A/N: So, this is a short chapter. Apologies for that. But I hope that I'll get the last chapter and the epilogue up soon. I have a lot of new DP crossover ideas in the works, so I'm getting anxious to finish up all my works in progress so I can start publishing those. I hope you'll like them. Also, I promise that I'm working on Summoned. My well of inspiration for that story only has half a foot of water in it right now, but I will not abandon the project, no matter how long the hiatus may end up being or how many things are getting published in the meantime.

So This Love Triangle/Rectangle Was Really Just a Line?

Danny

In my nightmare, I was wrapped in the tentacles of an ectopus made out of lava. The heat was unbearable and I could feel my skin start to blister. I thrashed in my sleep, desperate to escape the monster, and woke myself up. But the uncomfortable heat was still there. I sat up, careful not to disturb Windy and searched for the source. It didn't take me long to find it, and my efforts to not wake Windy were wasted because I was suddenly shaking her shoulder and screaming at her to do just that.

She sat bolt upright and her eyes roved wildly around, looking for the source of concern. She saw the same thing I had: pink fire was crawling slowly around the walls of the apartment. It was hottest near the door, so that escape was out. The window that led to the fire escape was also a bust because a certain fanged fruitloop of a ghost was hovering there, grinning evilly.

"Plasmius," I growled.

"Ah, Daniel. Good to see you again. Your presence is an unexpected wrinkle, but one I can work around," he greeted pleasantly.

"Wait, unexpected? So you didn't come here for me?" I asked incredulously.

"Not this time, my boy. While you are certainly a valuable target for my schemes, she is an even more precious creature," he chuckled, actually licking his lips with a forked tongue while gesturing at Windy. Eww.

I stepped in front of Windy, holding one of her hands. I put on my most defiant expression and kept Vlad talking while I looked for a way out.

"Windy? She's a regular human. An awesome one, but still. What do you want with her?"

"Oh, little badger. You have no idea what you are protecting. She's no ordinary human, but something far more rare, something entirely unique in all history. Would you like to tell him, or should I?" he asked in a saccharine voice.

Windy bit her lip, looking unsure, and more than a bit afraid. She looked at me with such sad eyes. Her face contorted as she was struggling with indecision. She wanted to tell me, but she also seemed reluctant to. What secret was so terrible, so important, that she felt like she had to keep it from me? I thought we were close. Well, not as close as she and Phantom had been, but still. The flames were starting to get worryingly high. I understood that this was a life-altering moment for her, but time was running short and she needed to hurry up a bit if she didn't want us both fried crispy style. She lowered her gaze to the floor, biting her lip. She closed her eyes and took a shuddering breath. It looked like she had decided to tell me whatever it was.

"Danny, there's something I've been keeping from you. I'm sorry, but I didn't think you'd understand. I- I'm so, so sorry," she sighed. "It's easier to show than tell, so... here goes."

She stepped away from me, closer to Plasmius, to danger. I reached out a hand to draw her back, but with a flash of orange light and a set of rings whooshing from her waist to her extremities, she transformed into someone familiar. Tempest. Once I got over the surprise, I felt so freaking stupid. Both runaways. Never seen together. Both with overbearing dads. Both with weather names. How had I not seen it sooner? But that meant... that we had just been dating each other normally, and there had never been a choice between her and Windy. No love triangle. Weird. My life was never that simple. Maybe that was why I hadn't expected this.

Her guilty golden eyes found mine and she looked so remorseful, but also nervous, like she was afraid I'd freak out or tell her to get lost. I almost laughed out loud. She was apparently the only ghost in existence who had no idea exactly how much I understood where she was coming from.

"Tempest is the only human-ghost hybrid that was born, not made. Perhaps the most scientifically interesting specimen I have ever encountered," Vlad purred. "So, not to burst your bubble, but this isn't about you. I came for her."

That was interesting. The implications were more than a little staggering. I'd have to ask her about it later. But for now, I had evil half-ghost butt to kick and a beautiful girl to help save. I mean, Tempest could handle herself really well, but Vlad was a tough opponent. She was going to need an assist on this one.

While we were having our silent staring contest thing, the fire had moved on from the tacky wallpaper and was devouring some of the stained carpet. Her secret was out, and mine should logically follow. It was only fair, and there was no time like the present.

"Windy? I forgive you. And I'm sorry, too," I said.

"For what, Danny?"

"For keeping secrets of my own. Going ghost!" I shouted, and the familiar rings of white light changed me into my ghost half.

