Post Season 5 - Mysterious and Spooky
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"Do you know what day it is?"
Danny Green stared at his estranged wife, the one he had asked for a second chance mere weeks before, his mind whirling. October 21st. Not their anniversary - that thankfully was easy to remember since it was on Christmas. Not her birthday - that was in July and Kara would never have reminded him about it anyway. Not Frankie's birthday - that was in May. Kara wasn't into trick questions so there must be something but the only event that Danny could remember being in October was...Halloween.
Crap.
The one holiday that Danny hadn't already screwed up. Well, sure, he missed Frankie's first one but so did Kara, both of them so busy dealing with the fallout from Allison Shaw's path of destruction and death that the day came and went without either of them noticing. But the kid was only six months and it wasn't like there was trick or treating going on anyway given the state of the country. Once they had realized that the date passed unobserved, Kara dressed Frankie up like a spider sometime in November, they snapped some pictures, and swore never to admit that they totally missed their kid's first major holiday.
Danny took in the strain on Kara's face, wishing that they weren't at Command, where anyone could walk in on them clearly in the middle of a domestic squabble. He could tell without asking that Kara was fighting the urge to tap her toe, annoyed at him for, as she would say, turning her into the bad guy. He swallowed a sigh. There were times when all he wanted was to re-join the team, to keep doing what he knew that he was good at. No working on himself. No rebuilding trust. No finding appropriate outlets for his emotions. No seeing the cautious eyes of his wife and hopeful eyes of his son and wondering whether he would ever stop feeling like an outsider.
The thought, as usual, was immediately followed by guilt. Carlton never had the chance to get married or to be a father. Neither did Cruz or Cossetti or Benz or Smith. Berchem might have screwed up his life prior to Gitmo but, who knows what would have happened if he hadn't died in that channel. Perhaps he, like Tex, would have gotten that second chance to make things right. Danny knew how lucky he was to be alive, to still have a future with Kara and Frankie. And if he needed to suck it up a little to make things right, then that was what he would do.
"Danny?" Kara asked again.
"Halloween." He blurted out, then paused before asking. "Has Frankie picked a costume?"
When Frankie was eighteen months, Danny made a big deal about finding the perfect costume. And they had. Frankie went as a mini-President Howard Oliver, complete with a Secret Service team and support dog, Halsey playing his part to perfection. When Frankie was two, Danny convinced the guys to dress up in blow-up dinosaur costumes. At three, Frankie chose superheroes and was so adorable as Spiderman that even Sasha and Azima got in on the act, playing Wonder Woman and Elektra, respectively. Last year was Danny's favorite by far, when they went as the Ghostbusters. Picturing Wolf as the Marshmallow Man still made him laugh.
Kara reached out, her hand brushing his arm. "Frankie said that he wanted to pick a costume out with you. I suggested dressing up as a Navy SEAL but apparently that's lame."
"That is pretty lame," Danny replied, leaning forward, until their faces were only inches apart. "But I promise to come up with something much, much better."
Kara's lips twitched and, for just a moment, it was like the old days again. Lord, he had missed her. The rush of emotion caught Danny off guard, but he quickly covered. "Lunch?"
"I can't." Kara sounded disappointed which, ironically, buoyed Danny's mood. At least she wanted to spend time with him, even if actually eating lunch together these days required more coordination that a quickie used to back in the Arctic. "Noon meeting with the Admirals. Still trying to sort everything out. Kelsie did a hell of a job on pretty much every one of our systems."
Danny nodded, thinking quickly. A meeting with the Admirals meant that Kara would most likely be here late. "Why don't I pick up Frankie from daycare and we can talk Halloween?"
"You sure?" Kara asked, the tiniest bit of hesitation in her voice. Danny decided to ignore it.
"Yup. Perfect time to plan." He waggled his eyebrows. "This way we can surprise you too."
