Archive of Our Own ^beta

You ever have one of those nights where no matter how tired you are, you just can't get to sleep?

Well, for Scratch, this was one of those nights.

Grumbling to himself, he tossed and turned in his bed, trying to find a comfortable position to sleep, but to no avail. He flopped onto his back and stared at the ceiling with an aggravated sigh. He had tried just about everything in the last few hours; warm milk, counting ghost sheep, even a Thai meditation technique Grandma Nin had taught him! But as of now, it was almost 3 AM and nothing seemed to work.

Curling up under his blankets, he was ready to resign himself to a sleepless night… only for a small whimper to cut through the air, getting his attention. Sitting up in alarm, he floated out of bed and looked out the bedroom window to figure out the source. 

And what he saw just about broke his metaphorical heart. 

It was Molly, sitting up in bed with her knees close to her chest, clutching one of the largest plushies she owned as if it were a lifeline. She was also trying to muffle the small sobs wracking her frame. Flying out of the dollhouse and going to his usual size, he drifted to her and softly touched her shoulder, making her flinch in surprise as her head shot up to look at him, breathing heavily.

"Moll?" He whispered, the concern in his voice evident. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust, but once she realized who was in front of her, her entire demeanor relaxed a bit.

"Oh… sorry, Scratch," She said as she wiped her eyes, that now had a shameful look to them, which only broke his heart more. "Didn't mean to wake you up."

"You didn't, Molly," he was quick to reassure her. "I couldn't sleep. But what about you? Are you okay? You were crying." Molly ducked her head slightly, once again trying not to cry. He sighed, getting an idea of what was going on.

"You had a nightmare, didn't you?"

She gave a tiny nod.

"You wanna talk about it?"

She shook her head. 

He sighed again. He should've expected this to happen. It had only been a week since that close call with Jinx, the Ghost Council, and the Chairman. An ordeal like that would give just about anyone nightmares. It was probably the reason why he had been having trouble sleeping, himself. The image of Jinx rearing to swing that horrific scythe right down on Molly was still seared into his mind. 

But that didn't happen, he mentally had to remind himself. You were fast enough to save her. And then she saved you in return. Kid jumped headfirst into the damn Ghost World for you, and because of her, you're both home safe.

Suppressing a shudder, he put his focus back on what was important; comforting Molly. He started to rub small circles on her back as she steadied her breathing.

"I'm right here, okay?" He whispered in reassurance as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder in a side hug. "I'm here. We're both home, we're both safe."

Despite this, Molly still clung to the plushie in her arms and seemed to be a million miles away. Scratch frowned at the sight. Something told him that the usual ghost hugs weren't going to be enough for what was troubling her. He wracked his brain, trying to figure out a new tactic.

He could try to wake up Pete or Sharon for backup, but he knew Molly. She was 13 years old and wouldn't want to bother her parents just because she had a bad dream. And trying to wake Darryl was near impossible. The kid could sleep through a hurricane. 

He found himself looking at the plushie in her arms. The thing was just about the same size he was, but judging from Molly's expression, it wasn't enough to make her feel safe. 

That's usually how kids react when they're scared, he thought. They tend to go for either a stuffed animal or their parents to help scare the monsters away. Just about anything or anyone bigger than them will—That's it!

Scratch found himself smiling as an idea began to form. He rubbed Molly's shoulder to get her attention.

"Hey, Moll, would it help you forget about that nightmare if I were able to help you feel safer?" He asked. She looked at him for a moment, before nodding again.

"I think so."

"Okay, good. I have an idea, but I'm gonna need to back up a bit for a few seconds," he said, grinning as he floated backwards to the center of the room. 

Molly tilted her head in curiosity. Was he going to cast a curse? She had figured that he was just gonna offer to sleep next to her, but a curse could probably work, too. Looking around the room, she expected her surroundings to distort like they always did when he'd use his powers or go into "Scare Mode", but… it never happened. She looked back at him to ask what exactly his idea was, only for her confused expression to become one of surprise, the plushie falling out of her arms in shock as she found her gaze suddenly having to travel upwards.

Right before her eyes, Scratch was growing, and fast. He gave her a playful smirk as his whole body swelled larger and larger, his spectral tail soon touching the floor as his head continued to grow upward towards the ceiling of her attic bedroom, his smile growing wider and more reassuring the bigger he got.

"Sweet baby corn," she whispered in awe.

In mere seconds, Scratch was double, then triple, and finally up to a little over quintuple his normal size. He had to be anywhere between ten to twelve feet tall at this point!

Smiling down at her, he actually had to duck down slightly so he wouldn't hit his head against one of the ceiling's support beams. She still half-expected him to turn on the dramatics at this point, like he usually would when using his powers.

