Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman
Story (c) Me
Everyone else has done their interpretation of this scene; 'tis my turn.
The boy transformed. Rings ran over his body, changing him from a ghost to a human- a normal action for him, except for the fact it was in front of everyone. There was complete and utter silence for awhile, then cheers and applause escaped the crowd, even from his parents and Valerie. Danny smiled as the crowd came around him with smiles of approval. But that smile turned into a frown as the cold weather bit at him. He began to shiver violently, much to the crowd's surprise and worry.
"Danny? What's-"
"I-I'm f-freezing!" Danny cried, gripping his arms and tightening muscle to provide any sort of warmth. He knit his eyes tight. A pause. There were murmurs, and someone put a jacket around Danny. He opened them again to see it was his usual red sweater. He gave it a puzzled look, then looked up to see a slightly panting Sam from running inside to get it and Maddie putting it over his back. He took it gently and pulled it around him, thanking the two.
Quickly they got inside the place they were staying and started a fire. Danny sat by it and warmed up, pulling the jacket tightly around him. He gazed into the flames, considering all that had just happened.
It finally hit him.
His parents really knew. Suddenly, somehow those flames before him seemed like they were the flames of a dead secret he once held. The fire was burning the ashes of it. That was it. His parents and the world knew, and the secret was no longer tight-kept. He began to question if revealing himself was the best decision, that is, until his parents joined him by the fire. Jazz had left for awhile to let them talk.
Danny looked at the floor, then straightened his back. "You guys really know. Not a secret anymore...wow." he muttered, still looking at the fire, hunching over again. "Never thought this day would come. But here we are. Just..." he trailed off, unsure of what to say. His parents were quiet for a bit, then Jack spoke.
"So how'd it happen?" the big man asked, looking at Danny. His son shrugged.
"Way back in last March, the day after you guys finished the Fenton portal- well, almost finished, that is- Sam, Tuck, and I decided to take a look around it. Sam eventually convinced me that it'd be cool to look around inside of it. I obliged; I really only planned on looking inside and then coming out. But as I walked, my hand accidentally slid onto the ON button. Right as I saw it, a split second later the portal began to charge." He paused, sucked a breath in, then did his best to continue.
"I was caught in the charge-up. It was horribly painful. I thought I was going to die. By the time it was over, I passed out, then woke up later on the floor of the lab in ghost form. Sam and Tuck were shocked, needless to say; but they still managed to help me to a mirror so I could fully see myself. Then right as I wished I was human again, I changed back to normal. I became half ghost. Half human, half ghost. That's how." he finally finished. Maddie gasped out.
"You poor thing!" she cried, hugging him. Danny blushed.
"I'm okay now, Mom."
"But still! I know you're probably expecting this, but you should've told us earlier. Why didn't you?" she asked. Both parents were waiting. Danny looked at them in the eyes.
"At first, I thought you would kill me, hate me, or kick me out for being half ghost. But I soon realized by a certain event that I'll tell you about later that that's not true at all. Then I figured I would tell you- eventually. When I was ready. And honestly...I was thinking about telling you guys after all of this was over, but I guess you guys beat me to it." He chuckled. His parents managed to smile back.
"We're glad you found out that we're not like that at all. We'll love you forever, no matter what. And honestly, I probably would've taken my time with it, too. Though obviously we would've preferred you told us earlier. Anyhow, you'll explain to us about that incident you mentioned later. Next...did you really kidnap the mayor, steal expensive things or presents on Christmas?" he asked. He already was somewhat expecting a 'no'. His son shook his head, as expected.
"Of course not, no. The mayor was overshadowed by a ghost who was out for me because he tried to arrest me previously for grabbing a present that slipped in the Ghost Zone that you were gonna give Mom. He sentenced me to one thousand years, but I broke out, as well as making all the other inmates escape. He had me in a headlock to make everyone not trust me, and to make both places, Earth and the Ghost Zone, a prison for me." Maddie frowned.
"Danny, next time, just let the thing go. It's not worth the danger. Next?"
"Oh, yeah. Stealing things. Freakshow, that crook of a ringleader, used some sort of spell that was in his staff to control other ghosts and me. Accidentally I caught a glimpse of it on Sam's T.V. and I instantly was hypnotized. Eventually the staff broke when I got it from Freakshow, then Sam was at risk. I dropped it and saved her instead, and the staff was smashed and I and the other ghosts were freed." After he was done, his mother gave an 'aww'.
