I never just settled on the "flying away dramatically" ending Butch gave us in D-Stabilized, alright.

Enjoy :)

-Cheshire

Danielle had been on the streets long enough to differentiate between people who needed help and the people who sat on the side of the street waving a cardboard sign with a sad-sob story in exchange for a couple free bucks.

But munching on her Happy Meal and reveling in the literal cancer she was putting into her body, Danielle had spotted one of the latter feebly holding a "homeless, orphanage shut down" sign in a ragged white jacket and a dirty scarf. A thin jacket, yes, but it was too ripped for her to really make a call on it. He probably went to Wal-Mart and picked out the most pathetic-looking one.

She dully watched at him from her rooftop perch before the con artist sighed and quickly crossed the freeway, not bothering to check if there were cars. Danielle snickered as he nearly tripped on the sidewalk. Serves the guy right as he could be giving money to the real poor people.

To her dismay, he caught himself.

Wait a second.

His eyes just flared a bright green.

Danielle had been on the streets long enough to differentiate that human eyes didn't strobe light when a curb got in their way.

She pursed her lips, wrapping up her half-eaten nuggets and stowing them away in her jacket before swinging to the fire escape latter and sliding down to the back of the strip mall. Danielle peered out of her spot behind the brick wall, flashing to Phantom and creeping out invisibly. Her ghost sense hadn't gone off...this was strange. Then again, sometimes her sense didn't go off until she was in range.

But he was practically in front of her.

And he stared her invisible self down like she had just tapped his shoulder.

A chill ripped down Danielle's spine as icy cobalt eyes stared down at her. She felt...rooted in place.

She - she couldn't move.

I-it was so cold-

She couldn't move let her out Father Father

Father let HER OUT

FATHER - VLAD - VLAD PLEASE

SHEDIDN'TWANTTODIESHEWANTEDTOBEHISDAUGHTERTHEONLYDAUGHTERLETHERLIVEPLEASESHECOULDBEBETTERDANIELLECOULDBEBETTERSHECOULDBEDANNYJUSTLIKEFATHERWANTEDHERTOBEJUSTPLEASEDON'TMELTHERDOWNSHEWANTEDTOEXPERIENCELIFELIKEEVERYONEELSEWHYBRINGHERINTOTHISWORLDONLYTOKILLHERFORNOTBEINGPERFECTNOBODYWASPERFECTSOWHYDIDSHEHAVETOBETHEEXCEPTIONPLEASEFATHERPLEASELETMEGOICANBEBETTER-

"May I help you?"

It was barely a whisper, and yet it yanked Danielle suddenly back into this world with the wind biting at her nose, visible and as human as she had ever felt in her life.

The boy's eyes were wide and frail, but he weakly tugged the scarf off his neck and wrapped it around her. "I'm terribly sorry for whatever I might've done," he murmured hurriedly. His touch was cold too. "Please find someplace warm before it gets dark. It's dangerous here at night."

Danielle nodded slowly, trembling. Her PTSD had - it had worn off - why-

"Please go find shelter. I cannot stay long." The boy wrapped his jacket around him tightly and walked away as if stilted. Danielle grabbed his wrist. "Wait."

He looked back fearfully. His eyes glinted with that of a cornered animal's.

"What's your name?" she breathed.

"I don't have one," the boy replied.

Danielle's grip on him tightened. "Everyone has a name. I-I'm Dani! With an I!"

His pupils dilated as he let out a shuddering breath. "DF-5683."

And with that, the boy hurried off.

A few hours later, Danielle realized what the jacket was.

It was a tattered DALV Co. lab coat.