"You are too late, all of you!" the voice of Vlad Plasmius shouted, his entire being quickly becoming compressed into the tight confines of the Fenton Thermos.
"Daniel is dead!"
Sam stared down at the thermos in her hands, her eyes wide in shock. Numbly, her hands found the lid, and she sealed Plasmius inside the devise before quickly throwing it away as if it had burnt her. Alex took a step towards her, opening his arms slightly. Hysterical, she leapt into his arms, sobbing.
"He killed him! He killed him! Alex, he's dead!" she cried, tears running freely down her face. "He attacked Tucker too, and I don't know if he's alright. But Danny…"
"Shh, Sam, calm down…" Alex whispered, holding her like a brother would hold a sister. He rested a hand on the back of her head, and began to slowly smooth her raven hair. "It's alright, you're safe."
He tried to comfort her, to make her stop crying. The words he whispered to her seemed to help, though they did little to stop her tears. Suddenly, as if a dam had been broken, a fresh wave of sobs wracked her body. She shook her head, protesting something that remained unclear until she spoke again.
"I don't want to be safe! Not when he's like this!"
"Sam,"
"He can't leave, not now!"
Alex sighed, frowning slightly. He allowed Sam to leave his arms, though he kept a reassuring hand on her shoulder. The Goth sniffed, wiping her nose with the back of her hand. Neither of the teens was looking at the other, it was too hard. Instead, they looked off to the side, blankly. Haunted. Sam sniffed again.
"Danny didn't deserve this, he didn't deserve any of it." She said, lip trembling. Alex squeezed her shoulder, and she looked up. The boy was still frowning, but his eyes were dry.
"Of course," Sam thought "He must be used to this by now. How many others has he seen die? How many times has he almost died?"
"Let's see if Tucker is alright, Sam." He said; his voice hollow. The girl offered no form of protest. Together, they walked off to where the boy had fallen. Silently, they pushed the bits of table and jewelry off him, propping his body against a nearby counter while Alex took his wrist and searched for a pulse. They waited, and then he closed his eyes, sighing.
"Tucker's alright, only unconscious." The spy stated, opening his eyes again and nodding at Sam. "Can you take us to the hospital, Yassen?" he asked, turning to face the ghost. There was nothing there. Alex stood, looking around for the ghost, hoping that he was still there. He was stopped when the PDA in Tucker's pocket went off. Drawn to it, the boy waited for Sam to pull it out of Tucker's pocket. They watched the screen, reading the message that appeared there:
"Saw the news. What's going on? Is everyone okay? -J"
"Don't answer it." Alex said, taking the PDA and storing it in his pocket. Sam nodded, her eyes tearing up again. She really wanted to tell Jazz though; she wanted to tell someone… Deep inside, she knew that that would get her nowhere other than down another trail of sorrow. For now, that was to be avoided, if at all possible.
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Alex cringed as the cell phone in his pocket went off. He refused to answer it. Eventually, it went to voicemail. Seconds later, the phone beeped, announcing the arrival of a text message, which was also doomed to go ignored. The boy strode across the way, looking for Yassen. If he couldn't find the ghost, then he would have to take matters into his own hands, calling for a cab or stealing a car, anything to get the others home. For now, Danny would have to stay here.
As he continued walking, Alex found Tucker's hat. Without really knowing why, he picked it up. He had no idea how useful it could really be. For now, it was stored in his back pocket, and he walked on. Yassen was found next to Danny, who had at some point reverted to his human form. Alex felt sick upon seeing the other boy. Yassen, meanwhile, remained as impassive as ever, pointing down at the boy.
"He was thrown into this, and the rod pierced his back. Then he was stepped on. See the tread on his chest?"
Alex felt his stomach churn. "Can't you honor the dead or something?" he muttered. "At least close his eyes or something…" he paused, looking up at Yassen when he felt the ghost's eyes on him. "What?"
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Sam looked up sharply when she heard Alex curse harshly. Without think, she ran towards the sound of his voice.
There he was, kneeling in front of Danny, holding his hand tightly. He was saying something, but it was so quiet that she never found out what it was. Her feet moved, bringing her closer to the two boys, and a pair of hands reached out from behind, taking her by the shoulders. It was Yassen. To stunned to really do anything other than cry again- she finally noticed that Danny was in his human form- she simply stood there, watching. The spirit behind her bent forward from his waist, bringing his face closer to hers in such a way that the girl thought he was about to whisper into her ear. He did no such thing, only stood there like that. Sam turned her head ever-so slightly, no more than a twitch, to see Yassen's face. The man was staring right at her, watching her. Then, his eyes twitched, flicking over to the sight of the two boys. Now she could hear what was being said.
