The Genuine Article: Revised Edition

by Jae B

Danny's dark self returns with a vengeance. Rated T for violence.

Disclaimer: Danny Phantom is the intellectual property of Butch Hartman, owned by Viacom.

AN: Thank you for reading.

I'm the voice inside your head you refuse to hear.

I'm the face that you have to face mirroring your stare.

I'm what's left. I'm what's right. I'm the enemy.

I'm gonna have them take you down, bring you to your knees.

So who are you?

The Pretender -Foo Fighters-

A heavily muscled apparition donning a black and white hazmat suit hovered over Amity Park appreciating his latest turmoil, approximately 35 miles of mass destruction. Several destroyed buildings' windows lay shattered on the streets' cracked pavement while violent ecto-blasts uprooted a number of the local park's trees. Several miles below the city, buried under the remains of what used to be the statue of a young ghost holding the world in the palm of his hand and twenty thousand pounds of rubble lay a younger, smaller ghost, beaten down by his elder menacing self. Danny still couldn't fathom how is alter ego slid out of Clockwork's custody back through the cracks of time, but he knew he couldn't give up on his best friends Tucker and Sam, the latest victims older Danny's maniacal fury. Little did he realize his own happiness lured his evil self to pursue the ghost boy and his loyal companions.

Earlier in the day, a preoccupied Clockwork slipped out of his quarters into the ghost zone, leaving Dark Danny alone to entertain himself, but the fiery white headed evil entity's idea of entertainment consisted in cracking open the cap of his confining prison. No longer contained inside a genuine Fenton Thermos, he decided to take an overhead look at his captor's circular monitor, contemplating which timeline he should reek havoc in. Several images danced playfully on the screen, but one particularly bright scene clearly unnerved him. His younger innocent self along with old friend, Sam Manson, flew hand in hand high above the English countryside. He grew even more irritated as yet another vivid image displayed the young couple seemingly beside themselves after they'd dodged a group of Danny Phantom fanatics and set up a picnic in what looked like a predominately wooded area.

"Well, what do you know? My old pal Sam is smiling, and so am I. We can't have that now, can we? It's time to come home, Danny Boy." Dan Phantom threw a violent ecto-blast at the monitor, shattering not only it, but destroying several of Clockwork's time pieces as well. Going intangible, he flew out through the roof of Clockwork's domain to eliminate his younger ghost. "Your friend Mayor Tuck needs you. HA! HA! HA!"

Now due to his elder self's attack on Amity Park, Danny lay compacted in several thousand layers of soil, wondering what ploy he should use next to get out of this mess. Even beneath the earth's surface he could hear Tucker's horrific cries for mercy.

"NO! MAKE IT STOP! MAKE IT STOP!"

"Get away from him, you predetermined manifestation of Danny's future!" That was Sam, always the defiant one. On a number of occasions Danny stepped in, defeating whatever monster she was up against just so he could protect her. "Can't you see you're hurting him?"

"Of course I can. Why do you think I care? Now that I've finally shut that annoying geek up, it's your turn…Sam. HA! HA! HA!

"Tucker?" The boy's pleas ceased.

"Oh my gosh! Tucker? You! When Danny gets back he's gonna-"

"What makes you think he won't be me when he comes back?"

"Danny will never turn into you! He'll always be the Danny I lo-…" she hesitated for a moment. Danny breathed a sigh of relief. He couldn't let his dark self find out about that. "I mean, we know and that Danny will be back!" In the meantime, I gotta-"

"He's not coming back. As for you, Sam."

"AAAAAAH!"

"SAM! NO!"

Danny knew he had to do something. He'd since morphed back into Danny Fenton to conserve energy, but he knew he'd have to go ghost shortly due to the serious lack of oxygen within his confinement. Right now his primary concern was figuring a way out of this enclosure without exhausting all his ghost powers. If he used his ghostly wail he'd probably break free, but he needed it to stave off the enemy. His powers had strengthened considerably since he'd last fought his evil self, and the tremendous blast he'd received from Skulker and fellow ghosts while attempting to save the planet only empowered the wail. His powers weren't the only ones to have increased. Today, the wail had little to no effect on senior Danny. Younger Danny considered using his freeze power, but that might exacerbate the situation, or worse, injure several straggling civilians unable to find a secure shelter around town. He had little time to waste over a ghost power making decision so he jumped into action.

"I'm going ghost!"

Amidst two luminous pale blue rings, Danny Fenton transformed from a typical ebony haired, sky blue eyed, jeans and a T-shirt wearing teenager into a snow white headed, glowing green eyed, black hazmat suit wearing phantom a.k.a. Danny Phantom. A black letter "P" within a white letter "D" emblazoned across his chest provided an added personal touch, courtesy of Sam Manson. He wished he could view the action taking place above the surface, but listening to the high pitched screams of his best friend proved punishment enough. Duplicating his form he emerged into four Dannys, emanating a series of green florescent ecto-blasts from his hands into the air. The result ended in another colossal pile of dirt pouring over top him.

