Gymnastics

I apologize so much for the long wait for this newest chapter. I really have no excuse and in the end I'm still iffy about it.

This chapter is un-beta'd so it might seem rushed, especially Vlad's development...

It had been a while before Danny could truly take up Vlad on his generous offer of a safe place to train. In fact for the past week he had only been able to come once on Tuesday evening before Sam and Tucker called him frantically that Technus was attacking Tucker's favorite electronics store and he had to cut his session short. After that it was all downhill with Dash's latest fascination in bruising Danny every color of the rainbow, The Box Ghost constantly popping up like a bad rash, and getting his ass kicked by his own parent's new invention.

For all his troubles he ended up with second degree electric burns, more bruises than he could keep up with, a migraine the size of Lake Eerie, and a broken ankle. So he supposed he could forgive himself for missing out on his yoga lessons, but he felt bad that he hyped Vlad up so much about them bonding or whatever and then ditched him. Danny felt it was like The Rockies all over again even if that was a rather different situation.

On Saturday night he hefted himself out of bed, his ankle still a bit tender and bruised but he could ignore it. He reached under his desk and pulled out a black gym bag that he painted his DP logo on the side and attached a white, black, and toxic green sugar skull charm Paulina had given Phantom last Dia de los Muertos to the zipper pull.

Slinging the bag over his shoulder, he transformed and sped off to Vlad's manor.

He landed in the greenhouse, hearing a happy bell noise and turning to see Vlad's cat Maddie bouncing up to him. "Hey there ya fuzzball." He said affectionately, leaning down and scratching the poofy ginger cat under her chin, making her purr happily. "So where's daddy Vladdy?" He asked her and she mewled, scuttling off to the bathroom and scratching at the door.

Danny followed her through the bathroom and went to the opposite door to the gymnasium, hearing the familiar sound of feet hitting plastic covered mats like when the P.E. Teacher decided there were going to practice tumbling and gymnastics. Usually that sound meant he was going to be rolled up in a mat and pushed down a flight of bleachers.

He swallowed and pushed open the door, Maddie announcing his arrival as she yowled and jingled merrily inside. Danny peered inside, standing sheepishly by the door. The floors were covered in mats, but he was rather curious seeing everything one could want to be a gymnast. Parallel bars, even bars, still rings, a balance beam, vault horse, and even an in ground trampoline

That smacking on vinyl sound had him turn and look, Vlad was at the other end of the gym with a calm but determined look as he ran along the mats towards a balance beam. "HUP!" He grunted as both his hands slapped against the wooden beam, launching him up on it where he stood perfectly balanced, going into a flip and bounce off at the other end.

Danny grinned and clapped his hands when Vlad stood up, back on the mats and covered in a slight sheen of sweat. Today Vlad was in a white tank top and dark red gym shorts with matching sneakers. It was starting to get weird seeing him in stuff other than his suit but Danny knew you wouldn't get far trying to do back flips wearing Armani.

Vlad looked over at Danny and rolled his eyes, "So the little badger finally decides to show up." He picked up a towel and wiped at his skin, taking a big gulp from his water bottle as well.

Danny blushed and scratched the back of one leg with his other foot. He didn't know why he felt sheepish. To be honest he should be pissed that Vlad was pissed at him! He didn't mean to miss his sessions!

Danny scowled and bunched up slightly, "Oh? Should I leave then? My ankle is still sprained after all. I don't think I could do all the fancy flips and spins you can."

Vlad raised an eyebrow and put a hand on one hip, decidedly unimpressed with Danny's witty retort. "You have speed healing do you not? Or are you slacking in that department like everything else in your life?"

Danny's shoulders sagged and the fight drained out of him as quickly as it came. He gingerly hopped up on a pyramid shaped vault horse, favoring his ankle. "I got hit with one of mom's inventions earlier the week. It completely zapped my healing abilities!" He explained before looking at his wrapped injuries, "I never really realized how much I depended on them until now."

Vlad frowned, taking a real good look at Danny with sharp eyes honed by years of learning body language with cutthroat businessmen and con artists. The boy's ankle showed him that Danny got injured enough to know how to wrap it up as well as any medical professional. Then there was the mottled bruises going up his arms and the edge of one peeking under his t-shirt collar. He wondered how on Earth his parents could be so blind as to not see them. Jack of course was a given, but Maddie... He voiced these thoughts to the teen and gauged his reaction.

Danny tensed a bit, "If I don't make it obvious they don't notice and I prefer it that way." His blue eyes bore into Vlad's, green starting to creep into the irises from the pupils, "At least that way I don't have to lie and they aren't any closer to figuring me out."

The elder merely snorted and shook his head. He knew the importance of keeping lies straight and secrets hidden. His indigo eyes went back to Danny and he put on a stern face, "The next time you're injured and I'm not the one giving you them for meddling in my affairs... Come to me. Whether I'm in at the office or here."

