Previous Chapter: Chapter 42

Chapter 37: Nap Time

When Danny blinked his eyes open again he was still lying down, though much more comfortably than he had been a moment before. It took him a second to remember where he was and then it took him another second to realize he didn't know where he was, or how he'd gotten there.

His heart spiked with a brief shot of adrenaline and Danny lay completely still, trying to gauge his surroundings. He was still confused and his brain still a little light headed, but he could tell he was alone wherever he was so the wild beating against his ribcage gradually died until it returned to its slow and steady pace. Now that he knew he was out of danger for the moment, Danny took in what facts he could.

He was lying in a bed. There was a light blanket pulled up over him and his ripped and stained shirt and pants had been replaced by a real world, white button down pajamas. He looked down at his side, pulling up the half buttoned shirt to find a white bandage wrapped tightly around his middle and thick pad of gauze smelling of antiseptic pressed against the wound in his side. The injury still hurt, but not with the burning severity from earlier and by cautious movement, Danny could tell the metal shrapnel had been taken out of it. He could feel another bandage wrapped around his shoulder, tighter than the old one.

For a moment, Danny had to wonder if he was still in the Ghost Zone. There were so many real world items sitting around him. The bed, clothes, and bandages were all from the real world, though possibly not his world, as was much of the rest of the room. Looking around Danny could see the furniture was all of real world origin. The shelves had real world books, toys, and keepsakes, including a clock that ticked quietly in the background. On the wall, hung a real world mirror yet next to it was a window with the distinctive glowing trees of the Ghost Zone beyond. The walls and ceiling themselves glowed with a yellowish light that almost resembled sunlight from a real world summer day.

Danny pulled the blanket back and swung his legs over the side of the bed. His side and shoulder protested and he could feel the pull of stitches tugging at his skin underneath the bandages. The pain was muted, though, blanketed by something, probably some form of pain killer, Danny guessed. His fingers did feel a little tingly, Danny thought as he rubbed his fingers together, and his thoughts seemed slow in coming.

It wasn't until he brought a hand up to rub the back of his neck in confusion that Danny noticed the collar. He froze when his fingers brushed against the leather surface, an eerie chill running down his spine. He jumped out of the bed, stopping when pain shot through the slightly muffled feeling and zipped up from his side. Moving a little slower but with no less agitation, Danny went to the round mirror hanging on the wall. There, sure enough, was a collar running around his neck. Danny fingered it twisting it around looking for an end, a buckle, a clasp, or something that would let him take it off. The entire thing was one piece of leather, a never-ending loop, its surface carved and decorated with symbols. The entire thing glowed with the unearthly, though muted light of the Ghost Zone.

Danny tried to pull it off but the collar held fast. After a moment of tugging, his heart speeding up and his breathing growing ragged as he couldn't get the collar off, the thing started to glow brighter. It warmed against his skin and the warmth spread through his body. His muscles slowly relaxed and his heart slowed, his breathing evening out. It permeated his head making the fear and panic disappear in a moment and almost making him forget what he was doing. Danny had to blink, confused on what had just happened.

Thinking of another approach, Danny tried to phase the collar off, but it wouldn't work in human form, so he tried to flash to Phantom. The collar glowed brightly and suddenly Danny was on the floor, dizzy with weakness and still human. His side spiked with pain and he clamped a hand over the injury.

It was then that one of the two doors in his room open and the girl from the forest poked her head inside. "Oh, you're awake!" she said in that same bright voice as she'd used to point out the berries to her father, though for the first time Danny noticed the slightest hint of an accent. "I'll go tell Papa. He's been ever so excited, a real human!"

Her head disappeared in a swish of pigtails and Danny was left alone blinking at the door from where he sat on the floor of his cottage room. It didn't last for long, as a moment later the father appeared, a bright smile on his face as he pulled a pair of spectacles out from the breast pocket of his flannel shirt. He didn't approach immediately though, merely gazed at Danny from his place by the door.

