Hello, my darling readers! Looks like I am a day late with this update. But, better late than never, eh? Heh. Okay, I'll finishing blathering below! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom. However, the other characters not from the show are my own.
Chapter 52: Returning Discoveries
It was eleven AM. Danny sat on the couch watching television and eating a large ice-cream sundae. He chuckled at the two fighting people on the screen in between large intakes of the frozen dessert.
"Man, these German dudes sure know how to fight!" he mumbled out. He still had no idea what they were saying, but it was what made the whole thing all the more hilarious and exciting.
But, suddenly, hearing a couple of voices behind him, he quickly glanced back at Jim and two other men that were packing up Vlad's and his things. Sadly, their time in Germany was up, and they were returning today. Jim had arrived early this morning to the condo just before Vlad left to some last-minute meeting---and had yet to return from that. But before the billionaire had left, he had given the ghost pilot specific instructions and also had informed him that he had hired two other men to help him get everything on the plane.
In spite of his claim of strictly coming on a business trip, Vlad, ultimately, had taken some leisure time after all. The teen wasn't sure what had made the man change his mind. But, now that he thought about it, ever since the zoo incident, Vlad had not only been paying more attention to him, but the man had also eased up on his strict business schedule. So much, in fact, that the guy had skipped some of those business plans in order to take him places; and in their outings, the billionaire had even taken the time to buy a couple of things along the way.
For example, yesterday, he was supposed to meet with the guy with whom he had been speaking over the phone at the zoo. But, instead, he canceled on him. And although Danny told him he didn't have to do that, the man just shrugged it off and said he could arrange it for a later time. So, without further argument over the billionaire's decision, Vlad and he headed out to visit various museums located near each other. There were five to be exact, and their location was conveniently called 'Museum Island.' Danny had never really cared for museums very much; but even he had found a lot of very cool things there.
But if the billionaire's actions were not surprising, the fact that he and Vlad had not argued again for the rest of the time that they have been here certainly was. Danny could not say he was happier for that. Arguing with anyone---but especially Vlad Masters---was just too draining for him. But although the guy could be very annoying at times, Danny had decided at some point along their trip that he was going to try to keep things this way when they got back to Wisconsin---even if it meant having to control his own temper. Then again, trying not to fight with Vlad was one thing and succeeding was another…
Danny looked back at the TV again with a sigh. He didn't want to leave Germany. He didn't want to go back. He knew that his problems were waiting back for him in Wisconsin. And because those problems would still haunt him there, the teen felt that it probably wasn't going to be as easy to avoid fighting with Vlad as it had been here. Still, he really wanted to keep this sort of truce between them when they got back. After all, if they had managed to make that happen here, while they had been each other's only company, then it couldn't be impossible to keep that calm when they returned back to 'real life.' It's not like in Wisconsin they would be spending any where near as much time with each other as they had these past four days… So, then, maybe it really wasn't going to be as hard as he was making it out….
A small smile returned to Danny's face as the last thought lifted his mood again. And even more so when he began to somewhat focus again on the show he was watching... Even if they had to return, he was still very glad he had agreed to come to Germany with Vlad. It had been a very enriching experience. Everything that he had done and seen he would probably remember for the rest of his life…
"No wonder you hardly eat, you are always spoiling your appetite with sweets."
Danny, who had just put another spoon-full of ice-cream in his mouth, quickly looked up at the sudden voice. And finding Vlad's slightly annoyed face looking down at him, he swallowed down the cold dessert before smirking at him. The fruit loop was back.
"What? Do you want some?" the teen asked innocently, mockingly lifting up the bowl of ice-cream and offering it to the man just to mess with him.
But instead of getting annoyed by Danny's mocking, as the teen had expected, Vlad's response caught him by surprise.
"As a matter of fact, yes, I would care for some…," the older hybrid replied off-handedly, before suddenly grabbing the bowl out of the teen's hands before he could be stopped.
"Hey!" Danny instantly protested as Vlad turned from him and headed to the kitchen with his dessert. The teen quickly jumped up from his seat and followed after the man as he continued to protest. "Come back here, you ice-cream bandit! I never said you could have mine!"
The billionaire just placed the bowl in the sink, before finally addressing the boy, "Get lunch first, Daniel," he told him sternly. "Then you can eat a whole gallon of ice cream for all I care."
Danny scowled. Okay, well… maybe they still did have small arguments.
"Alright, fine," Danny said, not as upset about it as he initially led on. But then a smile curled on his face again with his next thought and he added, "But I want pizza."
"Pizza?" Vlad repeated, a distasteful frown falling on his face.
"That's right, cheese head," the teen said, crossing his arms stubbornly. "Pizza. And you're eating that, too."
The man sighed in surrender, but nodded and reluctantly said, "Very well, Daniel." But then he raised an eyebrow at Danny as he compromised, "But only if it's Chinese for dinner."
Danny grinned wider. "I'm good with that."
Vlad gave him an amused look; but otherwise said nothing else and finally headed to his room to grab his final things. They needed to start heading out if they were going to do everything he had planned before their flight back…
Suddenly, Danny remembered that Vlad had said earlier that he would be back before ten. And, of course, it was past that. Now with that thought, the teen quickly followed after the man.
"So, what took you so long?" the teen asked conversationally once he had caught up with Vlad.
Vlad entered his room. And although the man left his door wide open to allow him in, Danny just leaned against the door's frame and crossed his arms as he waited for the man to reply.
"Aside from needing to put closure to my agreement with Vazier---as I mentioned to you," the man began. "---the committee also decided to discuss the details of a formal engagement that will be held to make the closure and partnership public. Actually, they might do it in Wisconsin..."
"Sounds like you're looking forward to that," Danny commented with a smirk, having noticed the slight annoyance in the billionaire's tone with the latter fact.
Vlad, who had just grabbed his traveling bag, turned to look at the boy and rolled his eyes at his mocking sarcasm. But the older hybrid's look quickly melded into a small smile, as he added, "But I also made another stop before returning… I got something for you."
Danny blinked at the man. But before he could say anything, Vlad moved passed him and headed back out of his room.
The boy hesitantly followed after him; and when he stopped beside the man, Danny finally noticed a medium-sized box sitting on top of a decorative table near the condo's entrance. Apparently, Vlad had placed it there when he came in.
The billionaire lowered his carrying bag and suitcase on the ground, before grabbing the box from the table and extending it to the teen. "Here, I had this made for you two days back. And, fortunately, it was ready by today," he informed him with the same calm smile.
