Meaning

Chapter 2

Danny lay in bed, tossing and turning for the best part of the night. The bed was like a cloud, soft and fluffy. He didn't think he'd ever slept in such a comfortable bed before in his life – yet still he found himself wide awake at five o'clock in the morning staring into… well nothing. The room was absolutely pitch black, and being that they were in the middle of nowhere with no street lamps, this wasn't surprising in the least. Perhaps it was because he was sleeping in a different place that he wasn't used to, or that he was too on edge about Vlad and his evil plans or whatnot, who knows?

Now, Vlad was a problem. No matter how much he thought up different scenarios in his mind, they all lead to something bad. He went over it again and again and again. What could Vlad possibly be planning? To kill him in his sleep, the kind and painless way, to receive all the money Danny's parents had left him? Perhaps he intended to erase his real memories and replace them with new ones of 'Danny Masters'…

Or maybe Danny was just incredibly paranoid.

But circumstance didn't really matter as he was still left with one stinking problem – he couldn't sleep and a sleepless night meant that he'd be tired for the duration of the next day and therefore unable to keep an eye out for Vlad.

Suddenly, the door knob turned and the door slowly creaked open. He quickly closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep. Now was not the time for some kind of sappy father-son chitchat of a lie.

Vlad peered round the not even half-open door and saw Danny sleeping away. The boy's hair was covering part of his face, but messy as it was, the bruise forming on his cheek was in clear view, and there was also a scrape where his ring had cut him. He frowned at the sight of it and the fact that it would heal itself in less than a day or two did little to ease his conscience. Tip-toeing over to where Danny lay, he reached in his pocket, revealing a square bandage and some white medical tape. Carefully placing the bandage over the injury, he began to tape it down with extreme delicacy. He didn't want to wake him as that could be potentially disastrous. As he drew his hand away, he paused for a moment, gazing at the angelic face before him - such a tortured soul. He gently traced the back of his fingers over Danny's cheek. He leaned forward and whispered into his ear.

"I'm sorry for this… I truly am." His voice sounded sincere enough. He sighed and stood up, leaning over and kissing Danny on the forehead, and leaving.

Danny had fallen asleep, however this was a luxury that he wasn't going to get much of. The quiet sound of the door closing was enough to wake him.

He opened the wardrobe revealing a rack full of brand new clothes, all in Danny's size and expensive looking. Vlad sure was prepared. He reached in and took out a shirt and a pair of jeans, similar to what he was wearing the other day. After doing the usual teeth-brushing hair-brushing face-washing routine, he went downstairs.

He walked into the kitchen and poured himself a glass of water, before going to the living room. Vlad was watching the news and drinking coffee. Danny's jaw dropped.

'...The notorious Danny Phantom is held accountable for the deaths at the Amity Park fast food restaurant 'The Nasty Burger'. The local authorities have issued a one million dollar bounty for the capture of the teenage menace, alive. This is Harriet Chin...'

"I'm going out." Danny stated, preparing to transform. Vlad stood up and held up his hand in a 'stop right there' gesture.

"What? Where are you going? Aren't you going to eat something first?"

"Not hungry, and I'm going to pay a little visit to the guys in white."
"Now Daniel, are you sure that's wise? It could be a trap – it probably is a trap."

"In that case, I'll just have to be more careful." He transformed and flew off without another word, not even a good bye.

He stopped flying and crossed his arms, floating just above the top of the tall forest trees; he hadn't even gotten a mile away from Vlad's castle yet.

"Are you going to follow me all the way to Amity?"

"As a matter of fact, I am. I know you well enough to have a pretty good idea what you're going to do – something stupid."

"And you're going to what, protect me? That is so sweet, really." He turned his back to Vlad and continued to fly towards his home town. Vlad reluctantly followed.
"I don't doubt that you can take care of yourself in a fight with the government agents, but they play dirty. You won't be against them, you'll be against their weapons."
"Which is why I'm taking them down before they become a problem."
"Destroying ghosts is one thing, killing a human is another."
"So you're going to stop me?"
"If that's what I have to do." They stopped flying again. Danny smiled darkly, an expression that Vlad was sure he'd never see on his face.
"So what are you waiting for?" Vlad's eyes shifted to the patch on his face, before staring directly into his eyes. He clenched his fists and lunged forward, his fist stopping only inches away from Danny's face.
"Go on, I deserve it."