"Great! At this rate Tucker and Sam will be leveled into city pavement while I erode into the landscape," Danny commented after coughing up a mouthful of dirt. Lighting his surroundings through the glow of his white gloved hand, he stared at the black wall of solid earth before him. Then it hit him. "Duh! Intangibility powers!"

"DANNY! HELP!"

"Hold on, Sam! I'm coming!" At least he could still hear Sam. He dreaded to think of Tucker's fate.

Flying 150mph, Danny arrived at Amity Park's surface only to find Tucker huddled into fetal position babbling incoherently. His torn long sleeved yellow T-shirt exposed a variety of injuries on his chest and a missing red beret emphasized the fear in his sea green eyes. Next to his head lay a Fenton battle bazooka blown in half from Dark Danny's non-stop attacks. The other bazooka Danny knew Sam carried lay about two feet behind her, shattered into mere fragments. She also appeared haggard. Her usual sleek raven hair traveled in various directions while a tattered black skirt and shredded lavender leggings announced the other Danny wore her down.

"Hey, old man!" Young Danny materialized between the two opponents. "Haven't you learned your past always comes back to haunt you?"

"Oh, please," Elder Danny scoffed, sporting the same "DP" emblem his younger self bore across his chest.

"Danny!" Sam cried out joyously. "I told you he'd be back!"

"But for how long?" Dark Danny's sly grin emanated an eerie evil aura. "As soon as I'm through with you, Sam, I'm taking that pubescent stain out."

"Not if I can help it!" Danny caught his adversary off guard, throwing a 150mph punch from behind into the small of his opponent's back. "How about another blast from the past!"

Danny's second attempt at a full blown thrust proved useless. Dark Danny grabbed him by the collar of his suit, lifting him at eye level.

"Time to take you out."

"Take me out and we both know what happens to you!" Danny retaliated, glaring into his enemy's burning blood red eyes.

"After all this time, you still don't get it, do you?" Dark Danny sneered, unmasking his vicious fangs. "You still don't understand the concept of time. I thought when I said time, your puny little brain would have grasped I'm taking you out…of time. Think of it as payback for sucking me into your pathetic thermos only to have Clockwork imprison me, but first…I'm wasting your girlfriend. Goodbye, Sam."

"What? NO!" Before Danny could react his current arch-enemy dropped him to the ground, then emitted a deadly violet ecto-blast at Sam's head.

"Oh no you don't!" Luckily the Goth girl never forgot about her old Fenton prototype wrist ray, a small gadget that fired a green laser beam, counteracting Dark Danny's violent blast.

"Sam!" Danny raced in front of her, discharging an ecto-blast of his own. "Get out of here! He's way too dangerous for you to fight!"

"What do you think Tucker and I have been doing the last half hour?" Sam scowled, firing another laser beam from her wrist ray.

"And look what happened to Tucker!" Danny shouted as he deflected more deadly rays with his ecto shield. He knew she was furious, but he couldn't stand the thought of this monster he unintentionally created laying even one finger on Sam. He couldn't imagine his life without his significant best friend. "I'm not gonna risk your safety! Go stand over by Tucker and make sure he's okay while I take care of my unwelcome future!"

"Fine, Mr. Overprotective," she protested, but the terror swimming in Sam's violet eyes unveiled her concern. "Danny, please be careful."

"I'm doing the best I can!" he assured her, blocking another direct hit. "I'll win this fight! I promise!"

Sam smiled affectionately at her partner before racing to Tucker's aid. With tremendous effort, she finally managed to help him sit up and tended to his wounds. She couldn't help the hostile feeling burning inside her as she watched Danny fight his evil alter ego, after all it was that same alter ego who blew up his family and friends in an alternate timeline.

"Still making promises you can't keep, boy?" Dan Phantom mocked his younger annoyance, "Still acting like a child, aren't you? All that humanity slows you down, doesn't it?"

"At least I'm not fused with a lonely old man's filthy putrid ghost!" Danny shot back firing a green ecto-disk at his dark self, the latter simply capturing it in his black gloved fist, allowing it to dissolve rapidly.

"See what I mean? Your emotions manipulate your every move and since they've gotten this party rolling, it's time I heat things up." Dark Danny formed a bright blazing ball in his palm, firing it at younger Danny.

"Whoa!" Danny dodged the burning ball just in time to see it set one of the few skyscrapers still standing on fire. "When did that power happen?"

"You don't have that power. HA! HA! HA!"

"Time to cool off, hothead!" Danny threw an icy blast into Dark Danny's hair, molding its flames into a crown of frozen icicles. "Hey, that's a good look for you. It totally goes with your green skin tone."

"Ha! Ha! Good one, Danny," Tucker shouted from the sidelines. "Ow! My ribs!"

"I don't have that power, apparently," his dark self mused, relighting his white flames.

"Tucker! Don't encourage him," Sam scolded her other best friend. There was nothing worse than over inflating Danny's ego by way of flattery.

"I wasn't," Tucker protested, "but you gotta admit, that one put Danny's jerky old man on ice."

