She'd been out too late. She must have fallen asleep, or be hallucinating, or - or something. It was a trick, a new ghost power, anything besides what it looked like.
Phantom couldn't be Danny Fenton. It didn't make sense. It just… didn't.
Danny - Fenton or Phantom - still sat cross-legged, narrow shoulders drowning in an oversized red hoodie. An exact replica of the hoodie he'd worn all winter, down to the half-stitched tears on the left sleeve. How would Phantom know that? Had he been stalking Danny? Had he known about her tenuous friendship with him? It had been so long since they'd really hung out, but it wasn't like there were many people Phantom could impersonate to get to her. But even if it was a trick, it was working, to some extent. Could she really point an ectogun at Danny Fenton, even if her mind told her it couldn't possibly be him?
His previous mask of determination cracked with every second that she spent wordlessly staring.
"Valerie…?" Danny's voice. Phantom's voice? They were more similar than she'd realized, though Phantom's usually had an uncanny echo. Could he really be…? No, of course not. She hardened her gaze, for all the good it would do through her helmet.
"Nice try, Phantom. Danielle told me she and Vlad are the only half-ghosts."
His now-blue eyes widened - so she'd called his bluff.
"Uh- wait, you know about Vlad now? And you've talked to Danielle since-?"
"She's stopped by," Valerie explained curtly, cutting Danny - Phantom - off. She chose not to acknowledge the Vlad comment; she didn't want to admit that the ghost boy had been right about his evil nature. As for Danielle, that had been a bit more than 'stopping by' - the girl had run into trouble a few times, and after everything, she trusted Valerie to help patch up her injuries. Strange that she'd gone to her instead of Phantom, but that only proved to Valerie that the ghost boy couldn't be trusted.
"The point is," she continued, "if you were really Danny Fenton, she would've told me."
This imposter's face looked blank for a few moments. Then, unexpectedly, he let out a breathless chuckle.
"That explains a lot, actually. No wonder you didn't figure it out." He shook his head. "Do you have any idea who Danielle is? How she even exists?"
"Well…" The question caught her off guard; she really didn't know much. Danielle had a knack for evading questions - a trait she shared with Phantom. Which actually reminded her... "She said she was your cousin, right?"
"That's what we call each other. It feels more normal than… well, she needs the sense of family. I'm all she's got." He frowned, still curled up nervously against the tree. The worried quirk of his eyebrows was so like Danny, those few times he'd trusted her enough to show it. Damn, why did it have to be him? She'd thought she was past this, and - and she nearly missed the rest of what the ghost was saying.
"Besides you, apparently. But anyway. She wouldn't give up my secret without asking me. That's why she never told you."
She shook her head, refocusing.
"Never told me that you're Danny. Fenton."
He picked up on the skepticism in her voice and grit his teeth. It didn't intimidate her in this disguise; if anything, he just looked cute when he was angry. Or was that the angle he was actually trying to play? She kept her face hard as stone, determined not to let him get to her. She nearly summoned an ectogun from her shoulder before he huffed and started talking again.
"You don't believe me? Fine. We were in the same class in fifth grade. You got stuck as my lab partner when we dissected owl pellets. I did all the work because I was used to touching gross stuff in my parents' lab, and you didn't want to get 'owl barf' on your shirt."
He looked up at her, blue eyes glinting from the filtered starlight. He - how did he - she barely remembered that. Even if he had some kind of mind-reading ability, he couldn't have found that from her.
Maybe… the simplest answer was the best one. Especially considering what she did know about half-ghosts. Danielle's human form had looked pretty similar to Danny, and their transformations were nearly identical. Her gut reaction had been wrong; the more she thought about it, the more it made too much sense.
But Danny couldn't see those thoughts weave through her mind; all he saw was her blank mask. His gaze tried to meet her eyes, but in the dim light he focused on a spot closer to her nose.
"Please,Valerie. It's me. It's always been me."
Danny. Danny Phantom. Danny Fenton. He hadn't even changed his name. If it really was… it was, though. How else could he remember fifth grade? Phantom hadn't even existed then.