But once again, that never happened. 

Instead, he gently reached down and picked her up. Taking all the pillows and blankets off her bed, he made a makeshift nest on the floor (as he was currently far too broad for her twin-sized mattress) before settling into it, reclining against the beanbag chair like it was a pillow and resting his tail on her bed, basically making himself a ghostly hammock as he adjusted her in his arms, cradling her close while she laid on top of his stomach.

Molly found herself looking up at her best friend in wonder as she instinctively snuggled into his embrace. Usually when he was this big, his features would become sharper or slimier, what one would consider more "scary-looking". He would even change to a different color, too; like various shades of green, a darker blue, even purple or orange. But not now. He simply looked like his usual self and was the same soft blue he always was, his current size making it so his comforting glow filled most of the room, putting her at ease. 

He was still the same, just now much, much bigger. 

Readjusting herself in his arms, she spread her own across his stomach to return the hug, and was mildly surprised that she couldn't reach all the way around him like she usually could. He gave a light chuckle at this, and smiled as she nuzzled against his ectoplasm.

She didn't think it was possible, but his larger size actually made him even more squishy than normal! It felt like she was hugging the cold side of a giant pillow filled with marshmallows. She giggled to herself as she rested her cheek against him.

"Feel better?" Scratch asked in amusement. Molly paused her affectionate nuzzling and beamed up at him, her eyes sparkling in amazement. 

"I've seen you get tiny a bunch of times, but I thought you could only get big like this when you were doing a curse or scaring," she said excitedly. "You mean you could do it whenever this whole time?"

Scratch let out a laugh, which only amused Molly more as she felt the vibrations of his belly jostle her lightly as if she were on a water bed.

"You think I was gonna show off all my tricks from the get-go, McGee?" He asked with a wink. "Gotta keep surprising ya, somehow!" She giggled in response.

"Well, it was definitely a nice surprise," she said, reaching a hand up to boop his nose, which made him chuckle again. "I wouldn't mind doing stuff like this more often. You're really comfy, you know?"

Scratch playfully rolled his eyes. 

"Nice to know eating as much as I do can come in handy." 

Giggling, Molly rested her head against his belly once again, however her smile was now a fraction smaller as something was still nagging at the back of her mind.

"We were stuck in the Flow of Failed Phantoms again," she muttered, getting Scratch's attention. His brows raised in surprise once he realized what she was talking about. "My joy wasn't making it go away like before, a-and I couldn't find you anywhere! All I could hear were the other ghosts' screaming, and Jinx and the Ghost Council laughing." Her voice began to waver as he noticed tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. "I… I was all alone, again…"

Instinctively, Scratch's hold on Molly became more protective, cradling her close to him as he rubbed her back.

"Molly, please look at me?" He asked gently. Sniffling, she slowly sat up on his stomach to meet his eye level. Softly, he used his thumbs to brush away her tears before putting his hands on her shoulders. "Good. Now I want you to listen carefully. The Flow is gone. The Chairman is gone. Jinx and the Ghost Council would be shaking in their boots if they had feet! We are home, and we're safe. Do you know why?" Molly shyly looked down as he gave her a proud smile, lifting her chin with his hand so her eyes met his.

"It's 'cuz of you," he continued. "You not only singlehandedly destroyed the Flow of Failed Phantoms, but took out the most feared being in the entire Ghost World!" He then leaned forward, bumping his forehead against hers. "You're a joy-fueled little spitfire, and everyone's lives and afterlives are a million times better because you're in it, mine's especially. I'm so glad I get to call myself your best friend and a McGee."

Tears were once again streaming down Molly's face, but now it was for a completely different reason. She lunged forward and wrapped her arms around Scratch, hugging as much of him as she possibly could. She buried her face into his ectoplasm, once again nuzzling him, her breath in soft staccatos.

"I love you, Scratch," she whispered, just loud enough for him to hear. He soon felt tears in his own eyes as he returned the hug and, in a rare moment of paternal instinct, gently kissed the top of her head.

"Love you too, Moll."

It only took a few moments of them cuddling for Molly to fall back into a peaceful sleep. He smiled and secured his hold on her, his large arms ensuring that she wouldn't roll off him in her sleep while also doubling as a blanket. Soon enough, he felt in own eyelids start to droop, which made him smirk in mild amusement. Guess he was going to get some sleep tonight, after all.

By the time the first rays of daylight were starting to shine through the window blinds, the two best friends were peacefully asleep, content smiles on both their faces as they felt the safety and comfort in each other's embrace, reminding both of them that the other would be there when they woke up.