Danny stared at the man for a bit more, clearly taken aback by his… surprise. But he soon lowered his eyes to the box and accepted it. The teen silently glanced at Vlad once more before heading over to the table to open it.
Vlad calmly followed after him, not noticing Jim's curious look as he paused with what he was doing upon hearing his employer's comment about his getting the child something. That was just plain bizarre, considering he had helped his employer himself with a plot against the young hybrid in the past. And now he was giving him gifts?
"As I heard Skulker once say," Jim thought dryly. "Humans are strange." And with the thought, he went back to his work.
Meanwhile, Danny had opened the box. But he paused when he saw that whatever was inside was glowing.
"As you can see, fiber optics," Vlad explained. "It lights up. And you'll also see this is a particularly impressive feature at night."
Danny's eyebrows slightly creased with the man's comment. But now even more curious, he turned his attention back to the item inside the box. It only took another moment for him to pull it out. And when he did, his eyes widened in disbelief.
"Since you enjoyed the views here so much, I figured you'd like this," Vlad casually commented, though his smile grew a bit with the teen's look. The man internally felt relieved to see that Daniel was more surprised by the gift than anything else. And when considering his past experience with his giving the boy anything, which ended up with Daniel all but throwing his kind gestures back in his face, Vlad knew that the teen's now more positive reaction meant a lot…
Danny's shock finally also melted. And a smile slowly formed on the boy's face as he began to study the large crystal water globe in his hands. At the base, in large gold letters, it read 'Berlin, Germany'. But what really captivated the teen was what was inside the water-filled dome. It not only contained an expert replication of Berlin, but it also had most of the places they had visited on their stay here. The detail was simply amazing.
"Wow…," Danny said, now awed. But then he suddenly chucked when he noticed a specific detail within the crystal ornament. "Hey, even the giraffes are in here!"
Vlad smirked. "I highly doubt I could forget them."
Danny continued to study the globe, and finally noticed his full name engraved on the back of the base. But remembering the man who had given this to him, he turned his gaze back at him and smiled. "Thanks. It's really cool."
Vlad nodded and smiled back; but when he was about to reply, Jim's voice interrupted him
"Mr. Masters?"
The billionaire let out a strange little sigh; but he smiled calmly again; and placing a light hand on the boy's shoulder said, "Excuse me, Daniel." He then left to attend to his ghostly pilot---who looked anything but ghostly at the moment. "Yes, Jim?"
"Everything is packed and ready to be taken to the plane. Well, everything, except for yours and the kid's private belongings. Did you want me to take those to the plane now as well?"
Vlad shook his head. "Don't worry about the carrying bags. We will deal with those. Just have everything else inspectioned and checked out at the airport for me. And have the plane ready by six PM. We will not be departing until then."
"As you wish, sir," Jim replied with a nod, before looking over to the two men whom had been helping him. And with a quick gesture of his head, the ghost pilot said to them, "Okay, humans, let's get going."
Vlad instantly opened his mouth to reprimand the ghost about what he had just said when he was supposed to be pretending to be as human as those two men. But remembering that the two men did not speak English, he decided against it and just rolled his eyes. Sometimes he wondered why he had such a strange ghost as his pilot.
He pushed the thought aside, and glanced back at the boy, who had just finished putting the globe back in its box. "Daniel? Gather your things, my boy. It's time to leave," he told him, before walking off to get his own things.
"Good, 'cause I'm hungry," Danny said more to himself before walking into his room. Having packed everything since morning, he just simply grabbed his duffle bag off the bed, slung it over his shoulder, and headed back out. He then grabbed the box with the globe off the table, holding the heavy object with both hands, before walking over to the door where Vlad was waiting.
The man raised an eyebrow as he asked, "Where are your shoes?"
"Huh? What do you mean, I..," Danny trailed off when he looked down and saw he was only wearing his socks. He had completely forgotten that he had taken off his shoes while watching TV on the couch.
"Heh. Guess I need them, huh?" the boy said meekly.
Vlad just smirked, before grabbing the box from the boy so he could go get his shoes.
In no time, Danny had his shoes on and was ready to go. "Danke schön," he thanked Vlad as he grabbed back the box, so that the man could comfortably carry his own briefcase, bag, and two sets of keys.
The man chuckled as they headed out towards the elevator. "Not bad, Daniel. What other phrases did you learn while here?"
"Let's see," Danny said, a smile on his face as he pondered the question. "I know, Guten Tag, Das ist gut! Bitte, …. Oh, and my favorite, Käsekopf…" (1)
Vlad rolled his eyes. "Cute, Daniel," he said dryly, at hearing the boy say 'Cheese Head' in German.
As they finally made it to the car, Danny grinned at the silver convertible they were taking this time. Out of the three cars Danny knew Vlad kept stored here in Germany, this one was his favorite. And he was sure, Carl would completely agree with him… But being that the ghostly chauffeur wasn't here, it was Vlad who was driving them around. For some reason the man had not cared to hire anyone to do that for him here. But it had been comical at first to see the billionaire behind the wheel---not because he couldn't drive, but because it was just a strange sight… But after the second day, Danny had gotten use to it. And he didn't really tease the man about it anymore.
It was then, though, that Danny noticed Jim loading the rest of their things in another larger car. Vlad had gone over to him and the other two men and was talking to them. But just as the older hybrid was giving the other two humans a decent sum of money for their help, Danny went over to them.
He smirked when Jim glared at him. Danny was too content to let the ghost's dislike for him bother him. Actually, he was feeling a bit daring…
"I will see you in a few hours, Jim," Vlad said to his employee, before looking once more at the two men and adding. "Danke schön. Es war mir eine Ehre sie beide zu treffen."(2)
"Gleichfalls. Ich wünsche ihnen eine sichere Reise, Herr Masters,"(3) one of them replied, while the other nodded his agreement.
Vlad nodded, before looking down at the boy. "Ready, Daniel?"
Danny nodded, before grinning over at Jim and waving at him. "See you on the plane, Jimmy!" he said sweetly, before heading back to the convertible.
The ghost piloted jolted with that off-handed nickname. But he suddenly looked furious and exclaimed, "My name's not Jimmy, you little---" But then, he abruptly cut himself off. He had caught the brief glare he got from his employer, which made him realize that his outburst had the two men with them staring warily at him. Without another word, Jim huffed indignantly before stomping off.
Vlad muttered something about the ghost, before heading over to Danny, who was looking after the angry Jim with mischief dancing in his green eyes. Hey, the ghost liked to mess with him. Why couldn't he do the same back?
