part of you glowing and the other part isn't?—Still, you didn't cause my ghost sense to go off until right now. I had thought you were dead a couple of days ago…but, you weren't, were you? I knew you had been sleeping a lot, but you didn't look dead. Well, actually you did, but you weren't glowing. In fact, you were looking much better until…today, uhm, mean, right now. But I thought my healing powers had helped you back then. I didn't think they would hurt you more….But maybe they did, I mean, so to make you into a ghost…"
He stopped. He was still so upset about everything and actually feeling ill, now he wasn't even sure what he was saying. He didn't even think he was making sense right now, much less expecting a ghost animal to even fathom one iota of what he was saying! But the bird had been looking better in the past few days….but now she was a ghost? He didn't understand that at all. He thought she had been alive all this time. He glanced up at her again and was wondering why the bird seemed to be shivering…
"Healing powers?" Sarah thought, trembling even more in fright when the ghost boy glanced at her. "He must be a sorcerer, too! That would explain his ability to change like that Spectra ghost! And did he use his evil magic just now, when I was shocked, to punish me for deceiving him, even if it was not my fault that I was hiding that I was a ghost, too?"
Another wild thought pressed in on her. That was not it. She was sure he didn't know who she was, and he had thought of her as an animal. "Maybe he captured me for one of his concoctions?" She barely managed to stifle her gasp. "Then, what did he do with Derek?" Now she was even more frightened to utter any word.
But when she dared to look up at him again, she squinted her eyes, puzzled by what she saw. His eyes were still worried over her, yet they were also so…gentle…and sad. Still, she looked around him, scanning the room. She had been unconscious or asleep for these many hours, perhaps days, until he had come in so violently over an hour ago. But when she had been up those brief times, she knew that she hadn't fully recuperated yet and was still too dizzy to see anything clearly, even with her ghostly eyes.
But now that her head was finally clear and there was light enough to see, her thoughts drifted. Where was this sorcerer's cauldron? And his chemicals he would need for his potions? She didn't see anything like that. But what if they were in another room?
She shivered again, glancing back at his bewildered face. How odd. He looked so kind. And he said he had healed her?
Then she startled when he suddenly frowned, briefly fanning her wings outward when she thought she had somehow angered him again.
But he had frowned in confusion when he noticed her actually trying to look around him, as if she were searching for something. Birds—ghost or no ghost—didn't do that kind of thing, did they? He looked sympathetically at her and though he didn't expect her to understand, least of all answer, uttered, "Uh, you are all right, aren't you, little bird? Are you still hurt? That wildcat sure did a number on you. And you haven't eaten or drunk any—duh! Of course you wouldn't have, would you, if you were a ghost… Uh, just when did you become a ghost? Then he jolted at his next wild thought. "And what about that wildcat? Is he a ghost, too?!" He shook his head. "I'm so upset, now I'm sounding crazy to me!"
He jolted again when the bird jumped, fanning her wings out in more alarm this time when he had made that comment about the wildcat, her husband. And now Sarah was now wondering if this strange sorcerer had captured or even hurt her husband.
And because of his natural mistake in interpreting her reaction, Danny scrunched his face in worry and said, "Don't worry! I'm not a wildcat!" He then chuckled a little, "As if you can tell the difference! Poor thing! I'm just probably another humongous monster threatening you!"
Sarah looked at him, fear still in her eyes. She was still uncertain on what to do. She was in his power, she knew, but she was still worried about her husband. She wanted to know what became of him. But she also didn't want to get into deeper trouble than she already was should she allowed herself to trust this sorcerer.
Sorcerer!
She startled again. There was still the fact that he could turn to ghost or human just as that evil sorceress could! But then, she frowned. No, it was different. She was sure. She searched her mind…Why did Spectra glow with a ghostly aura even when she was human, and this boy didn't when he was human? She didn't know. But she then a wild thought struck her. Maybe that witch and he were bitter rivals, and that witch had a vendetta against him! And that wicked sorceress had used her and her husband to get back at him! That would explain that horrid plan of that shadow ghost!
The bird now trembled in dread. What if he found out what she and her husband had done to him and his love? That it was their fault that the ghost witch had successfully torn them apart?
Danny noticed how oddly the bird was shuddering and grew concern. "Are you still hurt, little one? Maybe sick?" He suddenly groaned, remembering his own sick feelings. "I hope I didn't give you whatever I got. I certainly feel pretty bad myself! But let's see if I can help you more!"
