Author: And now we pick up with the main story again. I hope you all liked seeing things from Jazz's perspective--especially in regards to Daniel! ^_^ Again, I want to thank everyone who has read, is reading, and will read my scribblings. Your support means tons to me.

Here's a shout-out to my lovely beta, Kotoshin, without whom my quality would be much inferior.

Chapter 20

"Daniel, could you help me with something?"

Maddie's voice interrupted Daniel's thoughts, making the young man blink. Surprised that Maddie would ask anything of him, he marked his page in the book he had been reading and made his way over to Danny's mother.

They had stopped for the night, Jazz having driven as her parents slept until she felt it was safe to stop and double-check them and give everyone a safe place to rest and recover from their encounter with the entity.

The Fenton adults had sprung back fairly quickly; however, there were a few more gray hairs on each of them, and it took a while for them to regain their familiar loving banter.

But, better they were, and it was a relief to Daniel.

"Of course," he answered Danny's mother, curious in spite of himself.

"Just help me set this up," Maddie said and gestured to a ghost-shield generator. "I found a place where I can put this, but I don't think I can get it there on my own after the events of today. Help me carry it?"

"No problem," Daniel said and slid his hands underneath the piece of equipment.

When he discovered how light it was, he sighed inwardly. An excuse to talk to him.

Shit.

"Are you enjoying this trip?" Maddie asked as they carried the piece of equipment along.

"Yes, very much. I haven't gone camping in, oh....about 4 years or so. It's...interesting. I'm not used to roughing it at all," Daniel replied with a smile.

Maddie gave him a small smile in return. "It's alright." There was a pause as they worked their way up a short hill. "How much do you know about ghosts?"

"A little. Certainly not as much as you or your husband."

"Flattery will get you nowhere."

Daniel shrugged. "If you say so." He knew otherwise, but he didn't feel like saying anything that would make her ask questions he didn't want to answer.

"I hear you helped Danny with his studies," Maddie said after a long silence.

"Hm? Oh, yes. I did," Daniel answered.

"Why?"

"I seem to get that question a lot. Is it that hard to believe? I helped him because I wanted to help him. That's it. I don't want anything from him, I'm not going to call in any debts down the line because he doesn't owe me anything, I haven't been taking advantage of him..." Daniel sighed in slight frustration.

"Mm," Maddie murmured and put down the machine with a soft sigh. "I don't know what to make of you, Daniel Masters. You help my son, but some of the things you say and do make me wonder about you and your motives."

Daniel gave her a tight smile. "Trust me, there are times even I wonder."

Maddie fiddled with the knobs on the generator before asking, "What happened to that ghost?"

Daniel huffed in mock-frustration and scratched his head. "I have no idea," he lied. "The only thing I remember is seeing it loom above me. Next thing I know, Danny's leaning over me, obviously panicking. From what I can deduce, Danny either escaped what happened to us altogether, or he found an escape prior to rescuing us."

"Really?" Maddie half-exclaimed.

Daniel nodded. "I think I owe my life to Danny. I think we all do." Daniel smiled faintly and looked at Maddie. "I think your skills are rubbing off on him."

Maddie smiled warmly. "He's a remarkable boy."

"Yes...yes, he is," Daniel agreed softly.

There was another pause as Maddie continued to fiddle with the copious amounts of knobs, buttons, and dials on the generator. "You know more about ghosts than you let on."

"Not really. It's a casual fascination—nothing more."

Maddie regarded the device before her, then shook her head. "No, it's more than that, I know."

Daniel merely shrugged. He wasn't up to arguing a lie.

"Where did you say you were from?"

"I don't think I did. I lived in Wisconsin until my dad," Daniel frowned marginally, Vlad's not my dad, "kicked me out of the house."

"Did you live somewhere else before you were adopted?"

"Yeah."

"Where?"

"A few places."

"Mm...do you like it in Amity?"

Daniel smiled faintly. "It's a nice place, like the sign says. The ghosts make life exciting, although I don't know if that's a good thing or not..." Daniel paused before chuckling softly. "Everything comes back to ghosts somehow. Funny...I never thought about them much until I came here."

