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Chelsea had much to offer if you were one of particularly flamboyant tastes, which I was not. Thus, I ended up flying to another part of the city in search of a quiet library, wanting to find a silent place where I could just think. I was sure Daniel would show me around Chelsea anyways, so I didn't want to ruin any surprises.

I found a relatively small library about three miles from Daniel's old college. It wasn't the most elaborate place, but it was quiet enough where I could relax by myself, allowing me to fall into a secluded arm chair and wonder just what the hell I was doing.

I had at date with Daniel. There was no use beating around the bush. It wasn't just some walk to catch up some more. Daniel obviously wanted to spend time with me. He could have easily told me to go home, but instead he asked me to meet him at the end of his shift.

I wasn't quite sure how I felt about that. Well, no, I do know how I feel about it, but I suppose I'm not quite sure why I feel so okay with that. I dare say I'm even happy that he wants to spend time with me. It's certainly a reassuring thought. I'd thought I'd been downright crazy, searching him out in New York as I have, but it seems Daniel has wanted to see me as well. Perhaps I should have come to visit him sooner?

I debated staying in New York for a few extra days. It's not like my companies would collapse without me, and I'm sure Daniel can direct me to a better hotel. But perhaps I am getting ahead of myself. He's simply asked me to share a coffee with him, not impose upon his life.

I shook my head, resuming my search through the non-fiction section and finding something to keep me preoccupied for the next three hours. It was a surprisingly difficult task, considering my own patience. I couldn't stop myself from glancing at the clock, not even modern philosophy being able to capture my attention. Time seemed to be going ridiculously slow.

I was sorely tempted to leave the library early, but I didn't want to arrive at Harvey's Eden before Daniel's shift was up. Thus, I forced myself to read through anything and everything that caught my eye, usually reading less than a paragraph before moving on to the next book. This repetitive process must have carried on for ages before I glanced at the clock for what seemed like the hundredth time, finally reading five till twelve. Perfect.

Unfortunately, I seemed to have flown a little fast on the way back. The wind sheer must have been blowing in my direction. I ended up arriving at Harvey's Eden just as Daniel was exiting through the front door, calling back to his boss about something with a laugh.

I stood about half a building away, hidden by a veil of invisibility. His work apron was gone, leaving him in the plain white, V-neck shirt with a light brown jacket and scarf. He stuffed his hands into the jacket pockets, shivering a bit and looking up and down the streets for me with an almost worried expression, as if he wasn't sure I'd show up. My pride couldn't help but swell up a bit at that. For once, he was the one baiting on my attention. I waited a few more moments, watching him shuffle his feet a bit with a growing frown before I decided it was time to show up.

"Daniel!" I called, loosing the invisibility and raising a hand to him.

He turned to look at me and a relieved smile broke out on his face, walking down the sidewalk to meet me.

"I didn't think you'd show." He rose an eye brow slightly.

"Well that wouldn't be very gentlemanly of me, now would it?"

"Never stopped you before." He smirked.

"It's in the past dear boy. Surly you aren't holding any grudges against me, hmm?"

"Oh no," He shook his head, "I've learned enough from you that grudges aren't the way to get what I want."

"Oh? And what is it that you want, Daniel?"

"Wha-um, nothing, I was just...speaking generally, you know, like, uh..."

"Articulate as ever, aren't you?"

"Shut up Vlad."

We walked at a steady pace down the sidewalk, side by side. A tolerable amount of people were walking as well, presumably taking a Sunday stroll. The chilly wind blew lightly, and Daniel drew his jacket tight over his shoulders, shivering slightly. He spoke animatedly of the small coffee shop he was leading me to, swearing up and down that it was the best coffee on earth, even to my "stuck up taste buds."

"I don't know, little badger. You'd be hard pressed to find a coffee that meets my standards, even if it is imported."

"Well trust me, this stuff is great." He clutched his warm, steaming cup after passing a few dollars to the cashier, taking a small sip.

"I'll take your word for it then." I muttered, trying a bit as well.

As predicted, it was horrible. However, I didn't want to crush Danny's hopeful expression and thus forced a pleased smile on my face, taking a second drink for good measure.

"Mmm, very good."

"Your lying." He smirked, taking another drink of his own cup.

"What makes you think that?" I asked, a little surprised that he figured it out so quickly. He gave me a look.

"Come on Vlad, I've known you for years."

"Well so has my secretary, but she still can't tell when I'm lying two inches from her face."

"People don't know you like I do." He shrugged helplessly, blowing on the hot drink.

I didn't have a reply to that, blinking at him with a pondering expression before shrugging the thoughts away. Daniel had a point, he did know me better than most-if not all-people.

"Well since there's no point in trying to hide it." I began, reaching over to a trash can.

"Hey, I paid two whole bucks for that." He said as I dumped the black drink into the trash.

