-So! Jake, Danny tells me you're penpals.
-That's right, Mrs Fenton. We met up in FaceSpace.
-And you're from New York?
-DO YOU BELIEVE IN GHOSTS?
Jake had to restrain from laughing, Danny being too occupied slamming his head against the table at his father's outburst. The young dragon frowned though. What was he supposed to answer? His duty as protector of magical creatures dictated that he deny the existence of any magic at all, but he knew for a fact that humans in this city were extremely aware of the existence of spirits. He chose to shrug, considering people wouldn't really expect him to believe if he hadn't seen a ghost yet. The couple gasped and proceeded to explain everything they knew about the creatures, making their son frown, cringe and even squirm uncomfortably, Jake's keen eyes noticed. The young dragon wondered why though. Everything the Fentons said made sense and the only ghosts the boy had encountered had shown the behavior the couple had described. Perhaps he was worried about becoming like a ghost. They finished eating and proceeded to the ghost boy's room. As soon as the door closed, though, said boy flipped out.
-I can't believe they still think I'm a criminal! Have I not saved enough people? And they had the nerve to repeat that ghosts have no feelings whatsoever! How can they be so blind?!
-Whoa, buddy. Chillax! It's not like they know it's you.
-What do you mean?
-They think you're a normal ghost. Ya know, like the rest of'em?
-Wait. Did they convince you with all that crap? Fyi, Mr. Dragon, ghosts do have feelings. In fact, some are even kinder than humans!
-Yo, easy. Don't go all Paranormal Activity on me. It's not like y'all have been a bed of roses for me either.
-... You have experience with ghosts?
-Yeah. Just this one time, a buncha ghosts were tryna take over a buncha kids. Couldn't let that happen.
-Well, that explains why you don't like us... THEM!-Jake chuckled.
-Ain't ya a ghost yoself?
-As I already said: HALF ghost. Ghosts call us halfas, which means they don't really consider us their kind either.
The dragon shook his head and backtracked. Us? There was more than just this one creature, ''dead, but not quite''? Said creature didn't seem to notice his slip up, so the magical protector let it be. This was going to bother him all night already. He realized the ghost boy was still talking and started to pay attention, noticing he was explaining how the ghosts that attacked humans were considered criminals by the other members of the Ghost Zone, whatever that was. If this kid had all this information about ghosts, then he would gladly take it back to gramps.
What both boys didn't know, was that 88 and 89 had noticed the lack of scales in the back of their van… halfway through Montana. And they were going back road 90, retracing their steps to see where they had possibly lost the dragon. I mean, it was a motherflippin DRAGON. How hard could it be? They just hoped they didn't have to go through that place near Casper again. It had given them the creeps.
Jake stretched on the mattress. In the end he had fallen asleep, despite what he had initially thought. He looked at the fake fluorescent stars on the ceiling and noticed the familiar array. Wow. This guy was a total space nerd, even making actual constellations in his room.
-Let me guess, you sleep alone. -said the ghost in the room. Jake turned to see the guy with bags under his eyes, a glare meeting his own. -Not only do you smell like a dragon, you also snore like one! I had to get up to fight Skulker of all ghosts and when I came back, I couldn't go back to sleep because of all the noise! How does your family stand it?!
-Well, my dad got used to it, but I DO come from a dragon bloodline.
Danny smacked his forehead. Of course the guy's family wouldn't mind! They were all dragons!... Wait.
-Your dad had to get used to it?
-Yeah. He's um… human.
-Oh. -silence filled the room.-Does he know?
-He found out… last summer.-the blue eyed boy sat up.
-He didn't know for the better part of fourteen years?
-Sixteen. They didn't have me right away.
Danny wanted to comment. He desperately did. But telling a guy his mother must be heartless wasn't very nice, so he shut up. For all he knew she must have had her reasons.
Both boys got up and changed, before going down for breakfast. As soon as they entered the kitchen, though, two sets of lashed eyes glared at the asian kid. He laughed nervously and apologized to the sleep deprived women. Jake noted that the younger Fentons grabbed cereal instead of the toast, bacon and eggs their mother was offering and shortly wondered why, until he saw the eggs had developed sentience and were riding the toast and waving the bacon as if it were swords, fighting the other eggs to their death. He realized it must have been a daily occurrence since the Fentons barely reacted, only clapping when there was just one portion of egg exclaiming its victory, before Maddie shot it. It was safe to say he was having cereal too. The three minors left for school, Jazz going ahead and the non human boys taking a detour. Danny took the opportunity to explain his routine around ghost attacks and to tell the dragon about his friends.