"They're a part of life in Amity, and since you're traveling with us you're exposed to them even more. You seem to...take them well."

"They're not scary," Daniel drawled. "I don't understand why people are so terrified of them. There are other, better things to be frightened by."

"Like what?"

Daniel paused, then shrugged. "I dunno. Ghosts can't hurt me, so I'm not scared of them. Actually, before I came here, I would have said that I wasn't scared of anything."

"But that's changed?"

"Yeah," Daniel murmured thoughtfully. "I'm scared of a few things now. But, I'll be fine. Thankfully, most of them are under my control and those that aren't...well, I can do stuff to make sure they stay safe."

"...you fear for Danny, don't you?"

Daniel blinked, then gave Danny's mother a wry smile. "Yeah. I don't want to see him get hurt. He's a nice kid..." Sometimes too nice.

"Do you love him?"

"You mean love love? No, not that way. It's just...somehow we've wormed our ways into each other's lives. He's become important to me." Daniel smiled wryly. "And just when I thought I had finally found a way to keep myself from getting attached at a level deeper than just being acquaintances..."

Maddie frowned at the last comment. "You don't want friends?"

"For their sake, not mine. I'm not an easy person to know, much less get along with."

"You and Danny seem to get along swimmingly."

"I suppose. It's hard not to get along with Danny."

"He is a gentle soul, isn't he...?"

"I assume he takes after his parents?" Daniel asked, earning him another small smile.

Maddie finally kicked the machine, spreading a bright green ecto-dome over the camp. "You've become quite the figure in Danny's life, you know—he'll mention something that you two did together, something that you've said, and not even realize he's spoken about you. He is often frustrated by you, you know. You seem to make him think about things I feel a teenager shouldn't worry about."

"My life is complicated," Daniel said nonchalantly, "and I trust him enough to tell him parts of it."

"You trust a 16 year-old?"

"I'm only 19, ma'am. He's easy to talk to and good at keeping secrets."

"Really now?"

Daniel shrugged. "At least, I believe he is." Nothing I've told him has come back to bite me in the ass. Yet.

"Mm. Where did you go to high school?"

"A private school. I think it's prestigious, but I never cared enough to find out—my father is very concerned about appearances."

Maddie smiled faintly before turning to face Daniel, her face serious. "You truly mean my son no harm?"

"I would die before I would hurt him or anyone else in your family."

Maddie looked relieved, although there was still a subtle wariness. "I'm going to trust you; however, if you betray that trust..."

Daniel nodded. "I understand." He gave her a rare genuine smile. "They're waiting for us."

The two walked back to the main camp in a more comfortable silence. Once there, Daniel broke off from Maddie and sat down on a slightly mossy log next to Danny , who looked at him curiously.

"What was that about?"

"Your mom was making sure she hadn't brought along a total creep on the family vacation."

"What?!"

"Shh, quiet. It was fine. She's decided to give me a chance," he said with a small smile, "and since she is, your dad will." Daniel smirked as a thought occurred to him. "I wonder what would happen if my foster-father met your parents. The man would probably die from shock," he concluded with an unkind chuckle.

"Daniel..."

"Yes?"

"What 'd you do to help them?"

Daniel paused. "I took a number of chances, but everything seems to have turned out alright. They seem perfectly sane—well, as sane as they can ever be said to be—there are no memory gaps aside from when they were captives of the ghost, there's no physical damage... therefore, my methods don't matter." Daniel played with a piece of grass. "Your mom asked me what happened. I lied."

"...what did you tell her?"

"That I knew nothing, was caught along with them and gave all the credit for the rescue to you."

Danny's jaw dropped. "Serious?"

"Yup," Daniel replied.

"Why?"

Daniel raised an eyebrow. "Why indeed?" Daniel looked over to Danny's family, stood, dragged Danny up to his feet, and pushed Danny towards his family. "Come on. This is a family vacation, not a 'let's-grill-Daniel-about-everything-under-the-sun' vacation."