"Ugh," Sam growled. "I have a feeling these two are gonna be at it a while, which gives me an idea. Tucker, remember how Danny told us his older jerky self fused himself with Vlad Master's ghost?"

"Yeah, what about it?" Tucker listened intently, knowing Sam was brewing one of her ingenious plans.

"I'm thinking if we go back to Fenton Works, we can fetch the old Fenton Ghost Catcher and separate the two. That way Danny will have an easier fight."

"Remember what happened the last time Danny used it?" Tucker advised her, remembering the disastrous results from the previous experiment. "He split himself into slacker human Danny and overbearing, all work, no play ghost Danny. Besides, the Fenton Peeler didn't work on older jerky Danny when Jazz used it. What makes you think the ghost catcher will separate Vlad's ghost from Danny's ghost?"

"Still, it's worth a shot." Sam grabbed Tucker's arm. "Come on, Mr. Mayor, let's go!"

"Don't call me that," Tucker hated it when she didn't call him by his first name. He might have become the youngest mayor in Amity Park's history due to his technological expertise in helping save the planet, but there was no need for his best friend to call him by his title. "Hey, what about Danny? Do you think he'll be okay if we leave him here?"

"Trust me, Tucker," Sam convinced him, "he's more powerful than you remember."

"Has it been that long since I've seen you guys?" Tucker had been so busy with his political duties, he couldn't remember the last time Danny and Sam stopped by for a visit. He felt guilty he spent so little time with his two best friends now, but shook it off by eyeing her playfully, "Then again, you would know."

"Shut it," she warned, clearly against any exploitation of her personal relationships. "Besides, older jerky Danny needs our Danny to exist. If he's gonna destroy anybody, it's gonna be us, so it's better if we get out of here for a while."

"I get it! Older jerky Danny's using us to destroy our Danny's spirit."

"Bingo."

"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Despite his painful injuries, he and Sam slipped away quietly undetected by the two opposing forces. Tucker rejoiced knowing Danny's parents' house remained only a block away.

Danny himself, oblivious to his friends' departure, continued counteracting Dark Danny's fiery ecto-blasts. His resistance wearing thin, he reserved a portion of his ghost power for later use.

"This is pointless. All we're doing is making a soggy mess." Danny motioned his hand toward the city below. Amity Park looked like a spring thaw in the middle of October. Red, orange and brown fall foliage lay dripping wet with slush throughout the city limits. Several buildings had either been burned down or covered in ice. "Why don't we get this over with now? Take Clockwork's medallion, infuse it inside me, then throw me into the ghost zone."

"Do you think I'm that easily fooled? I don't have Clockwork's medallion. That would be too easy." Elder Danny grinned maliciously, "Besides, it's more fun watching you suffer. I get the most pleasure from torturing old friends, Tucker and Sam."

"You leave my friends alone!" Danny clenched his fists, ready to embrace another attack. He couldn't stand the idea of a second injurious battle between this monster and the two most important friends in his life. This is between you and me, not them! Tucker! Sam!…Tucker? Sam? Where'd they go?"

"Tucker and Sam left. I'm assuming to restock ammo." Dark Danny threw a violet ecto-blast into Danny's chest, knocking him to the ground. Deprived of his air supply, he started choking. "Seems your friends are bent on helping you. I suppose they're the key to breaking you, especially Sam."

"Touch Sam and you'll be sorry you ever did!" Infuriated, Danny launched an icy blast into his enemy's face. How dare he use Sam as a threat! "That's for torturing Tucker!"

"See what I mean?" Dark Danny sighed as he melted a layer of ice from his face. "I'm just wasting time until those two other fools return."

"They're not fools!" Danny shouted. "I-"

"You what?" Elder Danny laughed maniacally, aiming a fiery blast at his younger self's leg, but Danny went intangible before blazing flames burned him. "You think you can save your friends? How can you save them when you can't even save yourself?"

"I'm not the person I used to be," Danny stated calmly, unsure whether his older self updated his history, thinking it might work to his advantage if he hadn't. He sighed, holding his hands up into the air. "You know what? You're right. This is a total waste of time. If I can't save my friends, why should I even try."

"That's the Danny I remember," his alter ego beamed proudly. "it feels great knowing how easily I can demoralize you. I hope you enjoy watching while I afflict Tucker and Sam with excruciating pain. HA! HA! HA!"

"Whatever," Danny shrugged, disappearing behind a nearby building to carry out his own secret plan. He strained in attempt to perform the one power he'd been practicing for months now. "Man, I hope this works!"

"Danny? Are you back there?" He stepped out from behind the building to see Sam lugging a webbed fan like structure adorned with large bird feathers. Tucker, despite a slight limp in his left leg, carried what looked like several Jack O' Nine Tails. "I thought I heard you. We brought the Fenton Ghost Catcher because we thought it might be able to split the two ghosts fused within your older jerky self."

"Okay," Danny speculated, "but what if it doesn't work?"