She cursed, and he flinched back. The same way Danny always flinched back from Dash before getting shoved against a locker. If he was really Phantom, he wouldn't have put up with that, right? But he was... and he did. Maybe because a stupid school bully wasn't worth the effort after taking hits from guys like Skulker and Vlad and - and her.
She cursed again. "How many times have I shot you?"
His eyes widened, like that wasn't the question he was expecting. From the way his legs tensed to jump, he might not have been expecting a question at all.
"Oh. Uh... I've lost count."
For once it was her turn to wince.
"But I fought you, too. It wasn't just you," he quickly added. "I - I wish I didn't have to, but - well, uh, I didn't really want to die again, so…"
She'd stopped listening, too caught up piecing the puzzle together. His voice was the same; she'd been right about that. And now that she looked for it, the physical similarities were striking too. His disheveled hair, his lean but slightly muscled build. His small nose splotched with barely-visible freckles that had glowed a soft green, then faded to brown when he'd transformed into… Danny.
Phantom was Danny.
"...Valerie?" He asked softly. "Please, I… know this is a lot to take in, but uh… please don't freak out-"
She slapped him. Completely on reflex, and completely stupid. Shame immediately flooded her face. He'd just shown her that he was both her greatest enemy and her ex-boyfriend, and she didn't know which one he'd been first, or what this made him now -
"I probably deserved that," he muttered, rubbing his face. "Least she didn't shoot me…"
"I'm not going to shoot you!" She shouted, clenching her fists. "I'm just - damn, it really is you, isn't it."
Once her brain caught up to her emotions, more pieces fit beyond just his physical appearance. Why he was always running out of class. Why he always looked dead on his feet (no pun intended). Why he'd always felt like he was hiding something from her, even when they'd almost been dating.
"...Yeah. It is." He still looked tense, ready to bolt at any moment. Had she really made him that…? She sighed; of course he was still afraid. She hadn't exactly given him a reason to trust her. She'd even slapped him, like some jealous girlfriend who found out she'd been cheated on. He might have been her enemy - still be her enemy? - but he didn't deserve that. Did he?
Suddenly another realization hit her, filling her with a hot mix of anger and betrayal.
"You're the one who got my dad fired."
"That was an accident, I swear! The ghost dog - and I had to-" He sighed, dropping his head into his hands. "I'm sorry, Val. I never meant to ruin your life. I never meant for any of this to happen." And then quieter: "I just wanted to be an astronaut."
Somehow the weak, very human statement grounded her. The anger slowly trickled from her blood, leaving only emptiness.
Phantom was Danny. Danny was Phantom. She would sort through the baggage that came with that later, when she was more fully conscious. Right now she needed to focus on cleaning up what damage she could, not causing more.
She let the particles of her suit dissolve off, compressing back into the soles of her shoes. It left her in a thin yellow sweater and jeans - barely any protection from the cold, and no protection from the vulnerable ghost boy in front of her. The darkness of the night suddenly felt more oppressive, and she fought the urge to wrap her arms around herself.
"I'm not good at this, but… I'm sorry too," she whispered through the sudden lump in her throat. It wasn't enough. She could have - would have - killed him, given the chance. She tried to imagine Danny not showing up to school one day. A week. A month. No one knowing what had happened, because she'd been stupid enough to kill him.
"Sorry," she mocked herself. "I was going to kill you, and all I can say is sorry?" She wanted to punch something again, but without her suit she was more likely to just scrape open her knuckles.
"Really, Val, it's okay. You didn't know," he assured her quickly.
"No, it's not okay! Why didn't you tell me?! I gave up hunting Danielle! I would've stopped hunting you too, but you just let me! Why!?"
She had no right to make outbursts like that. Sure, he'd fought her too, but she'd been the one hunting him. The more she thought about it, the more she realized he'd never tried to pick a fight. He'd known her identity all this time; he easily could have. He could've shown up at her house, when she was sleeping, and that would've been the end of the Red Huntress. That realization would have humbled her even if his next words hadn't.
"I was afraid," he answered softly. "I've always been afraid. And… ashamed. I didn't want you to blame me for… well, everything."