"Come on, mate, stay with me," Alex urged, squeezing Danny's limp hand. Then she saw:
Danny's eyes were open, they had always been, and he was looking at her. Tears were in his eyes as well, as if seeing the events unfold around him had run him through all over again. He was alive.
Yassen straightened up, though he kept his hold on Sam's shoulders. Then he left her, returning a second after with Tucker slung over his shoulder. Deciding to be a gentleman for Sam, and doubting if she could handle it due to her thin arms, he called Alex over, depositing the inert boy in his arms. After this, he went to Danny, picking him and the broken bar up. Danny cringed, whimpering. A few tears left his blue eyes, running down his bloody face.
"The hospital then?" Sam offered boldly, more than ready to get there. Weakly, Danny shook his head, biting his lip as this movement had created more pain.
"They can't know." He managed, referring to his parents. Luckily, the others understood.
"North Mercy then, the ghost hospital. They have cared for you already, right?" Alex said. Danny almost smiled, he tried to at least.
Danny smirked bitterly. He looked up a little, around the area. "Plasmius?"
Sam grabbed the thermos from the ground, holding it up slightly. "He's here, Danny. He won't be getting out any time soon."
"Good. How about we go now?" Sam interrupted. "We can't stay here for too long."
"Yeah," Danny whispered; his lips barely moving. Then, like a flipped switch, he was out. Sam immediately announced that it was time to leave. Black smoke erupted from the ground around them, swirling like a vortex and finally consuming them. When it vanished, there was nothing left but blood, broken merchandise, a discarded backpack, and a lone guitar.
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Yassen brought them straight into the main lobby, where the male nurse from before was lounging in a chair, reading a magazine that had been printed in the fifties. He glanced up when he noticed the arrivals.
"Back so soon, hmm?" he cooed, grinning at them. His eyes flashed red, so swiftly that only Yassen really noticed and Alex just thought that he did. Alex shook his head, jabbing his thumb towards Danny. The nurse's jaw dropped. "Oh! Well, don't just stand there! Hand the little fellow over!" Yassen complied, and the nurse nodded once to the others, ordering them to stay in the lobby, before leaving in a cloud of sterile dust.
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Sam sank into a chair, sending up a puff of dust and dirt. Waving this nuisance away as best as she could, the girl eyed the thermos now in her lap, wanting nothing more than to crush it and its inhabitant into powder and cast the remains into the darkest parts of the sea… in an eco-friendly way, of course. There is no greater pollutant than an evil heart. Vlad deserved to be locked away forever, where nothing would ever touch him, and he would never be touched.
Was this fair? Would this make her as bad a person as he was by wanting to do this? Yes. There had to be another way.
"What should we do with Vlad?" she asked numbly, rolling the thermos in one hand. Fingertips to wrist, fingertips to wrist. Alex shrugged, setting Tucker in a chair and then sitting down next to him. Yassen had already left. "We can't let him out, but we can't just go off and bury him in someone's back yard. That's basically murder, sort of, and there's always the risk of someone finding him later and letting him out."
"We could hide the thermos in the Ghost Zone. No, never mind, that's a terrible idea."
"What do you do? On your missions I mean."
"There's usually some sort of accident, and they end up dead. Actually, there's always some accident. Something breaks, someone messes up, someone snaps."
"That won't work."
"I know."
The Goth went back to looking at the thermos.
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The nurse appeared in the doctor's office, holding Danny carefully. He smiled down at his boss, who was lounging at his desk. There hadn't been too many patients lately. The man adjusted his glasses and stood, walking around his desk to study the boy.
"He's the one from before?" he muttered, prodding the boy. "Curious." The doctor slid a hand into one of the pockets of his white coat, pulling a loaded needle out, containing ectoplasm. He jabbed the needle into the boys arm, right through the black material of his jacket. Then he had the nurse follow him to one of the operating rooms, where they cleared the remains of another patient off the table before setting Danny on it, taking care to lay him on his side. The two ghosts had been working together for so long that they already knew what the other needed without having to ask. The doctor handed a pair of scissors to the nurse, allowing the man to cut the ruined hoodie away and then the shirt under that as well. The doctor moved, seeing Danny's chest. There was no sign of the bar there, but there was plenty of bruising and blood.
