Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Danny Phantom, I'm a big fan and was feeling nostalgic.

Chapter 20: Alone, Or Not?

Danny's POV

I think the last time I felt this sick was actually after the accident that made me half-ghost now that I think about it. I wasn't in the hospital for years like Vlad was but I still felt pretty awful. Well that and I had to hide my powers long enough to get discharged, because at least at home I could make a quick get away to Tucker or Sam's or even just go out somewhere, anywhere that wasn't home. Now I was quite literally under house arrest when I woke up and got up to use the bathroom only to realize Vlad had a human & ghost shield installed in my room.

"Wow Vlad, paranoid much?" I groaned taking a step back before turning around and noticing another door across from the bed.

When I looked inside, thankfully it turned out that this room had it's own bathroom attached to it that wasn't blocked off. Because, you know, why wouldn't it when you're Vlad Masters and can afford it? I was still feverish though so once I was done I splashed some water in my face which helped a little. I would've taken a bath too but I was trying to be a good patient this time and brought the little IV rod-thing with me since it was on wheels instead of phasing them out again...

I was drying off my face with a towel that I swear was made of cotton from an actual cloud when I peered up and saw a pair of red eyes, watching me from out of the corner of my eye. I gasped, whirling around in a battle stance to find their owner, nearly knocking over the IV stand in the process. Moving around too fast had been a mistake though because I got really dizzy and had to lean my back on the counter while I waited for the room to stop spinning.

"Vlad I swear if that's you doing your usual stalking we REALLY need to set some personal boundaries," I laughed nervously, slowly turning back to face the mirror. "Ok Danny, snap out of it. Think. If it WAS Vlad or a ghost that was actually there then my ghost sense would have gone off. Therefore it's just another stupid hallucination because of the fever. That's all it is. Right? Right."

Nodding to myself I sighed and looked up at my tired reflection but then stepped back in alarm. Those eyes! My own eyes were glowing red now! Rubbing them with both hands I blinked and they faded back to blue but...feeling my panic raising I placed a hand over my racing heart and thought, Oh great now I'm seeing myself as HIM! Unless-

"Wait, didn't I have red eyes when Freakshow was controlling me too? No no that's stupid, I broke his staff ages ago when I first got my pow...ers..." Another wave of dizziness swept over me and I was forced to sit on the floor, waiting for it to pass.

Once it did, with some effort I got back to my feet, left the bathroom, and climbed back into bed, exhausted from even doing that much. I hated to admit it but Vlad was right. I was in no shape to be walking anywhere let alone going ghost so for once it was probably a good idea to listen to his advice and rest. Problem is I was starving too and those snacks he left for me wasn't gonna cut it. Thankfully I already grabbed a water bottle earlier before heading to the bathroom and guzzled it down, feeling relieved to have something cold to drink at least...

I felt a stab of homesickness when I remembered my mom's home cooking and how when I was sick she always used to make really good chicken noodle soup with those little star-shaped noodles. Really, most of the time my mom did make our family normal food, especially when Jazz and I were sick. Anyways, I wasn't about to tell Vlad I wanted soup of all things because knowing him he'd make fun of me. Besides, I had no way of asking for-hmm? I blinked, hearing a soft buzzing sound beside me and when I looked over I saw-

"Huh? Did Vlad leave this here?" Tentatively I picked up the sleek cell phone and after checking the caller ID, which came up as Vlad, I answered it. "Uh...hello?"

"Ah good, you're awake," Vlad sighed in relief from his end before getting down to business. "Now before you ask that phone is a spare of mine and I've programmed my personal number into it for you so that you can contact me if you need anything. I've disabled making any other outgoing calls on it though, at least for now, since the last thing we need is your friends causing a scene again. At any rate I'm afraid something's come up at City Hall that I need to attend to but first, I'm sure you're famished. Is there anything in particular you would like to have for lunch? I'm ordering something now on the other line."

"Ugh forget it, I'm just going to go back to sleep," I grumbled, about to hang up on him when I asked. "Hey Vlad, weird question but you didn't happen to send another duplicate to watch me did you?"

Sounding genuinely confused, Vlad replied, "No, after your last violent display I decided against using that method of keeping an eye on you in the hopes of putting you more at ease. Now really Daniel, stop acting like a child and tell me what you want."