"You gave it up even though under its control for Sam? How sweet! You two- wait..." she and Jack began to examine the boy. "You're not even about to say anything on the lines of 'we're not lovebirds'. What gives?" He blushed.
"Well, err...before I head out the Ghost Zone, right before I stepped in the plane...Sam stopped me and talked for a minute. She kissed my chin, and I..." he trailed off, utterly humiliated. "Don't you guys know how embarrassing it is to talk to your parents about your love life? Yeesh."
The adults couldn't help but laugh. Jack grinned. "Time for the class ring, son?"
"...Yeah. Give it to me for next time I can talk to her privately. She gave it back to me before I left. I think she knows I'll give it to her soon. Now..." He went back on subject. "As for the Christmas presents, I actually really did not have anything to do with that. A ghost was mad at me yet again and decided to frame me. And even Jazz, Sam, and Tuck didn't figure out it wasn't my fault until later."
"Oh, Jazz!" Maddie realized something. "How did she figure out exactly?"
"By accident. She saw me transform in an alley way and about three or four months later told me she knew, following another thing I need to tell you about later." They nodded. Jack took a deep sigh.
"And Vlad. How long did you know he was half ghost?"
"Since the college reunion. When he overshadowed you, I pushed him out and told him I'd reveal him right there on the spot if he didn't leave, and when he said he'd reveal me back, I said I'd tell about both of us if he didn't give up. He agreed that if neither of us told about the other, he would leave- for that time. We kept each other's secret merely because one or the other could expose each other if one did the same. He actually tried to get me to leave you, Dad, and come to him, but I always refused- Dad, are you crying?" The boy stopped and stared along with his mother as Jack began to tear up.
"Y-you always denied him and stuck with me! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!" Jack grabbed Danny in a bear hug, making the boy gasp for air.
"I-I love you, too, Dad...now can I breathe...please?" Jack let go with a blush.
"Sorry. I was just so...so happy that my son was so loyal the whole time..." Danny smiled.
"No problem."
Jack tried to stop his sniffling as Maddie smiled. "Okay. So, um...I know we've seen a lot of your powers, but would you mind giving us a full list?" she asked. Danny grinned.
"Of course! Well, uh...I can fly, turn intangible, turn invisible, use ecto-blasts, sense when ghosts are near with a blue breath that escapes my mouth when it happens, make an ecto-shield, I have ice powers-"
"Hold up, ice powers? I don't think I've seen too much of those." Maddie said. Danny shrugged, tightened his fist for a minute, then opened it to reveal a sparkling, clear crystal. He placed it in her hand as she gasped. "It-it's beautiful. Is that for me?"
"You bet."
"Oh, Danny! Thank you!" Maddie hugged him. He grinned. Jack couldn't help but take it for himself for a minute to examine it in wonder, then returned it to Maddie. Danny made one for Jack as well, earning himself another bear hug. He broke free and continued.
"I have super speed and strength as a ghost, and I can duplicate, though I have a lot of trouble with that power. I have not mastered it completely. I suppose same thing for Ghostly Wail. I can use it alright, and it's extremely, EXTREMELY powerful, so much so I can't even show it outside without there being an uproar of people wondering that's going on. But the downside is I'm usually very weakened even to the point of passing out after I use it." he explained. Both parents had their eyes bulge.
"You're that powerful?" Their son shrugged.
"I guess. But really, it's a bit of a disadvantage to be overly exhausted after I use that power. And for duplication, it's worked only a few times. Whenever I practice, it pretty much always fails."
"Well, then," Jack spoke proudly, "We'll have to help you learn to master it." His son looked pleased.
"Thanks, Dad. That means a lot."
"Danny...one last thing." Maddie said, "Will you transform for us? Please?"
Danny was quiet awhile. Then he crossed his legs. He closed his eyes and allowed the rings to form and split, changing him into his ghost form of a black-and-white outfit, glowing, tanned skin and white hair. Opening his neon green eyes, he relaxed a little. "It's probably weird for you guys, the first couple of times I do this. But I hope you can get used to it."
"Weird, yes," Maddie said, raising an eyebrow. "But we'll be used to it in no time without a doubt. Danny...thank you." Both closed their arms around Danny. He blushed, then put his arms around their backs, one around each. Truly, a happy family was alive.
The fire began to grow smaller and smaller during the conversation until the end it was no more than a few sparks. Jack frowned.
"Oh, the fire's gone out already? Odd. One sec." He got up to replenish the fire, but Danny couldn't help but feel there was something mystical about the early burning of the fire from that day on.