Chapter Text
On the anniversary of one's birth, one is expected to enjoy themself, spend time with their family, or at the very least indulge themself in something. For Danny Fenton, however, it is one of two days per year that he allows himself to be miserable.
Now if only he could be miserable in peace.
The source of his irritation, a wizard(?) with purple earfins who carries an aura of death around him, gives him another pointy-toothed grin that was probably supposed to be charming, and tries again.
“Awwww come on, just one night.”
“I will seriously pay you actual money to go away.” Danny says flatly.
“Wwhy don't you loosen up and havve some fun? You look like you could afford to relax a bit.” He wiggles his earfins, and Danny grits his teeth to keep himself from causing a scene. It's not worth it, he's just some-
The bell on the door jangles, and Danny looks up. On the other side of the bar, a man wearing a lab coat stumbles through the door. He blinks and looks around, confused and a little shocked at the wide variety of aliens, demons and cryptids in the room, meets Danny's eyes for a moment, and is immediately set upon by the bounty hunters camped out at the table by the door.
Danny cringes a little in sympathy, the poor guy must be new. No seasoned worldwalker comes into a hub dimension like this one without weapons, armor, and usually a mask of some sort as well. The chances you'll run into someone who wants you dead are far too high to take such risks. He can already hear the man pleading with them, trying to talk his way out, and fuck, he wants to help. His ghostly instincts are prickling, begging him to help, to protect, but he shoves them down. Can't get attached, not when the people he likes all end up dead or gone.
“Shut up! If Cipher didn't want you alive, you'd already be dead!”
At the name, Danny can feel his eye twitch. Well, so much for not getting involved.
He stands, downs the rest of his drink, grabs fish-wizard's giant fruity concoction, and with the ease of long practice, hurls it across the room.
Even as a human, his aim is flawless. The glass sails twenty feet and nails the taller of the two creeps in the back, spilling down his clothes and soaking him from shoulder to thigh.
He whirls and shouts, “Who threw that?”
Danny points at the drink's original owner.
“He did!”
Danny spares a second's thought on halfhearted pity for the wizard, and darts across the bar to rescue the newbie.
He's still watching the hunters with a shocked, terrified expression when Danny grabs his wrist and murmurs “Best leave while we're ahead, it won't take them long to realize they've been had.”
Lab Coat Guy wrenches his gaze away from the scene in front of him, gives Danny's scarf and goggles a desperate, searching look, and nods.
Danny grins and leads him out the door.