Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom. I own OC's and the weird plotline spinoff, but not the plotline taken from the show or the show's characters.
Nyaa.
Speaking of, beware of more OC's ahead!
Nyaa!
=^n.n^=
Chapter 29
There was a loud yowl as Tucker Foley was attacked by Stitches; leaping on his back, she wrapped her paws around his neck and bit at his shoulder, her tail lashing about wildly.
He let out a laugh. "Dude, that tickles! Knock it off, Stitches!" He waved a hand at her, which she only meowed and batted at playfully. "Danny, your cat is awesome! She doesn't use her claws or anything!"
"Yeah. She's been with me for five years now." Danny grinned as the cat abandoned Tucker in favor of jumping onto Sam's beanbag chair instead, curling up at the top of it. "I told you: she's the best when it comes to playing!"
"I'll say." Sam smiled and scratched behind a black triangular ear. "It's like she understands or something. Wouldn't it be cool if animals could communicate with us verbally?"
Not as cool as she'd think. Danny gave his cat a leer. "Using words? I dunno. Who knows what kind of stuff an animal would say?"
Stitches purred loudly, tail still wild as she gazed at him, prepared to attack at any moment.
Tucker and Sam giggled.
The three of them had ditched the adults in favor of taking over Sam's in-home theater. Cartoons were playing on the screen while they sat in large beanbag chairs, each of them with two pieces of cake: the one Sam's parents had bought, and the one Danny and Lily had made.
Tucker took a large bite out of the black-and-purple square. "Man, I gotta get your mom to make my next birthday cake! Even these flowers taste good!"
"Flowers would taste good anyway, Tucker." Sam shot at him, frowning. "And don't talk with your mouth open. It's gross."
"Aw, what? You don't like see-food?" Tucker opened his mouth to show off its contents.
Sam gave him a flat glare. "Your mouth is black… like my soul."
Danny gave a small golf clap. "Best Goth comeback ever."
"Heck yeah!" She grinned. "I'm so Goth, it hurts!"
Tucker leaned over to Danny. "That's good, right?"
"I heard that!" Sam punched Tucker in the arm, then Danny.
"Ow! What'd I do?!" Danny yelped, rubbing his arm.
"Conspiracy." Sam shrugged and took another bite of the lavender cake, closing her eyes to savor the taste.
Tucker frowned. "What's a conspiracy again…?"
"It's when a bunch of people are planning something and not telling anyone else about it." Danny frowned into a bite of cake. It bothered him that he knew the word.
"Well… Yeah, I guess that fits." Tucker yelped as he got another slug in the arm. "Hey! At least wait until the first one heals!" Danny started to snicker, but ended up choking on a breath of cold air. Tucker shot him an indignant look. "Serves you right."
"Serves you right." Danny retorted, rubbing his throat. He silently wondered where the hiccup of air had come from; it happened so rarely around the living…
Stitches gave a low kitty growl before taking off from the room.
"Uh-oh. Danny, your cat…" Sam said, starting to get up.
"Er, it's okay, you guys. I'm sure Stitches thought she saw a mouse or something." Danny excused, sitting up in his beanbag. He was enjoying this time with his friends – he didn't want to spend it looking for a cat that could turn invisible of her own free will. "She'll come back in a little bit. I promise. She does this at home all the time."
"That's good enough for me!" Tucker hadn't budged from his seat, but he somehow managed to settle in even more at Danny's assurance. He wasn't one for physical activity if it could be avoided.
"If you say so…" Sam shrugged, settling back down as well.
The Stitch Witch prowled silently through the Manson's hallways, her yellow eyes wide and studious. Even if Danny was unaware of what the puff of cold air was, she knew a ghost sense when she saw one – plus, it certainly helped that her own had gone off. But while ice-elemental Phantom hiccupped a puff of cold air, and electric-elemental Plasmius felt a small surge of power in his core, water-elemental Stitch Witch briefly felt as if she were drowning. The panic that accompanied that sensation immediately put her in offensive mode.