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An hour later, Danny sat with Sasha, Wolf, Azima, Rick and Courtney, having summoned everyone under the guise of an emergency. Courtney, the only one who hadn't been through this drill before and who apparently thought Danny's "emergency" text meant that there was actually an emergency, was still looking at him rather crossly as she sipped the sweet tea and nibbled on a pastry that Danny purchased as a peace offering.
"Wizard of Oz?" Azima suggested. "Green would make a fantastic cowardly lion, especially if he doesn't shave until then."
"No, no," Danny couldn't take offense at the razzing. "We suggested that last year and Frankie got all upset about Halsey not being there to play Toto."
A round of solemn nods. Everyone missed that dog. Sasha spoke next. "Cops and robbers?"
"Boring," Azima retorted. "What about the people from that show called The Simpsons?"
"Yellow isn't really my color, doll," Wolf drawled. "Alice in Wonderland?"
Danny snorted. "Kara barred the movie from the house after Frankie asked what the caterpillar was smoking."
"Harry Potter?" Courtney asked, getting into the group spirit.
"That might work," Danny replied, although it didn't feel quite right. Then it hit him. "Wait! I've totally got it. What do you think about..."
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Ten days later, Kara stood next to Danny in the living room, pretending not to hear the bumping and giggling going on upstairs. She glanced at her husband, taking in the white t-shirt and khakis. "You aren't dressing up this year?"
"Hmmm." Danny blinked, apparently distracted. "Oh, I can just throw mine on last minute."
Kara raised an eyebrow. She had to admit that the last ten days had been...nice. Like the old days, with Danny turning Halloween from a run-of-the-mill candy grab into something spectacular and special. She hadn't meant this as a test but, somehow, that's what it turned into. An opportunity to see whether Danny was going to disappoint Frankie - disappoint Kara - again. But he hadn't, and today Kara had realized something important. Danny might have been the one to leave, but she was the one stopping him from coming home. Danny had met her in the middle, not just asking to come back but also going to the counseling sessions that she requested and not missing a single planned activity with Frankie.
Now it was her turn to give a little.
She took a deep breath. "I was thinking that tonight you should come back here after trick or treating. We can watch Goonies or Hocus Pocus or something. Gorge on all that candy. I think I even have a few beers hanging around."
Danny's eyes snapped to her, instantly focused. "You sure?"
Kara didn't plan to back down now. After all, a few beers hanging around was totally code for buying a six-pack from Danny's favorite microbrewery at the grocery store yesterday and hiding it from Debbie, and they both knew it. "It would mean a lot to Frankie. Sticking with tradition."
"And you?"
The question hung for the briefest of moments. "It would mean a lot to me, too."
"Kara..."
But whatever Danny planned to say was interrupted when a four-foot tall Gomez Addams descended the stairs, twisting his mustache in one hand, a blood red rose in the other. He was accompanied by a totally-in-character Morticia, Azima having fully embraced the spirit of Halloween. Next was Wednesday Addams, a look that Sasha pulled off surprisingly well between her black dress, black tights, black shoes and black rimmed glasses. Beside her was Pugsley, Wolf's mop of hair and striped shirt making him look a bit like Where's Waldo. Lurch followed, Rick's limp added an air of authenticity. And last was Courtney, rounding out the crew as an adorable Grandma.
Frankie - or Gomez - gave Kara an exaggerated bow. Reaching for her hand, and presenting her with the rose he held. "I'm blinded by such beauty."
"Why thank you, Mr. Addams," Kara replied, and the entire group began singing.
The Addams Family, snap, snap.
"Daddy!" Frankie whined as he caught sight of his father. "You aren't in costume."
"Give me a sec." Danny winked at Kara before pulling what looked like a huge ball of fur out of his duffle.
Kara could only stare as Danny hauled the thing over his head until he was covered from head to toe, at which point Wolf passed him a bowler hat. Frankie grinned. "Isn't Daddy the perfect Cousin It, Mommy?"
Biting her lip to keep from laughing, Kara took her son's hand. "Absolutely perfect."