"You're a little too bold for your own good sometimes, Daniel," Vlad said with a shake of his head as he opened the trunk so they could put their bags in.
"Hey, he started it," Danny replied with a smirk, after he put away his bag, but kept the globe.
But seeing Vlad roll his eyes and just silently head over to the driver side of the car, the teen's clever smile widened with his next idea, "Hey, Vlad?"
"Hmm?"
"This is a very sweet ride, by the way…I gotta say, you really have good taste in cars…"
Vlad scoffed. "Don't try to butter me up, Daniel. I'm not letting you drive," the man said in a-matter-of-factly voice before getting into the car.
"Why not?" Danny protested, after getting into the passenger side. He quickly turned back to put the box in the back seats, before adding, "I'm fifteen now. I can start learning."
"Yes, that's what I'm afraid of," Vlad muttered, as he pressed his finger against the finger-print activated ignition button.
It was Danny's turn to roll his eyes; but he dropped the subject---for now. As the billionaire took off, the teen strapped on his seat belt as he asked, "So, do you even know where a pizza place is at?"
"Honestly, Daniel," the man said with a slight condescending voice. "I am a normal person in spite your believing otherwise. So, yes, I do know where a pizzeria is located. I have even been in one. And, yes, I have even driven to one," he ended with dry sarcasm.
"Really?" the teen asked, still somewhat skeptical. He couldn't help it! It was so strange to think of Vlad as 'normal'. Okay, yes, he really wasn't 'normal'---just like he also wasn't exactly normal. But they both knew what they meant by 'normal'. Though what was strangest and most surprising to Danny was that in spite of the fact that the man was rich, renowned, and so refined all the time, he would do--and let him see him doing--mundane things.
The man sighed quietly, before muttering, "I have not always been the rich and powerful Vlad Masters, Daniel. And I have not always had the luxuries I do now." Vlad glanced at him and smiled slightly as he added, "I was a simple teenager like you at one point, too, my boy."
Danny blinked. "Wow… Hard to imagine."
Vlad sighed loudly in surrender. The child was impossible sometimes.
But that quickly curved a smile on the boy's face; and with a chuckle he said, "I'm just messing with you, Cheese Head! I know that you were a kid once, too. It's just weird for me, you know. I don't really know all that much about you… well, except lately and from what… my parents have told me." The teen trailed off, feeling a bit troubled when he suddenly mentioned his parents and the past months. But not wanting for things to get awkward, he quickly pushed past it, "So, yeah. Tell me something."
Vlad did notice the boy's waver in his voice; but his last comment got the man's attention and he raised a curious eyebrow at the boy. "You want me to tell you about my past?"
"Why not? We got time, right?" Danny replied, shrugging lightly.
Vlad turned his gaze back to the road, a brief silence enveloping the two half-ghosts. The older hybrid hardly even thought about his past anymore---and mostly because he did not want to. The few times he did think about it was when he would talk to Stephanie, being that they had grown up together. But even then, it was she who always brought up the topic. And, at times, it really bothered the man that she would. So, it wasn't hard to see why Vlad was more than reluctant to do so now with the young hybrid…
"Well…," he finally said with a small sigh. "There is not much to tell, my boy. I grew up in Florida and then I moved to Wisconsin to go to college."
Danny raised a skeptical eyebrow. That could not be all that there was… "Seriously? That's it?"
Vlad shot him a smirk. "Not all of us had such exciting lives at your age, dear boy."
Danny blushed for some reason. But he then shook his head. "Okay, so then tell me something 'exciting' you did. Or were you really such an ordinary guy?" the boy question, quirking an eyebrow.
Vlad chuckled. Of course he had done many things in his past. And there was much more to his past than he let on. But he was not comfortable with sharing it with the boy. It was honestly difficult to tell him anything. His past was just off limits to everyone---even Jack and Maddie did not know everything about it before they met in college. And what came after his ghost powers was just too sensitive of a subject to touch with Daniel, being that it involved either his parents or things of which the boy would not really approve…
"I suppose my first visit to the Ghost Zone was… exciting," he began carefully as he finally decided on something that he could comfortably share with the boy. "It was a year after I had gotten my ghost powers. I was still in the hospital… They had stabilized me enough to keep my condition from being life-threatening as it had been at first…"
Vlad paused as a frown fell on his face. Alright. Maybe this was not the best story to tell the teen after all.
The boy briefly stared at him, having caught the slightest trace of bitterness with the man's talk about his 'condition'. Maybe asking about Vlad's past was a bad idea after all. But thinking of something else, Danny spoke up in hopes of lightening the mood before it got any heavier. "Is that when you met your ghost servants? On your first trip to the Ghost Zone?"
The man was mentally jolted from his heavy thoughts and was internally relieved with the chance to sway the topic somewhat. "Actually, no. I did not meet them until many years later. For example, I met George about ten years after gaining ghost powers. I had just established myself in the business world and the ghost 'world' by then. I had recently purchased my first home—which was my castle in Wisconsin. At the time, I was looking for allies, more than servants. I remember I decided to explore an unknown region of the Ghost Zone that day. And it was there that I unknowingly stepped into George's territory. I had briefly noticed his quiet cottage all alone on a small island. I did not think much of it at first and was planning on just continuing on. But the smell of food coming from the chimney caught my attention. Or, rather, the different colors of smoke rising from it…"
Vlad suddenly chuckled at the memory, turning Danny's lips upwards as well with his growing interest. "I suppose he had every right to attack me when I came into his house unannounced. However, I think what really angered him was that because of my intrusion, he got distracted long enough for this meal to burn. Yes, he was very upset with me."
Danny smirked, already able to imagine that from how obsessed the ghost chef was with what he did.
"It was then that I got the idea of using ghosts as my staff for my castle. I had originally thought of just hiring human staff. But I realized that it was too cumbersome and too dangerous for my ghost persona. So, after a little quarrel and some compliments about his cooking, I persuaded George to work for me," Vlad ended cleverly.
"Wow. And he has been with you ever since?" Danny asked, now understanding why Vlad's staff was so protective of the man. They were like family. They had to be after so many years of being together.
"Um-hmm," Vlad calmly answered as he made a turn at the traffic light.
Now, even more intrigued about Vlad's workers, Danny sat up straighter as he then asked, "Okay, so what about Niane and her sisters. When did you meet them?"
Vlad tilted his head slightly at the boy as he amusedly said, "Daniel, Martha and Patricia are not Niane's sisters."
