Dizgirl: IT'S DONE! (collapses onto the floor) My goodness this one gave me trouble! And it's not even the first one I tried to do! The first DT10 flopped on me and I couldn't finish it. So, you get this one instead. Please tell me whatchya think. Enjoy and love!

You Don't Want to Be a Ghost

Danny leaned against the railing guarding the edge of his home's rooftop and watched the street below. A breeze drifted across him, cool and refreshing, but he couldn't concentrate on the beautiful day around him. Instead he stared down at his neighbor's house, a torrent of emotions roiling within his mind.

This made number three. The third house to adorn that white post and then replace it with a bright red "SOLD" sign. The third house to be crowded with boxes and vans and a chatter of commotion. The third family to move on his street. Oh sure, they each had their reasons—a new job, a place closer to family, a change of scenery—but he knew the real reason. He knew why they left one by one.

It was because of him.

Danny buried his head in his arms, unwilling to stare at the empty house below. Soon a new family would move in but it didn't really matter. They'd probably move again soon enough. He could just imagine the grins on the real estate agencies around town as people all over were packing up and moving out. And all because of him.

Jazz of course would disagree with him on this point, she had only told him so a thousand times in the past few months. But even his ever optimistic sister couldn't ignore the fact that people were coming and leaving in waves as people came to gawk at the "Savior of the World" and then decide it was too dangerous to live near a half-human/half-ghost kid and the destruction that followed him.

Danny frowned before straightening up and turning around, his back now to the street. He sighed, leaned against the rail, and stared up at the towering Fentonworks Ops Center. He had hoped that exposing who he was after avoiding the Disasteroid would make life easier for him. It had felt right to finally show his parents and all those who worked with him to save the world the truth. He just hadn't completely thought through what it would mean. He wasn't just telling a few people who he had come to trust, but the whole world.

And the world wasn't so understanding.

Oh sure, there were nice people out there who were friendly to him or admired him (some a little too much for his taste) but it was amazing how quickly that friendship and admiration could change to suspicion and fear when the memory of the Disasteroid was pushed behind an outbreak of ghosts attacks and the Guys In White's public service announcements warning against trusting ghosts (they failed to distinguish between him and the one's attacking, but when had they ever been on his side?)

But that was hardly the worst of it. He could handle the constantly changing opinions and pestering questions of the public—they had done it before his big reveal and he had managed just fine. No, it wasn't the world's fickleness that drove him to the rooftop for hours at a time or kept him patrolling for ghosts late into the night. It was his parents.

Danny squeezed his eyes shut against the resentment and hurt that swelled within him. When he had shown that Phantom and Fenton were one and the same they had both accepted it with wide grins and big hugs. He had never felt such relief! His parents didn't care that he was half-ghost! The next few weeks were full of questions and discussions as they asked him about what it was like to be a halfa and why he had kept it from them. He was ecstatic to welcome them into the side of his life he had hid for so long and they seemed equally excited to finally understand.

Yet the excitement hadn't lasted. Now…things had changed.

A low beeping came from his wrist and Danny glanced down at the green light blinking on his watch. Speaking of his parents... With another sigh, Danny pushed off the railing and dropped through the roof. He landed in the upstairs hallway without a sound. Immediately the lights above his head flickered three times. He stared up at them, his eyes narrowing, but after a few seconds he turned away.

Danny trudged down the stairs, sending a brief glare as the living room's lamps also triple-blinked before resuming their usual glow. Not seeing or hearing his parents, he headed for the basement. He swiftly crossed the kitchen, not letting the lights the chance to fully complete the same ritual as the other two rooms before he was already on the staircase.

"Mom? Dad?" he called out.

"Down in the lab," his mother's voice answered him. He followed the sound and looked to the right when he entered the basement, seeing her sitting on a stool in front of a computer display. She typed a few keys and then stared intently at one of the screens.

Without glancing at him, she asked, "So the watch works?"

"Yeah," Danny walked to her side, adding under his breath, "so do the Fenton Flickers."

"Good…" his mother replied distractingly. "Once we've finished the test run, they'll be ready for mass production." Danny made a face his mother didn't see.

"Great," he said sarcastically. "Soon the lights will be blinking in every place I go."

"Danny, we've talked about this," Maddie shook her head, writing something down on a notepad in her lap. "The Fenton Flickers are the best ghost detector system we could think of that wasn't too noisy and didn't attack ghosts. You should be grateful I convinced your dad not to sell the Fenton Emergency System to the general public."

"Yeah yeah," he muttered. He sighed again, digging his hands into his pockets. "So what did you want?" Maddie, her gaze firmly on her notepad, tapped one of the screens with her pen.

"The ghost scanner picked up two ghost energies downtown. I thought you'd like to…you know."