"Well," the adult ghost said his voice soft and calm as though he were speaking to a frightened child. "You're awake I see. That's very gratifying to know. I wasn't entirely sure I treated the wound exactly right. It's been so long since I studied the human anatomy in person and you were asleep for so long, you see. Though that might have been due to the pain killers I administered," he added in a soft voice to himself, folding one arm across his chest and taking a hold of his chin with the other.

"Oh," Danny faltered, unsure how to take that piece of information. These ghosts had healed him, but it also seemed they had drugged him and put the collar around his neck. He didn't know whether to thank them or jump up railing against them. He decided to wait and find out a bit more about his hosts. He still couldn't go ghost and the dizzy wave of weakness that had dumped him on the floor made him wary to try again. Slowly, Danny climbed to his feet. "Um…who are you exactly?"

"My name is Fennick," the ghost said with a benign smile, he had the same slight accent as the girl, "and this is my daughter Amelie. May I ask your name?" he returned the question, peering over the rims of his spectacles seated on the tip of his nose. He hooked both thumbs into the pockets of his trousers.

"Danny Fenton," Danny said, wondering if it were safe to tell the ghost about the whole Halfa thing. It seemed to be hit or miss with most ghosts when discussing his state of existence. They either hated Danny Phantom or they loved him for various reasons Danny never cared to examine.

"Well, I'm most glad to meet you!" Fennick said, crossing the floor, seizing Danny's good arms and pumping it up and down in an enthusiastic handshake.

Danny's heart rate spiked for a moment at the sudden movement but the collar around his neck warmed and the unease bled out of him before he could really realize it. Fennick let go of his hand and made a calming gesture.

"Now, now, no need to get upset," the ghost said in a calming voice, "You have nothing to worry about. No one's going to harm you here, quite the opposite, in fact."

"Papa loves humans," Amelie said in her innocent voice, twisting back and forth at the knees, her pigtails swinging to either side of her head.

"You're all really quite fascinating," Fennick agreed with a nod of his head and an enthusiastic smile. "Though, humans rarely ever come into our world and they never last long when they do. One of our kind is always there to devour them it seems. That or they find a way back or other humans come and take them back to their own world. You were really quite lucky we found you when we did, otherwise your injury would have finished you off or the blood would have attracted something that would." He beamed at the averted calamity.

Danny blinked at the ghost, his brain still a little slow in turning over all the information. It seemed this ghost was the polar opposite of his parents. Fennick certainly had his obsession, but it was with humans and not ghosts, learning about them and not hunting them or dissecting them "molecule by molecule". Danny had to admit it was a nice change, but the collar thing still made him nervous.

"Well…I guess I should thank you for helping me," Danny said, putting a hand up to rub his neck. He ended up fingering the collar instead.

"Not to worry, not to worry," Fennick said, "I was most concerned about the levels of ectoplasm I found in you. It can be dangerous to humans, you know, according to my research. Too high levels of ectoplasm can be toxic to the human constitution, but I think I found the answer."

Danny shook his head. One thing this ghost did have in common with his parents was a poor understanding of those on the other side, ghosts for his parents, humans for this ghost. It suddenly occurred to Danny that he was having a difficult time feeling his ghost half. It was there, but weak and faint as though drained from using it too much in a short span of time. He hadn't been able to shift to Phantom earlier. What had this ghost done to him?!

Both Danny's hands went up to the collar again, faintly tugging on it. His heart started to speed up again and his breath caught in his throat, but his anger and anxiety at not being able to access his ghost powers was cut off before it could peak. The collar warmed under his fingers and against his neck, spreading the warmth through him again seeping into his muscles and his brain. It left him almost giddy with a relief he couldn't place or explain. All the tension drained his muscles and he stood there light headed and frowning in confusion.