The boy jolted with the news, but quickly replied, "What? But they said---"
"They were not being literal, my boy," Vlad interrupted him, his gaze on the road again. "Martha and Patricia are indeed sisters. But they are not related to Niane in any physical way. The reason they call her and she calls them that is because they have known each other for many years now. And, of course, they spend a great deal of time together. So, they have sort of adopted Niane as their sister. They care deeply for the girl. And vice-versa."
"Man, and all this time, I thought they were actually related. But that does make sense," Danny muttered, still slightly surprised.
"It's funny that you bring her up," Vlad said with a thoughtful look. "You see, it was on my first trip to the Ghost Zone that I met Niane. She is the first non-malignant ghost I met after I got my powers."
Now Danny looked even more shock by this news. "Seriously? You know her from that long ago? How did you meet her?"
Vlad frowned slightly, unsure if he should go back to the topic about his years in the hospital. But deciding to just be careful with his words, the man finally began to tell the boy the story. "As I said, I had been in the hospital for about a year then. I suppose that would make me… twenty-two during that time. Yes… In any case, being that I was out of mortal danger, I was allowed to walk near the hospital's premises. And I was doing just that that day…Actually, I had gone into a secluded area so I could attempt to figure out my powers… It was still all very new to me… But it was there in that secluded area that it happened…"
"What happened?" Danny whispered in anticipation.
"A natural ghost portal formed a couple of feet in front of me," Vlad replied seriously. He paused as he lingered on the memory of his first year with his ghost powers…"You know," he said, his voice still sober but now more quiet. "---it must be some sort of cruel irony that it was I who ended up with ghost powers. I say that because I honestly never believed in the paranormal. I was skeptical at the most. And I only pursued the study of it because of your parents..."
Danny frowned at the slight bitterness that had returned to the man's voice. But before he could say anything, the man returned to the story with a lighter tone of voice, "So, I think you can imagine how shocked I was to discover a ghost portal." But in that moment, he added mentally to himself, "Just not as shocked as I was to discover my ghost half..."
Vlad shook his head, unknowingly getting a curious look from the teen, before continuing, "After all that time and effort your parents and I had put into researching this project. And then we had worked just as hard in trying to make this sort of gateway, the very thing we needed in order for us to learn more about this 'other world' in which your parents adamantly believed. And, ironically once more, there it was, naturally swirling on its own in front of me."
The billionaire paused before muttering, "When people say that 'curiosity killed the cat', they are not kidding."
Danny couldn't help but smile in amusement at that. "So, you got curious and went in, didn't you?"
Vlad nodded. "That's right. It was just so strange to see a portal there—of all places. I… wanted to know if this 'other world' was true and if it was even close to any of the theories made about it. So, yes, I went in… only to wish I had not. The blasted opening closed right after I entered it. So, you could imagine how I felt about that unexpected turn of events. Still, I continued onward, trying to find a new way out. Except that before I could, I ran into some very hostile ghosts."
The man paused as he glanced at the teen, who was listening intently. "As you can understand, Daniel, I was not quite experienced with my powers yet. In fact, you know at least twice as much as I did after my own first year. See, my abilities did not manifest themselves right away. The ecto-acne was so weakening that they could not. I… I did not find out I had ghostly abilities until three months after my accident. Finding out something so life-altering is not exactly… easy to accept. It was stressful at best; but even more so because I was in a hospital. Not the easiest place to keep something like that a secret. It still amazes me that I managed to do just that in all my time there; especially when I did not have the luxury that you have of practicing on an every-day-basis. My training in that time was on the lines of just simply trying to keep enough control over them so that I would not disappear; or worse, phase through the floor."
"Yeah…that sure stinks," Danny muttered quietly. Perhaps if he had not gone through the same thing, he would have found Vlad's inability to control his powers funny. But he knew firsthand how frustrating and hard it had been at first. And that was even with his being able to practice with his powers every day while gaining experience through his constant ghost fights. But Vlad… he had not been able to really do any of that. He had been sick and in a hospital when his own powers were thrust into his hands….No, it wasn't in the least bit funny.
"I was also not experienced in any type of combat," Vlad continued, slightly annoyed with himself at remembering how weak he was back then.
Danny slightly cringed. "So, how did you manage to beat back those three ghosts?"
"I didn't," Vlad grumbled, glancing at the boy. "Quite the opposite. It did not take them very long to plow me into unconsciousness. As you know, when we are unconscious, our bodies instinctively cling to whatever form our surroundings demand. So, our ghost halves are the more natural of our two forms in the Ghost Zone," the man reminded him, though for some reason he kept his eyes locked on the road ahead. "However, I was so badly beaten by those ghosts during that encounter that my body was too weak to hold my ghost form as it should have. I actually turned human again…" But then, Vlad mentally added to himself, "…Much like you did after Walker's attack."
But Vlad did not let on anything was wrong as he looked briefly at the boy again and said, "I, honestly do not know what happened after that. But when I woke up, Niane was hovering over me, staring at me with those… red eyes of hers… I… asked Niane what had happened, but she just said that those 'wicked ghosts'--as she called them---were gone and that they would not harm me ever again… Apparently, she… saved me," Vlad ended, looking over at Danny again to see his reaction.
But the teen just frowned with uncertainty. Niane saved Vlad from three evil ghosts? The teen could not imagine that. After all, Niane just seem too…meek to attack or fight against anyone. Heck, he still remembered her reaction to Skulker during the time Vlad had locked him in that ghost cage and Niane had come to bring him something to eat….She had been scared out of her mind when Skulker had picked her up and pressed his blade against her neck!
"It's not that I don't believe you, Vlad," the teen began, his eyebrows furrowed deep in thought. "But… come on? Niane? She wouldn't hurt a fly, let alone beat back three ghosts. You really think she did that?"
Vlad frowned, though he looked uncertain himself. "I told you, Daniel. I do not know what happened. But… what other explanation is there?" The man shook his head. "In any case, it is how I met her. So, to summarize the rest, she helped me find a way out of the Ghost Zone and explained a few things to me about it while I was there. After that, I did not see her again until several years later. Actually, she came to my castle just after George, during the time I was looking for ghostly help. She simply offered her services to me….I hardly could say 'no' to her request…"
Vlad fell quiet as he thought about his youngest servant some more. He knew that there was more to her than met the eye. It was why he was so certain that she had saved him that day. He was certain that she was stronger and cleverer than she let on. But he respected her enough to allow her to keep her secrets. It was the least he could do after what she had done for him…
"I think I now get why she defends you so much," Danny muttered absently to himself.
But the billionaire caught the remark and quickly gave him a confused look. "What do you mean?"