"We'll fix his nose first." The doctor said. He held the boy's head down with one hand and grabbed his nose with the other. With a crack and a blast of spectral energy, the nose snapped back into place. Nodding, the doctor motioned for the nurse to do something. The other man was at the sink in an instant, running a rag under the constantly running water source that was a rusty tap. Wringing the cloth out, he appeared in front of the patient, where he began to clear the mixture of red and green blood from his face. The rag was thrown over his shoulder after this, joining a growing pile of used rags. Quick as a whip, he snatched it back up as the doctor yanked the bar from Danny's back. The bar was thrown away, and the doctor caught the rag just as the nurse threw it, pressing the cloth to Danny's back. With his free hand, he pulled another needle out. The contents were a fiery red. When the drug was introduced to the boy, the same way as before, it immediately went to work, stopping the horrific bleed from the boy's back. The nurse was beside the doctor, a large bandage in hand. The doctor took this, applying it to the odd circular hole.
"There is still the matter of the damage that is inside him. Broken bones, punctured lung…"
"His status should help,"
"Right you are. Put him in a room. We will check back on him in an hour." The doctor ordered, injecting a needle of blue liquid in Danny's shoulder before patting the boy on the cheek and sending him and the nurse on their way.
The man nodded, obeying orders as if he were a dog. He brought Danny to a room, ignoring the dust that had gathered in there, and set the boy on the bed. As always, he removed Danny's shoes. The man was one to believe that it was impossible for anyone to rest while they still had their shoes on, and so he set them aside at the foot of the bed. Danny didn't protest this, and he wouldn't for several hours at least, when he awoke. By then, if all went well, the guests downstairs would be gone.
"They should have never come, you know," the man whispered to Danny, smoothing the boys raven hair like a father would to their own son as he looked out the window. The window beside the bed was barred, for the protection of the patients. All the glass had been smashed out though, from the inside. Looking back at the boy, whose face was one of sadness, something to be pitied, the man found himself talking again.
"You are lucky we came across you and your friend the first time, before those monsters at that horrible caricature of a hospital could do any damage…"
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"May I see it?" Alex asked, holding a hand out. Sam looked up, confused. "The thermos, I mean." He added. Sam slowly handed it over, and Alex nodded, setting it on his chair to rest against his leg. "You look terrible, Sam."
"I feel like crap."
"It's over. Don't think about it." He coaxed, flashing a small smile. It backfired, and the Goth's eyes once again filled with tears. She sniffed, turning her head to keep the boy from seeing her cry again. Having him think that she was a sissy was not on her list of Things to Accomplish. Still…
"He almost got him. If we had gotten there only a minute later, we would have lost him!" she choked out, covering her lips with her hand. "It was so close, too close."
"It was too close, but you made it, and that's all that matters."
"Thanks, Dr. Phil, but that's all you have been saying." Sam muttered, stuck between being comforted and annoyed by the boy's efforts to help her. "Let's go-" she began, wanting to see Danny. A voice stopped her, groaning something about bacon. Tucker came around soon after, squinting in the light. When he saw where he was, he groaned again.
"Why are we in a hospital, of all places? Why not someplace a bit nicer, like Skulker's lair or something?" he leaned forward, rubbing his eyes. Alex shook his head, tossing the red beret at Tucker. It landed with a small pat on his lap. The techno geek moved his hands, peering down at the hat, marveling at the singed fabric that slashed across it. The blood drained from his face, leaving him to look like someone standing at death's door. "…Where's Danny?" he asked, sliding the hat into his pocket.
He saw Sam, her red face, and then Alex's somber one. His mind assumed the worst, and he got to his feet, gritting his teeth against the sudden rush of dizziness. Again, he asked where his best friend was. There was no answer. His vision became blurred.
"Come on, guys! Where is he?"
"Upstairs."
"Where? A room, the morgue, what?" Tucker shouted, waving his arms.
"A room. Calm down." Alex said, waving a hand.
"Why the heck are we down here, instead of being up there with him?" Tucker fumed, not listening. He stormed over to the main desk, not even jumping when the doctor suddenly appeared in the chair behind the desk. The dead man smiled, creating an arch with his fingers.