Just as he said that, he powered up his blue healing power energy which immediately surrounded his hand. But when he noticed that, for some reason, the orb significantly dimmed as he brought it closer to her, Danny instantly frowned with worry and confusion. He, of course, did not know that his healing powers were weakened by the spell placed on the enchanted bird and lynx.
This time, the dove's eyes widened in terror when his face scrunched up. He was angry with her! And what was that new sorcery? This time, she could not suppress her reflexive—and loud—gasp in alarm.
Now it was Danny's turn to startle. He pulled back and his blue energy orb dissipated. That noise coming from the bird sounded like a girl gasping!
He looked at her, his face twisting up into more confusion. Was he going crazy?
"Did you just gasp?" he asked, his eyes widening in disbelief. "But you couldn't have, could you?"
He shook his throbbing head and continued, "This headache is making me imagine things! Still, I don't think I'm wrong in seeing that you're a ghost animal. But don't worry! I hope to let you go as soon as you're strong enough to get way away from that wildcat before we let him go. We wanted to make sure he wouldn't hurt you again!"
He stopped and his face dropped when he realized he had said 'we'. Feeling miserable all over again when he thought about Sam, he sadly mumbled, "We're not a 'we' anymore, are we?"
Sarah hadn't heard what he had mumbled. She was reacting to what the sorcerer had said about her husband again. This time, she felt an intense fear for her beloved. She softly uttered her husband's name out loud before she knew it and gasped when she realized she did.
Danny's eyes widened more in total disbelief this time. He definitely heard her that time! He placed his hand on his aching forehead and excitedly said, "You did speak, uh, didn't you?! Then he jolted. "That can't be right! Ghost animals can't speak! Well, except for Vlad's buzzards. But they don't count, since he was the one who had created them in one of his insanely twisted experiments. Funny, I suddenly feel sorry for them! I had better forget that!"
Now Sarah felt the overwhelming desire to cry. She should have been stronger! She had just now put her and her husband in even more danger, but especially her husband! And it was all her fault! Everything was all her fault! Their wretched condition; their forced association with that evil sorceress; hurting this wizard and his love without a reason save possible revenge of that evil Spectra; and now, for the wicked peril she was sure to be in and was going to be put upon her husband for uttering his name.
She looked up at the boy and was suddenly astounded at what she saw. She could only see sadness and kindness—not anger as she had thought—in his eyes. But she would deserve whatever he would do to her, whatever revenge pleased him, for all the wrong she had caused. Especially all the unjust hurt she had placed upon his and his love. Injustice! The word riveted her soul. Was that not what she and Derek had endured all these centuries? And she did the very same thing to this innocent boy? Sorcerer or not, she had no right, as those others had no right long, long ago!
She suddenly broke down, whimpering with remorseful waves of sobs at all the pain she had caused to everyone whom had ever come in contact with her. And she wept in intense grief for her husband, fearing that she would never see him again.
She was so distressed, that she had not noticed that Danny had unlocked the cage and reached in, capturing her ever so gently in his hands and drawing her out.
He hesitated at first, before finally softly stroking her head, trying to calm her.
"Shh!" he gently commanded. "It's all right! I don't know who or what you are, but don't be frightened. I won't hurt you, I promise! We all have our troubles, you know, and I'm no exception. I've just lost the best thing that has ever happened to me. Someone who I always depended on and was always there for me. Someone I had taken for granted for so long before, for some lucky reason, I finally realized what a real jewel I had right in front of me all that time! She was someone who I trusted with my life…who had become my life."
He stopped at feeling the lump swell in his throat and his eyes moisten. Still, he barely muttered to the bird, "She was my true love, my soul-mate." A single tear fell this time. "I don't understand what happened. I knew she felt the same!"
He sighed sadly, still gently caressing the dove as he did. The dove had stopped her own crying when she heard the change in his voice, and realized that even in his own sorrow, he was comforting her.
Now that Danny had realized how devastating his loss was, he had suddenly felt not only crushed, but hopeless. And with that, all his doubts that he thought he had overcome came creeping back to him. He sighed in defeat.
Still, he continued, and this time Sarah noticed that his grip around her tightened slightly and his voice was cracking with his emotion, "You know, this is just like my life! Just when I think everything's going well, something bad happens! I've always tried to do the right thing, and now look what it has gotten me! All this hurt, all this… heartbreak. And that is so unfair! I didn't do anything to deserve this! And…and now, if giving Sam up is the right thing to do now, then I really don't care about doing any other thing right anymore!"
He paused and gently stroked the bird again before adding, "And do you know the craziest thing about that? I didn't always know what the right thing to do unless Sam helped me see it. She taught me so much about that. And now what am I gonna do? Nothing seems to be important or right anymore!"
