What is this?! An update that didn't take three weeks to get done?! Impossible! But in all seriousness here is the awaited chapter where a certain someone's secret is finally revealed and I was eager to get it out sooner rather than later. Also, Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!
Episode: Onion Trade
Something was off, that was what I came to realize as I sat in my living room trying in vain to turn my attention to the book I was reading. Yet no matter how interesting the process of the creation of gem colonies was I just couldn't shake the feeling that something about today was going to be a gamechanger. Whether it was just a hunch, me being paranoid, or intuition from my time in Amity battling ghosts, I somehow knew that today would hold significant impact of my immediate future.
Yet rather than dwell on what I had now dubbed Ghost Intuition, I decided I would do something productive such as take Cujo on a walk. Which was easier said than done as for some reason I couldn't seem to find him anywhere, he wasn't anywhere in the bakery, lab, or living space and to put it simply I was a little worried.
It's not as though I was worried he would get hurt, more of the fact that he might cause trouble for someone else and I was hesitant to risk another Valerie repeat. With that thought in mind I set out from my bakery, locking the place up before I left as I set out to find my wayward dog. Of course there was always the possibility that Cujo had gone back to the ghost zone since he did have access to my portal but that was highly unlikely. Due to Cujo's tendency of breaking out of that place whenever he was through in as well as his tendency to always come to me when he did break out.
Coming out of my musings I found myself en route to the car wash Steven told me his dad worked at. Shrugging I decided I could take a quick detour to introduce myself properly as I had only managed to say a small hello to the man when I first came here and other than that we hadn't interacted that much. Making up my mind I crossed the street towards the establishment as I walked into the area where the car would go through to get washed.
Only to end up doing a backflip as a stream of water came right towards me and despite knowing that water couldn't hurt me my reflexes still kicked in due to years of fighting.
"Who's there?" a voice called out, a voice I assumed belonged to Steven's father as the water stopped and I could now see him.
"It's Danny, sir," I spoke, choosing to go for the polite route as I smoothed down my hair, making sure it didn't fly up due to the backflip, "we met a few days ago?"
"Oh right you're Steven's new friend," Greg spoke as he rubbed the back of his neck, "look, I'm sorry about the water I thought you were Steven."
"No harm done, it was just water," I responded without hesitation, "I just came over to say hi again since I didn't really introduce myself last time."
"Well that's nice of you,and you have really good reflexes apparently, where'd you learn to do that?" Greg questioned me as he noticed I wasn't sopping wet.
"I took some self-defense classes as a kid and they taught me how to react quickly," I answered semi-honestly, giving a small smile.
"That's always a good skill to have," Greg remarked, "especially since Steven told me you come from Amity Park."
"Did he?" I questioned, "huh, what else did Steven happen to tell you about me?"
"Nothing much besides how you've seen Phantom and also that you run the new bakery. I haven't had a chance to go there but Steven brought me a slice of the cake you made and it was great," Greg answered me.
"Thank you sir, I'm glad that you liked it," I told him.
"No problem, and you don't have to call me sir. Just call me Greg," he told me as he held out his hand.
"Alright, Greg then," I spoke firmly as I shook his hand. And naturally Steven chose this exact moment to show up as I noticed him out of the corner of my eye. "Hey Steven," I spoke in greeting before I noticed the sad look he wore on his face, "hey what's wrong?"
"Well," Steven began to speak before I suddenly had him in my arms and against the car wash's wall, a stream of water hitting the place Steven had been standing a moment earlier. My reflexes combined with my instincts having kicked in as I had pulled Steven away from what would've been, at best, a minor inconvenience to him.
"Danny? How'd you do that?" Steven questioned me as I placed him down, the stars that seemed to appear every time he was excited evident in his eyes.
"I just have really good reflexes I guess," I spoke offhandedly.
"Yeah, too good," Greg muttered as he put his hose away, "what's the point of having a hose if I can't use it on anybody?"
"So why are you sad again?" I questioned Steven as I ignored Greg question, assuming it to be rhetorical."
"I lost Ranger Guy!" Steven blurted out, his dad and I both gaining questioning faces as we both had no idea what he was talking about, "you see last summer Dad and I had this awesome beach at the boardwalk and at the end of the day he got me this guy figurine."
"Ranger Guy," I filled in.
"Yeah, but now I can't find him and I've looked all over," Steven spoke as his dad moved to his van where he began searching for something.
"Oh that reminds me," I spoke as I recalled my reason for leaving the bakery, "Steven have you seen Cujo at all today? I can't seem to find him anywhere."
"Actually I did, Pearl let a bird out of my room this morning and Cujo came out of nowhere and started chasing it down the beach. Maybe he's still there?" Steven supplied.
"It's worth a shot, thanks Steven and I'll keep an eye out for your Ranger Guy," I spoke as I started walking towards the beach before yelling back, "bye Steven, bye Greg!"
"Bye Danny!" Steven yelled bag as I saw his dad hand him a bag before I resumed walking towards the beach. Once again on a mission to find my dog before something bad happened as I still hadn't managed to shake my feeling about the day.
