It took Maddie and Jack a grand total of ten minutes to get their room in order; twenty to convince the Mansons and the Foleys it was okay to calm down.

"Screaming about it won't change anything," Maddie told Pamela. "Trust me, this is the safest place on Earth right now."

"And the creepiest."

"Hang some curtains. I'll help you scrounge up some pictures to help make this place a bit more homey."

"Homey?" Jeremy Manson slammed a pillow onto his bunk. Not very satisfying, but slamming a pillow was better than nothing. "And just how long do you plan to keep us here, Madeline?"

"Nobody's keeping you anywhere," Jack said. "You can leave any time you like. But these walls are the only things keeping him out."

Pamela sank onto her bunk, hugging her middle. Maddie could tell she was about to say something when there was a knock at the door. "I got it," Maddie said, turning. In a room this small, the door wasn't far no matter where you stood. Seeing who it was, she stepped out into the hall. "Papa? What're you doing here? What's wrong?"

He felt the back of his neck in a Danny-like gesture. "Phantom- er, Danny's- left. Gone back to Amity, I guess."

Maddie leaned against the wall, praying she wouldn't phase through. "So? I thought you gave him permission."

"I did. I was just hopin' you'd follow him."

"Why? He can handle himself."

"You saw what that ghost did. I just think he needs backup."

For an instant, Maddie nearly agreed. Then she remembered what Danny had told her after that first disastrous dinner. Backup was the least of his concerns. "I disagree. Danny has done this sort of thing for four years, Papa. He knows enough to get out of there if things get ugly." She saw his reluctance and changed tactics. "Look. I didn't ask you for carte blanche for Danny so you could skirt around it at every turn. And I am not going to help you treat him like a child!"

"I'm not treatin' him like a child! I'm trying to keep him safe!"

"He can protect himself, Papa. I'm sure he took his headset."

"A headset won't do much."

Maddie exhaled. "I'm not going. Neither is Jack. If you want someone to keep an eye on him, send a guard. But we both know what that will do."

Walker stared at her. She touched his arm, tone softening.

"Just let him go, Papa. He knows what he's doing." Trust him. Just this once.

Danny emerged from the portal to find the lab still intact. Most of the weapons were still there, save for a few guns that had vanished without a trace. Had Dan taken them? Destroyed them in the street to make a point? Granted, it had been less than an hour since he'd returned to the Ghost Zone, but Dan could do a surprising amount of damage in just ten-

"Freeze, ghost!"

Danny whirled, hands in the air. A red-clad figure stood on the stairs, aiming a bazooka at his heart. "Valerie?"

"Danny?" She pulled back her mask and came forward, lowering her bazooka. "Thank God! I thought you'd left."

He shook his head. "Just for a minute. I came back to get Sam and Tucker, but-"

"What I don't get is why you ran in the first place. We all thought you'd stay and beat the tar outta that guy."

Danny sighed, feeling the back of his neck. "You mean you saw that? Me running and all?"

"Half the town saw it, Danny."

He was quiet for a long moment, staring at the floor. "I couldn't beat him, Val. I knew he'd kill me...so I ran."

Valerie raised an eyebrow. "You knew he'd kill you...so you ran. It's just that simple, is it?" She jumped ahead before Danny could. "You've fought worse, Danny. Me, Plasmius, that Undergrowth guy...hell, you saved two worlds from an asteroid! One measly ghost shouldn't scare you."

"He's not measly," Danny snapped. "He's..." He sighed again. "Look, it's kind of complicated, but let me just say that the last time I fought him, I only won not because I cheated, but because someone else cheated for me. He's the most powerful ghost I've ever fought, Val." Danny jumped through the ceiling without another word, but Valerie followed him on the stairs.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry. The entire town has just spent the last hour wondering why you vanished right when we needed you, and I've been left alone to clean up the mess."

"Sorry." His glance took in the destroyed kitchen, the ransacked living room, the shattered picture frames lying against the walls. "He hasn't come back, has he?"

"No." Valerie led him out the back door. "I've kept looking, but he just vanished." She looked at him. "Where have you been?"

"The Ghost Zone."

"Where in the Ghost Zone?" When he didn't answer, she relaxed her posture. "Look, I don't mean to sound defensive or anything, but I don't think the Ghost Zone would be any safer than Amity right now."

Danny stared at the toe of his boot as it scuffed the lawn. "The prison is."

"You're hiding in the prison."

"It's secure."

Valerie put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him. She waited until he looked at her. "Walker didn't arrest you again, did he?"

"If he had, I wouldn't be here talking to you, would I?"

"Then...how'd you convince him to let you in, let alone out?"

"Hiding there was his idea." He started walking, but Valerie stopped him again.

"Danny, there's something else going on. What is it?"

Danny sighed, staring at the sidewalk. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me."

"Well, I just found out a couple weeks ago...but he's my grandpa." He looked up, expecting her green eyes to be wide in disbelief. Instead, he saw she was trying valiantly to bite back a smile. "It's not funny, Val!"

She bit down harder as her smile widened.

"Really, it's not funny!"

Valerie threw her head back and laughed. Danny shot her a glare, then stormed off. "Oh, come on, Danny," she said, catching up with him a moment later. Her eyes still sparkled. "It can't be that bad."

"Easy for you to say. You're not the one who'll have to spend Thanksgiving with him."

She covered her mouth with her hand, and Danny knew she was trying not to laugh again. He glared, and she managed to hold it in. "Okay, okay. I promise I won't laugh again, on one condition."

"And that is?"

Valerie broke into a grin. "You invite me over for Thanksgiving dinner."

Danny stomped off as her laughter rang through the empty street.