"Well, hmm, lets see, first off I'd like you to stop acting like a fruitloop and turn off this stupid shield on my room, and then-"

"Daniel, I MEANT to eat." Vlad sighed, obviously trying not to sound too annoyed at me as he explained calmly. "As for the shield, it is in place as much for YOUR protection as it is the protection of your loved ones. Your powers are VERY unstable at present, if what happened down in the laboratory is any indication, and since we cannot say for sure whether or not a ghost actually does have some power over you it's best not to take any chances. When you are well enough I will drop the shield around your room, but the one around the mansion will remain up until further notice. Do I make myself clear?"

"Intangibly," I smirked before sighing in exasperation, resting my head on the pillows again. "Look just get whatever you're going to get and I'll eat later. I'm too dizzy right now to think of anything to eat anyway."

"Very funny Daniel. But surely you do realize that you are dizzy BECAUSE you need to eat my boy. You've been asleep for nearly a week straight. Trust me, you'll feel better once you've eaten something. However if you're not feeling up to it now I won't force you, so feel free to rest for now but you do need to eat later. If you refuse by then I may have to get a little forceful."

I rolled my eyes, "Relax Vlad, I'm not going to starve myself. I'm way past that. I'll let you know if I'm up to eating. Anyway, what's this big emergency at City Hall?" Sitting up when the thought occurred to me I asked seriously, "It wasn't a ghost attack was it?"

"Don't be absurd Daniel, if it was a ghost attack that's hardly any of my business. Besides which the Guys in White, Valerie Grey, your friends, or your parents would have the situation under control if it was," I winced when he mentioned my parents and as though sensing my distress Vlad said more gently, "The fact is my boy, even if there was an attack you'd only get yourself killed trying to face them now. And at any rate that is not why I must go to City Hall. You see, a certain personal matter has arisen that needs my undivided attention from now on and I fully intend to make sure that your needs are taken care of. I promised your sister as much-"

"Jazz was here?! Since when?! How did-!" I asked, my heart racing again to the point where it hurt and I started hyperventilating.

Alarmed Vlad ordered sharply, "Daniel, calm down this instant! It's alright, Jasmine came to see me a few hours ago and she left a message for you. If you promise to behave I'll give it to you as soon as I return, with the promise that you will eat something once I do. Sound fair?"

Forcing myself to calm down and breathe more slowly, I asked shakily, "How...how is she? Does Jazz blame herself for what happened because she wasn't at home? We both know it wasn't her fault, I was the one who stupidly walked past our parents in ghost-form. If Jazz had been there, I know she would have done anything to stop them, even take a bullet for me. But Vlad, she has a life too and a brighter future then mine will ever be so I...I hope it's not falling apart now because of me-" feeling the tears well up in my eyes before I could stop them, I pleaded, "Please tell me you helped her too. I know she tricked you once but Vlad, she's my only sister! Jazz knows how our parents are and she has always looked out for me even from before my accident. If you really care about me like you say you do then you'd see that unlike our parents, Jazz accepts all of me, and she only tricked you to try and help me beat you. She's all I have left to care about anymore, because my parents hate my ghost half, my best friends left me when I needed them most, and Jazz...if I become the reason her future is ruined too then I-!"

"Daniel," Vlad cut me off sharply again. "We'll discuss this later. For now though rest assured that Jasmine will be fine because she is more than capable of taking care of herself. In fact your sister is a lot stronger then I first gave her credit for during that incident. I can see now why you admire her so. Still I'm afraid I have to go now but do try to get some rest little badger. I will see you in a few hours."

"Vlad wait-!" I began but he'd already hung up on me. "Ugh! You jerk! Couldn't you have waited two more minutes?!"

I must've fallen asleep again without noticing because the next thing I knew, I woke up and was lying...on the floor. "What the-?" I wondered, waiting for my vision to come back into focus before I tried to pry myself off the ground.

Just then though I jerked when there was a knock on my door and instinctively called, "Wait, I'm uh...getting dressed!"

Ignoring my excuse Vlad opened the door and stepped inside with a light chuckle, "Get dressed in what pray tell? As I recall your usual attire was-!" as soon as he saw me on the floor however Vlad rushed to me and asked worriedly, "Daniel! What on earth are you doing on the floor? Are you alright? Why didn't you call me?"