"It was the thought that counts, dear boy."

"Thanks Vlad." he replied flatly, taking another drink.

He led me through the small town of Chelsea, occasionally pointing out a building here or a telling me a small, sentimental story there. I listened with an open ear, honestly enjoying myself. We came to a little park set within the town, following the trail at an easy pace and eventually taking a small rest at a park bench. I sat back on the comfortable seat, resting my arm along the back of the bench. Danny sat beside me, leaning on his knees and staring out at the grassy park.

"So, how are things back home?" he asked, finally throwing the empty coffee cup away.

"Amity Park is doing well enough. Your parents and Valarie are both taking care of rouge ghosts just as well as you did. I heard they've even become something of partners."

"Valarie? And my parents?" He asked, disbelieving.

"Mhmm. I'm not sure how they discovered 'The Red Huntress' identity, but they seem to be working together now. Good thing too. Valarie was running herself ragged, according to her father."

"He works for you, I assume?"

"He's the head of Axion Labs, a laboratory I bought out some years ago."

"Mmm," he nodded, an almost curious look coming into his eye at his next question, "Have you heard from my parents?"

"Besides the occasional card from Jack, no. But I did hear they've recently received a new grant from the GIW."

"Wonderful." he rolled his eyes, "Christmas will be a blast."

We sat in silence for a moment, wrapped up in our own thoughts. After a moments hesitation, I spoke them aloud, questioning something that had been bugging me for a while now.

"Why don't you tell your parents about your ghost half?"

Danny didn't answer right away, staring out at the park with a thoughtful expression.

"I dunno." he sighed, sitting straight and leaning back against the bench, and inadvertently, my arm, but he paid no notice of it. "It's been so long that telling them now would feel a little pointless. I mean, I've had these powers for almost ten years..."

He looked a little troubled by that, as though just realizing how long he'd actually had them. He frowned to himself, eye brows creasing in thought.

"Maybe I should tell them..." he murmured, but soon pushed his thoughts away with a shrug, deciding to move on to a new subject as his usual oh-so-subtle subject change.

"So I've heard about Amity and my parents, but how have you been? Besides the usual nefarious plots, I mean."

"Actually," I began smartly, "I don't believe I've plotted anything 'nefarious' in over a year. Unless you count tax evasions."

"Really?" he raised an eyebrow, "I suppose in light of your more serious offenses, we can ignore the tax evasions. But no evil schemes? I'm impressed Vladdie. Finally kicked the habit, have you?"

"Oh, I have my moments." I grinned, "But as a whole, I do believe you're right. It seems Amity just isn't worth my time with you gone."

"I'm touched." he flashed me a smarmy grin.

"You should be. So tell me Daniel, what sparked all of this?" I questioned, waving an arm at our surroundings. He understood what I meant.

"When I came to New York I actually ended up on the wrong train and it took me here instead of Manhattan." he laughed, and I chuckled with him.

"My first thought was, "Where the hell am I?" Even better, I happened to be on the last train of the night, which meant I was stuck. My first night in the big city was spent completely lost and wandering around the streets, something I don't recommend doing."

"I would say not."

"Luckily, though, I met Lisa, the owner of Harvey's Eden, although it hadn't been established at the time. She found me tripping over my own two feet and quickly dragged me to the nearest hotel, giving me an earful about the dangers of being out after dark."

"By the next morning, everything didn't look so terrifying and I decided to make the most of my time and at least take a look at this part of town. As cliché as it sounds, I fell in love with it instantly. Everyone was just so happy and free. As I walked down the streets I got the impression that I would fit in just fine here, and I was right."

"So, I looked around some more and found a decent college, where, it turns out, Lisa worked part time at. It was a liberal arts college, and I figured my astronaut dreams were shot anyways so I decided to enroll. The tuition was reasonable and Chelsea was a short flight away, so I was happy. Spent my senior year helping Lisa get Harvey's Eden started, and she gave me my first and so far only job when I graduated. Moved into a little apartment near the bookstore-slash-night club and I've been there ever since." He finished, a content sigh matching his light smile.

"Seems like you've found your place, little badger."

"Yeah, I think I have. Chelsea is just what I needed after high school in Amity Park. It's funny," he chuckled, "I came to New York hoping I could better blend in with the crowd, you know? But then I end up here, sin-"

He stopped, quickly shutting his mouth and staring pointedly away from me.

"It's too late Daniel. I know all about your weekend job at the book store." I smirked, quickly grinning at the blush that spread to his face.

"So ah, you were there for that too, huh?"

"Mhmm. And I must say, you are quite the talented singer, Daniel."

His blush darkened and he mumbled out a pleased 'thank you,' rubbing the back of his neck nervously, a habit he's always had.

"I know it seems kinda out there for me," He began suddenly, under the impression that he needed to explain himself.