Danny couldn't help but feign a girly gasp and put a hand to his chest, "Oh my Vlad! One would think you cared! I should totally text this to Sam and Tu- Ah you son of a bitch!" He yelped when Vlad punched him roughly in the upper arm where bruises were already present, making them burst into pain once more. He rubbed his arm and scowled at the man, "Punching an already injured child! I should call Protective Services on you!"

"I'm the villain. It's what I do. Unlike in those silly cartoons I will not hold back just because your not an adult." He gave Danny a wicked grin, his eyes glinting red, "Now... let's get you down to the medical bay and look at what you've gotten yourself into."

"Really it's okay. My healing powers will come back." Danny insisted but Vlad would have none of it. He took it upon himself to lift the teen over his shoulder like a bag of flour. "Oh god you're all sweaty and gross!" He whined, earning himself a smack to the back of his calf, "And quit hitting me dammit!"

Maddie followed them as they made their way to Vlad's lab and into his personal medical bay, her bright eyes mocking Danny as she watched him sulk atop Vlad's shoulder. Danny stuck his tongue out at the fuzzball in retaliation naturally.

She jumped onto a counter and started licking her paws as Vlad plopped Danny down onto an examining table and got out some funky looking instruments that made him wary.

"Uh... This looks like a science fair project going horribly wrong." He said, wondering if it was a mistake coming today at all.

"Oh do stop complaining or I swear I'll use more painful ways to fix you up."

"Shutting up now." Danny clamped his lips shut at the threat and at Vlad's mean glare. The pseudo doctor's office making him twice as uncomfortable as hanging out at his arch nemesis' lair usually does.

"Take off your shirt. I have a bruise cream here that will heal them." Vlad ordered, screwing off the lid of a glass jar full of glowing yellow cream that smelled funny.

Danny did as told and Vlad twitched at the markings all up and down the teen's arms and collar. It was like whoever attacked him was trying to break his collarbone and ribs permanently. His eyes flashed red and he looked at Danny, expecting an answer, but the boy looked away, scratching Maddie around the neck and under her chin.

He shook his head and started rubbing in the salve, pondering and plotting. Of course this meant upping security cameras in Danny's usual points of interest if Danny wasn't going to tell him who his attacker was. It also meant paying a visit to Technus with a firm... talking to afterwords.

Vlad paused in his ministrations and frowned. When did he get so protective of his little badger? Was it because Danny extended the olive branch? He wasn't overly fond of putting himself in positions where his heart would be crushed... again.

Though on the other hand... They haven't fought in quite a long time. Danny had more than enough enemies to meddle with his life and Vlad had found himself far too busy with politics and business to bother annoying the brat. And while he absolutely loved being the foil to Danny's heroic nonsense, contradictory he also wished to be there for him.

He shook his head and frowned, only been a week and already he's acting like a nanny.

Once the bruise cream was finished, he picked up a device and slapped it onto Danny's chest over his core. "Ow! Gentle!" Danny hissed, rubbing around the device before suddenly feeling like his heart was being sucked out by a vacuum, "What the fuck did you put on me?!" He cried out, trying to pry it off until Vlad grabbed his wrists.

"It's measuring the damage to your core! Ripping it off will end up damaging it further you stupid child!"

"Well you could have told me that before, ass!"

"Daniel if you keep swearing I will wash your mouth out with soap."

"More child abuse!" Daniel shouted when the machine beeped and he looked down in surprise, "Oh it's done?"

Vlad blandly stared and rolled his eyes up to the ceiling as if asking the heavens for deliverance. He looked at the machine and ripped it off like a band-aid, ignoring Danny's complaints once more.

"Your mother's machine really did a number on your core, but it's already healing and should be fine within a few days." He dropped it back onto the counter, already having sent the information to his computer for future needs, "It's just depleted is all." He wandered to a cupboard and tapped his nails against the counter beneath before spotting what he needed.

A bottle of pills were slapped into Danny's hand, each plain white but with a slight green glow. "These are painkillers and core strengtheners. They should take over where your core is lacking right now. One a day until you run out." Vlad explained, "Now get dressed in some work out clothes. Your ankle and such have already faded."

Danny blinked and tested out his ankle, actually surprised that it was all healed now. He nodded dumbly and grabbed his work out bag, changing into the tank top from his yoga classes and his school gym shorts.

"You know... some days I wonder why I'm around more mad scientists than a B movie horror queen. You, mom, dad, Technus, Axiom Labs, the Guys in White..." Danny scratched his head as he followed Vlad.

"Who knows. Perhaps this means you're just destined to become one." Vlad smirked, "Make the next Frankenstein's Monster and all that."

The teen snorted, "Not with my grades Vlad."

"We'll have to see about changing that then." He chuckled and put a hand on Danny's shoulder, nudging him inside the gym.