Something bumped ahead of her, causing her ears to perk in alertness. She went still, her body low to the ground and ready to pounce. Every muscle was ready as the sound of pattering feet hurried toward her.
A yellow long-haired barn cat came barreling around the corner and jumped on her with a squeal of delight: "Hi Mommy!"
Ashley yelped as she was caught off-guard and tackled to the ground. The other kitty hugged her and snuggled his face in her side as a black-and-white shorthair stalked around the corner, the bell of his collar jingling. "Here you are, Mother."
"Thomas? Kenny? What on earth are you two doing here?" Getting to her paws, Stitches walked over to the black-and-white and wrapped her forearms around his neck, licking one of his ears. "Don't you know that the Real World is dangerous for ghosts?"
Thomas wrinkled his nose and tried to writhe out of her grip. It didn't work, of course – it never did. His mother was millennia older than himself and his twin, so she was far-stronger and well-practiced when it came to finding a grip. "You're one to talk. We're used to you being gone for a few years at a time, but then the Behemoth returned and… Are you… Are you really living with Plasmius?" He gave her a suspicious look.
Ashley let him go and sat up straight. Kenny curled up next to her and happily snuggled his mother's side. "Tommy, don't give me that look."
"Don't you 'Tommy' me! It's true, isn't it?" He looked at her desperately. "Please, Mom, we know you're trying to ensure that Phantom grows up to be good. Godfather told us. But even he can't see what your actions will do to the boy until after you've done it – and you can't take things back!"
The Witch sighed and shook her head. "Clockwork trusts me, Thomas. You should, too."
"I do trust you… But…" Thomas hesitated.
His younger twin spoke up for him with a lopsided grin. "God-daddy showed us evil Phantom! He was all crazy and 'blar, I'm evil!' and stuff! He was way more destructive than Grand-pappy Pariah! Sure was crazy." Kenny smiled as Ashley gave him an amused look.
"So, you think that I would want to corrupt Phantom in the hopes of having my own mate, Thomas? Do you really question my sanity – my morals – that much?" She gave him a sideways glance.
Thomas frowned, feeling shame, but puffed up. "I do. Mother, you've fought off that prophecy for years – you've destroyed humans and ghosts that you've thought would fulfill the prophecy without even gathering evidence in some cases. Even though you succeeded in getting around the need of a husband to create children of your own, I still… I still believe that you want a mate, and the notion of true love possibly blinding you to true evil… I know you'll do whatever you want in the end."
"You're right. I will do what I want in the end." Ashley butted her forehead against Thomas' gently, looking him in the eye. "And in the end, what I want is for my children and my children's children to be safe, and for Phantom to grow into the person that he wants to be. He's going to have to make a very difficult decision in the near future – not immediately, but within a few short years. That decision is one he will have to make of his own free will, and it's what will ultimately decide whether he becomes a great hero… or… if I will have to destroy him as well." This last sentence caused her visible pain to say. She adored the child as if he were one of her own.
Thomas' ears drew back as he searched for words of comfort; sympathy was not his forte.
Again, Kenny filled in the void: "Aw, don't be sad, my Mommy! Me and Tommy will help you turn your friend into a hero!" He gasped and got a goofy grin on his feline face. "I know! We can tell the others, too! Will that make you happy?"
"Happy?" Ashley chuckled and shook her head, leaning her forehead against Kenny's now. "Ken-Ken, you adorable little psycho, how do you propose you could 'help' me and Danny?"
Kenny frowned in thought, then jumped to his feet, tail puffed out with a look of manic glee. "We can fight him for you! Battle royale! We're fighting his daddy's forces, anyway!"
"What?!" Ashley shot Thomas a disbelieving look. "The family is fighting Plasmius?!"