Danny gave him a brief, puzzled look.

I can't tell you why I lied because I'm not sure as to why I did that, Daniel thought, although no-one would have guessed that those were his thoughts.

"If that is how hard it is to fight ghosts, I'll pass on being a ghost hunter," Daniel said with a wry smile as he and Danny finally reached the nuclear family proper. "It seems too difficult for someone as lazy as I am."

"It's difficult but rewarding work," Maddie said as she poked at the fire. "Someone has to keep everyone safe."

"And that's what you do." Well, that's where Danny gets the whole 'I must protect people' thing. What I usedto believe in.

"Yup," Jack replied with good cheer, apparently no worse for his experience.

"That's...quite admirable. I could never do it."

"That's alright. Our way of life isn't for everyone."

Daniel cocked his head to the side slightly and nodded. "This is true. You are very strong people." Has she seen something in me—other than what I allow—that makes her say that? Daniel wondered.

"Most ghosts are weaker than that, though," Maddie said thoughtfully. "That was a particularly strong one."

"Oh, good. Do you think next time you can start me at a level 1 ghost?"

Maddie chuckled and Danny gave him a smile.

"Why don't you tell me some of your more memorable hunts and captures? Those are safer than me actually going out and chasing ghosts myself," Daniel said, looking at Jack and Maddie, appearing interested as he sat down on the cool earth.

"Really?" Jack asked. "You want me to blather on about ghosts?"

"Absolutely."

Jack perked up significantly and began to spin a yarn that Daniel knew was most likely greatly exaggerated. Daniel rested his forearms against his thighs, hands dangling between his knees, for all appearances relaxed and entertained.

He was inexplicably lonely, however, and Daniel couldn't figure out for the life of him why.

–

Daniel sat in silence outside the tents, his hands splayed behind him as he looked up at the sky. It was a crystal-clear night, and without light-wash Daniel could see all the stars visible to his enhanced eyesight (the normal human with 20/20 can see down to 6th magnitude without aid—Daniel could see to 8th). It was a beautiful, breathtaking sight that reminded him of his insignificance in the grand scheme of things, even for all his power. Such moments helped him keep things in perspective, helped prevent his ego from growing too large.

I have time now, he thought, turning his attention away from the stars and onto the foreign memories that were crowding his mind.

Daniel closed his eyes and began to sift through Luna's memories and skills.

Luna wasn't a particularly strong ghost and didn't really have any unique abilities—she was just very, very smart. In Daniel's time, she had taken Skulker's place once Daniel had rid the Ghost Zone of the annoyance (it had been surprisingly good for his PR). She was, admittedly, much less heavily armored, but she, like Skulker, relied primarily on inventions of her own to prove herself a formidable foe. That she also seemed to have lost any human morals and ethics she may have possessed before death made her twice as deadly.

Luna wasn't bent on world (or even Ghost Zone) takeover—she, like Daniel, was simply out to prove that she was the strongest, resulting in frequent run-ins between them.

The first time they met, Daniel barely escaped with his life, but Luna had also sustained a fair amount of damage...which meant that she had concluded that Daniel was a threat to her, and therefore had to be removed. Even after Daniel received the Mark and mastered the Ring of Rage, she had still been his most capable enemy (aside from his father, of course). Luna wasn't cowed by the power Daniel had at his fingers, had absolutely no respect for Daniel's father, and found provoking Daniel far too much fun. So, out of self-preservation, Daniel had kept their contact to a minimum while having spies on her at all times.

It seemed to amuse her.

Therefore, absorbing Luna hadn't so much given him a new skill-set as much as enhanced ingenuity. Daniel was particularly impressed by the plans Luna had of things she hadn't gotten around to building, and her knowledge of individual ghosts rivaled Daniel's. That she knew about some ghosts he had never come across before was helpful. He didn't know if he'd ever run into said ghosts, but having that knowledge was a boon no matter what. Her knowledge of the intricacies of all the powers of the ghosts, their histories, and predictions for their futures (Luna wasn't clairvoyant, but she did have enough intelligent intuition to deduce similar conclusions) were all highly advantageous. Daniel was happy to have a boost to his intellect, even if it meant that his ghost powers weren't augmented. He tended to value skill over force anyway.