"That's where I come in," Tucker proclaimed, "I've got everything we need to take that overgrown bully down. Jack O' Nine Tails, Fenton Fisher, Fenton Phones, more Fenton Wrist Rays, my trustworthy PDA and…in case you need backup…"

"Don't tell me," Danny peered over his shoulder expecting exactly what Tucker implied.

"Hi, Danny!" Maddie Fenton, a voluptuous red headed woman in a blue hazmat suit called out as she stood next to the Fenton Family Ghost Assault Vehicle.

"Hi, Mom."

"Call us if you need us, Son!" Jack Fenton, a hulking man in an orange hazmat suit maneuvered his way over to Danny's side, handing him two oddly designed silver and green cell phones. "One for you and one for…you know who. I'd give you one Tucker, but I've already got you on speed dial, Mr. Mayor. Push the red button in case of emergency. The green one's in case you wanna catch up with your old man. In the meantime, your mom and I will be working on another ghost fighting, yet ecto-friendly invention! Keep up the great work Danny! We're proud of you, Son!"

"Dude, did that even make sense?" Tucker asked Danny as he downloaded inventory into his PDA.

"What do you expect?" It's Mom and Dad." Danny smiled, watching his dad return to the RV.

"Danny," Sam intervened, "I need you to listen for a minute. In order for me to use the ghost catcher on older jerky Danny, I need you to wear him down and I've got the perfect plan."

"Really?" Danny eyed her knowingly. That was only one of many reasons why he liked her. She always had super cool ideas. "Let's hear it, Sam."

"That one weekend you and your dad went fishing, Jazz, your mom and I fought Spectra, Kitty and Ember in order to return all the men to Amity Park."

"Huh?" Confounded, Danny gave her a quizzical stare, wondering exactly what happened while he and his dad were away that weekend. "Go on."

"Long story," she explained. "Anyway, after Kitty blew a spellbinding kiss, Ember revved up the amps on her guitar, which instead of only vanishing Johnny 13, affected all the men residing in Amity Park. I'm thinking, if you threw out one of your ecto-blasts or another ghost power in front of your ghostly wail, it might have a similar effect. Do you think you can do it, Danny?"

"Let's find out," he suggested, humoring the notion Sam's plan might actually work. "Hey, did you just say you were using the ghost catcher? Aren't you and Tucker using the ghost catcher together?"

"Sorry, man." In his greatest attempt to remove his best friend's sour expression from Sam, Tucker lifted the leg of his khaki green cargo pants, exposing bandages wrapped around his entire calf. He knew Danny was way too overprotective when it came to that girl. "That's not the only part of my body he scorched. I'm afraid I'm gonna have to sit this one out, Danny."

"I don't know about this, Sam," Danny cautioned her. "My older self doesn't play fair, plus he's got his mind set on torturing you…or worse."

"Danny, I can do this." Her violet eyes pleaded with his own concerned glowing green pair. She hated to believe he was treating her like a damsel in distress. "I fight ghosts with you all the time."

"Yeah, but he's not just any ghost." Danny gently cupped his white gloved hands over her bare shoulders. How could he make her understand how dangerous his bad self was? "He's not like the Box Ghost, or Walker or any other ghosts we've fought before. He's twice as powerful as Vlad Masters, and with you being a regular human…I…I just don't want you getting hurt. That's all.

"Maybe I can use that humanity to our advantage," Sam, obviously annoyed, narrowed her eyes. "Did you ever think about that?"

"Dude," Tucker threw in his two cents for the sake of ending their argument, "just let her fight with you. You know she's gonna do it anyway, besides, Sam does have a point about that possible humanity advantage. If you need me, I'll be over there."

"Whose side are you on, Tucker?" Although irritated by his comment, Danny knew Tucker was right. Sam never backed down, even when facing the most feared phantom on the planet. He sighed in defeat, watching Tucker sit down on the stoop of a semi-demolished building. "All right, Sam. Let's get this over with, but when I say 'get behind me' or 'back off' I mean it. Here. If you need any help, call Mom and Dad."

"A Fenton cell phone?" Sam's eyes widened, barely believing she'd just received a cell phone from Danny's dad, of all people. "Wow! Your parents must really miss you."

"They miss you too, Sam and so do your own parents. Wait here. I left the thermos behind that building over there. I'll be right back." Once concealed safely in back of the building he'd previously stepped behind, Danny smiled at the results of his own private plan. Out on the streets, Sam swore she saw at least two or three flashes of light go off, wondering if he'd morphed back to his human self, then re-morphed into his ghostly form. Either way, she wasn't about to question his motive.

"What were you doing back there?" Sam asked a newly refreshed looking Danny. "Practicing your perfectly mastered morphing skills?"

"Let's just say I've got a plan of my own," Danny chuckled. "What do you say we go destroy my future?"

"I'd say-"

"DANNY! SAM! HELP!"

"Tucker!" the two shouted in unison looking for their abruptly absent best friend. Danny grasped Sam's hand, flying with her to find Tucker's location.