"Feeling better now?" Fennick asked, keen eyes fixed on Danny. "You were quite distressed when we first tried to help you, wouldn't calm down enough for us to treat your injuries. So I used the collar. I developed it for violent ghosts, you know, but could never get close enough to put it on them. I modified it to help with your anxiety." He pulled out a pipe from his front pocket and lit it, blowing out a few puffs of white smoke.

Danny stared at the ghost with wide eyes. He didn't know how to respond so he just stared, mouth gaping open.

Fennick continued, glancing down into his pipe and tapping it against one hand as he spoke. "I know how dangerous stress can be for the human condition. So it'll help keep you nice and relaxed until we can figure out exactly what to do with you. I also adjusted it to help with the case of ectoplasm-poisoning you had. I don't know how well it will work or long it will take to filter out the ectoplasm in your system, but it seems to be bringing it down to a safe level at the very least!" He clamped his teeth on his pipe, stuffing his hands back in his trouser pockets. He rocked up on his toes a few times and smiled a proud and boyish grin.

Danny could feel the frustration and outrage building up inside of him. This ghost not only collared him with something that would stifle his negative emotions, he'd also suppressed his ghost powers! The frustration and outrage never got far, though. The collar warmed again calming the negative reactions. The result left him once again light headed and a little confused. He knew he should be mad. He understood what the ghost had done, but the emotions filling him up didn't match the thoughts in his head. He took a step back from Fennick and Amelie, a frown on his face and a hand going to his head.

"There, isn't that better than getting upset?" Fennick asked in the same slightly clueless tone his parents used when they discussed the Ghost Gabber. He pulled the spectacles off his face and folded them into his pocket.

Danny shook his head, taking another step back. He didn't entirely know if it was or not. He did know he didn't like it at all, but the feeling never progressed past a mild dislike which made him frustrated. That, in turn, made the collar warm which only made him more frustrated and angry. It was like a war was being waged inside of him, a never ending cycle. The frustration, fear, and anger at the ghost and the situation would rise, but the warmth of the collar would soothe it away, leaving behind calm and a vague giddiness. The stronger the feelings were the stronger the reaction from the collar they elicited.

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it and when we find your home portal and can get you away from these high amounts of ectoplasm we'll take it off," Fennick said with a satisfied nod, "Now can you tell me where you're from? I know many of you humans put importance on home and family, like some of us ghosts," at this he gave his daughter a quick one armed hug while she beamed up at him, "so I imagine you'd rather be sent back to your home than just anywhere. If you tell me I'll try to get you back there."

Now Danny's heart skipped with hope, but this time the collar didn't try to bleed it away and it grew, even if he knew getting his hopes up was dangerous. "Amity Park!" he said, "I'm from Amity Park." He paused a moment fingering the collar, most ghosts knew about his half ghost status anyway and if he could convince them the ectoplasm levels in his system were normal then maybe they would take the collar off. "And you don't need to worry about the levels of ectoplasm in my system, that's normal for me. I'm a Halfa."

At this Fennick frowned. He stepped closer, pulling out his spectacles once again. He peered closely at Danny tutting to himself the whole time. "Now, now, see what I mean?" He reached out to Danny's face.

Danny stepped back half a pace, his initial reaction to having anyone reach for his face. The collar was warm before he could fully jerk away, though and in the end he only twitched. He vaguely noted that the collar seemed to be reacting faster to his moods than it had when he'd first woken up, but the thought was cut off as the ghost stepped even closer.

"There, see?" Fennick said peering into each of Danny's eyes with the practiced movements of a doctor. It took Danny a moment to realize Fennick wasn't talking to him but Amelie who was also staring at him with wide-eyed fascination. "The ectoplasm has already affected his thinking. The poor boy's delusional. It's lucky we got to him in time."

"What?" Danny exclaimed, though it didn't come out in the indignant tone he wanted but more vaguely surprised, "No! That's not it at all!" The collar was warm against his skin but Danny fought against it.