He pushed back more tears that were demanding to be let out. And then he noticed that the bird was quivering within his hand, and immediately relaxed his hand a little and brought up the other one to the little dove. This time, he made sure to cup it very gently and brought it up so that they were at eye level, doing a quick inspection of her as he did. He said with concern, "You're all right, aren't you? I didn't hurt you just now, did I? I'm sorry, but I didn't know that I was squeezing you a little too much just now. But you seem to be all right, aren't you?"
Sarah couldn't look into his eyes because of her own guilt. She had only felt a slight squeeze during all his anguish just now. He hadn't hurt her in the least. But she had hurt him. After all, she was the one who had caused all this sorrow in him. And now…what she had did was tearing him apart in more ways than in what she had been involved. She shuddered once more, and accidentally uttered, "Oh, no,..."
But this time, Danny grew even more concern over her reaction. She sounded so human again! He asked, "Did you just say something again? And you're shivering!" He reflexively brought her closer to warm her. But then, he blurted out. "Wait a minute! You're a ghost and you're shivering here? Man, I am going crazy!" His shoulders drooped again and he added, "Just like everything else in my crazy life! But now, I really don't care anymore."
He heaved a deep sigh and unconsciously began to gently caress the dove again, his mind drifting back into his misery. He then said, "I don't know why I'm telling all of this to you. I've probably been hallucinating that you could talk, since I still have this blasted headache! So, how could you possibly understand any of this? Or how hurt I feel, as if my heart has just been ripped out?"
He paused and swallowed his tears. "Oh, Sam… darling…," he barely choked out. But suddenly, he yelled in anguish, and the emotion in his voice seemed to shake the room. "Why, Sam? WHY?!"
Sarah trembled when she could feel his pain and couldn't take it any longer. She would be willing to have this sorcerer make her meet justice or use whatever evil magic he saw fit to throw at her for all the woeful torment she had cause him and his love. She did understand all of what he was feeling. It was exactly how she was feeling at this moment, now that she dreaded that she had lost Derek. Derek! He wouldn't want her to reveal who she was, but she couldn't take hearing such anguish she had put this boy through for one more second. That gave her the courage this time. She would no longer take any part of hurting this boy anymore.
"Please," she uttered, startling Danny once again, and he almost dropped her.
"Please, Sir Danny," she said, after spreading her wings out in response to his fumble. But he had gently cupped her again, saving her from falling. "Please do not cry anymore! Lady Sam is true, I promise!"
"You do talk! And what…what do you mean?" he asked, quickly wiping his tears away. Still cradling the dove, he walked over to his bed and sat down. He then placed her on top of his pillow, and continued. "And how do you know about me and…Sam?"
"It is my entire fault! Mine and my husband Derek's fault!" she began. She felt her voice quiver as she confessed that, but she forced herself to finally be strong as she spilled it out. "We did you and your lady Sam an unforgivable wrong! We helped an evil sorceress to tear you two apart, and another couple, too. I believe they are your friends, Sir Tucker and Lady Valerie. The wicked creature said that she could break our merciless spell if we helped her do that. We—no, I—agreed to help because I had hoped that it would be true. And my husband agreed only because of his love for me. We have suffered so long, that I had forgotten that deviousness and selfishness in any form that they take are unquestionably evil!"
She oddly felt a surge of courage as she continued, "Derek was right! I did cause more malevolence by not accepting our fate. It was never a fault of you or your lady Sam. I was wrong to bring this shame upon my husband! But, I will do whatever it takes to make it right! Please believe me when I say that I truly regret it all from the deepest depth of my very soul!"
Sarah suddenly felt sieged with remorse after that, but she tried to hold back her tears.
Danny looked on with bewilderment. He really didn't understand how this little bird could have possibly been involved in Sam's and his break-up.
But his thoughts were interrupted when she pressed on, "Please believe me when I say that Lady Sam never betrayed your trust! We overshadowed those other two innocent children where we found you all in the Real World. We forced them—I believe their names were Armen and Alice—to put a wedge between you and your lady, all at the command of an evil sorceress by the name of Penelope Spectra, and her wicked servant named Bertrand.
"Spectra!" Danny growled, unconsciously fisting his hands in anger. His mind suddenly began to whirl with possibilities…possibilities that could finally make some sense of all this.
The dove startled at his response, but he didn't notice.
He was too upset with himself at the ghost bird's news. He should have known! Wasn't his heart burning with the truth about Sam all along, but he denied it?
But then, he looked at the dove. He finally responded to the dove's last remark, and his voice was unquestionably angry, "But how did Spectra do that? I would have known that you or any other ghost was near or overshadowing a human!"