"Well, yeah." Thomas grimaced, leaning back a little. "King of Evil, remember? It seemed a little too Pariah-like. We didn't want to take any chances."
The Witch would have paled if she were human or ghost at the moment. "Me and Vlad? That… That thought is…" She was having trouble wrapping her mind around it. Kids really did have strange imaginations sometimes! Taking a deep breath, she held up a paw. "I will not be pursuing Vlad as a potential mate, Thomas. He is a father at heart, true, but he is also an emperor in his own mind, and I would not be able to suffer that on a daily basis." She shook her head warily. "I have put my mother on his trail instead."
"Grandmother Lily?!" Thomas' every hair puffed out, making him look like a tuxedo-print puffball. "You… You pimped out Grandma?!" He looked horrified.
"I did not pimp her out!" Stitches hissed, doing her best not to laugh at his reaction.
Kenny tilted his head curiously. "What's 'pimped out' mean? Is that like Ecto Acne? Mama, why did you give Grand-mommy Ecto Acne?"
She placed a paw over her face. "I did not give Grandma Ecto Acne, Kenny."
He gave a sigh of relief. "Oh, okay. I don't think Grandma would like that, anyway."
Thomas finally stopped in his sputtering. "I-I… I don't understand why you would think that Grandmother would… would even be compatible with a creature like Vlad Plasmius! I mean, she's so wonderful, and nice, and cares nothing for power… and that's exactly what the man is all about! Power! Grandeur! He's-He's Grandfather Pariah just waiting to happen!"
At this, Ashley shot him a chilling glare. "Vlad Masters is nothing like my father was. There are similarities, but his potential for true evil is so scarce that it's almost laughable. He has delusions of power and world domination, and that is precisely why I brought your grandmother into his life – she can show him a path that he never saw before. I have no doubts that he will try to keep her and conquer the world, but when he realizes that he will have to choose between her or conquest – and more importantly, between his own son and conquest – Vlad will make the right decision. As for Danny…" She shrugged. "That is why I brought Vlad and Danny to Amity Park. Had Fenton Works never blown up, Danny would have grown up with Sam and Tucker, and they would have been the greatest of friends. Even in this reality, they still have that potential. Sam and Tucker are anchors of things that are good in Danny, much like Danny is an anchor for what's good in Vlad. That's why Clockwork didn't correct the explosion, even for how terrible it was for Danny in his younger years."
Thomas' brow furrowed as he listened, still unsure and uneasy. He didn't want his mother playing with fire as she always did. She was so different from him, much like his twin. How could his other siblings be so okay with this? There was no doubt that many would just shrug things off when he and Kenny returned to the island…
"On second thought, Kenny's right. You and the others, come to Amity Park and fight Danny."
Ashley's statement brought Thomas out of his thoughts with a stupefied look. "What? You're… You're kidding, right?"
"No, I'm not." She sighed and smiled. "Danny needs to learn to fight someone for real, and he can't do that with his father; that's the only training that he gets. He needs to learn to 'fly without the safety net', as it were."
"But you want us to go easy on him." Thomas relaxed a little. "At first, obviously, but to apply a bit more pressure as his fighting gets better. How will you and Grandmother Lily keep Plasmius from interfering, though?"
"Leave that to us." Stitches looked at the floor, tail twitching in thought. "I've watched him be distracted from the quest for the Skeleton Key by Danny for years, and now my mother is adding to that. Vlad's a very obsessive sort – I can relate to that, luckily."
Thomas got an amused look. "Luckily, or unfortunately?" He smirked as she batted him on the head.
"Mouthy little runt." She smiled. "Tell your brothers and sisters that they'll be having a dual role to fulfill."
His smirk curled a little more. "A dual role?"
