Work Text:
More often than naught, Clockwork would come upstairs to check on Danny and find him slumped to the side, chest slowly raising and lowering with each soft breath. Since his initial utterance, he had remained largely silent when Clockwork would come up and find him awake, his eyes heavily-lidded with exhaustion and mouth partially open, as if on the verge of passing out again.
Clockwork knew that it would take some time for Danny to fully recover, especially since the boy had grown quickly in experience and ability. Dying had a way of reducing you down until you were at the bottom again. But Clockwork had faith that Danny would recover quicker than most ghosts that found themselves sudden in the Ghost Zone; after all, Danny was tenacious, and fought as hard as he could, no matter the circumstance.
But it still pained him to see Danny tucked like a tiny child amongst his blankets, day in and day out, until almost nearly two weeks since the...incident had occurred. He wondered if there was something, anything, that he could do to help Danny recover quicker, even as he recognized his own desire to have the youngster lively again was largely selfish. He would wait for as long as Danny needed.
Which is why he was so startled one day, 2 weeks and 3 days after the incident, to hear a concerning thump shake the tower from upstairs. Eyes narrowing, he hurriedly paused the viewscreen he was watching and floated upstairs. “Danny?” he called into his bedroom, cautiously swinging the door open.
Danny blinked owlishly up at Clockwork from his position on the floor, tangled in blankets, and covered in pillows. He rasped inaudibly at Clockwork, glowering at the realization he couldn’t speak loud enough to be heard. His hands grasped the air in front of him, a plea for Clockwork to help him out of the mess surrounding him.
Clockwork chuckled in relief at seeing Danny alert for once, even though the signs of exhaustion were still evident on his face. “You never do anything by half measures, do you Danny?” he asked, extraditing the weak ghost, settling him into his arms. Danny shook his head, yawning slightly.
Clockwork snagged a small throw from the mess, and with Danny tucked and snuggling against his chest sleepily, he went downstairs to watch the timestream once more.