-So this Tucker guy and Sam girl know what you are.
-Yup, they were there when it happened.
-Wait. What happened?
-I got in an accident with my parents' technology. That's what made me the way I am now.
-WOAH! Let me get this straight. You a synthetic magical creature?
The other boy seemed to ponder about it for a while before nodding uncertainly. Well this kept getting better and better. How was Jake supposed to explain this to the council? True, they respected him more ever since he and Rose trapped the Dark Dragon in Hong Kong, but humans had developed artificial magical creatures under his own snout! There had to be a consequence, right? Right then, they reached a house from which a dark skinned boy was running, telling his mother he'd be back for dinner, probably. The guy slowed down in front of them and patted Danny's back in greeting. He glanced at the young dragon and stretched out his hand.
-Hi! I'm Tucker Foley. Danny's best friend.
-Nice to meet ya. I'm Jake Long, Danny's newest friend.-a snort came from his left and both boys turned to look at the halfa.
-Dude, with the way you snore, you're nobody's friend.
Danny noted how the almond eyes turned yellow and slitted in a second and tensed. He had only meant it as a joke! Why was this guy getting so worked up? Tucker chuckled a little.
-Why are you scared, dude? This guy's even shorter than Mikey.
-Tuck, I'm shorter than Dash and I could still beat him to a pulp… if I wanted to. This guy probably knows kung fu! Plus, I bet he would actually try to send me to the afterlife if I bother him too much.
-Yeah, ya gotta watch your mouth, Casper.
Danny saw the way Tucker paled, asking him non verbally if this guy he just met knew. He nodded once and his friend's green eyes hardened. He turned the asian boy away from his friend, but as soon as his mouth opened the african american was stopped.
-If you gonna give me the threat speech, then you late, yo. His sister beat ya to it.
-It's ok, Tuck. He's cool.
-Cool? The guy practically threatened you!
-Only because that's the third time this morning someone's mentioned the sounds I make while asleep.
-... Ok, yeah. I can see how that could be annoying.
Danny gasped mockingly, saying Tucker had taken Jake's side dramatically and running off not too fast in the direction of their next destination: Sam's mansion. The dark boy chuckled while shaking his head and motioned the New Yorker to follow him. They arrived at the extremely posh mansion, catching up with the halfa and waited. Several yells were heard from the inside, making the dragon wonder what was going on in there. All of a sudden, the door opened violently and a dark haired girl stormed out. Jake noticed her goth style clashed with the pink dress her mother was still trying to shove in her arms and immediately understood what the screaming had been about. The girl, Sam he assumed, pulled a knife out of her right combat boot and threw it at the pink offence, making a hole in it and her mother shrieked. The girl ran towards her friends and pulled from them without stopping for a couple of streets, where they finally got a chance to catch their breath.
-By the way, who's the shrimp? -Jake flinched.
-Yo! I'm no shrimp!
-Sam, this is Jake. He's going to stay with me for a few days, he knows about Phantom and he won't be a problem. Now, if all of you could just start walking again, we need to be at school in about ten minutes. I don't want a needless tardy if I can help it.
-Danny, who are you trying to fool? You get tardies every other class because of ghosts and WHY THE HELL DOES THIS KID KNOW ABOUT IT?!
-HEY! I'M YOUR AGE, THANKYA VERY MUCH!
-Really? But you're so short!
Jake was about to lose it. He was very tempted to set this girl's dyed hair on FIRE, but he had to show some restraint. He couldn't just show this new magical creature that the human concept of dragons was anything but false. The young dragon looked at the halfa pointedly and said creature tensed.
-Sam, I'd stop commenting on his lack of height if I were you.-Black eyes turned yellow.
-THAT'S IT! YOU, ME, IN THE AIR, NOW!
-You can't even fly!