Everything she'd just blamed him for. Her father's job. Not getting into college. Wasting the last four years of her life.
All over a stupid, stupid misunderstanding.
Water squeezed out from her shut eyes.
"Damn it, Danny. I... I forgive you." She never thought she'd say those words. She couldn't quite say It's not your fault - even if it might technically not be. But she could forgive him. She could share the blame for putting herself in this mess. Between falling for Vlad Masters' lies, and this - all this - she certainly deserved it.
"R-really?" He asked.
"Don't make me say it again," she muttered, eyes still shut. Her fingernails dug into the palms of her hands as she mustered the courage to say something even more difficult.
"I get it if you can't, but… can you forgive me too?" It physically hurt to ask. He had every right not to, no matter what he'd said. She'd tried to kill him.
"Of course, Val. I always have."
She opened her eyes. He was smiling, still nervously, but smiling. She couldn't quite force one back.
"Why are you telling me this now?" She asked, wiping her eyes with the back of her thumb. She was grateful that he didn't point out that the Red Huntress did in fact cry.
"I tried to tell you. We're both stuck here, right?" His fragile smile instantly vanished. "No college. No future."
Even though it was more or less what she'd told herself, she frowned at hearing it from him.
"Not everyone has to go to college, you know." She argued mostly for the sake of arguing; she felt that same defeat settling in her bones.
"You do to get into NASA," he muttered. She shuffled forward to lean against the tree he was sitting by.
"And you do to be an engineer," she added, stretching out her legs with a sigh. He looked up at her in surprise.
"You wanted to be an engineer?"
Her lips twitched downward at the past tense. I still want to be an engineer. Even if the circumstances looked grim, she couldn't say she'd given up. Grays fought harder than that.
"Yeah. Seeing all that tech that Vlad and your parents could make made me curious. Plus I've always wanted to do something everyone thinks women can't do." Those weren't the only reasons, but she didn't feel like mentioning that she wanted to make her own ghost-hunting equipment, tech she knew she could trust. That might be insensitive under the circumstances.
"Heh. You sound like Sam." He smiled. "I can't imagine anyone telling you not to do something."
She snorted. "Tell that to Elmerton." And the five or so other nearby universities she'd applied to, but he didn't need to know that.
His shoulders drooped again. "I really am sorry."
"Don't be. I made my choice." Sure, maybe it wasn't exactly her choice to work at Nasty Burger, which cut into her study time, but she could've cut back on ghost fighting at least some nights. That was tied up with her her distrust of Phantom - Danny - but her pride was an even bigger motivating factor.
Huh. Her choice. Her pride. Her responsibility. Finally admitting that hurt, but it was somehow freeing, too. Like digging out a splinter. How long had that pent-up anger been draining her?
"That's why you're failing too, isn't it? The ghost fighting I mean," she clarified.
He rubbed his calf absently; she recalled the cut he'd had there in Phantom form. Was it still there, stinging under his jeans? And how many other cuts and bruises had he hidden under that baggy red hoodie?
"You've seen Phantom. He - I'm out fighting more nights than not."
"And during class." She never - okay, rarely - skipped for ghost attacks, but only because he'd usually taken care of them before she found out.
He nodded, but looked away. "I don't regret what I did - what I do. People need me. I can't just not help. But it's still - its a lot sometimes, you know?"
"Actually, yeah," she was surprised to realize. The two of them had more in common than she ever would have imagined. Double lives. Dangerous double lives. And, apparently, both getting rejected from college.
"Do you ever wish it wasn't on you?" She asked. "Do you ever just want to be…"
"Normal?" He chuckled, then shrugged. "Sometimes. Doesn't everyone?"
"Not your girlfriend," Valerie replied, not with any malice. Whatever fragmented feelings she might have left for Danny, it was obvious how the boy felt about Sam. Valerie wasn't like Paulina; she didn't have any intention of putting herself between the two of them.
"She's not my girlfriend," Danny said with a sigh. Valerie raised an eyebrow. It had been a long time since she'd heard the practiced denial - because at least this year, the two of them were dating.
