A/N: This is probably my favorite chapter of this story because you're finally going to get some answers. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Disclaimed.

…Casper High…

Mr. Lancer, who'd been promoted to principal the previous year, called the meeting to order. He began the meeting with the usual 'Welcome Back' and started with the reminders about school policy.

He looked up from his prepared speech only when the cafeteria door opened hesitantly to admit a tall young teacher with light brown hair and dark circles under his downcast eyes.

"Glad you could join us, Ben," he greeted, but he wanted to ask where the choir instructor's brother-in-law was, though he refrained. More than likely, Danny was fighting a ghost, so he returned to the meeting, hoping the newest member of the staff would show up later. He remembered the interview well; Danny had been so nervous and excited it was hard not to.

…Flashback…

Mr. Lancer looked at his watch: 3:00, "Send him in, Angela."

The principal watched as the bearded young alumnus timidly opened his door.

"Why are you so hesitant, Daniel? You've been here before," he greeted his former student.

"Exactly," he smiled, sheepishly. Lancer chuckled.

"Sit down, please," he pointed to a chair.

"Thanks for meeting with me, Mr. Lancer. I know with my track record, this is probably the last place I should be looking for work, but…" he trailed off, looking around nostalgically.

"Mr. Fenton, with your 'track record,' you probably have a better chance of getting a job here," the balding principal retorted. When the young man only looked baffled, he added, "Very few teachers can fight off ghosts as quickly as you do and if they can, they don't care for the students."

A look of understanding washed over Danny's face at the explanation.

"Now, your resumé speaks for itself," Lancer told him encouragingly, "but there is one thing that I would like to know."

Danny nodded.

"Why did you give up your dream of becoming an astronaut?"

Danny smiled and responded truthfully, "I didn't give up my dreams, sir, they just changed."

He nodded, satisfied with the answer and continued the interview.

… End Flashback…present day, after meeting…

"Ben, hold up," the principal requested, not looking up from the paperwork on his table.

Mr. Strawls walked up to the table and waited until his boss spoke again.

"Was there a ghost attack?" he asked, referring to the absent teacher.

Ben looked down and spoke quietly, "No…heart attack."

Will stopped mid-signature and stared dazedly at the younger man.

"He's in the hospital…They don't know when he'll wake up," he finished, taking the principal's look to mean that he should continue.

"He's in a coma?" Will asked, horrified. His mind flitted to all the tragedies he'd read before he cleared himself of those thoughts. I really need to read more comedies.

"Yeah," Ben confirmed, sadly.

…Across town…

"Jackie? Could you turn on the news? I don't like this lull in ghost activity; I want to see what the professionals think," a middle-aged woman with light brown hair requested.

The woman's sixteen-year old daughter, a girl with sandy-blonde hair cut short, complied.

"That's right, Terrie, the last time the ghosts were this scarce, there was a major attack. The problem is, the ghost hunters, and Danny Phantom, are just as elusive. Though, I suppose we must forgive the Fentons; no one should have to go through what they're dealing with right now," Lance Thunder agreed.

"And that brings us to our next report: Danny Fenton was rushed to the hospital early this morning after a severe heart attack left him unconscious. Sources say that Mr. Fenton has slipped into a coma. The young man has been described as one of Amity Park's finest citizens and was to have started his first year as the chemistry teacher at Casper High. It is unknown if or when he will wake, but our hearts go out to him and his family. In other news…" Terrie reported, but after that, Jackie wasn't listening.

The news report had shown Danny's picture as Terrie recounted the morning's events, and Jackie had recognized him instantly, but not as her would-be chemistry teacher.

…six years earlier…

"Mom! Look what I can do!" ten-year-old Jackie Arnold exclaimed, performing a wheelie. She laughed as, after riding a few feet on one wheel, she landed back on two.

"That's great, Honey! I'm gonna go inside and make some lemonade, alright? I'll be back out in a minute," her mom told her, smiling.

"Okay!" Jackie waved, then went back to riding. As she played, practicing her tricks, three teens came down the sidewalk, talking about the latest ghost attack. Distracted, the little girl wobbled, lost her balance, then fell, scraping her left knee. She cried.

Startled, Danny ran forward, "Jackie, are you okay?"

"I'm never riding a bike again!" she yelled, crying.

"Oh, now, you don't mean that," he soothed. "How 'bout we fix up that knee? Then you can get right back on."

He rummaged through his pockets and produced a box of band-aids.

"I'm not getting back on. It's evil!" the little girl vowed, sniffing away the last of her tears as he applied the bandage.

"I don't know about that, maybe it's a ghost," Danny suggested, winking at his friends. "And I've got a Fenton Thermos for ghosts."

His friends smiled, and stifled laughter when he pointed the thermos at the bike and threw his voice in a squeaky proclamation of, "NO!"

Sam's smile changed, however, and anyone who saw her would have known that she had fallen those last few feet and into love with him.

"Now why don't you try getting back on? It should be just as fun as it was before that mean ghost attacked," the bearded teen smiled.

"Thank you!" she exclaimed, hugging him. Danny's eyes widened a moment before he returned the hug.

"Dude, what are you, her father? It's not even Christmas ye-" Tucker burst into laughter mid-word, confusing Sam. "DUDE! Hahahaha! No way! You're an old man! Hahahaha!"

Tucker doubled over, wheezing with mirth, Danny is Santa Claus! This is too good! Sam rolled her eyes at her friend's unexpected fit of laughter.

"So how did you know that girl, Danny?" she wondered aloud.

The halfa froze, but evaded the question, "Uh, heh, what do you mean, Sam?"

"Well, you knew her name…" she trailed off, waiting for the explanation that would never come.

"I did?" he asked and then added under his breath, "Oops."

The techno-geek was sent into a fresh peel of laughter, having heard the after-thought.

…present day, hospital…

Tucker chuckled as he recounted how he'd figured it out, "I connected 'father' and 'Christmas' and there it was! You know he said, 'Oops' when you asked about how he knew the little girl?"

Sam laughed, she remembered that day pretty well herself, "No, but that does sound just like him."

She flinched, "Okay, no more making me laugh; even with the stupid pain-killers, it hurts."

"Don't worry, mine's the funniest, everyone else's are more emotional," he assured her, concerned that her burn was so severe. It hadn't seemed so bad when she'd come out of the Specter Speeder.

She sighed, "I hope he wakes up soon."

Tucker shook his head sadly, "I don't. If he wakes up now, he'll go right back into battle."

"Don't we know it," Sam joked, referring to all the battles when they were younger. She understood exactly where Tucker was coming from, but that didn't make her miss her fiancé any less.

…

A/N: Originally, this chapter was going to be longer, but I decided to split it up, along with a few others to make the story flow better. With that said, what did you think? Did Lancer's reaction to Danny's coma fit? Did the flashback to the interview explain a few things? What did you think of Tucker's story? And his and Sam's conversation after? Tell me in a review, and as alwaysALOHA!