"May I help you?" he asked.
"I want to go and see my friend." The boy demanded. "What room is he in?"
The doctor sighed, rubbing his chin. "Your friend? I am sorry son, but we don't allow guests upstairs in the patient's rooms. It interferes negatively with their recovery."
"If it is any consolation, the procedure that we follow here at North Mercy is highly advanced."
Alex and Sam looked up, whereas Tucker just stared at the red beret, his eyes lost. Sam couldn't help but glare at the ghost, demanding an explanation to his words. He only smiled at her. Then, as if it were on a whim, he vanished. Sam frowned, leaning back in her chair to stare at the ceiling.
"How long will we have to wait here?" She sighed. Alex shrugged.
"Not too long, I hope. These ghosts are very efficient in their work. They just have this need to keep their patients here, so we'll have to think of a way to get around that."
"You've got to be kidding. How are we going to get up to Danny's room then?"
"I figured that I'd go up there, I have an idea where he is. You can stay down here with Tucker."
"No way! I'm going with you."
Alex sighed. "You know, when most people say that, it jinxes the group."
"Well, we aren't most people. Deal with it."
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After plenty of encouragement and a stolen key that had been left to rot on the front desk, the trio set off for the stairs, not wanting to use the elevator just yet because it could create unwanted noise. They were loud enough as it was with Tucker muttering his mantra of "I'm fine, it's not a hospital, not a hospital…" over and over. Sam hit him on the shoulder, telling him to shut it. He pouted, but stopped talking, no doubt switching to repeating the lines in his head instead. They continued climbing up the stairs, jumping when the old pipes along the wall would groan and hiss. Tucker gave up, putting his hands on the shoulders of the person in front of him, Sam, and closing his eyes so he wouldn't have to see.
"Try to find a happy place, Tuck." The Goth offered, patting one of his hands with her own. He chuckled, but it was clear that he wasn't amused. Alex suggested that they all pick it up, and he started walking at a quicker pace. Hoping to lighten the mood, he announced that they were on the fourth floor, according to the door.
"This is where Danny and I were last time, according to the panel in the lift. We were in room… that one. See? It's the door with the stain on it on the left."
"Shh, they'll hear us!" Sam hissed.
"Don't let them hear us!" Tucker begged, his grip tightening on Sam's shoulders. She shrugged, hoping he'd get the message and quit trying to rip her arms off. He relaxed a little, and they all took off at a slow crawl, freezing whenever the slightest sound met their ears. Tucker almost shrieked when Alex's phone went off, but the Goth had spun around, clamping a hand to Tucker's mouth. She glanced over her shoulder to see what the spy was doing, noting how carefully he was reading something on his phone.
"According to this, there's a ghost nearby, next to Danny's room. We need to be careful. Pull it together, Tucker." Alex announced, whispering. The phone was tucked away again, and the boy was walking again, halting before the slightly ajar door to what they believed to be Danny's room. Then he opened the door, or at least tried to. It was locked.
"Of course." Alex growled. "The ghosts here don't need the doors; they just go right through them. Sam, do you have a hair pin, by any chance?"
"No, sorry" Sam said. "They aren't really my style."
"What about that key?" Tucker offered. It was a good idea, even if the chances were against them. Biting his lip, Alex fit the key into its hole, almost gasping when it went in. He turned the small piece of metal slowly, as if he were expecting it to crumble into dust if he moved too quickly. The lock clicked. He twisted the handle, and the door swung open. Everyone sort of pushed at each other, eager to see if their friend was in the room. The familiar red converse shoes were sighted first, and then the young halfa, fast asleep in the dusty bed. With every breath he exhaled, a puff of dust would rise, leaving the pillow as it took to the air. Suddenly, another presence came up. The doctor appeared, standing at the halfa's bedside.
"He is not to have any visitors right now," the man said simply, yet firmly. "Please go back upstairs. Better yet, go home. He will not be fit to leave until at least tomorrow."
As if agreeing with this, Alex's cell phone, as well as Tuckers PDA, began ringing and beeping. The technological devices were whipped out in an instant, out of habit for both boys, and were answered.
"Hello-?" Alex began hesitantly, knowing who was on the other line. As soon as the other caller started speaking, he held the phone away from his ear.