"Oh," Danny stared at her, annoyance and disappointment mixing in his mind. Was that all she wanted? For him to go take care of a ghost? Then again, he didn't do much else nowadays. It was summer, and when he wasn't hanging out with Sam and Tucker or brooding on the roof, he was hunting. Still, it would be nice to talk to his parents about something other than ghosts at one point…or talk at all. He waited for a few seconds, hoping she had something else to say, but Maddie remained silent, frowning quietly at the text scrolling down the screen to her right.

"Guess…I'll go do that," Danny hesitated a second more and then turned away. Rings of light flashed into existence at his waist and he pushed himself off the ground.

"Be safe," Maddie called, waving a hand in his general direction. Danny didn't bother to answer, knowing it was useless since she wasn't really paying attention. She never looked him straight in the eye anymore. Not for weeks. And his dad wasn't much better.

Another wave of frustrated gloom draped itself over his body and Danny sped through his house and into the afternoon air in hopes of leaving it behind at home. No such luck. He tried to ignore the heavy feeling, focusing instead on flying at the fastest speed he could manage. Abruptly he changed directions, rocketing upward into the blue expanse above. Then, as the air grew chilly around him, he twisted into a hairpin turn and dropped towards the ground. The weightless feeling in his stomach wasn't enough to dissipate his low spirits but it did bring a grim smile to his face.

Danny glided towards the ground, weaving his way in between tree tops and lamp posts with practiced ease. He heard someone call out his name and he shifted his gaze to the ground. A group of kids were waving at him from a street corner, large grins plastered on their faces.

"Danny Phantom!"

"Look here!"

"Hey! Gonna go fight a ghost?"

"You're awesome, Phantom!"

He slowed down and waved back politely. This only seemed to fuel their enthusiasm and they followed him along the sidewalk.

"Go get those ghosts!"

"Yeah, kick their butts!"

"Hey, can I have your autograph?!"

Danny rolled his eyes (how many times had he been asked that in the past month? Surely it was in the hundreds) but the comment brought a smile to his face. He turned away and continued on, the kids' cheers following behind him. The heaviness in his heart eased slightly and he increased his speed, heading towards the park that lay between him and downtown Amity Park with new energy.

Soon he was flying over green grass and winding sidewalks, breathing in deeply of the fresh earthy scent wafting from the ground. It was the first time that day he was able to enjoy the balmy weather and he drank it in slowly. Yes, things were bad at home and a lot of people were afraid of him but it wasn't like everything was wrong, he reminded himself. There were still a few things—a few people who made what he did worth it. He forcibly pushed the gloom to the back of his mind. It wouldn't stay there forever, but Danny relished in the break from its stifling grasp that those fans had unintentionally spurred.

"Phantom! Phantom!" He glanced down for the second time and noticed a young boy waving at him from a grassy patch below. Danny smiled again, slowing down so he could give him a casual salute. The boy jumped up and down in excitement. He tugged on the shirt of the man next to him.

"Daddy, look! It's Danny Phantom! He's so cool! When I grow up I wanna be just like him!" A fuzzy warmth nestled within Danny's chest at the complimentary words. Sam, Tucker, and Jazz had tried their best to console him when things had taken a bad turn, but nothing they said had elevated his mood as much as that simple statement.

The man looked up, his expression much cooler than the boy next to him. He wrapped an arm around his son and pulled him closer. "No, Nathan. He's not cool. You don't want to be a ghost." Danny's chest constricted painfully, his rising emotions plummeting back down into hurt and frustration. He turned away and fled into the sky as the words echoed in his head.

"You don't want to be a ghost."

Why? Why?! Why did he have to say that? Why did he have to tell his son that? Why did he have to ruin the first spark of happiness Danny had felt in weeks? Why was it that as soon as he showed that Danny Phantom was more than just a ghost, so many people turned their backs on him? There were people like the boy or those kids who would cheer him on, but so many others seemed to hate him. Why was everyone so angry at him? So afraid of him? What had he done?

Tears burned the edges of his eyes but he bit down hard on his lip in an attempt to hold them in. It wasn't fair! It wasn't fair how they were treating him! Didn't they realize how much that hurt to see the way that they looked at him? Talked about him? Ignored him? Why couldn't they see?

Why? Because they wouldn't even look at him. They wouldn't meet his eyes. Not for weeks.

Grief washed over him and a sob rose in his throat. He stopped in the air, swallowing hard. He couldn't do this, not here and not now. He still had two ghosts to catch. Then—then he could find a place to be alone. He inhaled slowly, struggling to keep it as even as possible, and then exhaled the same way. After repeating this a few times, the burn in his eyes disappeared and he was able to open his mouth without fear of crying out.

"Two ghosts, that's it," he promised himself. He took off once more in the direction of downtown, pushing against the dark feelings that lurked on the edges of his mind. Scanning the horizon, Danny waited for his ghost sense to tell him where the ghosts were. He was just flying over City Hall when the icy mist escaped his mouth. He paused, his body automatically tensing up for the fight ahead.