If it hadn't been such a tense moment, her bugged-out eyes and gaping expression of complete surprise would have been comical. With her secret, I was honestly surprised she hadn't figured it out sooner. Then again, neither had I, so...

"I- But you- and we..." she stammered.

"Yep."

"Wow. My love life just got a whole lot less complicated than I thought," she smiled.

I couldn't help but laugh out loud, but Plasmius wasn't going to be ignored.

"Yes, we get it, you're both utterly clueless," he snapped with a roll of his eyes. "Now can we get on with me framing the protestors for the untimely death of Miss Pells? I do not have all night, and neither does this apartment."

"What protestors?" we asked in unison.

"The ones who are against ghost-human relationships. They formed a loose organization not long after the news about you two came out. It was only a matter of time before such a hate group went to extremes, like, say, burning down a teenage girl's apartment with her in it," he sneered. "Since you're here as well, Daniel, I get two birds with one stone. I can make you both disappear with no questions asked because people will think they already know the tragic story."

"You're a seriously crazed-up fruitloop. You know that, right?" I checked.

"No, what I am is a very lucky man that none of the other ghosts monitor human communications. Otherwise, they would have found you first, even without ghost sense to aid them in your human form. Now, will you cooperate or are you going to be difficult about this?" he inquired.

Tempest and I exchanged a look, then manic smiles. "Difficult," we chorused.

We punctuated that statement by punching Vlad in the face at the same time. It was a hard fight, especially since my ice core did not jive with the flames eating up the walls. They did not respond to my attempts to extinguish them with ice. Stupid persistent ecto-fire. Plasmius had years on both of us, but we had him outnumbered, and therefore out-maneuvered as long as we didn't give him a chance to duplicate.

We tag teamed with her weather powers and mine, along with shields and ghost rays. Between the two of us, we managed to send him running, hissing about revenge. The apartment was beyond saving, and we just managed to grab our stuff, evacuate the building, and escape before the entire place was consumed by flames. We looked at each other on the street below, changing back to human form at the same time in the shadows. Then I held a crying Windy as she watched her home burn. There was time for explanations later. Right now, we just basked in the fact that we had faced a powerful bad guy and survived, and let it soften the loss of this safe space the slightest bit.

That was how the fire department found us, embracing, soot-covered, and completely exhausted. Together.

My parents were called, obviously, and they came to pick us up from the police station. We'd worked out our story already. Plasmius had already given us most of it. I had been staying over because her parents were out of town and the threats had been getting scary. We had woken up to a note about unholy unions painted on the wall in green and fire everywhere. Our respective ghost exes had showed up to investigate the fire and saved everyone. Witnesses backed that part of the statement up.

I explained to Mom and Dad that Windy's parents couldn't be reached and asked if she could stay with us. They agreed. I think they were mostly glad we'd given up on dating ghosts. The story we told was that we had gotten really close while facing all the prejudice together and had fallen in love. Our ghosts took it really well and actually hit it off together, so everyone was happy, other than the part where Windy lost her home.

Windy was supposed to sleep on an air mattress in Jazz's room, but she snuck away in the early morning hours to slip into my room. Without needing to speak, we understood each other. I moved over and she curled into my side. It was the safest either of us had felt in weeks.

We walked into school the next day with heads held high, hands intertwined. She was wearing one of my shirts because all of her clothes had needed washing and I was closer to her size than Jazz. We had been holding hands since the insanity began, but this was different. We weren't facing a common threat, but we were together. Like, together together. People probably noticed, were probably talking about it and the fire last night, but neither of us noticed. We couldn't stop smiling at each other. We had finally found someone who understood what it was like to be us. A half-ghost teenager trying to live their life and keep people safe. It was like it was meant to be.

Not like either of us cared about popularity, but the same kids who had been sneering at us last week had latched onto our story and we surpassed Paulina and Dash as the school's favorite power couple. As Tucker put it, we blew every other OTP out of the water. I was a geek, but not as much of a fanboy as him, so I didn't quite get it, but I took it to be a good thing.

We spent a lot of time together. It was unavoidable since she lived with me. We hung out with Sam and Tucker, rotated through ghost patrol to give each other time to do homework and ensure that someone was always home to cover with my parents, and actually got to go on a few dates that didn't get ruined by ghosts. It was the happiest I'd been in a long time. I had a girlfriend who knew me better than anyone other than Tucker and Sam, got healthy amounts of sleep, and was no longer the object of ridicule at school.

Of course, it didn't last.

I may never stop blaming myself for how everything turned out. I miss Windy fiercely.

Maybe I always will.

Here's a sign off or whatever,

Danny