Title: Mistake
Theme: Hindsight
Pairing: None
Rating: K+
63. Hindsight
It's the hindsight that really drives him mad. During the battle, despite the pain and the punches and the searing, tingling burns that itch for days after they're healed, he never worries much during the battle and he almost never plans beforehand. So, until he's fought and finished a battle, life seems just dandy. Well, not just dandy, but he's been at it long enough that he can deal with the stress fairly well, all things considered.
Once he's back on his own, naked or in his boxers, and running his fingers along all his wounds, soothing them with creams and bags of ice, each scratch flashes brightly in his mind as he goes through different ducks and dodges and counterblows he could have used to keep him safe, to keep his friends safe, and…well, avoid the impressively large tally of property damage lawsuits that were piling up.
The other ghosts could say what they wanted. They could mock his lack of strategy, almost inevitably attacking head on with a variety of puns. They could laugh, knowing the powers the boy possessed and how little he had tapped into, how wastefully he used the powers he knew he had. When it came to combat, though, when they were face to face and the gimmicks were gone, no one could deny that the ghost boy never made the same mistake twice.