The boy blinked up at the man, taking a moment to get what he was asking. But then, he realized Vlad had caught his comment; and he quickly looked away, a bit shy of telling his arch-enemy everything Niane had said to him.
"Uh...I mean, she, well, she seems to…understand you." Danny paused, but then looked back at Vlad as he suddenly asked, "If you and Niane go back such a long way, then…why aren't you two, well, close? I mean, I have never seen you two talk--ever. And every time she's around, she addresses me and not you. It's seriously weird."
But Vlad didn't seem to think anything of it and shrugged. "Daniel, I'm not interested in 'getting close' to her or anyone else that works for me. They are not my friends. I have never wanted them as that. But I cannot say that they are mere servants to me, either; especially after all these years. I see them as acquaintances. And that's enough for me."
"But… But they care about you! They defend you!" Danny protested, feeling more than a little bothered with Vlad's indifference.
"Daniel, I think you are confused," the man replied with a frown.
"I'm not confused! Did you forget how much time I spend with them?" Danny retorted, this time sounding just slightly angry. "Every time I was angry at you, they always sided with you! And Niane was the worse!"
Vlad chuckled lightly in spite of the boy's peeved mood. "Well, what else do you expect, dear boy? That they side with you? I'm the one who provides all their needs and much more. Of course, they are going to protect that. They are ghosts, Daniel. I think in all the time you have been around such beings, you have discovered that they are naturally obsessive. So, yes, you are mistaking their behavior. They are not defending me, let alone, do they care about me. What you call 'care' is actually possessiveness. And what you call 'defending' is actually 'respect.' They respect me, Daniel."
But Danny was not convinced and he pressed on. "I know the difference, Vlad. As you said, I have been around ghosts long enough to see how obsessive they can be about things. Maybe you are right about some of your workers. But, at least, I know that what Niane shows for you is not possessiveness or plain ol' respect. She cares."
"Daniel," Vlad said a bit pointedly, getting slightly frustrated with the boy's ridiculous claim. "That cannot be true. You know why? Because I, too, have noticed how she goes out of her way to avoid me. I can count on my fingers the number of times we have crossed more than a few words in the many years that I have known her. Ever since she came to work for me, she has acted this way. If anything, I think she does not like me."
"And yet you're sure that she saved you when you first met her," Danny retorted, raising an unwavering eyebrow.
Vlad frowned. "Yes. But maybe she did so because I was not who I am now. Maybe she now just sees me as an 'evil ghost' and that is why she avoids me."
"No, Vlad. She does not think you're evil," Danny said seriously as Niane's words rang in his ears:
"Just because he's evil in your eyes does not mean he's evil in everyone else's."
The man was quiet for a moment, but then he creased his eyebrows in confusion at the teen as he finally said, "I do not understand your interest in what she thinks of or how feels about me, Daniel...Why does it matter? Or more importantly, why do you care?"
The boy glanced out the window. Why did he care? Why was he making such a big deal about this? It really wasn't any of his business, anyways. Vlad obviously did not care about Niane's intentions or feelings or whatever, so why did he?
"I… don't really understand it, either," he admitted quietly. "I, uh… I guess I'm just curious about her… Niane has been really nice to me. But her personality frustrates me sometimes. I just can't figure her out, you know. And I just thought that if I knew more about her, I'd understand why she acts and says certain things."
Vlad seemed to relax with that; and with a small sigh, he calmly replied, "Well, I'm afraid I cannot tell you anymore about her than what I have, Daniel. I could tell you that she's one of the cleverest ghosts I know, but I think you have realized that about her yourself. If you are looking to find out more about her history, then you will have to ask her that. I never have. I have no interest in what she does or did aside from her duties to me. All I ask of her---all I ask of all my ghostly employees---is for their loyalty."
Danny frowned at that, but decided not to say anything about it. Still, he did not understand how Vlad could be so disinterested about his ghost employees' lives when they had been at his side for so many years! And the teen further did not understand why the older hybrid was so sure, so adamant about denying that Niane and his other employees really did care about him. And how could he not care about them back? How are you just 'acquaintances' with those with whom you have shared much of your life?
However, Danny knew better than to dive into a debate like that with his arch-enemy. Still, he was still curious about the youngest maid. And he quickly voiced his next sudden thought. "Okay, I know that all ghosts have one obsession or another. But… But have you ever noticed how Niane isn't…?"
"Obsessive?" Vlad finished with a smirk. "Yes. Or, so it seems, my boy. Not all obsessions are as 'noticeable' as George's or that blasted Klemper," the man commented, rolling his eyes with the thought of the over-friendly ice ghost. "I have never seen any hints of an obsession from Niane. But then, in all fairness, I have never bothered to find out. And even if I did know it, it would mean as little to me as any of my other ghostly workers' obsessions. I let them do as they want as long as it doesn't interfere with their affairs with me," the man ended with a light shrug.
Danny couldn't help but frown again. Didn't it worry Vlad that his ghostly employees' obsessions could bring repercussion for him later on? Like, now, with…Da---
The boy suddenly tensed.
"What's wrong?" Vlad asked, glancing at the boy with slight worry.
Danny quickly shook his head, banishing his last thoughts before they could surface. "Nothing. Where were we? Oh, yeah. Niane's 'sisters'," the teen continued, smiling slightly. "Did they also come to your castle, like, Niane?"
Vlad smiled again. "Actually, yes. As I mentioned, George was the first ghost I employed for my home. Then, Niane came along. And a year later, Martha and Patricia arrived. And then, shortly after them, Derek appeared. Jim and Carl were the last. Jim…I met through some other acquaintances I had made in the Ghost Zone during those years. And as for Carl, well---" The billionaire smirked. "Would you believe me if I told you that there are racecar derbies in the Ghost Zone?"
Danny grinned. "Seriously? That's where you met Carl?" And getting a nod from the man, the teen chuckled and said, "Okay, you gotta tell me that story."
The billionaire chuckled himself. "Alright. Let's see… Ah, yes. I was on my way to…"
It had been a hard trip home for Jazz, Sam, and Tucker. They had not expected for their 'visit' to Vlad's castle to go as it had. They did not even know what worried them more: the fact that their friend---or brother---was surrounded by so many dangerous ghosts; or the fact that they had practically come back empty-handed.
But not wanting to be so pessimistic, the teens decided to focus back on what they did obtain: the bracelet. Unfortunately, they had to wait to get back home, being that Tucker's PDA had been fried, and Jazz was not feeling well from her overexertion during their close-call with Vlad's workers.