"Alex Rider! Where on earth are you?" Jack said, practically spitting fire. "The Fenton's and I are worried sick. I know whatever you're dealing with can't be this serious! The parents of those other kids are here too, with the cops!"
"Jack, I," the boy began, instantly cut off by his guardian.
"No buts, Alex! I know what you are doing is marginally, yet unfortunately, important, but it does not involve those kids! Please tell me you are back in the States, because they need to be here, right now."
"I, uhh…" How could he say it? Yes, they were back on American soil and more than able to leave for Fenton Works, assuming that's where Jack was, but there was no way they could leave Danny. Contrary to what the woman believed, this ordeal did involve Sam and Tucker.
"Alex. They need to be here within an hour or, so help me; I will hunt all of you down and… It won't be pretty."
Tucker had received a similar, minus the threats, message from Jazz. He and Sam were torn. There was nothing they could do for Danny right now, and there was a hurricane of trouble outside the questionably safety of North Mercy. Knowing Sam's parents, the SWAT team could very well be stationed outside Fenton Works. The teens began discussing their options, coming up with a few key points: They were all already screwed, so that couldn't really be helped, they were all scratched up from the fight at the mall, and the mall. Could that have been covered on the news? Also, according to the folks back home, Danny had been missing the longest. They had to go, but they couldn't just leave Danny in the hospital.
"How bad is it?" Tucker typed into his phone, sending the question to Jazz. A frantic response came back seconds later.
"Bad! A cop car and a news truck are outside the house. Phantom and Sam were on the news. How is everyone?"
"We need to go, at least one of us." Sam decided, hearing Alex's conversation. The spy agreed, though he suggested that two go. "Who's going to stay?" Clearly she wanted to be the one that stayed behind, but things weren't meant to work out in that way. In the end, she and Alex had to run for it, because they were the ones who in the most trouble and had to calm things down. "This isn't right. Take care of him, alright Tuck?"
"I will. Go!" the boy said, smiling as the Goth and the spy ran out. An uncomfortable silence rang through the room as the doctor stared down at the final intruder. Meekly, Tucker waved to him, and then he squared his shoulders. "Hey, doc, I'm staying in here, and that's that!"
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After hopping the nearest bus and traveling for a few minutes, Alex and Sam jumped off at the Nasty Burger. From there, they ran the entire way to Danny's house, racing around to jump the fence and enter through the back door rather than the front door. Luck had a sense of humor though, and the teens were unable to dodge the one reporter and her cameraman who had managed to make it into Fenton Works. Questions were fired off, and the flash of the camera blinded them. Between the bright flashes, Sam handed the thermos to Alex, already guessing as to what was about to happen.
Respectfully, the parents and guardian came forward, enveloping the girl and the boy in tearful hugs. For the moment, no one asked about the whereabouts of Tucker, his parents weren't there. A few of the cops who had been invited in had the decency to shoo the reporter and cameraman out before they could blind everyone, giving Jack enough time to properly talk to Alex.
"Where's the other one and Phantom?"
"Busy."
"Where's Danny?"
"Busy."
"Alex, they were searching in ditches, looking for his body! Where is he?"
He only shook his head, whispering that he'd talk later; it was all about the bank. Everyone was safe, just not together. The woman sighed, sounding like it hurt her to do it, and they watched together as Sam was led out by her parents, no doubt to go and get stitches for her shoulder wound at the proper hospital. Alex doubted if he would ever see her again, with the way things had been going. As she walked out, she turned and waved to him once, a sad good-bye. An hour later, and the line of cops and reporters thinned out, giving the strained household a chilling sense of peace. Everyone went off to bed, restless because there was one bed that would not be filled that night.
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Somehow, the doctor complied with Tucker's desire to stay in Danny's room. He was still very much against the whole thing, and it reflected in his refusal in providing a cot for the boy to sleep on. Grumbling, the boy curled up in a lounge chair, coughing as the dust covering it shifted at his movements. It was better than nothing, and the boy fell into a state close to sleep, or as close as one with a crushing fear of hospitals could while residing in such a place. The nurse would phase into the room at odd intervals during the boys slumber, to check on Danny and send a glare Tucker's way before leaving. He was under contract to not kill or otherwise hurt anyone, and that was the only thing that kept Tucker safe that night.