That he was also introduced to Phantom's fighting style firsthand via Luna's memories was a plus. The creature fought...strangely, to Daniel. He could see some of Vlad's motions and moves (which made sense), but he didn't seem to have his Vlad's polish. He also saw echoes of Danny's techniques, which was somehow wrong. It made Daniel's skin crawl.

Without a doubt, Phantom was strong, and as the ghost had met and battled their younger self, Daniel knew that the shrewd entity would be more than prepared this time around. Phantom probably had a few nasty surprises up his metaphorical sleeves that would make Danny wish he hadn't embarrassed the ghost during their first encounter.

This was why Daniel crushed his enemies totally—it was simply necessary. With ghosts, that usually meant "kill." With humans, it more often meant making sure that they wouldn't be getting back on their feet—socially, financially, that kind of thing—anytime in the near future.

Unfortunately, Danny was a moral soul, which meant he didn't have it in his nature to kill.

Ah, well.

The most pressing question was: did Phantom know about Daniel?

From what Luna's memories said, the answer was 'no', which was a very, very good thing.

If Danny can't handle him on his own, I can always step in, he thought, chewing on his lip in apprehension. Although I don't know if that'll do any good.

The way the ghost fought and his strengths ran almost exactly counter to Daniel's. While Daniel would be horrendously weak against Phantom's tactics, if Daniel managed to maneuver himself correctly, he could be devastating against the ghost, and that would be without using the Ring.

It could swing either way, though.

The one thing that Daniel had going for him was that Phantom was a full ghost. That one fact gave him a glimmer of hope for when they would meet.

Emphasis on the 'when'. He had no doubt that they would run into each other eventually. He had a little bit of time, though, since it appeared that the ghost was somehow prevented from leaving the Ghost Zone (much as Daniel was unable to enter it). Daniel would take what he could get—time being on his side was always something he aimed for.

It's good that neither he nor Danny have Technus's abilities, and I plan on keeping them a secret for as long as possible from everyone. Those powers might be the trump card I can use to get us out of that particular situation. Speaking of those abilities...

Daniel's sighed softly and shuffled through his memories for Technus's. Once he found the "blueprint" for the ghost's powers in his memory, he began to examine it slowly.

Wow, this is more complicated than I would have thought. Got to give the ghost credit for his ingenuity. What in the world would make him come up with stuff like this, though?

When Daniel opened his eyes again, he knew by the height of the constellations in the sky that he had spent at least two hours examining the power from all angles.

Let's see if I can do anything now...it'll take a while longer to master everything, but I think...I can do little things.

Daniel's fingers spread across the soft grass of their campsite and he swept his newly acquired senses out in all directions.

His range was fairly limited, but he figured that it would expand with practice. As it was, he could reach one mile in all directions. It was frustrating, but Daniel didn't have much choice. He wasn't surprised that he couldn't feel much—just underground lines, all the Fenton's technology, and a light-pole on the very edge of his range.

It'll probably be overwhelming once I get into more populated areas. Until then, I'll just work on stretching my boundaries.

He was getting a headache from trying to push himself beyond the mile radius, so Daniel drew his consciousness back and sighed as he settled back into his body. He heaved himself to his feet and stretched, working out the kinks in his back before turning to face the tents.

Danny hasn't forgiven me, but he's begun to understand at least a little bit. There are still things that I haven't told him, things that will surely damn me in his eyes. God, I hope he doesn't meet my pet any time soon. That would break faith entirely.

Daniel sighed and walked back to the tent he shared with Danny and Jazz, still idly processing memories that were not his own.

--

"Father."

Vlad looked up sharply from his newspaper towards the speaker, curious and suspicious. "What did you call me?"