Walking down the beach I managed to find paw prints in the sad which looked small enough to belong to Cujo and as such I found myself following them as they lead me down the strip of the beach. Curling around a rock before continuing even farther before I realized that the prints were leading me in circles and that I wasn't getting any closer to finding my dog.
"Cujo!" I yelled out in what I considered a pitiful attempt to get my dog to come out on his own so I wouldn't have to travel all around beach city looking for him, "come on where are you?" Letting out a sigh as I absentmindedly kicked up some sand, letting out a short whistle just in case that would work. Only to let out an even bigger sigh when nothing happened. 'He'll come back eventually,' I thought to myself as I began the walk back to my bakery, slightly hoping he'd be there when I got back and that my bad feeling would go away as well.
Yet only one of those came through as when I walked through my bakery door and was immediately assaulted by a slobbering tongue as the cause of my wandering around town was in the bakery.
"Cujo!" I cried out happily as I picked the dog up, "there you are! I've been looking everywhere for you."
It was then that I happened to notice the addition to Cujo's collar as a piece of paper had been shoved into in, barely staying as I noticed it was about to fall out. Pulling the paper out I unfurled it to reveal a note that looked to be hastily scribbled and was barely readable. Barely being the key word as I just managed to make the words out as it said, 'Dear Danny, sorry about kinda kidnapping you're dog. I came into the bakery to say high but as you were still asleep I didn't want to wake you, however you're dog woke up and wouldn't stop following me around. I only managed to lose him once due to a bird distraction and just now managed to get him back to your home. Sorry for the trouble, -Johnny 13."
"Well that explains a lot," I muttered as I placed Cujo down and gave him a small scratch behind the ear as I placed the note on the counter, "now if only I could-"
Unfortunately my sentence was interrupted as I heard a large crashing sound coming from outside. "Cujo stay here, "I spoke as I stepped out of my bakery, only to end up ducking to the floor as a car sailed over my head, "what is with today and making me use my reflexes? Seriously what is going on!"
"Danny," I heard Steven suddenly call as I turned my head to see said boy stuck up to his waist in what looked like figurine capsules.
Steven!" I spoke as I saw the boy start to sink into the pile of toys he lay on, "hang on!"
Quickly I began to climb my way to him but before I even got close he sank even further, only his head and one arm showing. And to make matters worse I noticed another car flying right at him.
"Steven!" I yelled again and without even thinking I yelled, "I'm going ghost!" My signature blue rings bathing me in their glow as I switched into my ghost form, having no time as I took to the sky, blasting the car with an ecto blast before it could land on Steven.
"Danny?" Steven questioned before he yelled out, "you're Phantom?! But how is that-"
"Yes I'm Phantom and I know I have a lot of explaining to do but could we maybe do it after we get you out of this wreckage?" I questioned as I turned Steven intangible and pulled him free.
"Right, I need to get to Onion," he told me and with a nod I set off, flying straight towards our target as I turned intangible whenever a car got too close for comfort. Reaching Onion in record time as I brought Steven right up to the boy.
"Onion!" Steven yelled as he jumped out of my arms and tackled Onion off of his mound of figurines. The two of them rolling down in before they came to a stop at the bottom. "Onion please stop," I heard Steven say as I flew down to the two of them, seeing Steven with his hand firmly around what I assumed was the cause of all of this. "Let's trade back. Take Ranger Guy he's the best he even has a miscolored," Steven quickly explained before he let out a large gasp and began yelling, "this is my Ranger Guy! You traded me my own guy! Our trade didn't count." And with that Steven threw the device on the ground where it simply clanged against the figurines. "That didn't work," Steven remarked.
"No but this might," I spoke as I aimed an ectoblast right as Pearl surfaced from the figures, my blast going right in front of her face as it made contact with the device. Effectively destroying it despite Pearl's indignant cry at the action as all of the figurines and cars began to poof away. Leaving no proof of what had just happened as I let out a sigh of relief now that it was over, yet anxious as now Steven knew my secret and I knew it was now time to tell him and the gems the truth. "Steven," I spoke quickly, "when you've finished here come to the bakery and I'll explain everything okay? Bring the gems with you."
"Right," Steven spoke as he walked over to Onion and I flew home, transforming back when I reached my living room as I waited.
Resigning myself as I kept thinking that no matter what the gems now would think of me I had a mission. One I would fulfill no matter what it took, and with that in mind I waited until the bell to the bakery chimed.
That seems like an ample cliff hanger does it not? Really fitting considering the next chapter will be a wrap up to this as well as cover an episode. FIngers crossed I finish the next chapter before the new year! Anyways on to the reviews!
Remzal Von Enili: No problem, and it wasn't that stressful. Belief it or not writing is one of the ways I destress, and Merry Christmas!
Kimera20: Thank you, and yeah good thing
Gamelover41592: Thank you so much!
OfLifeAndDeathAndAllBetween: Glad you liked it!
Drift219: I'm glad! And I plan on staying!
Twylasgames: Honestly I was just trying to think of a cool medieval name but if you want to view it as a Code Loyoko reference go for it.