So, when they had returned late Sunday, they had all gone to their respective homes without many words. But Tucker had taken the bracelet with him to inspect that night…
But now, it was Monday and they had school back on their plate. Luckily, though, they were just about done with it for the day.
"Do you know how lucky I am that I got insurance on my PDA this time?"Tucker whispered over to Sam, as they sat in Mr. Lancer's class. "I was able to trade it out and even recover my files and programs from the fried one."
Sam nodded. "That's great, Tucker. But what about the bracelet, have you found anything, yet?"
"Cut me some slack, Sam," the teenage boy quickly protested. "I just got my new PDA working this morning. And I already told you what I found out about the bracelet on Sunday. I know it's not much, but I might get something more when I get the chance to link it to my PDA."
Sam nodded again, and fell silent as she thought about what Tucker had told her previously. Her friend had discovered that the bracelet was solely activated with a ghost's energy signature. They suspected it was keyed to their half-ghost friend; but they would not be sure about that until Tucker could access the miniature computer program on the bracelet---something he planned to do today…
"You know," Tucker suddenly said, interrupting her thoughts. "What worries me is that even if I can access the program, I might still not be able to get much on it. If we cannot activate the bracelet, it'll be like trying to work a computer while it's shut down."
Sam was about to respond when the class bell suddenly went off.
"Alright, students, remember, the exam is tomorrow," Mr. Lancer said over the scrambling of books and chairs. "I hope everyone does well; even if I don't have much hope for it for those who spend most of the time talking though my lecture." At saying this, he frowned disapprovingly at Sam and Tucker.
The teens slightly recoiled, while Tucker muttered, "Heh. I guess his sympathy for us since Danny left has reached its end."
"Come on. Let's go find Jazz," Sam then said, ignoring Mr. Lancer's stare. As they walked out of the class room, the girl continued, "I haven't even heard from her since we came back, Tucker. I'm kind of worried. She was feeling pretty bad after our close-call with those two vile ghosts."
Tucker frowned in thought. "Yeah… But don't you think she would have called if----?"
"Sam! Tucker!"
The two kids quickly spun around and instantly saw the person they had just been talking about quickly walking towards them.
"Jazz! Oh, man, are we glad to see you!" Tucker said with a relieved smile as the older girl made it to them.
"We thought you might not have come to school today or something," Sam added, also smiling.
Danny's sister shook her head. "No, I'm fine, you two. I was just really tired, which is why I didn't call or anything. So, did you two find anything?"
As they stepped out of the school, her brother's friends quickly caught her up on the information Tucker had found; and they then decided to meet up at Jazz's house in about an hour to study the device/bracelet some more. When they finally parted ways, the three kids did not see the two sets of invisible eyes belonging to two of Vlad's three ghost vultures which had been watching their every move...
The ghost birds had been in Amity Park ever since Jazz, Tucker, and Sam had discovered Danny's true whereabouts. They had gotten direct orders from Vlad to keep an eye on Daniel's family and friends. And although they never went inside their homes or got any closer to them than several feet, they had indeed been watching them ever since. So, of course, they knew about the teens' trip to their employer's house. But because they were afraid of being discovered, they had lingered outside the entire time the kids had been inside their employer's home. They then, of course, didn't know what had happened in there or that the three humans had the bracelet…
But they had heard the three teens talking about 'a bracelet' just now…
Perched on a tree on the school ground, one of the birds asked the other, "So, vhat do you think? Should ve head back and tell Plasmius about these kids going to his house?"
"Vell, I'm sure the ghosts in the castle vill tell him. I think ve better stay here and vatch these kids as he vanted," his companion replied.
"Okay. But then, ve should at least tell, Norbert," the first replied, referring to their third companion that was currently watching Maddie and Jack. The third ghost vulture had stayed behind to watch the ghost hunting couple for the past days, while the other two had followed after Jazz and Danny's friends.
"That is, if ve can find him," the second one answered. "I have not seen him since ve left him behind to vatch over that ghost hunter couple Plasmius is so interested about."
"Vell, maybe, ve should go find him now. These kids are going home; so they can't cause much trouble there, right?"
The other nodded in agreement. They glanced one last time at Jazz, Sam, and Tucker, whom had now split ways and were heading to their respective homes. But it was then that the first one commented, "Hey, vhat do you think they vere talking about when they said they needed to find out more about that 'black bracelet'?
The other vulture shrugged. "Beats me. Although they did say they got it from our employer's house… But vhy would they even steal jewelry from him?"
"Who knows!" the first ghost vulture finally said, "Plasmius told us to keep an eye on these kids and those two ghost hunters. So, anything else is not our problem. Come on, let's go find that lazy old bird. I don't even know vhy ve are friends vith him."
"I don't remember anymore. My memory started going after the first thousand years," the second replied conversationally.
"Yeah. Seems everything just goes downhill after the first century of age," the other agreed, before they finally took off in search of their third ghostly member…
Meanwhile, Jazz drove home. But when she got there, she quickly noted that the Assault Vehicle was gone. "Mom and Dad must have left early to go ghost haunting," she muttered as she parked in the driveway.
Her thoughts drifted as she stepped out of the car and heard TJ's barking from the backyard. "I'm coming!" she told him as she headed into the house. She then went straight past the kitchen and the lab, finally reaching the patio glass door. She smiled at the puppy wagging his tail at her on the other side.
As soon as she opened the door, TJ came dashing in and greeted her with excited yaps and jumps of joy. "Yeah, I'm happy to see you, too," she told him, momentarily giving him affection. "Come on," she then told him as she headed back to the stairs.
She dropped off her books in her room before returning downstairs to get a drink. Of course, the Dalmatian dog was following her every move. The girl silently quenched her thirst, before looking down at TJ who was sitting down and staring up intently at her.
"Oh, right," Jazz said with a small smile. Turning around, she grabbed a box out of one of the cupboards before pulling out a treat. The puppy quickly got excited and hungrily took the treat, gobbling it up in seconds.
"We really do need to work on your manners," the girl commented with a slightly disgusted look. But she quickly dismissed it, and decided to check up on something else, before heading back up stairs to work on homework. Danny's friends would not be here for some time, anyways. So, she might as well use her time wisely.
Getting to the lab, she opened the door and walked down the steps. She looked around, confirming that indeed her parents were out ghost hunting by the lack of weapons. Her dad had done a pretty good job of fixing up a noticeable amount of them after he had destroyed them during his emotional breakdown.