"No need, Daniel. I was just a little surprised at first because you've never struck me as one to seek attention. And you were attracting a lot of attention last night."

"Yeah." he shrugged, a hint of a smile on his face "I can't really explain it, but it's a totally different type of attention than Danny Phantom ever got. I can sing up on stage and people will cheer for me because it's me. I don't have to fight to earn gratitude or appreciation anymore. I can just help out here or preform there and people are always happy to see me."

I smiled without even realizing it, enjoying the happiness in his face. He really was much better off here than in Amity Park.

"What about your friends? Do you see much of them?" I asked curiously.

"Who? Sam and Tucker? Yeah, I still see them. Not as often as I'd like, of course, but they visit me when they can. Tucker's got web cams set up too, so I can always talk to them through the computer whenever I want."

He was quiet for a moment.

"Tucker's getting married, you know."

"Is he?" I blinked, the sudden realization that Daniel wasn't fourteen anymore inexplicably hitting me. But usually the announcement of marriage tends to do that.

"I'm not sure who his fiancée is. Heck, I've only met her, like, twice. But he seems very happy, they both do." he trailed off, and I thought I detected just a bit of wistfulness in his voice.

"What about your other friend? Sam, was it?" I asked softly. I remember the two of them had briefly dated during high school, but Danny had broken it off for some reason.

"Oh, she's probably leading some revolt in the underground culture of America." he smirked. "She's not the type to settle down."

"Ah. Yes, she never did strike me as the type to conform to any traditional expectations, even marriage."

Danny nodded. I hesitated, curious about something but not sure if it would be awkward or not to ask. However, my curiosity took over in the end, and I couldn't help but voice my question, hoping I sounded casual enough.

"So are you seeing anyone then?"

"Nah. I mean, there was this...this one guy." His blush was absolutely flaming now, but he continued on in an impressively light tone, "But it didn't work out."

"Ah. Well I'm sorry to hear that, little badger." I said, hoping I sounded sympathetic enough because truthfully, I wasn't that sorry.

"Don't be. He was kind of a jerk." he shrugged.

An easy silence rested between us, our own individual thoughts drifting. Danny sighed quietly, leaning back in the bench again and up against my arm. People passed us slowly, chattering amongst themselves with smiles and laughs. The sun was starting to slip behind the skyscrapers, and cold wind was still blowing through the park, nipping at our revealed skin. I felt Danny shiver for what must have been the hundredth time and looked down at him in slight concern.

"Are you cold?"

"A little. I probably should have brought a warmer jacket." he winced sheepishly.

"Well come here then. I'm not going to bite." I frowned, resting a hand on his shoulder.

Danny blinked in surprise for a moment and then smiled graciously, scooting closer and leaning against me as I draped my arm over his smaller form.

"Thanks." he said, a light tinge on his cheeks, although I wasn't sure if that was a blush or the cold.

"Any time, little badger."

I don't know how long we sat there, enjoying each other's company. I'm not sorry to say that I sorely wished the night wouldn't come, not relishing the thought of returning to my hectic companies. Things were much quieter here, ironically enough, and much more pleasant. Danny yawned a few times, snuggling a little closer and shivering slightly when a colder wind blew through the park, the setting sun offering little heat.

However, despite the approaching night, neither of us made a move to get up. Danny would occasionally start up a conversation, or I might ask a few questions here and there, but the subject of my departure never happened to come up. At least not until there was no putting it off any longer.

"Vlad?"

"Hmm?"

"Are...are you staying long, or are you going back to Wisconsin tonight?"

"Well..." I trailed off, deciding to make my indecision public. "I'm not really sure, to be honest with you. I suppose I could leave tonight, but my companies would be fine without me for at least a few days."

"Really?" he shifted his head, looking up at me.

"Would you like me to stay, Daniel?" I smiled, raising an eye brow.

"Uh, if you want to, and you know, if it's not too much trouble then yeah, I wouldn't mind." he looked back out to the park sheepishly, his own smile resting on red, wind chilled lips.

"I haven't exactly made any arrangements to stay. Do you know of a nearby hotel?"

"Well...um...," He sat up slowly, ringing his hands nervously yet still trying to keep his voice light, despite the clear blush rising up on his face. "I have room in my apartment, if you'd like to stay there."

"You wouldn't mind? I don't mean to impose." I started, flattered at his offer, and, admittedly, a little pleased.

"No, no, it'd be fine." he said, waving his hands. "I have plenty of room."

Maybe I should have taken the time to think ahead, to wonder what possibilities were arising with my answer, but truthfully, I was just happy that Danny was willingly opening his doors to me, something I couldn't have hoped for even in my wildest dreams. Besides, it was either stay with him or find a strange, new hotel to settle in at. Personally, I thought I would enjoy staying with Daniel more anyways.

Needless to say, I wasn't to be wrong.