#jackdaw-spwrite

A quiet thunk of something hollow against a rock drew Danny out of his distraction with only a small, guilty startle. The garden wasn't large enough that he'd lost sight of Clockwork, thankfully, so it was a quick, short flight that brought him back to the cloaked ghost's side.

Growing older in a way that felt pointed, especially when paired with that knowing smile, Clockwork tapped the large round paver that sat below them. It bisected two curved spaces whose complete outline looked like an hourglass with each half filled with a different set of plants.

Danny thought he recognized maybe three of the flowers he saw growing in both and even that was a generous assumption. He wasn't even sure if that thing filling with water until it tipped over before setting back into place with a thunk was even made of bamboo like the one Jazz had in miniature in her room (she claimed it was for meditation, but how something slowly tapping away could help someone concentrate was beyond Danny) - it was electric blue with silvery edges.

"You know, when you promised to take me stargazing this isn't what I imagined." Danny pointed out looking back up at the cloudless and, more importantly, starless sky before raising his brows at Clockwork expectantly. He didn't do all that studying, listening to lectures and letting himself be quizzed on the different leaders of the Infinite Realms for nothing. Clockwork bribed him with some 'out of this world' stargazing and Danny was going to hold him to it.

Though, he had to admit, the garden was pretty cool. He would need to see if he could get some pictures or something for Sam so she didn't interrogate him later for more information.

Well, she'll probably do that either way, but with pictures she might feel generous enough to let him eat and sleep occasionally while grilling him for answers.

The not-bamboo thunked again and Clockwork gave the paver another tap.

"Be sure to stay within the circle."

Because Clockwork was sometimes (frequently) allergic to explaining, that was all the warning Danny received before the colorful garden vanished into inky darkness.

Danny held still, straining his eyes to try and make out the shape of the paver below them. If this was another test instead of a reward he may just scream. A quiet scream, but a scream none the less.

Thankfully, it didn't take long for his eyes to adjust - Clockwork's faint glow along with his own even more muted shine eventually assured him that he hadn't moved. If that was a test, hopefully he passed.

Putting that aside for now Danny looked up and felt his jaw drop because the garden wasn't just in shadow.

It was gone.

In its place was a vast array of stars, the pinpricks of light almost flickering through a bright fog - clearer than any view he's ever seen on Earth. He squinted as he tried to differentiate the brighter lights from the dark, trying to pick out planets and stars that he knew, his brow furrowing as he couldn't quite manage to place any of the clusters he was seeing.

"Where are we?" How far was Clockwork able to take them? What kind of power was this? Could Danny do something like this?

Oh, no, wait. Danny didn't want a power like this because he was sure it would leave him stranded light-years from home without anyone to help him get back. Well, except for Clockwork. The minor reassurance was enough even if the fear lingered a little longer than he'd like in the face of this cosmic beauty.

"Closer to home than you might think." The ghost in question assured him, flickering into his more childlike form before pointing behind Danny. "If you turn around you may find something a bit more familiar."

Spinning in place Danny squinted even harder at the distant stars as clouds of gas and dust shifted slowly between him and them.

Except the clouds weren't moving slowly anymore. As he watched they started moving faster and faster, going from indistinct fog to thicker streams and threads then swirling into knots until an indistinct shape started to appear. Around them distant stars winked, flickered, and died while others newly sparked into being.

Light grew at the center of the undulating clouds, particles moving inwards before bursting out again and again.

"No way." All the stars around them paled in comparison to what he now suspected was happening. Danny didn't even realize he was drifting forward until a light hand landed on his shoulder.

"We are currently in two times while also being in neither." Clockwork informed him, unoffended by the way Danny couldn't look away from the star - the earth's star - his star - the Sun - as it formed. "I do not want to test which one you would find yourself in if you left."

One hand moving to cover Clockwork's, Danny couldn't find the words to tell him that leaving was the last thing he wanted to do right now. How he was glad his eyeballs couldn't dry out so he didn't have to blink, that he didn't have to worry about oxygen or radiation, that this might be the first time he was truly happy he got in that lab accident because without it he would never get a chance to see this.

Because Danny loved the stars, the light they provided, the life they could support, the hope they could bring. He loved every one of them.

And no other star ever loved him back more than this one, Danny was sure of it.

His vision blurred and he blinked away the water gathering there as he tightened his grip on those increasingly knobby fingers.

"Thank you."

That ghostly hand was cold, but the gentle squeeze Clockwork gave him in response was warm and fond.

"Worth memorizing the whole lineage of Royal Roses?"

Danny barked out a laugh at the now distant frustration he'd felt while going through fourteen generations of people who were minor players in the Ghost Zone at best.

"Absolutely." Danny tried to devote at least the same amount of attention to memorizing the play of light on the gasses and rocks around them. "Though I'm not sure how you'll ever top this as far as bribes go."

Clockwork hummed.

"There are plenty more stars to gaze upon." Something thunked, not his staff but the not-bamboo thing, reminding Danny just how accessible the stars might be when they were visible like this from Clockwork's garden. Smugly, Clockwork continued, "And when you get bored of stars, there's always planets."

Danny's scoff at the thought of being 'bored of stars' cut off as he whipped around to see if Clockwork was joking. Judging by the tilt of his head he wasn't and, yeah, alright. Turning back to stare at his favorite star once again, Danny resigned himself to being Clockwork's best student.