Danny hadn't flown Sam far when they spotted Tucker standing in the center of a nearby parking lot. With a specter deflector wrapped around his waist, he fired a round of blasts at his best friend's arch-enemy from a hand held Fenton ecto-gun. A pile of tangled Jack O' Nine Tails lay in a circle around him and the Fenton Fisher, a fishing rod type weapon, looked like a pile of sticks, but Danny discovered a neglected weapon in Tucker's sack of ammo. He snatched the bag, bringing it over to Sam.

"Put these on, Sam," Danny instructed. "It's time to prove yourself."

"Cool!"

"Bring a specter deflector with you," he suggested. "In the meantime, it's time to get my old man's attention."

"Be careful."

"I promise."

"Take that, you sick demented nightmare from Danny's future!" Tucker shouted, firing another round of ecto-blasts from his gun.

"Miss me, Old Man?" Danny materialized before his dark self.

"Not really," Dark Danny yawned, firing an ecto-blast at Sam, "but I've enjoyed tormenting Tucker while you and the queen of doom and gloom took a breather."

"I'm so tired of you dumping on my friends!" Danny yelled. Heaving his chest, he threw an elbow back to release a number of florescent green ecto-disks at Elder Danny.

"I so relish toying with your emotions. I suppose you're still wrapped up in determining your purpose in life. You don't know who you are, do you?" Danny glanced over at Sam who'd kept her hands hidden behind her back since she'd first appeared before his dark self.

"Now, Sam!" Sam removed her hands from behind her back, revealing a pair of ghost gauntlets, then threw a left handed slam into Dark Danny's cheek. She snapped a specter deflector around his waist and scrambled out of the way. "In case you haven't heard, I know exactly who I am."

"All right, who are you then?" Dark Danny asked, still in shock from Sam's unexpected assault.

"I'll tell you who I am. Tucker, Sam, get behind me, now!" Danny shot a couple of icy blasts into the open air, then drew in a deep breath before making his proclamation. "I'M DANNY FENTON!"

Sam's theory proved correct. Danny's ghostly wail layered Amity Park's entire district in a thick sheet of ice, leaving Elder Danny trapped inside a frozen solid block. She knew he'd probably burn himself free, but at least he couldn't set the town ablaze. Knocking him flat in the jaw should prove to her Danny she was perfectly capable of defending herself.

"In case you didn't hear that," Danny stepped in front of his frozen adversary, "I'm Danny Fenton, who also happens to be Danny Phantom, but you can call me either one. The names are interchangeable. So…who are you?"

"Let's find out," Sam demanded, throwing the ghost catcher over Dark Danny's form, "who you really are."

Two separate entities successfully emerged from the opposite end of the ghost catcher. The first, a blazing eyed, blue skinned apparition appearing to be in his mid-fifties claimed the sky, dusting off his white suit as he let the wind blow his white cape and its red trimmed interior. The white streak between the two black points in Vlad Plasmius' hair seemed menacing enough, but the younger specter proved more terrifying. Danny's ghost looked like an older version of himself, with one notable exception, a pair of solid black eyes. Both ghosts attempted to fuse back together only to crack heads against one another.

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea," Tucker told Sam in a state of panic. In spite of his fear, he aimed the Fenton thermos toward the overbearing Vlad Plasmius. "For the record, I still blame you."

"Free at last from the horrific clutches of an unstable ghost gone awry!"

"Think again, Plasmius!" Tucker shouted as he vacuumed Vlad's ghost into the thermos.

"Oh, butternuts!"

"You're right, Sam," Tucker agreed with her as he capped the thermos. "This is a lot easier fighting two jerky ghosts than one big bad Danny."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Sam cautioned him, pointing at Danny's ghost who headed straight for her.

"Time to clean up!" Tucker aimed the thermos a second time, but Danny's ghost knocked it out of his grasp, ringing his white gloved hands around Sam's neck. "Danny! Help!"

"Leave her alone!" Danny shot a green ecto-beam at his older ghost form. The elder ghost shot a violet ray back, hitting Danny in the torso.

"It's all your fault I'm like this!" the black eyed specter hissed at Sam. "You forced me into the ghost portal, giving me powers I didn't need, causing me to never live a normal life and to lose Valerie."

"Valerie?" Tucker chuckled. "Dude, how long have you been living in the dark?"

"None of it matters now I've lost my humanity," Danny's older ghost grinned wickedly at Sam. "I'm going to rip your heart out and goody two shoes over there can't help you."

"Wanna bet!" Danny called from another location, sending a cold blast from his eyes at his elder ghost's hands, freezing them over Sam's neck. "Sorry, Sam!"

"You think you're so cool," the elder ghost rasped, melting the ice, then squeezing Sam's neck. "How about a little fire!"

"Danny!" Sam screamed.

"Sam!" Danny circled his arms around his older malevolent self, barely managing to remove his paws off Sam's blistered neck. "Stay away from her!"

"I don't think so." Sam suddenly retaliated as she lifted a glowing hand into the air, knocking Danny to the ground. Her solid black eyes confirmed clearly that Malevolent Danny had overshadowed her. "Now, what else can I do to Sam to make you writhe, boy."