"It's all a part of the plan, Tommy." Her smile turned sly. "It's all part of the plan…"
Spectra swirled over a mansion in Amity Park. It wasn't quite as grandiose or large as one that would belong to Vlad Masters, but it was still pretty impressive. In fact, it sort of reminded her of the one she'd lived in as a human…
She pushed the thought from her mind, trying to hone in on the ghost signatures within; as she picked up on Plasmius', she could sense his alertness – he was sending out energy in waves, warning any enemies not to come closer to any in his 'domain'. She chuckled. Phantom's was also inside, innocently clueless to her own presence and protected by another ghost's presence. It was female, but not the Stitch Witch… Had Plasmius found a mate?
At that thought, Spectra frowned. Mother ghosts were always much more dangerous than fathers, for the simple reason that they were so much more vicious. Whoever this new ghost was, she had imprinted on Danny as one of her own kin. When Spectra found the Stitch Witch, she found that the same maternal signature covered her as well.
It gave the swirling black ghost a moment of pause.
Then there was a snarl as something attacked her… something knife-like. They dug into her and dragged her away from the house at breakneck speed, then threw her to the ground in the park without giving her time to turn intangible. They were out of the sight of humans.
She hissed and rubbed her head as she sat up. Who would dare attack her?!
"Hey. Hag. Wake up, hag!"
She snarled and sprang up, hands balled into fists. Floating not far above her were two formidable-looking ghosts – they almost looked like wraiths, for how horror movie-worthy they looked. The one on the right had black hair in an emo-cut style, and he had numerous knives, swords, and other sharp objects protruding from his body – most notably, his fingertips. The other had pale yellow, almost white, hair and looked like a scarecrow with a face-splitting grin plastered to his face and light bulbs where his eyes should have been. Both could have been in their early twenties at the time of their deaths, except that they didn't feel like they had ever been alive in the first place, which could have explained why they didn't feel like wraiths; they also felt like they were much, much older than Spectra herself was.
"Ugh, you are a sight, aren't you?" the dark one asked, crossing his arms. He had a look of clear disdain on his face. "So, were you actually mummified, or do you just naturally look like a withered bag of bones?"
The other pouted. "Aw, Tommy – be nice to the old lady!"
"Old lady?!" Spectra growled, baring her fangs. "Who do you think you're talking to?!"
"An old bag, obviously." Thomas smirked. Spectra scowled at him to mask her surprise – this ghost was a swirling pool of misery, so he should have been brought to his knees as soon as she was in the vicinity. But there was something foreign and dangerous about that misery; the more that she tried to stir it up, the more it bothered her. Ate at her. She couldn't get it to do what she wanted.
It made her feel… upset.
"You're one to talk, you skinny little runt." she said, ignoring the strange feeling that was attacking her. "Tell me, do you mean to look like a member of the opposite sex? At least I'm recognizable as a female!"
"Then it must upset you that I'd get more pick-up offers." Thomas rushed down at her and sank his knives into her sides again, then threw her to his brother. "Kenny, catch!"
"Okay!" Kenny crowed, sounding chipper. His arms locked around Spectra's torso tightly. "Now what?"
"Hold her there." Thomas swept up until he was almost nose-to-nose with Spectra, studying her critically with his strange, bloodshot yellow eyes. After a moment, he smirked. "Angry that you can't make me emo it up?"
"Let me go, you little freaks!" she screamed, trying to worm her way out of the scarecrow's grip. She couldn't sense anything in the blonde that followed any logic – there was only chaotic, innocent joy in all things, like a manic child drawing in crayon on a wall and not getting in trouble for the mess it made.
"Your power is to feed off of another's pain, I'm guessing." Thomas crossed his arms and floated back a little. He gave her a very 'high-and-mighty' look. He was better than her, and he knew it.
Wait, where had that thought come from?
"I cause jealousy in others, to the point where they can't take life anymore sometimes." He smirked, and she had to wonder if he could read minds as well. "You're so easy to read, I almost feel sorry for that pitiful little nut between your ears that you call a brain."