Jazz slightly frowned at the memory of that day. At least it had helped her parents finally cope and speak to each other about everything that was going on instead of keeping their emotions bottled up. It had worried her deeply how distant they had become with Danny's disappearance at one point. But, luckily, they had gotten over that hump and they were now closer than ever. Still, it filled her with so much anger to know how close Vlad Masters had come to splitting them up; and by using the lowest of tactics, no less. By all but kidnapping her brother, that evil man had torn her family apart to the point that it had almost left permanent damage. But although Vlad had not succeeded with tearing her parents apart, he was effectively keeping her family divided by keeping her little brother away from them. It was getting harder with every passing day to not give in to her desperation and just tell her parents the truth about Danny.
The only two thing that kept her from doing that was her respect for her little brother and fear of the repercussions of divulging that secret…
Jazz sighed as she glanced over at the portal when she saw TJ sniffing around it. She had to admit, Vlad's current scheme was one of---if not the most---intricate and well-thought out one that she had seen from the man yet. She knew they were missing something vital. But every time she felt that she and Danny's friends were close to discovering what that was, it would slip through their fingers like water. It was like, like, he was several steps ahead of them…
"Maybe…Maybe more than we know…," she suddenly whispered as she noticed something at that very moment thanks to the puppy moving about close to the portal.
The girl slowly walked closer to the closed portal, her eyes widening and her breath hitching as she got more and more certain that she was not imagining things. At the moment, because the portal was shut down, the green bulbs surrounding it weren't aglow... So, then why was one of them blinking strangely?
She slowly lifted her hand in front of the bulb in question and waved her hand just as slowly.
"Oh my gosh," she said a little louder as the bulb dimly blinked in time with her hand movements---just like the bulb had been doing with every one of TJ's movements.
Only that Jazz was sure it was no bulb. It was a sensor. Or a… camera…
And she was also sure her parents had not put it there.
"That creep," she hissed, as her eyes slowly narrowing. "That's how he's doing it…. He's been watching us this whole time!" she suddenly exclaimed.
Of course, she referred to Vlad. And she was right. The billionaire had long since installed a hidden camera among other things… And although originally they had been meant to keep an eye on Jack, so that Fright Knight could get the chance to finish him off the second he stepped into the Ghost Zone, that plan had also long since failed. It had failed for the billionaire the moment that Danny's friends and sister found out about the young hybrid's whereabouts. After all, they now knew the man was behind the young hybrid's disappearance; so they would have easily pinned him as the one responsible if something had happened to Jack. And that meant the billionaire would have lost everything—including Danny and Maddie… Ultimately, of course, Jack had not fallen into Vlad's trap, so the billionaire had had no choice but to call off the hit on his former friend…
Still, the alterations Vlad had made to certain things around the Fenton lab were still in place. And when it came to the hidden camera, it was still of use. Well… up till now…
Jazz silently fumed for a moment longer. But, suddenly, she felt very scared. What else had Vlad been doing behind their backs? If he had come to her house without their knowing, what else had he done?
The thought had her quickly pulling out her cell phone and dialing Sam's number. After the second ring, the younger girl picked up, and Jazz quickly spoke into it, "Sam, do you think you and Tucker could get here, like, now? There is something you two have to see…. No, I can't tell you right now. It's best that you come see it first... Okay, bye."
Jazz hung up the phone and stared back at the dimly blinking device. They would have to inspect the entire house from head to toe now. And, luckily, her parents were out, so they could do that without trouble. But knowing that Vlad was watching, them… No. her parents… or just her father? Either way, she was now sure the man was not planning on stopping with just taking Danny from them. He was after her mother or father---or both.
"You think that because Danny's not here you can come after them, don't you, you creep?" Jazz growled, glaring at the blinking bulb. "Then, I'm going to prove you wrong."
Danny couldn't keep it in any longer. He suddenly began laughing at his arch-enemy. "Dude! You're so weird!"
"I fail to understand what you find so amusing, Daniel. Just as I fail to see why I am weird," Vlad muttered, slightly annoyed, as he lowered his fork and knife.
The teen calmed enough to reply, "Vlad, seriously, who eats pizza with a fork and knife?" He chuckled a bit more, before grabbing the slice of pizza on his own plate and lifting it up in demonstration. "Look, pizza is meant to be eaten like this."
Vlad raised a condescending eyebrow as he watched the boy take a bite out of his pizza while holding it with both hands. "Uh-huh. And can you see the mess on your hands thanks to your expertise?" the man retorted.
Danny lowered his pizza before looking at his sauce-and-grease-covered hands. But the teen just smirked cleverly as the billionaire as he replied, "That's an easy fix..."
Vlad's jaw fell open in disbelief as the younger hybrid began to lick his fingers clean. But the man's expression quickly melded into disgust, which also colored his voice as he said, "Ugh…I think I just lost what little appetite I had…"
Danny laughed again, before pointing one of his still somewhat dirty fingers at the man and replying, "Too bad, Unkie Vlad. You made me eat at the sea food restaurant I didn't like yesterday, remember? So, guess what? You're stuck here. Now, you gotta eat pizza whether you want to or not."
"Well, aren't we demanding?" Vlad commented, slightly narrowing his eyes, though it was mainly in a teasing way.
"I like to think of it as a good business," Danny quipped with a smirk. And seeing the billionaire raise an amused eyebrow at him, he added, "What? You didn't think you could drag me to all your companies without me learning something about the business world, did you?"
"Hmm… touché, little badger," the man said with a small chuckle. "But I hardly dragged you. If I recall correctly, you were more than eager to tag along on that outing---and this one. So much that when you went to DALV, you were almost arrested for getting a tad too curious… As for here, let's not forget how 'well' you spoke to my business partner on the phone just a few days ago…"
Danny blushed a bit; but then he gave the man a small benign glare. "Resorting to embarrassing comments now?
Vlad grinned. "Just good business."
"I walked right into that one, didn't I?" Danny grumbled; and seeing the man's smug smile grow, the boy rolled his eyes and took a bite of his pizza again. But right after, his chance for payback presented itself and he quickly lowered his pizza before licking his fingers clean again. The man's reaction put an evil and triumphant smile on Danny's face.
"Daniel, stop! That's so unsanitary!" Vlad protested, grossed out again.
"What? This?" the teen asked innocently before repeating his actions just to annoy his arch-enemy.
Feeling his stomach flip, Vlad quickly grabbed his cold tea and took a swig of it.
"Hey now, that's not good etiquette, Masters," Danny said with a smirk. "What if there's a paparazzi watching you right now, huh?"
"They would be too appalled by your manners to notice me," the billionaire replied with a slight scowl.