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Alex was staring out of the window to his room. He was watching the street outside, as if he were waiting for Danny and Tucker, or even Sam, to come walking down and knock on the door to Fenton Works. That was unlikely though. For all he knew, Danny was still asleep, meaning that Tucker was still at North Mercy. Judging by the way her parents acted after her return, Sam was either locked in her room at her home, or in another hospital room. He was alone, with only the cold thermos and the monster it contained as company.
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The next morning, Tucker awoke to both the doctor and the nurse caring for Danny, giving a final checkup to his injuries. The doctor smiled at him, giving the techno geek chills.
"You're friend will be waking up shortly. He will be able to leave then."
"You're going to just let us leave?"
"Of course."
"…okay."
It sounded too good to be true, but the boy didn't press any further with his questions, not wanting to push his luck.
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Alex awoke in his bed; he must have fallen into it at some point, with the thermos still in his hand. The view out the window was the same as before: blank. He really wanted to make a run for it, he had to go somewhere.
"Alex?" a voice called softly into his room. Jack was there, still in her night clothes. She nodded to the thermos in his hands. "The Fenton's told me about how those hold ghosts. Is Phantom in there?" She shut the door, crossing the room and sitting beside the boy on the unmade bed. Alex shook his head, answering her question that way.
"It's another ghost. No, I can't tell you. He needs to stay in here though."
"Dangerous?"
"Murderous."
Jack frowned sadly, wrapping her arms around Alex in a tight hug. "Not to you then?"
Alex shook his head. "No. Jack, I have to go." He tried to pull away, but she stopped him after that. She kept one hand on his shoulder.
"Can you tell me what's going on?" she asked. Alex looked down at the thermos in his hands, turning it over as he organized his thoughts.
"The ghost in here is after Phantom. Phantom has been… injured, and is resting up at the haunted hospital. I need to go there."
"That's where the others are then? Other than the girl, I mean." She asked. The boy nodded. "Mission stuff?"
"More than that,"
Jack sighed deeply, as if she were already regretting what she had yet to say. Ruffling his hair once, she stood, helping him up as well.
"I'll hang on to the thermos; it will be safe in my suitcase. You can go to the hospital. I'll cover for you, okay?"
"Thanks, Jack."
"The Fenton's are all asleep. I think I'm still wired to the time back home, or else it was all the coffee I drank. Take the bike, okay? It's still in the lab, and it should be intact. Jack put it back together last night. Good Luck."
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True to the doctor's word, Danny came around roughly an hour later. Slowly, his eyes opened, and he saw the grimy wall of the hospital room. It wasn't much to see, so he settled on closing his eyes again to drift back into sleep. At least it was nice there, nice and peaceful… As if he had been struck by lightning, the boy shot up into a sitting position, looking around the room madly. Tucker was on his feet in an instant, standing beside his best friend, trying to calm him down. He didn't expect the young halfa to throw his pale arms around his shoulders, clinging to him like a lost child. Suddenly, Danny was sobbing, speaking incoherent words into Tuckers shirt. The hysterical boy's grip was like a vice, and he refused to let go. Tucker did the only thing he could think of. Wrapping his arms around Danny, he embraced him like a brother.
"Yo, man, it's alright. You're safe." Tucker said, patting Danny's on his back. The halfa only continued crying, shaking his head to show that he believed that it was not alright, and that he wasn't safe. The boy blurted out the first string of positive remarks he could think of: "The bad guy is gone; we made it out alive, what else is there?"
Tucker didn't understand, he had been unconscious for most of the time. He wasn't awake to hear Sam as she shouted that he had been dead. He missed the raw panic, the hollow feeling, and the horrible thought: "Am I really gone?"
Who was he to say that it was alright?
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The doctor phased in once to check on Danny. He immediately noted the boy's hysterical state, and suggested sedating him. Tucker instantly refused, saying that "he might as well blindfold Danny, for all the good that would do." It would be pointless to knock the halfa out; he would only awaken later and start panicking again. What was needed was a voice, someone to talk to Danny and calm him down. For the moment though, it was clear that all he needed was a shoulder to cry on, and to have someone be there. It was enough.
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Alex had made it to the hospital twenty minutes after Danny had woken up, giving the halfa plenty of time to calm down. The spy met them in the dusty room, where Danny agreed to fly him and Tucker back down to the bike, so they could return to Fenton Works together.