"Oh dear," Fennick sighed as he watched Danny's internal battle. "Now you really do need to just calm down. Here, why don't you sit down?"

Danny shook his head, hands gripping at his hair. The collar was warm, almost vibrating against his skin. It felt different from the other times, stronger, more intrusive. It pushed back against his initial reactions and left him so distracted he didn't feel the gentle hands pulling him back to the bed. He only vaguely caught Fennick pulling his daughter out of the room with a quiet, "Let him rest." Then, Danny was alone.

The room spun dizzily around Danny and he lay still in the bed waiting, praying for it to stop. He knew he was angry about what was happening but the ghost's restraining collar repressed it so he only felt dazed, light headed, and slightly euphoric. He dimly thought it would be terrible if Vlad got a hold of an object like this, but the dread that should have come with the notion didn't have a chance to surface leaving the impression only half felt.

At some point, Danny must have fallen asleep. When he blinked his eyes open he felt completely calm. The dizziness and disorientation were gone and he tried to keep his emotions in check so it would stay that way. He shifted, then looked down as he realized there was something clutched to his chest. Someone had come in and put a teddy bear in his arms while he slept. Danny rolled his eyes, imagining the girl, Amelie, doing just that and pushed the offending stuffed toy away even if all he felt was mild exasperation. He was too old for teddy bears!

Someone had pulled a blanket over him, as well, effectively tucking Danny in for his nap. The annoyance he wanted to feel wouldn't come, but another part of him was a little relieved and that seemed to be magnified tenfold, filling in the places where the annoyance should have been. These two ghosts were so much like his parents with their obsession it was scary. Everything from the fascination and research down to the blatant misunderstanding of what they were dealing with and cluelessness to recognize their mistakes was like a mirror image. When considering how his parents usually handled their encounters with ghosts, though, Danny could only thank his lucky stars that these two didn't take the tear-apart-molecule-by-molecule approach.

At least, Danny didn't feel he was actively in danger from these ghosts. They might baby him to death, but they wouldn't try to dissect him. He hoped that meant he'd have a better chance to explain things or escape.

That thought in mind, Danny pushed himself out of bed, careful of his injury and moved to the door. It was unlocked, leading into a short hallway. The hall was filled with almost as many real world items as his room, but the ghostly items were more apparent as well. The long running table had a mish mash of human pictures that looked like they came from complete strangers as well as some hand drawn images of Fennick and Amelie. The mirror hanging on the wall seemed to have a frame made of wood from the Ghost Zone, but glass was from the real world, and the carpet he couldn't tell where it came from, real world or not. Danny wondered if the two ghosts had specifically filled his room with human objects to make him feel more comfortable.

Looking either way down the short hall, Danny saw doors in both directions. He wasn't sure which would lead outside and didn't want to accidentally walk in on the two ghosts, letting them know he was up already. Pausing a moment, Danny heard voices from one of the nearby doors. He tip toed over, listening to the conversation.

"It's just so difficult to determine which portal to send him through," Fennick said, mild frustration in his voice. A tapping sound beat a steady rhythm in the back ground, like he was tapping away with a pencil against some paper.

"What if we asked him?" Amelie suggested in wondering tone. "He seemed like he knew where he had come from."

"I'm afraid simply knowing the town's name won't help. I've never heard of Amity Park. Plus, there's no way to be certain we have the right Amity Park if we did find it. It doesn't help that the boy is so addled by the ectoplasm, either…" Fennick explained, his voice growing thoughtful by the end.

"Well…" Amelie started, Danny recognized the leading tone of a kid about to ask for something, "If we can't send him back right away…can I keep him?"

Danny felt an icy hand grab his heart before it melted away with warmth from the collar. The effect left him dizzy again and he put out a hand to steady himself, meanwhile leaning closer to the door to try and catch the answer.

Fennick chuckled. "Oh Poppet, he's a human! You can't just pick up any old human you find and keep him like a pet!"