"Well if it isn't my favorite little freak." Danny whirled around, looking up at two ghosts floating above him.

"Spectra," he said, recognizing the shadow spirit instantly. Next to her was Desiree, a sly smile on her face. "What are you two doing here?"

"Why else would we be here, Danny?" Spectra asked. "We heard about your new predicament. You're just such a popular halfa now." His eyes narrowed. Of course Spectra would decide to drop by now, right when things were at their worst.

"Shut up and go back to the Ghost Zone—both of you," he ordered, though he hardly expected them to listen. Sure enough, Spectra only smiled sympathetically.

"There's your problem, Danny, always closing up and keeping all your anger locked inside! No wonder everyone's afraid of you." He bristled.

"They're not afraid of me!"

"Well, no one has said it yet," Desiree spoke up, "but you can see it in their eyes. Mentally, each of them is wishing you would be gone." Danny fell silent, wanting to deny it, but how could he when he had just thought something similar minutes before? Spectra drew closer to Danny.

"You shouldn't let that get to you, Danny," she advised him, "even if it is true. Who cares if they all are afraid of you? As long as you're happy that they know who you really are, that's all that matters." Danny frowned, knowing perfectly well what she was trying to do. Unfortunately, understanding her method did not make it easier to fight it off. The air around him seemed to thicken as she closed the distance between them.

"Well?" she continued when he didn't answer. "You are happy they know, aren't you?" Spectra tilted her shadowy head to the side, her face set in a perfect mask of caring and concern. It was a face that could draw you in if you didn't see the hard glint in her eyes or predatory curl to her lip. Don't let her get to you, he reminded himself.

"Yes," he lied, "it's better that they know." Spectra arched an eyebrow.

"Even your parents?" Danny unconsciously flinched. "How did they react when they found out their little boy was the infamous Danny Phantom they had been hunting for so long?"

"None of your business," Danny replied tersely.

"Wow, that bad, huh?" She flew up behind him and before he could react, rested her hands on his shoulders. "You poor thing, and just when you needed them most." He closed his eyes against the sudden onslaught of misery her touch brought to the surface.

"Stop it," he told her.

"Parents can be so oblivious to all the pain you're going through," Spectra continued as if she hadn't heard him. "It's even worse when you tell them everything and they just throw it back in your face like they don't even care." His mind was clouding, making it hard to concentrate. Images of his parents refusing to look at him jumped into his mind.

"St-stop it," he repeated. "Let go."

"But we care, Danny, and we can make it all better if you let us."

"No, you can't help me," he denied, shaking his head. His insides felt hollow and Spectra's grip tightened.

"Oh but we can," Spectra jerked him back so that he looked up at Desiree. The genie ghost smiled, drifting down to where they were.

"I can make your wish come true," she reminded him. "Say the word and I'll make it happen."

"Just think," Spectra whispered into his ear. "What if they didn't know your secret? What if things went back to the way they were before? Before they knew? Before everyone rejected you and called you a freak." The last part of her comment jabbed painfully.

"Oh yes, I hear what they call you when you're not around. A half-ghost freak who's unpredictable and dangerous. Someone you should avoid at all costs. They're terrified of you, Danny." He grimaced, fresh despair sinking into his mind as he thought of the father's comment in the park.

"You don't want to be a ghost."

"People are easily scared. One sign of danger and," Spectra snapped her finger, "all that loyalty gone like a blown-out candle. I think you know that better than anyone."

Desiree was in front of him now, her red eyes glowing brightly. "But you can wish that they'd forget. You can wish that things went back to a time when you were the mysterious Danny Phantom who protected the town."

"And your parents would be none the wiser," Spectra added. "You would just be their little human son again."

"No more anger—"

"—No more fear."

"Just one wish." Danny's eyes glazed over as his emotions tumbled around in his head. He tried to grip at something—anything that would help him see things clearly. What they were offering couldn't be right. He knew he couldn't trust what they said, but…

But he wanted it. He wanted it badly. He wanted things to go back to how they were before. Back when he was hunted by a few ghost hunters instead of hundreds of fans. Back when he was feared because people didn't understand who he was and not because they did. He wanted to have his secret back. He didn't want anyone to know the truth.

Most of all, he wanted his parents back. He wanted them to be with him, talk to him, look at him. The longing made his whole body ache.

He looked up at Spectra and Desiree's expectant faces, indecision battling within him. Did he make a wish that would give him what he wanted but most likely with terrible consequences? But what if he didn't? Could he survive another week the way he was with this gloom, this depression hanging over him like a thick fog?

"Well…?" Desiree pressed. Danny hesitated for a second longer and then closed his eyes as he made his decision.

"I wish…"