The dove trembled when she felt his anger. Her fear had come true! He was going to punish her! Still, she deserved whatever he would do to her because of her misdeeds. Her voice shook as she replied, "Y-Your power to do that was useless against Spectra's magic! She had a special potion—her servant made it—which they got from some plant in a land in the Ghost Zone called Pandora's Maze. It somehow masked our spectral energies—our ghostly auras—so that you could not detect us. I did not understand why she did that, but now I do! She must have wanted to keep you from discovering the truth!"
Danny paused, trying to piece everything together. He frowned at the dove and angrily demanded, "And you overshadowed Sam?"
"No! No! I did not! My husband told me that Spectra did that herself before you found us!" she said, trembling at the tone of his voice.
But that was two days ago!" Danny yelled, causing Sarah to jump again. "But what about today?" But then he answered his own question when he realized the answer. He chuckled a little in embarrassment. "Of course, it couldn't have been you when you've been in that cage for the past two days! It must have been Spectra who did that to Sam today, the witch!"
"I do not doubt that, Sir Danny! She had taken much time to make her wicked plans. And she was so eager to get something of value from you. I do not remember the name, but what she said she needed would help her keep her youth."
"She would do that! She wants our misery!" Danny excitedly continued.
But Sarah frowned before adding, "I do not think that was the word she used. It was phera…or something like that. I am sorry. I know nothing of magic!"
"Magic?" Danny echoed. "Spectra just conjures up evil, not magic!"
"I do not disagree that she is very wicked. But she wanted to take those things from you to hurt you…badly," the dove continued.
He smirked a little, which made her frown in confusion. He then said, "Well, I'm not surprised. She and about a bazillion other ghosts are always trying to do that!"
"That is awful, Sir Danny!"
"Yeah, I know. And Spectra's a pretty bad ghost, but all she does when she takes my misery is make me feel depressed. It doesn't hurt me."
Sarah blinked in confusion, not understanding what he meant by that or how he could take all this so lightly. But, of course, she didn't know that he had encountered Spectra a few times before.
"But she said she could not only hurt you, she could…destroy you when she took those phero-things from you. I am sorry that I cannot recall the name. But she was so certain," the small ghost insisted.
Danny looked at her more soberly when he could tell that she was serious. "Well, okay, I'll keep that in mind, though I do not understand how she could do all that."
"Then please allow me to explain, Sir Danny," the dove pleaded.
He chuckled in embarrassment and replied, "You don't have to call me that, you know. 'Danny' would be just fine."
"I am sorry, Sir, but I cannot make myself say less of you. It is the least I could do to for all the hurt that I caused you," the dove sadly said. "And, by your leave, I beg you to lend me your ear for my unworthy explanation."
Danny bit his lower lip when she had said that, especially when her voice had seemed so somber. He slowly nodded for her to go on.
"I do not know what her evil plans are now, but I will tell you all that I know now. I am ashamed once more, but like I told you, at Spectra's bidding, my husband and I had done all that wickedness with your friends. And, of course, with the despicable way Derek and I used those other two innocent young ones in order to try to wedge discord between you and your love. But even after all of that, that wicked ghost was not satisfied. She had her evil servant to spread wicked falsehoods about your lady Sam. But there was more…That evil Spectra's plans also would have included using us once more to make sure that you and your lady would be torn from each other once and for all. But we had escaped first; and then, we got into another fight with that wicked sorceress' servant after he had pursued us. We were injured and fell into a hole which brought us into your world. And then, you accidentally found us."
She paused and looked at him.
Danny blinked back her, uncertain on what to say. Her story was almost unbelievable! Still, he remained silent and gave her a short nod to continue.
She swallowed the lump she now felt in her throat. She wasn't certain if he believed her. Still, she continued, "Anyway, what is really important for you to believe is that your lady Sam tried to resist Spectra. That evil creature had said something about how hard it was to overshadow her each time!"
Danny now bit his lower lip, regretting once more for having doubted his girl. Yet, he didn't understand how Sam could have done that. And then he realized that Sam mustn't have known that she had been fighting Spectra the whole time or she would have told him. He startled at that thought. How could he have doubted his Sam? She would have told him, like she told him about everything else that she knew about all those incidents that caused them to break up! He suddenly felt a stronger wave of remorse over his self-generated accusations about his wonderful girl.
But Sarah interrupted his thoughts. "But I did overshadow the hapless girl named Alice. And Derek overshadowed the poor boy named Armen!"
"Derek?" Danny queried
"He is my husband," she sadly said.