"GET OUT OF HER!" Enraged, Danny wasted no time in a maneuver to slip himself inside Sam's body, but the forceful blow of her left fist into his lower right jaw left him in a state of absolute shock. Not only was his plan foiled, but he couldn't believe his best friend would allow another being to force her into using physical violence, especially against him.

"I don't take orders from anybody, especially a human with inept supernatural abilities. Let's see how you like your precious best friend without the prize you value most, Danny. How about a nice lobotomy, Sam?" Sam's green florescent hand reached into the back of her head, but just as her violently shaking fingers penetrated through her thick black locks, her arm shot up as if a puppeteer controlled her from above.

"Do that again and I swear, you'll wish you never had!" a glowing green eyed Danny shouted as he materialized from behind Sam, counteracting Malevolent Danny's wicked action.

Sam not only despised Danny's evil ghost for violating her personal space, but also for accomplishing the unthinkable. He'd both physically and mentally paralyzed her, and there was nothing she could do to help Danny fight him, at least not yet.

"Man, I've heard of involuntary movement, but this is going too far!" Tucker observed from the sidelines.

"Don't you see, Sam? Danny just uses you for your intelligence. After all, what good are his ghost powers without your brain?" Sam's hollow voice taunted. Though aware of Malevolent Danny's manipulative behavior, she still felt her heart drop to her stomach. Nothing hurt worse than the idea of Danny only liking Sam because she was smart.

"Don't listen to him, Sam! You know he's lying!" Danny tried to comfort her, but she ignored his cry, instead, punching him in the gut. He'd been under the impression Sam had the ability to overcome his evil entity's control, but realized he'd misjudged his overwhelming power. Part of that ghost power actually belonged to himself, and no matter how hard he tried to shake it off, he couldn't help but feel sick to his stomach for putting Sam in this kind of danger.

"Am I lying when I say Sam only associates with you for your ghost powers? She thinks that without them, you're a loser with no direction in life. Heh heh heh!" Now Sam was furious. Danny hated being called a loser and Malevolent Danny just used her voice involuntarily to call him just that! She tried with all her might to break free of his evil self, but he kept blocking her every attempt. Darn Danny for being so persistent!

"Do…not…call…me…a loser!" Danny gritted through his teeth while holding his stomach. He knew Sam would never call him a loser, but the knife in his heart felt worse than any blow to the gut. He had to bring the real Sam back somehow. "Sam, I know you're in there! You and I both know that's a lie! Fight him!"

"Too powerful!" a struggling Sam's voice finally emerged amongst the turbulence going on inside her body. Although she hated to admit it, neither she nor Danny could defeat this vile creature alone. She cried one last request before he mentally blocked her out again. "Get…help!"

"It's too late for help," Malevolent Danny laughed maniacally through Sam's voice. "You think you can stop me from destroying your precious little friend? How about I rip the little witch's heart out!"

"NO!" Danny pulled Sam's arms away from her torn shirt just as she was about to inflict her nails into her chest. In return, he received a another kick in the torso. What would it take to get that evil jerk out of her body? Realizing Sam was right, he called on his best friend. "Tuck! Get over here!"

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" Tuck ran as fast as he could to the scene. "How can I be of assistance?"

"As radical as it sounds, I need you to restrain Sam by pulling her arms behind her. That way I might be able to get through to her and possibly overshadow her if she's strong enough to hold my evil self off."

"I'm with you man." Tucker announced confidently.

"Let's do this," Danny stood in front of Sam while Tucker pulled her arms back from the rear with all his might, not allowing her an inch of movement. However, their ploy failed miserably. Sam's next ghost powered kick sent Danny flying into the brick wall of a nearby building. Once he was out of the way, she broke free of Tucker's grasp, then turned around and threw him into the brick wall beside Danny.

"So much for that plan," Danny sighed, holding his hand to his head. "Tuck, you okay?…Tuck?"

Appalled the impact from the brick wall knocked Tucker out, Danny's face reddened with anger. Not only had he used Sam's body to inflict injury on Tuck, but he also used it to inflict injury on Sam herself. Now that Tucker was out of commission, there was only one thing left to do. Danny had to distract his evil self to get through to Sam.

"You don't want me to rip her little heart out?" Malevolent Danny sneered. "Then how about she tear your heart out!"

Sam's hand reached into Danny's chest, but he resisted by going intangible.

"Oh no you don't!" he shouted materializing once again. "You're not violating anyone's personal space!"

"Oh, really?" Malevolent Danny lifted the corner of Sam's mouth. Suddenly she wrapped both fingers around her neck squeezing it with a vice like grip. Danny almost hurled at the sound of his best friend gagging helplessly.

"STOP IT!" His eyes widened with enlightenment after he realized injury wasn't the only thing on the evil jerk's mind.

Danny knew he had to act fast. He tore Sam's hands away from her neck with his own, but he could feel the resistance as she tried to push him away. He resisted back, mirroring her pose by pressing his hands against hers and planting one foot firmly in front of himself.