The boy turned to look at the tallest one in the group weirdly. Tucker, was it? Something in his comment itched at the back of his very angry brain. It wasn't the fact that he had just challenged a creature he knew he couldn't take on. It also wasn't the fact that he had practically outed his secret to two humans he had just met. No. This actually hurt. That's when he remembered his wings were trashed. His mood deflated in a second. ''A downed dragon is a dead dragon'' he had heard once and the word stang like a poisoned arrow shot by Rose. Danny saw his defeated attitude and slowly patted him on the back. Black eyes met his and he signaled for them to move.
The group of four arrived at school with time to spare. Team phantom had received the redacted version of the last day, so that Sam wouldn't try to claw this guy's eyes out and they seemed content with that. Danny took Jake to the main office to get a permit for him or something and they went leisurely to class. Mr. Lancer was already there, looking at them with a raised eyebrow, until the ghostly boy handed him the permit and the passes. Said professor sighed and told them to sit, before continuing with the class and totally lulling his students (or at least Danny) to sleep.
Jake marvelled at Danny's resilience. The guy could be the deadest human one second and the liveliest ghost the next. And these ghosts were persistent, Jake could tell you that. The one that called himself the Box Ghost had shown up every period until now, when one named Technus had literally possessed the TV and called upon everyone's cellphone to attack. He had to give it to the guy. Not even he had this much work… and he was THE AMERICAN DRAGON. He watched as the white haired ghost got punched through a wall and flinched. That was definitely gonna hurt in the morning. A green beam made its way towards the adversary and the being fell to the floor, where a light blue beam captured him and pulled him into the thermos. The other teenagers cheered the Phantom's name, who kinda saluted and vanished into thin air. If only Jake were allowed to do that… or capable, whatever. He noticed the raven haired version of Danny slip into existence behind his friends and approached.
-Nice job up there. Gotta say, you have it rough.
-Yeah, no kidding. Today has been hellish. The Box Ghost usually stays in the thermos, though… he must have levelled up. Urgh, that means I finally have to ask him politely to stay away and probably bribe him with boxes or hook him up with the Lunch Lady.-he shuddered at that.
-Who?
-She only shows up when someone messes with the menu, so I doubt you'll meet her.
-... Did you just really make a pun about meat?
The other boy grinned mischievously. The humans had warned him about Danny thinking he was some sort of pun master, but to think he'd let them slip like this… perhaps it was a disease. The dragon had to wonder. They joined the multitude going back into the building to get their stuff, school being cancelled due to the violent fight that had just taken place. Team phantom, along with Jake walked peacefully towards Sam's house, where they all entered and upon reaching the goth's room, the humans turned to the halfa, their arms crossed.
-Take off your shirt, Danny.
They all said in unison. It freaked the scales out of Jake how coordinately they had done so, but it seems it was slightly usual for the other boy, who only sighed, rolling his eyes and exclaimed it wasn't 'that bad'. His friends and sister, however turned him around by force and pulled his shirt over his head, exposing the bleeding mess that was his back. Jake grimaced at the amount of wounds, scars and dents in the flesh. Had this guy broken a few ribs or something?! Jake watched as the three humans cleaned every wound, straightened every bone and stitched every gash, before finally bandaging the ghost's torso. He had flinched most of the time, while Danny barely blinked.
-Guys, you know that's not necessary. It all fixes itself at night.
-Maybe, -answered Tucker- but you agonize until then, dude.
The young dragon stared in disbelief at the interaction. This guy had some serious healing abilities if all that could heal in just one night! I mean, Jake healed fast thanks to his dragon blood, but even he would need about a week to get past all of THAT.
Danny proceeded to grab the thermos and call upon the annoying blue ghost in the overalls, said ghost showing up from behind, phasing through a wooden box. Jake watched in amazement how the halfa reasoned with the specter. He was actually bribing him with a bunch of square things, just to keep the guy out of the living realm. The red eyes turned to him all of a sudden and Jake got the unnerving feeling that the blue ghost instantly knew he wasn't human. Also, getting stared at with dead eyes was extremely creepy. The ghost's attention went back to the halfa boy at the mention of someone else.
-Lunch Lady? Who's that?
-Well, she's another ghost. One of the first ones I fought against. I get the feeling you'd get along. -answered Danny trying to hide his disgust.
The blue spirit seemed to ponder about it for a while. He agreed after a while and they made plans to meet in the Ghost Zone on Saturday, after which he left with a last yell of 'beware'. Jake was finally able to breathe calmly again. And yet, he felt trouble wouldn't stop coming.