"Oh, yeah, right. Sorry, I had forgotten. And where is he now?"
"I do not know. He is the lynx that you found accompanying me."
"That lynx is your husband?" Danny asked in surprise. "Sorry, but how can that be? Uh, anyway, I didn't think ghost animals could overshadow humans. I guess theoretically, it could happen, but…"
He suddenly stopped himself, aware that he didn't have time to talk about that. He chuckled in embarrassment again and added, "Sorry about that! But, anyway, just so you know. He is okay and Sam is taking care of him."
The dove felt something inside her jump in relief when he told her about her husband. But she wasn't going to ask him to take her to him. She did not deserve any kindness from him. But, then, she recalled something very important and she was more than happy to give the boy what she would hope would assure him of his lady's loyalty.
"Oh, my! How could I almost forget? Lady Sam and Sir Tucker came here. I believe they were searching for you, but you had left moments before! And your lady was very, very upset that you were not here. But do you see, Sir Danny? She is true to you! Her heart yearns to be close to yours once more!"
Danny's eyes had widened in surprise; but just as quickly, a small light of hope lit in those green orbs. Sam had come! —And Tucker! She did care! This really was one of Spectra's schemes after all!
Well, he would not allow that witch and her snippy assistant to get away with this!
"Sir Danny? Does that not please you?" the dove asked, confused by his lack of reaction.
"Oh, yeah! Thanks for telling me! You have no idea how much better it makes me feel that she—and Tucker—are looking for me!" he said with a bright grin. But then, it slipped into a more sheepish one as he added, "I'm gonna have to go find them. I'm not the easiest guy to track down when I get… upset. But, um, I was hoping you would tell me a little more about you, first. I was wondering…" He paused a moment before just coming out with it, "why is it, exactly, that you can talk?"
She gave him another slightly bewildered look, but it melted quickly when she finally comprehended the question he just asked her. And, suddenly, she felt compelled to answer any question he asked of her, even when she was sure she could not check her emotions any longer.
"Firstly, I must thank you for helping my husband and me when we were in such dire need of assistance," she began; but her voice began to quiver the more she spoke. "But as in answer to your query: our story is a very long, sad one. And, it is truly not important now. You should go find and tend to your love. The way you talk of your lady and from what I could see during the brief moment she came to your abode, she must be as sorrowful as you are! I cannot bear to think about what torment I have caused you both any longer! I will do whatever you say to ease the situation!" She finally could not hold it in any longer and suddenly covering her head with her outstretched wings, began to cry again.
Danny looked at her in surprise. And suddenly, his heart was moved to pity. Yes, she and her husband had done him and Sam wrong, but the dove was obviously remorseful about what she had done. And she was willing to help him now in spite of all that she had done.
"No, please, don't cry! And I want to thank you…" he began, and his voice was no longer angry, but was tender.
"Y-you w-want to t-thank me?" she gasped through her sobs, lowering her wings just before she spoke. "B-But I had cut you to the heart!"
"But I can see how sorry you are and how brave you were to tell me the truth. And, I thank you for that! You have lifted this huge weight off of me and you have no idea how that feels."
"Oh, but I yearn to know!" she sadly replied.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"Please, Sir Danny, do not burden yourself any longer! You must go!"
"You are right! But when I come back, I want to help you and your husband."
"To help me? And Derek?" she said, blinking in confusion. "I do not understand. Why?"
"Because somehow I have a feeling that you are not in your…condition through your own fault. Some…wrong must have been done to you…and your husband."
"You are right," she confirmed. "But it does not matter any more. What is important is that you fly to your love."
"But I must understand what has happened to you before I go so that I can explain it to Sam. My…lady would want to know, too!" He insisted with a weak, but encouraging, smile.
She nodded sadly, "As you wish. I will do whatever you bid if that will make amends with you."
Finally turning back to his human form, Danny waited for her to begin.
But she jumped at his transformation, spreading her wings in fear. She had not expected that, only to immediately think that he was about to throw magic at her after all.
He noticed and asked in concern, "What's wrong?"
"I am sorry. I was frightened again. I thought you were about to punish me with your magic! Not that I did not deserve it."
"Magic?" he asked in surprise. Then he chuckled and said, "You don't think I'm some kind of wizard, do you?"
Her eyes widened and he knew by that look that she did think that!
He chuckled again and assured her, "I am not a sorcerer, wizard, or anything like that! But, I am, uhm, half-ghost and half-human. I promise to tell you my story once everything is over with, okay?"
"As you wish," she replied, sighing just before she was to begin her sad tale...