"She's going to school in New York." He rubbed the back of his neck. "We… we talked about it a little over a week ago. Once I knew for sure I wasn't getting in. I can't hold her back like that."
"Danny-" Valerie didn't know what to say, especially when he sniffed wetly.
"'S fine. We're still friends, we'll always be friends. Maybe that's the way it's supposed to be. It's still gonna be hard though, with her and Tuck gone. That's why I had to tell you this."
She thought she understood, now. At first she'd been surprised at how much he'd shared, but if that was true, he really had no one left. His sister was already in college. His parents presumably didn't know his secret, considering how they still hunted Phantom almost as religiously as Valerie herself. She didn't doubt that Sam and Tucker knew, though; that explained too much. But now there was just… her.
"I'm glad you did," she finally replied, somewhat surprised to find that she meant it. She was still a little angry at how much he'd hidden from her, but that had gone both ways. And… maybe this could help her, too. She didn't have to fight ghosts every night, not if she could trust Danny - Phantom, surreal as that was - to help. She could study more, pull her grades up -
Only it was still too late for that, wasn't it?
Danny saw the stormcloud that rolled over her face.
"Val?" He asked nervously.
"I just wish you'd told me before - ugh." She dropped her face into her hands. Here she was still worried about her future, when she'd almost made sure he didn't have one. "Nevermind."
"Maybe I should have." He studied his shoes, the toes pointed together. "It feels good, actually. Telling someone on my own terms. You're taking it better than I expected, honestly."
"Really?" She looked up and raised an eyebrow. He grinned out the corner of his mouth.
"I don't see any ectoguns pointed at me, so…"
"Hey, I let Danielle go," she defended herself.
"Yeah, but Danielle didn't ruin your life," he muttered, hands fiddling with the ends of his long sleeves.
"You didn't ruin my life, Danny," she said, hoping he'd realize that she meant it. She almost wished she could still blame him, but she couldn't. Not when he looked like… this. Not just the fact that he was Danny Fenton, but that he looked as exhausted as she felt. He'd been dealing with problems as big as hers. If not bigger.
He scratched the back of his neck. "Still wish I could fix it."
That makes two of us. She looked up through the crosshatching of branches above them. If it weren't for the bitter wind biting through her sweater, too visceral for a dream, she'd still hardly accept that this was real. Danny, Phantom. She was going to have to sleep on that. And she'd thought the hardest revelation of the day was that she wouldn't be going to college.
"You know…" Danny finally broke the weighted silence. "It's not college, but I bet my parents wouldn't mind teaching you something about engineering and stuff. They love any chance to talk about their inventions."
"Really?" She looked to him in surprise. "You'd do that? After I-"
"Accidentally tried to kill me?" He shrugged, and his grin returned. "You're not the first, and I doubt you'll be the last."
She grimaced at that. "Seriously, Danny. You don't have to help me."
"I want to," he asserted, tucking his legs under him and leaning forward. "It might not all be my fault, but I could've done better. There were a lot of times I could've told you. Or at least I could've made things easier. I always had Sam and Tucker at least, but you - did you have anyone?"
That… wasn't where she'd expected he was going. She just shrugged. Her dad had known her secret before, but she'd convinced him that the new suit was someone else playing copycat. He worked in security; if he had any idea that she was still playing hero, he'd lock down her room so tight even a ghost couldn't break in.
"I handled it," she replied guardedly. It's not like she would have accepted Phantom's help before, even if he'd offered it. Still, it would have been nice to have a confidant, even if it was just to vent at the end of a long day. Someone she didn't have to lie to, someone who understood that what she did was necessary, that it was right - except when it wasn't. When she'd wanted to destroy Phantom. Danny.
...Maybe it was best that no one else knew that.
"You did," he finally nodded somberly. "You don't have to now, though. I mean - if you need someone - maybe I'm the last person you want to talk to, but, uh. I'm here." His confidence petered out, his eyes gluing back to his shoes.
I do want to talk to you, she didn't say. When was the last time she'd talked to anyone about anything that mattered? He was right; it did feel good. Somehow, in spite of what she now knew she'd done, it did.