"It's not too bad there, is it?" Danny asked, already transformed into his ghostly half and hovering beside the bike while Alex and Tucker climbed onto it. The spy assured him that things had calmed down back home, but there was still a bit of drama.
Tucker tapped Alex on the shoulder, cutting the other boy off before he could finish explaining things to Danny.
"Can we go?" he asked, worry clear in his tone. "I think that ghost doc is having second thoughts about letting us go so easily. Look, he's staring at us from the window!"
If that wasn't motivation enough, both of the other boys knew how odd the ghost could really be, seeing the nurse join the doctor at the window was. Alex took to the air, Danny hot on his heels as they sped off to Fenton Works. Along the way, Alex shouted over the wind, filling the others in on all that had happened. He spoke of the rough estimation of just how many cops and a reporter were there, how Sam was led away and was most likely at another hospital, and how depressing everyone was in general.
"Sam's parents were there, but I didn't see yours, Tucker."
"They're off visiting my grandma. They texted me a day or two ago; I guess I forgot to mention that. They must be freaking out now, if they saw the news or whatever."
"No kidding," Danny said over the wind. They were over his house now, so he grabbed the bike, turning it invisible and intangible so that they could get it back into the basement easily. Along the way, Alex cut the power to it, allowing them to glide through the floors silently. The halfa was standing impatiently in the lab with the others as they put the bike back where it had been found. He wasn't thrilled in the least at what he had seen upstairs: his parents in the living room, crying. Sighing, he transformed back into his human half, shivering as his bare feet hit the floor.
"Dang, I left my shoes behind at the hospital." He muttered to himself, and then turned to his friends, deciding that it was far easier to just deal with it. "Come on, let's go upstairs." It wasn't an offer; he didn't want to go up there alone. He had no idea how his family would react upon seeing him, or how he would respond. They probably thought that he was dead or something, which only half true, but was not exactly reassuring to think of. On impulse, he took a deep breath in to calm down, and shook his head, walking to the stairs. Alex and Tucker were right behind him, treading silently up the stairs after him. Upon arriving in the kitchen, Danny took another deep breath; he was terrified, worried sick at how his parents would react to seeing him like he was: only half dressed, without shoes, and with a bloody patch of gauze stuck to his back. Slowly, his hand traced the bandage, his mind wondering if he should take it off. His ghost powers had healed everything else, obviously, but this particular wound was still a little sore for some reason. He could have phased up to his bedroom to grab a shirt, but he didn't feel like it and he really wanted to see his parents again.
"I'll go first then." Alex whispered, brushing past the halfa. "I'm supposed to be upstairs sleeping or something anyway." With that, Alex walked out into the living room. Danny and Tucker could hear Mrs. Fenton suddenly stop crying and then start up again. She had heard Alex walk in, a mother's hearing, and had hoped that it was her son. Unable to bear it, Danny took the few steps to get across the room, and entered the living room. There were his parents, his mother hiding her face in his father's chest as the large man held her, his face drained of the usual smile and laugh that had previously lingered there. Alex was standing off to the side, clearly regretting his choice to be the first out. Danny nodded to him sadly before continuing on, motivated by Tucker's light shove on the shoulder to get him to move faster. Before he knew it, he was in the middle of the room. He was transfixed, staring at his parents with desperate eyes, trying to believe that he wasn't the one who had made them so sad. So focused was he, that his leg bumped the coffee table, creating enough noise to draw attention. The Fenton's gave a start, wiping their eyes furiously to check if what they saw was true.
There, right before their eyes, was their boy. He was a little worse for wear, but safe, alive.
Danny's mother cried out with relief, jumping up and running to him. Jack was right behind her, catching the lot of them in a crushing hug.
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Who was he to say that it was alright?
Danny had thought that over for the next few hours, unable to leave it. He had survived, Vlad was gone (but not dead, he thought bitterly), and everyone was safe. He and the others had been able to explain to the proper authorities that all that had happened was due to a few ghosts, which was almost the truth, and that they had been taken care of. Now he was in his room, shut away in blissful privacy if one chose to ignore the multiple visits from his sister. His parents requested that he stay in bed for at least a day after they had seen the nasty injury on his back. Clearly, his powers had not been enough to completely heal the wound, and the area was still very tender. He wondered if it would leave a scar.
He was unable to sleep a wink at first, so he just lay there, staring out his window. At some point, watching cars go past grew to tire him, and he fell into a light slumber, and then a deep sleep. Thankfully, there were no dreams, only darkness.
