Jack flew through the air. He'd checked a number of mountain ranges, the South Pole and so on. Jack decided to check the mountain he'd last seen Danny on. He had at first thought that Danny wouldn't be there but as he got closer he saw the black hair, black jacket and blue jeans of the Spirit of Fear through the blinding whiteness of the mountain range. He landed behind Danny. Jack sat next to Danny and waited for the other teen to notice him. Danny tore his gaze from the horizon and glanced at Jack. He smirked before turning back to the view.
"I see that you're not afraid of me now," he commented. Jack nodded.
"I think I understand what you do now. You don't scare kids, you help them get over their fears, don't you?" Jack announced. Danny blinked in surprise and turned to Jack. Danny smiled and nodded.
"In one Jack," Danny confirmed. Jack smirked.
He recalled the little boy Danny had frightened a few nights ago.
"So that boy you scared by kicking the can. How was that helping him?" Jack ventured. Danny glanced at Jack and sighed.
"That would be Stephen. Been working with him for a long time now. The kid's afraid of everything. I thought I'd helped him get over his fears of the dark. But obviously I haven't, not yet, at least," Danny explained. Jack nodded slowly.
"I only scare kids if they deserve it Jack. I do scare bullies. I've even frightened a few adults asking for it. But I don't scare anyone without a reason first," Danny added.
"So why are you out here? I know you said you're on vacation but that's not it is it?" Jack asked. Danny shook his head.
"I'm here because Pitch told me to stay out of his way," Danny revealed. Jack scowled with confusion.
"But I thought you don't work with others," Jack pointed out. Danny glared angrily at Jack, his blue and green eyes flashing brightly.
"I don't have a choice right now. Pitch gave me a deal I couldn't refuse," Danny growled. Jack blinked in surprise.
"He threatened you," Jack realised. Danny's anger melted away and he nodded.
"Yeah, guess you could say that," Danny replied. Jack got to his feet.
"The guardians can protect you. But we need your help to get Pitch. He's making kids stop believing. We have to stop him and we can't do that without you," Jack offered. Danny shook his head.
"You don't understand. I can't get involved. That's the deal me and Pitch made," Danny retorted.
Jack crouched down beside Danny. He wasn't giving up.
"I'm curious though. How did you find out what I do? Because you don't fear me at all, which means you weren't told. You figured it out," Danny interjected before Jack could resume his badly planned pep-talk.
"Oh, I went to warn Jamie about Pitch and he told me that Diana is in hospital. It came out that her mom beat her," Jack answered. Danny stiffened.
"In the hospital! What happened?!" Danny exclaimed, twisting to face Jack. His eyes burning brightly with concern. Jack leant back in surprise, stunned by the change in Danny. A second ago Danny was closed off but now he was clearly worried. It was a side of Danny Jack hadn't seen before.
"It happened last night according to Jamie. She went home and she passed out the next day at school from blood loss. They think she got hurt when her mother threw a bottle at her or something. Jamie didn't know the details," Jack recalled. Danny scrambled to his feet. Jack accidently fell to the ground as he shuffled out of the way. Danny stomped away from the cliff edge. He glanced at the remains of a shattered ice statue and growled angrily under his breath.
"A promise is a promise," he snarled.
"Wait, what?! What are you doing?" Jack called and struggled to his feet. Danny turned to Jack.
"I've told you and Pitch that I don't listen to higher powers. I told Pitch if I found out that a single child was harmed because I wasn't there, he'd find out why the name Danny Phantom was feared throughout the Ghost Zone. I follow through with my threats," Danny answered before vanishing in a puff of green smoke. Jack blinked with shock at the spot Danny had been moments ago. Did that mean Danny was going to help the guardians now or was he going to get this Danny Phantom to help them? Either way, Jack couldn't help the small smirk of triumph. Finally, the Spirit of Fear was in play in this battle.
And Pitch's deal is broken. So, not much else to say…
Let me know what you think.
Until the next chapter.