Chapter Text
"It's been a slow night, guys." Danny said into his Fenton Phones, flying over Amity Park for their nightly ghost patrolling. "What do you say we call this night good in ten minutes and head back to Sam's to start our Halloween traditions early?"
"Is there anything better than a week full of horror-filled movies that will leave you afraid of your own shadow?" Sam beamed as she walked around downtown, near Danny's statue.
"I hear that." Tucker agreed, patrolling through his sector, which was the park tonight. "Plus all the snacks and candy a man could ask for!"
"Just try not to have a repeat of last Halloween, Tucker. I kept finding popcorn for weeks in my basement after that jump scare."
"I've never seen popcorn be launched with such force and at such a wide range." Danny added.
"I've also never heard such a high-pitched scream." Sam added with mischief laced in her tone.
Tucker rolled his eyes. Even though they were separated, he could see the smug faces of his best friends clearly. "All I remember is my favorite pair of lovebirds attempting and failing at making moves towards each other during every movie that week."
His statement received silence from both Danny and Sam. He smiled, knowing that he had them and wanted to push their buttons further. "Is your silence because you're going down memory lane? Let's go down together!"
"Tucker…" Sam sneered, warningly.
"Let's start with our favorite ghost boy! I've never seen a man try to figure out the perfect time to cuddle close to someone. And that someone just happened to be our favorite goth girl! Who lied about being scared, even though she loves all things creepy, just so that she could have an excuse to grab someone's hand? And how did every night of that week end? Both of you chickening out."
"I vote we find an open plot and dump Tucker in there for an entire night." Sam said, causing Tucker's eyes to widen at her threat.
"Sounds like the perfect date to me." Danny added.
"Woah, woah, woah! You two need me! I'm the comfortable buffer, the comedic relief, the light-hearted chill guy. You guys would be bored without me." Tucker quickly sputtered before he could think about his words.
"I'm not sure if 'bored' is the word you're searching for." Danny commented, blushing slightly at his insinuation.
"Careful, Danny. We have a child on the phone." Sam added.
"I miss when you two would shy away from each other." Tucker grumbled, even though he didn't mean it. "Think we can go back to that for old time's sake?"
"Nope." Danny and Sam responded with resolution.
Tucker smiled. After years of being scared to admit their feelings, and then being scared to express their feelings, having them be open about their feelings for each other was refreshing and rewarding. There were so many times over the years when he feared he would burst and yell at them to just get over their ridiculous fears and to kiss. He's happy they figured it out themselves.
Just as Tucker turned to the left down the dirt path to make his way out of the park, he stopped, frozen in his place. "Guys…"
Danny and Sam waited for Tucker to continue, Danny stopping in midair. "What is it?" Danny whispered.
Without taking his eyes off the figure, Tucker sidestepped to hide behind a tree. "There's a ghost." He gulped quietly. "And I think it's the Headless Horseman."
Sam raised an eyebrow. "The Headless Horseman?"
"I know what I'm saying, and I know it sounds crazy, but I think it really is…" He took a tentative step, glancing out to confirm his suspicion. A few yards away stood a big black horse with a male figure sitting on top of it. The male figure wore a black cloak that appeared to be torn at the ends. The male figure also wore a baldric that sheathed a sword, with the handle also being as black as the cloak he wore. What was most alarming was the lack of a head for the male, yet he seemed to be looking for something as if he did have one. Both the horse and the man were surrounded by a gray-black haze.
"Yep. That's him." Tucker nodded as a bead of sweat dripped down his face. "I'm gonna get out of here."
Tucker backed away, keeping his eyes on the Headless Horseman. He made it a few feet before he stepped on a stick, causing a small crack that echoed in the vacant park. He bared his teeth at the sound, just as the Headless Horseman and horse perked up and moved toward the sound, finally locking in on Tucker.
"Shit…" He whispered, even though it was fruitless.
A low chuckle emitted from the horse as the Headless Horseman launched the attack by hitting his heels to the horse's belly. Tucker bolted, running between trees and bushes to get away from the Headless Horseman and his horse. He tripped over a protruding root from the ground, groaning from the sudden impact.
Tucker quickly flipped onto his back, perched on his elbows, as he saw the horse coming close to him. He gasped when he saw the sword unsheathed from its case, the Headless Horseman proudly aiming it to attack. Tucker closed his eyes shut for his doom. Just when he thought it would come, it never did. But he did hear a loud crash.
When he opened his eyes, he saw Danny floating above him with glowing green hands and the Headless Horseman, and the horse on the ground.
"Great timing, Dude!" Tucker gasped, standing up.
"Don't mention it," Danny started, looking over at Tucker. "Now to take out this…uh oh." When he turned back, the Headless Horseman and his horse were gone, as if they were never there.
"You know I didn't imagine that!" Tucker exclaimed, pointing at the spot where the Headless Horseman and his horse had been before.
"And you know I didn't just shoot an ecto blast at thin air." Danny responded dryly.
"Uh, guys…" Sam's voice sounded in their Fenton Phones. "Unless he has a twin, the Headless Horseman is here."
"He can teleport?!" Tucker breathed.
"We're coming, Sam. Just stay hidden." Danny stated as he quickly grabbed Tucker and launched towards Sam's sector.
Sam looked around her area quickly to see that she was in plain view. "Hidden behind what?" She snapped in a hushed voice. She ran over to Danny's statue to hide behind it from the Headless Horseman.
She could hear the clacks the horse would echo on the paved road. All other sound in the area was gone as they made their way closer to Danny's statue. Sam pressed her back into the statue, making herself smaller. She could hear the heavy breathing of the horse, confirming that they were right in front of Danny's statue, making her bring her hand to her mouth to muffle her breathing.
Suddenly, the breathing was gone.
Peeling herself off of Danny's statue, she poked her head out to see that the Headless Horseman wasn't there. Her relief was quickly stomped on just as she felt a hot breath sway the back of her hair. There before her was the Headless Horseman, posed with his sword ready to swing. She didn't have time to scream before a green blast came out of the air and crashed into the Headless Horsman, pushing him off his horse. The horse roared, standing on its hind legs, preparing to stomp on Sam.
Not a thought of self-preservation crossed Sam's mind as she was frozen to the ground in fear, squeezing her eyes shut and feeling a gust of wind. When she opened her eyes, she saw green orbs staring back at her.
"You okay?" Danny whispered, holding her close to him.
Sam nodded, still too shocked to talk.
Danny breathed in relief. "Cool." He then shifted his focus to the Headless Horseman, who staggered as he stood up this time. "What are you here for?" Danny demanded.
The trio watched as the Headless Horseman brought his finger up to where his neck would be, made a slicing motion, and pointed at them.
"Sorry, Buddy. We're kind of using our heads right now." Danny responded with his hero tone as Sam and Tucker called it.
The Headless Horseman then brought his finger to the top of his wrist, tapping it as if he wore a watch. He then brought his hand out to his horse and, in a blink, disappeared.
"What the hell was that?" Tucker blustered, finding his voice.
"I think he just told us we're on borrowed time." Sam answered.