Frowning at his accusation of not reaching out to him I told him the truth, "Heck if I know. One minute you had just hung up on me to do your City Hall stuff and the next, instead of waking up in bed, I wake up in the middle of the floor. I can't remember even getting up. And I know that the shield you have on the bedroom door doesn't hurt which means I didn't black out from being zapped or something, so I honestly have no idea what happened Vlad. That's the truth. If you don't want to believe me, fine."

"No no I believe you little badger," Vlad said seriously as he helped me up and kept me steady as I sat on the bed again then felt my forehead with a deep frown. "I'm just concerned that your fever is still so high. High fevers can cause lapses in memory if severe enough so we really need to get this under control again. Eating something substantial should help with that which is why I brought you something."

Retrieving the bag he left on the dresser when he came over to help me up, Vlad pulled out what had to be the fanciest grilled cheese I've ever seen with three different cheeses wrapped in some kind of paper, and then after that he also withdrew a heat resistant container with what smelled like just plain chicken broth. I was surprised Vlad got me something so...normal. Granted I've only ever had normal grilled cheese on white bread but holy crap did it smell good. I was almost embarrassed to ask if it was ok to start eating when Vlad pulled out a serving tray he'd apparently stored under my bed and set the food down on it, smiling expectantly.

"Um...you're not going to spoon feed me are you?" I asked, inching away from him only because Vlad was kinda creeping me out with that look.

Chuckling softly, he leaned back and brought the chair he usually sat in right next to me, crossing his legs before replying, "No, I think your pride is already wounded enough like the rest of you at present. Until this fever goes down though I'm afraid you'll have to stay on the IV's a little while longer little badger. Even so, at least you're strong enough to feed yourself which is what I had hoped would happen once I administered the final version of the antidote to that ghost-blocking infection. We're not out of the woods yet though so I'll be starting you on a light diet and we'll work our way up from there. As long as you drink plenty of fluids and can stomach solid foods then I'm sure you'll be fine. The other part is simply a matter of making sure you get plenty of rest and don't overexert yourself. And that will be taken care of once we relocate now that the matter of stepping down as mayor is finally underway. Hopefully once we're out of Amity Park you won't feel as anxious. Which reminds me," stopping me before I could work up the energy to reach for the food before my stomach embarrassed me with a rumble, Vlad began, "I do believe I owe you an apology for hanging up on you. I was in a hurry you see. But I'm a man of my word and promised to tell you about my visit from Jasmine and make sure her message is delivered. I must say, Jasmine is truly a marvelous young woman. And she is an even more loyal sister to you Daniel. Don't worry, I've taken it upon myself to help her 'escape' your parents without leaving Amity Park entirely so there is no danger of her dropping out of school. I rented a hotel room for her under my name until such a time as Maddie and Jack wise up and do their job making sure she's alright while I attend to your needs and to devote my efforts to making sure you're safe, which you will be once we move out of Amity Park. As for her message, well I recorded it again but...I'm hoping you'll take my word for it this time?"

Feeling a little unsure, I nodded, waiting until Vlad gave me permission to dig in while he told me about how Jazz somehow got his number and asked to talk to him. But after what happened when she thought Vlad was me I wasn't surprised and even smiled when Vlad told me how she caught him red handed in the laboratory on the Op-Center security tapes. I was relieved too when Vlad told me she erased everything having to do with me, even though really they hardly ever checked the recordings since they were usually too busy working on their inventions. Heck they hardly ever went out to actually ghost hunt and use their weapons and other ghost catching stuff for the most part, except on Halloween when they actually patrolled the town like I did every night since that's when there were more ghosts then usual in town.

Speaking of which I was surprised none of my usual enemies had been spotted lately, but then again, with our portal closed they no longer had easy access to our world. That was kind of a hard pill to swallow because it meant...without that portal not only would I not have become half-ghost, but there wouldn't even BE any ghosts over on this side for me to fight. Still, if nothing else, I was glad to hear that Vlad was helping Jazz after all. I just had to remember that I wasn't completely alone because Jazz would always be on my side. Knowing she still had a future made me feel a little better about this whole mess too even if my own was uncertain. Because it meant that that was one less thing for me to worry about, if she was doing alright and handling our crazy parents. Too bad I still had plenty of other things to worry about though. Like what Vlad meant about us 'moving out of Amity Park...'