"You can't stop me!" Malevolent Danny laughed as he sent a violet ecto-blast from Sam's hands into Danny's as the two bodies stood hand in hand resisting one another. The blast sent a surge throughout Danny's body causing a violent reflex that returned a green ecto-blast right back into Sam's hands through her own body. It was bad enough that same reflex knocked Valerie out after she'd delivered the same ecto-ray from her sled while the two were in space fighting Technus, but this was worse. This was Sam. He'd just involuntarily injured the most significant person in his life, and he was now livid. There wasn't an ounce of resistance left within him, and he was terrified to think there wasn't any more he could do to help her. Then it hit him. Resistance breeds contempt, so why not reel Sam in?

"Sam," Danny drew her closely into his chest, staring directly into her solid black eyes, hoping those violet hues were in there somewhere, "if you ever want to see me again, let me in."

"Let you in! Ha! Now I'm going to do what I planned all along. I'm going to tear the little witch's heart apart!" Danny continued to stare into Sam's eyes until two round violet pupils appeared through an endless black sea. Yep, they were in there. She'd been listening to him the entire time. Going invisible, he circled around behind her, slipping quietly into her body through the small of her back. If Malevolent Danny noticed he had company, he didn't seem to care.

"I don't have to take this!" Sam's confident voice emerged through it all, her body convulsing uncontrollably. A newly awakened and severely aching Tucker watched fearfully.

"Yes you do, Sam," Malevolent Danny hissed once again. "Did you know Danny holds a special little place in his heart for his beloved Valerie?"

"THAT'S IT!" Danny bellowed. He was sick and tired of hearing about Valerie. "GET OUT OF SAM NOW!"

"Never. Don't you realize, by allowing me to remain here inside her body, Sam's betraying you?" Danny knew better. He'd violated Sam in the worst possible way. "Honestly, Danny, what possible concern could she have for you, a shy, awkward teenager with nothing to offer? You know she's going to leave you, but it's not like you care an inkling for her either, right?"

"I LOVE HER!/I LOVE HIM!" The combined voices of Danny and Sam wailed hauntingly through Sam's vocal chords. The ethereal sound sent tingling chills up a surprisingly frightened Tucker's spine.

"AAAAH!" Sam stumbled a few steps back, toppling over Tucker as two apparitions flew out of her body. The angry glowing green eyed phantom struck his evil black eyed alter ego to the ground.

"Don't come near my girlfriend again!"

"Girlfriend?"

"That's right. Sam's my girlfriend," Danny affirmed, Fenton thermos in hand. "And as far as Valerie's concerned, she's a good friend, but our relationship is history. Tucker's right. For someone who's supposed to represent my future, you've been living in the past far too long. I'd say it's time you face your future!"

"Don't you see? Sam's already betrayed you by harboring me inside her body," Malevolent Danny spat as his tail swirled into the thermos while he fought to stay outside, "and she's about to do it again. She won't lift a finger once you expire. HA! HA! HA!"

"The only thing about to expire around here is you!" Danny angrily stuffed the rest of his evil entity into the thermos, then ran to inspect the damage he'd inflicted on Sam. "Sam! Are you okay?"

"I'm all right. Nothing a little first aid can't fix." She unconvincingly reassured him, obviously shaken by the altercation that had taken place inside her body. "What about you? Are you okay?"

"I…I think so," Danny whispered, then collapsed to the ground.

"Danny!" Both Tucker and Sam cried, kneeling over him.

"Is he okay?" Tucker asked Sam worriedly.

"I…I don't feel a pulse. What did he do to you, Danny?" Sam's voice quivered as tears welled up in her eyes, then she stood up and started running down the street.

"Where are you going?" Tucker called to her.

"Where Danny will know I'll never betray him!"

"Sam! Wait!" he shouted as Danny Phantom's form disappeared into oblivion. "It's only a clone!"

"Hey, guys," Danny Fenton approached Tucker several minutes later, unaware of Sam's disappearing act. "I gotta tell ya, I'm totally exhausted. Where's Sam?"

"She freaked out and took off running when she thought you were gone," Tucker answered, appearing highly distressed. "Something about not betraying you."

"Gone?"

"Gone, gone, as in no more," Tucker spelled it out for him.

"Uh, oh." A worried expression spread across Danny's face. "Maybe I should have let her in on my plan beforehand."

"You think?" Tucker asked sarcastically.

"What the-?" The cell phone Danny's dad had given him started ringing. "Jazz Fenton calling. Why would my sister be calling me? I better take this. Hello?"

"Danny! You gotta do something! Sam just jumped head first off the tallest building in Amity Park!"

"What?" Shocked, Danny couldn't imagine how his day could get any worse. This was all his fault. He'd allowed and an evil ghost to materialize all because of a stupid test!

"Hurry!"

"Told ya you should have let her in on your plans," Tucker scolded him.

"Not now, Tuck. I gotta fly!" Danny took off running, then tried to morph in mid-flight, but because his duplication consumed almost all his energy, he tumbled to the ground. He panicked. "I can't go ghost!"