"Father," Daniel repeated.

There was a flicker of surprise and hope in Vlad's eyes before suspicion returned. "What is it?" Vlad sighed, expecting some mundane and annoying demand.

"I want you to teach me."

A look of surprise was more evident that time. "What?"

"Teach me everything you know. Human and ghost."

"Why?"

"You don't want to?" Daniel inquired in mock innocence.

"No, I'm just wondering at the change in heart."

Daniel blinked before a wry, somehow startlingly sadistic smile spread slowly across his face. "I want you to teach me because I will not be weak any longer."

Vlad paused and regarded the teen before him before nodding cautiously. "Very well. I will not go easy on you."

"When have you ever?"

--

Daniel awoke with a start, hand clutching his throat as pain seeped down his body, breath escaping him.

Change into ghost form, fool! He berated himself and triggered the transition into his basically dead form.

Although the pressure clamping down on where his lungs would have been was bearable now, the pain that wracked his body only intensified.

A scream caught in Daniel's throat and he struggled to remain quiet. He teleported away, not even bothering to leave a clone behind, barely able to form a coherent thought.

It took him a moment to realize that the pain he was feeling wasn't all his own. The bonds Daniel shared with the ghosts from his time were screaming with agony. He felt two bonds snap, and the abrupt release hit him with backlash that made his head spin. He reached out to the remaining ones and jerked them to him, not caring who arrived.

Familiar white arms curled around him, protecting and seeking comfort simultaneously. A second, significantly slighter form had their arms wrapped securely around Daniel's waist (Daniel assumed the ghost was Ember). Both were holding onto Daniel as if their very existence depended on it.

And it just might.

Clinging back to the strong, solid body of his pet, Daniel buried his face in the suit jacket, he shaking almost as badly as the ghosts were.

I will survive this! He thought heatedly, even as the agony made thought nearly impossible. It felt as if every molecule of his body was being ripped to pieces meticulously, inflicting as much pain as possible.

Ha. Tear me apart molecule by molecule, right?

Energy and pain raced through him, swirling and spiraling, gaining strength with each revolution. It hurt so badly that his senses seemed to shut down into one long blur of absolute pain.

For one heartbeat, everything was deathly quiet, a still, waiting silence.

Then Daniel found himself pulled in a thousand different directions, felt himself starting to dissolve.

NO! he cried out and dug into reality as he knew it. He clung to his pet and Ember, his life-lines to his home world, and fought to ground them all in this current reality, keeping them alive, fought to be.

'Daniel!'

Daniel's head snapped up as the familiar voice rasped through his mind and he made a desperate reach for it.

Father! He cried mentally, frantically searching for the presence that he knew as well as his own.

All that he met was silence.

As quickly as it had begun, Daniel felt...right. The pain ceased abruptly, replaced by a soothing, cool calm. He had the distinct feeling of something locking into place, solidifying him, making him somehow more real.

He gently disentangled himself from a shaking Ember as his terrified pet clung to his cape, seeking solace in Daniel's strength.

What was that? He wondered. Sweeping his senses outward, Daniel sought the presence he had so briefly felt.

Nothing, Daniel thought unhappily. He plucked the fedora off of his pet's head and placed it on his own, thinking as he pensively petted the ghost's bald head. I know I heard the frootloop. And what was that with my connection to Vortex and Technus snapping? Was that...could my home world be... "Gone?" he whispered, surprise and sadness in his voice. "Do you think our home is gone, pet?" he asked, looking at the sheriff-ghost.

The ghost hesitated. "I...I do not know, Master. But I fear so."

"That's what I thought," Daniel said with a soft sigh.

"Seriously?" Ember asked, horror and pain still lacing her voice, turning it something far from musical.

"I think so," Daniel murmured. He kissed the trembling diva's head before gently guiding her to her feet. "Ember, love, I want you to go back to my apartment and rest there. Do not go out until I get back. I want to make sure that everything is safe and under as much control as possible." He took her hand in his and with a small transfer of power, gave her the ability to phase in and out of his shield. "Stay safe, love. I would hate to see you gone."