"But Papaaa!" Amelie cried, pleading, "You said yourself we don't know where to send him and we can't just let him loose here, he'll get killed!"

There was a thoughtful silence that did not bode well to Danny. "That's very true," Fennick said in a slow considering tone. "He will have to stay here until we can deduce the correct portal. In truth, I don't know how long that will take. The boy's already got so much ectoplasm that's leached into his system, I don't dare trust anything he thinks might be true. It's probably the delusions talking!"

"So we can keep him until he goes home!"Amelie cried in excitement, clapping her hands. Danny could hear her jumping up and down on the spot.

"We'll have to for his own protection," Fennick said, "I will say I'm looking forward to having a real specimen here to question. But Poppet, you have to promise me not to get attached. If we find the right portal we'll need to send him back."

It didn't escape Danny's notice that Fennick had gone from "when" they found the portal to "if". He forced down a nervous gulp, the collar warming even more against his neck. He fought to keep rational thought in his head and push down the more negative nervousness and fear that were triggering the collar. It seemed explaining anything to these ghosts was out, that left escaping.

"I won't, Papa!" Amelie promised, but Danny didn't believe her for a second. As if confirming his suspicions, the ghost girl spoke up a moment later. "But…if I did get attached…would you let me keep him?"

Fennick just chuckled again. There was a scraping sound from a chair pushed across the floor. "We'll see, Poppet, we'll see."

Danny had heard enough. He had to get out of there now! He turned from the door, trying to make his way as quietly as possible down the hall. There was a door at the very end that looked like it might lead to the outside, he'd try that one first.

The collar was warming against his skin sending down the dizzy euphoria again and Danny pushed against the fear that was fighting to exist. He had to concentrate on more positive things. He thought about getting home and seeing his family. That thought and feeling seemed to reflect off the collar and magnified within himself, giving him added strength. He also thought of the more neutral fact of simply finding a way out of the house and away from its two residents. That thought, while easy to hold onto also provoked the fear he'd felt before which triggered the collar. It was a delicate balancing act.

Finally, Danny made it to the door. He eased it open relieved to find it both unlocked and leading outside. Immediately outside the door was a brick path that wound its way through a glowing green lawn that circled around the house and into a chaotic flower garden that circled the lawn. Danny hurried down the path, heading for the trees he could see growing just beyond the garden. It seemed the cottage was buried in the forest he'd landed in and if he could get away he'd be able to hide somewhere, gather his strength, and most importantly remove the collar.

Danny had just gotten to the edge of the flower garden when he came to a row of white stones glowing with the same ghostly aura as everything around him. The stones, however, had symbols painted over top. He hesitated only a moment, afraid the rocks set up some sort of barrier, before stepping over the line and into the forest beyond the garden.

Pausing, Danny couldn't feel any adverse side effects from leaving the enclosed area so he quickened his pace into the woods, joy surging through him at his success and magnified by the collar. He didn't make it ten feet before the collar warmed again, making Danny's steps stutter. He hadn't been feeling anything negative, he'd been happy at successfully getting away! Still the collar became progressively warmer until it was almost hot, stopping just shy of burning him.

It pulsed, sending those same intrusive waves through Danny's mind. The sensation was so distracting Danny didn't notice he'd stopped walking for several minutes. The next thing he realized he was laying down, his body moving on its own as dizziness, fatigue, and that artificial euphoria slammed into him. He couldn't make sense of what was happening. All he knew was he was so incredibly tired, but comfortable, comfortable enough to go to sleep right there and then even. In fact, that was all he wanted to do.

As Danny nestled into his place on the leafy forest floor he dimly heard a voice above him reassure him, or was it talking to someone else?

"You see, Poppet? He won't be going anywhere, he's safe and sound. Let's just get him back inside."

Danny dimly felt himself lifted up before he sank completely into the warm sleep that pulsed through him.

::THE END::