"Thanks," she said quietly. Another word she hadn't said in a long time. "What about you? What are you going to do now?"
He ran a hand down his face. "That's what I've been asking myself. It's stupid - I should've planned for this years ago. Even if I did get into college somehow - possessed the head of admissions, I dunno - it's not like I could leave."
She squirmed at the mention of possession; he was just joking, right? His tone shifted so quickly between humor and despair.
"Why not?" She settled for asking.
He raised his eyebrows, like it was a stupid question. She supposed it was.
"Would you really leave, if you'd gotten in somewhere away from Amity?"
"No," she answered point-blank. She hadn't even applied anywhere farther than two hours away - less than that by hoverboard.
"Why not?" He pressed. He obviously knew her answer, but she said it anyway.
"Ghosts aren't going to move just because I do. Somebody has to keep this town from falling apart."
"Exactly." He smirked. It was uncanny, him wearing that smug expression she was so used to seeing on Phantom. "That's what I'm here for."
She rolled her eyes and shoved him. "Please, you can't handle all the ghosts on your own."
"...Probably not," he admitted, looking sheepish. "To be honest, Val… this is gonna sound bad, but I'm glad you're staying."
She frowned; it did sound bad. She wouldn't have wished that on him.
"I told you, I would've stayed anyway."
"You're right," he corrected while leaning back on the palms of his hands. "I guess I mean I'm glad you're staying the Huntress. Like, I can't say I like getting shot at, but you've made my job easier the rest of the time."
Alright, she could understand that. And she grudgingly admitted that her barely-passing grades were probably due to Phantom taking care of the attacks during school.
"You know… I'm glad too," she admitted. Maybe not glad she'd failed out of college before even getting in, but she did love being the Red Huntress. If it weren't for Phantom - for Danny - that never would've happened. She'd never know the thrill of flying faster than the wind, or the serenity of looking over the city at night. She would've grown up just like Paulina and Star - maybe not just like them, but staying in their shadows. The most excitement she'd know would be a senior A-lister party. The thought didn't sound even remotely appealing now.
In place of that flimsy life, she'd learned what it meant to work hard. To stand up for what was right - even if she'd been wrong about Phantom, she'd still done more harm than good. He'd told her that himself. Whatever the causes that had led her here, that wasn't something she could regret. A knot of tension slowly untangled in her chest.
She suddenly grinned, surprising Danny.
"Who needs college, anyway?" She shouted into the dark park. It was hard to let go of the direction she'd always assumed life would take her… but she'd done it before. She could do it again.
Danny jumped in surprise, then laughed. "You're right. Who wants four more years of school anyway? Besides, I've been to space once. Who knows, Technus could always try stealing a satellite again."
Right, she'd actually been there for that. Right up until he'd knocked her unconscious, anyway. Ironically, the memory made her feel a little better; he'd been pretty capable of sending back what she'd dished out. Either way, she didn't want to dwell on their past fights right now.
"See? Our lives aren't over," she said for herself as much as him. Her life wasn't over. Especially if he was serious about helping her work with his parents. She only wished she had a suggestion for him in return… she'd sleep on it and see what she could do.
"Speak for yourself," he said, but he was wearing a wry grin. Then he let himself flicker out of sight. She gasped for a second before rolling her eyes at the lame joke.
"Very funny, ghost boy." But she was smiling now too.
"It's good to see that again," he said, gesturing to her face. "You smiling and all. Usually you look ready to pummel someone." His eyes widened. "Uh, I mean…"
"Don't worry, I'm not going to be pummeling you anymore." She said it lightly - she didn't want to break this moment. Because he was right - it had been forever since she'd smiled.
"Good. Not that I'd let you," he added, pointing a finger in mock seriousness. She just laughed, something else she hadn't done in forever. But sitting here with him, breathing in the crisp winter air…
She had the feeling that that could finally change.
A/N: I'm pretty sure the editing on this chapter took twice as long as writing the fic itself, but I'm proud of it! I hope you enjoyed this conclusion!