Last Thing I Remembered
By: Wilona Riva
Disclaimer: Butch Hartman does; I don't.
Hours of the Clock
"So, explain to me how you met...Bullet, was it?...Danny," Maddie said, when they adjourned to living room. She had her hood down, and was currently reclining on the living room sofa with her arms crossed as her son stood by the window gazing out.
"I fell through the portal on the day it activated," he said, sneaking a glance at his mentor, who nodded. They'd gone over this cover story in case his parents ever discovered Bullet's presence and it was now time to put it to the test.
"You could have died, Daniel, or even turned into a ghost!" Maddie's periwinkle blue eyes widened in horror as her imagination spun out many possible endings for her son.
"I was there when he fell through, Mrs. Fenton," Bullet cut in, throwing a warning look to Danny to keep silent. "If I had not been, then one of the darker ghosts might have. I took him to an old friend, who agreed to send him home."
"With no strings attached?"
"Only with the condition that Danny helps out in his shop now and then. He was concerned when he found out who Daniel was, but another old friend, one who we call the Time Master, assured him the boy was harmless. The boy has good reflexes. He took out the Box Ghost last week within ten minutes tops when he tried to steal all our boxes."
"You're training him to ghost hunt?" Maddie asked, mind wondering at the possibility of her son being trained to hunt ghosts...by a ghost.
Bullet shook his head. "No, Mrs. Fenton," he said, entering the lie portion of the story. "Walker saw the kid's sharp reflexes, thought it would be a good idea to train him to mind his shop. He runs a tight ship and has a lot of rules."
"What kind rules?"
"The Hours of the Clock," Danny muttered, without turning to face her.
"What was that, Phantom?" Bullet asked, looking at the boy suspiciously.
"One of the things I have to memorize are the Hours of the Clock," he repeated.
"You've known how to tell time since second grade, Daniel," his mother replied, indicating how upset she was with him. Times like these, he really hated when she used his full name.
"It's not about telling time, Mrs. Fenton," Bullet tried to explain. "Daniel, you should have the Hours of the Clock memorized by this time. What are they?"
"Another quiz? Come on, Bullet!" Danny yelled, exasperated.
"Phantom!"
"Alright, alright." Danny pulled a small black-bound tablet out of his back pocket and flipped a few pages. He was about the read the alternate set of the rules for his mother, devised by Walker, if ever his parents found out or went through his stuff.
The Hours of the Clock
Midnight-4pm These hours are given to be with your family, your friends, and your physical duties. (i.e. school and/or sleep)
4pm - 5pm You are to be keeping with all your studies, memorizing rules, etc.
5pm - 6pm This time is given over to Bullet, so he may train you to work properly within the shop's merchandise.
6pm - 8pm You will report to the Time Master for historical enrichment.
8pm - midnight You will spend the rest of your remaining hours doing normal social things people your age do, then you will gain enough rest to start over on the morrow. No exceptions.
"This, Walker, seems a bit of a perfectionist to me," Maddie said, handing her son back the little notebook, which he pocketed at once.
"He is," Bullet agreed, "but the rules are there for a reason." Here he cast a side-long glance at his charge, who blushed furiously.
"What happened?" Maddie asked, curiously.
"I got into a fight with another ghost named Ember, who also works in the shop," Danny said, cheeks stained pink with embarrassment at the memory. "She got mad at me and hypnotized me. Next thing I knew, I was dressed like that girl from My Fair Lady."
"Walker made it a rule that if Danny chose to dress like a girl, then like a girl he would be treated," Bullet finished the explanation. "Phantom is now required as part of his training to learn how to sew, walk with heels, and take eloquently. It will come in handy if ever we need to disguise him as a girl. Sometimes, we have to fool our customers."
"Bullet!"
"You do make a pretty girl, Phantom," Bullet teased.
"BULLET!"
"That's enough, you two," Maddie said, raising one hand in a cease-and-desist motion. "I will not discuss this with Daniel's father, on the condition, that this does not interfere with his school work. I don't like the idea of you working with ghosts, but seeing as this has been going on for the last two weeks," she looked over for confirmation with Bullet, who nodded. "There's nothing much I can do about it. Am I clear?"
"Yes, ma'am," both the boys told her.
"And Danny?"
"Ma'am?"
"Don't forget the reactivate the ghost alarms before you go to bed tonight," Maddie said, rising to her feet. She beamed down at him. "My little phantom, a ghost hunter, just like his mother."
Bullet whistled and looked up at the ceiling. The huntress had bought the lie-seasoned with enough truth-hook, line and sinker.
Walker would have to know about this change in development.