"Time out!" A purple hooded specter continuously metamorphosing into three stages of life, a toddler, a grown man, and a decrepit old man, appeared out of nowhere.

"Clockwork? So this was all your doing?"

"As your guardian," Clockwork informed Danny, "it's my duty to continually test where your morals lie. It's good to know they haven't strayed from the path you've chosen."

"So, this was all a test?"

"Yes. This was all a test," Clockwork confirmed. "Thanks to your friends, I now have two monsters to baby sit."

"Uh, sorry about that."

"Now it's time for me to collect my things and leave." Clockwork retrieved the two thermoses from Danny. "Go help your friend. She needs you. Time in!"

"I'm going ghost!" Danny had a suspicious feeling Clockwork conveniently used this intervention in order for him to regain the strength of his powers. He flew as fast as he could to a local finance company's headquarters where he spotted Sam free falling half way down the building, then scooped her up in his arms. "You wanted a hero, you got one!"

"Danny?" Sam widened her eyes. "I though you were-"

"When are you going to realize I can duplicate myself into both Danny Fenton and Danny Phantom now?"

"And you never told me what you were up to?" she asked angrily.

"No, I didn't, and I should have, and I'm sorry." Danny apologized as he landed them both on the ground.

"Sam! You almost gave me a heart attack!" Tucker lectured his best friend like a mother hen. "What were you thinking?"

"Tuck," Danny interrupted, "Sam needs some time alone. How about we pick this conversation back up tomorrow at your place? Dinner, five o'clock tomorrow sound okay?"

"I gotcha." Tucker understood the implication. "I'll see you guys tomorrow. Thanks again for stopping by to help."

"Anytime, Tuck." Danny reassured his best friend he'd always be around for him. "What were you thinking, Sam?"

"I…" Sam lowered her eyes, then gazed straight into Danny's. "I thought…when I thought you were…well I thought there was only one way I could tell you I'd never betray you. You know I'd never betray you, right? There's a portal spiraling straight down from this building. I thought if I dove-"

"Sam, I'll always be here for you no matter what happens," Danny grabbed a spare shirt out of his backpack and pulled it over her torn clothing, "but whether I'm half ghost, all ghost or whatever, don't go jumping off buildings to join me just to prove to me something I already know. I know you'd never purposely betray me, ever."

"I know. I guess maybe your older jerky ghost got to me. He was using my emotions to manipulate me."

"Promise me you'll never do that again," Danny wrapped his arm around her shoulder, squeezing her tightly. "As someone who fights ghosts, I don't scare easily, but that flying stunt you pulled back there? Now that really scared me. Here, I found something to cheer you up."

"Where did you get this?" Sam asked, holding up an old plush Danny Phantom doll.

"I kinda found it in the back of your parents' demolished car," he admitted shyly. "Hey, why am I wearing a cape?"

"Remember the time you split yourself in half using the ghost catcher?"

"Oh, yeah, that."

"I guess a reporter got a hold of you wearing that bed sheet and decided to cash in on it. Believe it or not, it's a collector's item." He couldn't help, but notice she was still trembling from the ordeal. How dare his older self violate her like that.

"Listen, Sam," Danny sat her down on the only remaining bench in Amity Park, "I know everyone in the world expects me to play superhero, and I do the best I can. I always fight to win, but that doesn't mean I'm invincible. I can get hurt just as easily as you can. That's why I duplicated my form. There was no way I could have fought my bad self without a virtual punching bag. Actually, you were the punching bag. Without you, I was useless. It was you who defeated him, not me."

"Thanks," Sam swallowed his little white lie, "and I promise. Promise me you'll never let anyone else know about this?"

"I promise. Now let's go visit Mom and Dad."

Danny flew Sam back to his old bedroom at his parents' house. He knew due to his heroic save of the world, he and Sam could never reside in Amity Park again. It was too dangerous to live in a community where unsuspecting enemies lurked, but he also knew they were welcome to visit Tucker or his and Sam's parents anytime. Sam felt safest with the Fentons. After they'd landed, the two gazed into each others eyes, about to exchange a loving embrace when Jazz opened the door.

"Danny! I-oh-she's okay. I'll just leave you two to yourselves." Jazz wasn't one to invade her younger brother's privacy, so she quietly closed the door and left.

"She can tell Mom and Dad we're here," Danny laughed as he morphed back into Danny Fenton. He noticed Sam still clutching the Danny Phantom doll he'd given her. He gently pried it from Sam's grasp and tossed it onto the bed. "Hey, what do you need that thing for when you've got me, the genuine article?"

"Yeah, you're right." Sam laughed.

The couple stared knowingly into one another's eyes, then engaged in a warm, affectionate kiss.

End

Hold your head high

Don't look down

I'm by your side

I won't back down

You wanted a hero tonight

Well I'm not made of steel

I'm not made of steel

But your secret's safe with me

Made of Steel -Our Lady Peace-

AN: First and foremost, thank you for your constructive criticism.