Ember nodded numbly and vanished in a brief flash of fire.

Daniel took a deep breath before turning back to his pet. "Listen," he murmured and placed the hat back on the ghost's head. He yanked the ghost to its feet and brushed dirt off its suit. "Go and search the Ghost Zone and Human World. Find out whether or not any denizens not from our time were affected. Also, seek out any from our time who have survived. Finally...see if my Vlad somehow crossed over. Once you have accomplished these tasks, report to me. Then return to my apartment and rest. Keep watch over Ember so she doesn't do anything stupid. Remember—do these in a timely, thorough fashion while remaining undetected, and you will be rewarded. Should you fail in any of these..."

The ghost flinched. "Yes, Master. It will be done as you say, Master."

"Good." Daniel conjured a small ball of energy and handed it to his pet. "Use that to recover. Now, go. Remain unseen...or else."

Walker nodded hastily before fading into invisibility and departing.

Once he was sure the ghost was gone, Daniel sighed and teleported back close to the campsite. Before returning, he became human and visible, exhaustion dragging at him from the use of his ghost powers and the recent ordeal.

I might actually get some real sleep for once.

He was surprised to see a panicky Danny looking around for him. He would have thought that Danny would care less, given what the teen had seen of Daniel's true disposition.

"Danny?" Daniel called out, loud enough to be heard, but not enough to wake anyone up.

Danny's head snapped in the direction of Daniel's voice, relief stark on his features. "Daniel! Where've you been?" he asked, trotting over to the older teen.

Daniel smiled and ruffled Danny's hair affectionately. "Am I not allowed to go for a piss?"

"But you were gone for a while...!"

Daniel shrugged. He wasn't going to bother to make excuses. He was...to put it mildly, drained.

Danny frowned. "I felt something happen."

Daniel's eyebrows snapped up. "Oh, really now?"

Danny scowled. "You're not denying it, at least. Which means that something did happen."

Daniel shrugged. "If you say so."

"You're shaking."

"Am I?" Daniel murmured and looked at his hands. To his chagrin, he was. "Well, look at that."

"So, will you just tell me or do I have to drag it out of you?"

Daniel paused, then sighed. "I'm not entirely certain myself. My hypothesis is that my world has now been fully absorbed into yours."

"Well, that's good, right? I mean, you won't have to worry about dying anymore."

Daniel smiled wearily. "I always have to worry about death—everyone does. I just don't have to worry about that weird suffocation. But, as far as I know, most of the ghosts from my world are gone."

"Oh...so, does that mean that your foster-father...?"

Daniel felt a twinge of pain that had nothing to do with the physical flash through him. "Maybe. I have someone on the lookout...I should know within a few days whether or not he survived."

"I thought you said you don't use the ghosts here."
Daniel shrugged. "I don't. I found one from my own world."

"Oh. Who?"

Daniel hesitated, but found no reason to not tell Danny the truth—he had said that he had worked with almost every ghost, and that included his pet. "Walker."

Danny's jaw dropped. "Seriously?"

Daniel nodded. "Seriously."

"Wow...I would never think he would work with anyone but himself."

Daniel smirked. "I can be very convincing," he murmured.

Danny shook his head, slightly amazed. "Still..."

Daniel shrugged again. "Well, you should try to get a little more sleep. Your parents have this amazing ability to keep you on your toes constantly..."

Danny smiled. "Okay."

Daniel opened the tent flap for Danny and stepped in after him, a small knot of worry squirming in his gut.

Worry for whom, though?

---

Post-note: I've reached a huge milestone--I have 210 reviews, 105 story alerts, and 81 favorites! That's probably more than all my other storied combined! Also, please excuse my little astronomy geekiness on the magnitude of stars Daniel can see. The more positive the magnitude of a star, the dimmer it is. For example, from our planet, the Sun in -27th magnitude, while from a parsec away (it's a unit of distance!) it's +4th magnitude. ^_^b Again, thank you all for reading!