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Danny awoke hours later, as the sun had begun to set for the day. For some time, he just lay there, doing nothing, really. Simply staring up at the ceiling was more than enough entertainment to pass the time with, but it did cause his eyes to have the glazed appearance of one who was very stunned.
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The rest of the Fenton household had shuffled about, the majority of them still puffy eyed, and all of them silent. Finally, unable to bear the silence, Danny's parents stepped out into the backyard, no doubt seeking a private place where they could talk together. Jazz watched them step out and then, sniffling, she went out to the living room to read a book in an effort to distract herself and find some peace of mind. Jack was already out there with a book of her own, but she put it away with a tired smile upon seeing the young girl.
"Hey," she said, startling her. Jazz looked up, shrugging and almost smiling.
"Hey." Jazz whispered, collapsing into a chair. She stared down at the book in her hands blankly. "How do you-" she struggled to find the proper way to phrase her question, finding none and falling silent. The woman's eyes filled with slight pity.
"Stay calm, you mean? Sometimes, Jazz, the only thing you can do to help is to stay calm. Things will work out on their own."
Alex, who had been in another chair in the room, felt an emotional conversation coming on. Wanting none of it, he quietly excused himself, stealing away to the stairs to seek refuge on the second floor. They watched him go, slightly surprised at his sudden exit- until they realized how awkward it was for him to witness a therapy session type of talk. Jack called softly to him to say good-night, and he nodded, already walking down the hall to get to the Ops Center. He walked past Danny's room, past his sister's, and then stopped, standing still in the middle of the hall, his ears straining to hear something. Whatever it was, it was very quiet, almost unnoticeable. Curious, he walked back to the halfa's bedroom door, leaning forward to hear inside.
There it was: that soft, tapping noise. "Danny?" the young spy whispered. "Are you awake?"
The tapping noise stopped as soon as Alex invited himself into the room. Danny had been pacing his room, judging by the way he stood in mid stride, a look of surprise on his face, and the noise Alex had heard was identified.
"Oh." Was all that Danny said, bringing his foot back down. Alex sighed, taking another step in and leaning against the doorframe.
"Are you alright?" Alex asked. Danny couldn't help but glare slightly, rolling his eyes. "Standard question, I know." He paused, coughing and trying his best to not look too miffed at the other boy's current lack of communication. "I've been thinking for a while now. Just so you know; Jack and I will be taking the thermos back with us when we leave. I'll have someone hold it at the bank."
Danny looked up, his eyes wide with fear and uncertainty. He knew what this meant, but he still didn't get it.
"I don't know what they'll do about it, but I can guess that Vlad won't be getting out anytime soon."
"And this means…?" Danny asked, his voice dropping to a whisper. Alex shrugged, not wanting to get Danny's hopes up to much.
"If all goes well, you'll never hear from Vlad again, as a ghost or a human."
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A week had passed before it was time for Alex and Jack to leave. Tucker and Sam had been unable to go along and see them off due to their parents refusing, so Danny was alone with his family, waving goodbye to the spy and his guardian.
"Next time you're in London, give me a ring, alright?" Alex said, smiling and holding his hand out. Danny took the hand, shaking it.
"I'll see what I can do. Hey, are you sure about taking the thermos with you?"
"Pretty sure. Not to sound too rude or anything, but I don't think it's too safe in your home."
"I wouldn't want it there anyway."
"Right." Alex nodded, pulling his hand free to adjust the strap to a bag that was falling off his shoulder. "Well, I'll see you."
Danny grinned, and then gasped, shivering as his ghost sense went off. Alex noticed this, and both boys looked around madly, half expecting Skulker to show up with his guns blazing. Instead, they saw a man standing a ways away against a wall, watching them. He was wearing another pair of sunglasses, and a new suit, this time in gray. A bag was hanging on his shoulder, and it was the main focus of their attention after they had realized who they were seeing. Danny raised an eyebrow, about to fire off a witty comment on this observation until his sister asked him a question, diverting his attention away. Alex watched the other boy loose interest in the ghost before turning back to Yassen, nodding once, and following Danny's gesture. He missed action as the assassin calmly reached into his bag, pulling out the dented thermos, the one that had been safely in Jack's suitcase, before slipping it back into the bag.
As the saying goes, what they didn't know wouldn't hurt them.