Kenny gave a hum, looking sad. "Tommy, that's not nice. She's just an old lady. Can't we leave her alone?" While it sounded like he was in on the taunting, the younger twin genuinely had no idea what was going on. He never knew what was going on between people.
Thomas ignored his brother, scowling at Spectra. "If any of my kin find you in Amity Park again, you'll be shredded like the worthless piece of scrap that you are, Penelope Spectra. We've heard of you and what you did to Plasmius' brat. You're pathetic. Your plan was weak, and so are you." He leaned back in. "Do yourself a favor and just disappear."
She stared at him, red eyes round. How was it that his power was strong enough to completely nullify her own?
"Come on, Kenny. Leave the trash here." Thomas said, speeding off.
"Okay!" Kenny started after his brother, but turned and waved at Spectra. "Bye-bye, evil swirly lady! Bye!"
Spectra watched them disappear beyond the veil, left alone to wonder why she felt like she had no meaning for the first time since her death.
It was late when the Masters group returned home, and Danny had passed out in a sugar coma the moment he'd left his friends' company. Lily set the boy in his bed, took off his shoes and pulled the blanket over him. "Good night, little prince." she teased, playing with his hair.
Danny mumbled something incoherent, barely opening his eyes to frown at her words. It was hard to understand how a man with so much money could raise such a humble young boy. Lily smiled. Perhaps it was just luck, but she was certain that it was due to Vlad preserving his son's innocence, thereby ensuring that Danny always thought that he was the hero instead of the villain.
"Now, now, Miss Lily, you really shouldn't taunt sleeping badgers." Vlad was leaning in the doorway, watching the lovely matron tuck in his son. He could scarcely believe that two women like her had existed throughout the entire course of history. Lily and Maddie Fenton would have gotten along rather well, in spite of their differing views of magic and science.
Lily smirked, rising to her feet. "Danny's far too deep – he won't remember a little teasing in the morning." she mused, pulling the door shut as she exited the room. The auburn-haired beauty turned her face towards him, giving Vlad that quietly playful gaze that drove him mad. "Would you like me to cook something for you, Mr. Masters?"
"Please, call me Vlad." He took her hands in his. "I can't stand you being cross with me, Lily. I'm sorry that I reacted so badly to your advice. You were only trying to help make sure that I didn't betray Daniel's trust."
She gave him a scrutinizing look, frowning as she tilted her head slightly to one side. "You're a sweet man, Vlad Masters, but you can also be very thick. You might be used to not heeding advice, but I will not stand for using such underhanded tactics against your own kin, especially the one person who so devotedly thinks the world of you."
"Of course; I understand, Lily." He pressed his lips against the back of her hands, ignoring the slight desperation in his own voice. He had lost a chance at love once; he didn't want to lose this one when he had just been alerted to it. "Can't you forgive a lonely old fool?"
Lily gave a tut. "You aren't lonely, and by comparison you are hardly what I'd consider old. However, I will forgive you, you adorable fool, you."
Vlad quietly released a breath he hadn't realized he was holding and straightened up, smiling at her. "Thank you, Lily. You truly are a dear woman, with far too large a heart."
"And you like to layer the compliments too much at times." She leaned up so that her nose was barely touching his. "Now, stop being a 'schmooze', as Danny so eloquently put it, and kiss me."
Vlad raised his eyebrows in surprise, but happily indulged Lily's demand.
=^nwn^=
D'awww, Vlad finally got some love! And Danny is obviously enjoying the company of his friends, Sam and Tucker – not that that's a surprise, but it's still adorable.
Nyaa.
Meanwhile, Spectra just got a small dose of her own medicine from Thomas, and Kenny is… well, Kenny. He's kind of his own brand of crazy silliness, but I swear he's a genius! He's just… very simple or very ignorant when it comes to inter-human relationships. As for their ghost forms, oi, there I go walking the line of almost needing a ratings change. I really do seem to love that line every now and then, don't I? Eesh.
Nyaa.