"Whatever, cheese head," Danny said with a half-annoyed half-amuse roll of his eyes. "But, okay, I'll stop.
Vlad was too relieved by the news to say anything back. Best not provoke the boy to do something more that would be revolting. After all, he needed to conserve some of his appetite if he was going to keep down the greasy thing on his plate called 'food.' The thought made his stomach lurch just slightly, but he quickly pushed the thought away.
Danny quietly chuckled as he saw Vlad reluctantly pick up his utensils again and continue eating his pizza. But that prompted the teen to turn his eyes to his unused fork and knife beside his own plate. With a smirk, he cleared his throat, getting the man's attention.
"So, how's this?" Danny asked, placing his napkin neatly on his lap, before picking up his fork and knife. "Am I sophisticated enough for you?" The boy then cut a small piece of pizza; and mocking elegance, he put the fork in his mouth and chewed the small piece slowly, before finally dabbing the corner of his mouth with his napkin.
The entire time, Vlad just watched him with an amused smile. And it was only when the teen lowered his napkin to his lap again and looked expectantly at him that the billionaire replied, "Not too shabby, my boy. Then again…you are holding your fork incorrectly and using your salad fork, at that," he pointed out smugly.
Danny's own smug look change to surprise as he stared over to Vlad's hands and noticed what he was saying was true. But the boy smiled again as he shrugged and replied, "Whatever. It works just as well."
Vlad chuckled as the teen continued to eat with the utensils as they were. "If you say so, dear boy."
"I do say so," Danny said, pointing his fork at him. "But you obviously don't think so. So, then, tell me, what's the difference?"
Vlad looked down at his own utensils and plate; but they were not exactly the best examples to teach the boy about proper food etiquette. "Well, a pizza parlor is hardly the place to learn the difference, Daniel. So, then, how about we wait until we get back to the castle? I can easily teach you, then."
"Sounds good," Danny replied with a nod. But he then raised an eyebrow as he added, "But no matter what you say, I will still prefer to eat pizza the normal way."
Vlad rolled his eyes as the boy pushed aside his utensils and returned to eating his pizza with his hands. But deciding to change the topic to avoid feeling sick again, the man informed the boy, "After we finish here, I need to make a stop at that gallery we visited yesterday. As you know, I bought a painting there that they said should be ready by today. However, I think I will just request for it to be delivered since it's so fragile and it might be damaged without proper care."
Danny nodded, recalling the scenic painting of the Spree River that the man had picked out. But since it had not been for sale, the artist agreed to make another, more detailed one just for the billionaire. Then again, with the amount of money Vlad had paid for it, he was sure the artist would have happily made him ten more.
But the thought pushed another thought forward; one that he had been silently wondering for a bit of time. "Not that it's any of my business what you spend your money on, but why more decorations? Don't you have enough at your house, already?" he questioned quizzically.
Vlad arched his eyebrow at the question. "Think about what you have said, Daniel. And then tell me, do you really want me to answer that?"
It took Danny a moment. But when he finally got what his arch-enemy was hinting at, his eyes slightly widened before he looked down at his drink. He had forgotten about the things that had been destroyed during his fights with Vlad in the castle. The man had replaced the more essential things, but the decorations and painting on the walls in some places were gone. Great. Now things were awkward again. Clearly, there were still a lot of things they could not talk about…
"In any case," Vlad suddenly said when the boy had grown quiet. "I have been planning on remodeling my home for some time now. See, I have a few ideas…," the main commented, though he trailed off as the subterranean laboratory he was hoping to build some day came to mind…
"Oh, well, that's good, I guess," Danny muttered, not really listening to what the man had said. But deciding to push aside his remaining uncertainty, he asked a different question. "Okay, so, then, do you always buy things around here?"
Vlad shrugged lightly. "I enjoy the culture and art here in Germany. It's very unique. But the last time I came here, which was two years back on a business trip with Stephanie, I hardly did as much 'sightseeing' as this time---let alone any 'shopping.' It was all business… as I had originally intended this time around as well…"
The last comment made Danny feel a bit uneasy yet again. But this was a very different kind of uneasiness, and it rang in his voice as he looked away and muttered, "Sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt your---"
But Vlad cut him off. "Sorry? Nonsense, Daniel. You have nothing for which to apologize. I… sometimes forget that you have different needs than I do. So, if anything, I should apologize and thank you for putting up with my ignorance these past days. But I do hope that, over all, you did enjoy yourself here…" he finished sincerely as he watched the boy's face for a response.
Danny nodded and smiled. It was nice to hear the older hybrid talk so sincerely… It was so rare when he did… And the teen couldn't help but reply in the same way. "I did, Vlad. And I really appreciate you bringing me. You… didn't have to but…you did and you also even put up with my…um, temper. So, thanks."
"Hmm… well, I'll have to agree with the 'temper' part," Vlad teased with a smirk, quickly changing the mood.
"Yeah? Well, then, I'll have to agree with the 'ignorance' part of your earlier comment," the boy smugly retorted, internally relieved that their brief heart-to-heart had not become too awkward.
The man chuckled again; the boy's company really was refreshing… "Well, now all I have to worry about is how to tell Stephanie I did not accomplish everything I was supposed to in these past days," he said with a small dramatic sigh that proved he wasn't really worried about it. "Then again, I can always use you as an excuse. The woman likes you; so she might go easy on me."
The comment pushed all of Danny's previous thoughts away as he burst into a laugh.
"Dude! Are you telling me that you're afraid of your own secretary?"
"Daniel, having fear of triggering a woman's wrath is something that all wise men should have. Remember that," Vlad said seriously.
Danny just laughed some more. "Whoa. That's deep. Heh. But I think I kinda know what you mean."
Vlad smirked again. But then, suddenly, recalling they were on a schedule, he looked down at his watch and frowned. "We best hurry. I still want to take you to one last place before we leave. Or, specifically, to the Friedrichstadt Palast."
Danny quickly raised a curious eyebrow.
And noticing it, the billionaire smiled, before asking, "Tell me, dear boy, have you ever been to a Revue theatre?"
Sunset was quickly approaching, but that did not stop Maddie and Jack from continuing in their pursuit of a ghost tiger that had been wrecking havoc in the park.
"Jack, quick! Hand me the Fenton Bazooka!" Maddie ordered as they finally managed to corner the ghoul.
"You got it, Baby!" Jack exclaimed running over to her.
But just as Jack tossed the large weapon at his wife, who deftly caught it, the ghost animal snarled and lunged at the woman. However, she agilely rolled under the tiger, avoiding its strike, before spinning around and firing the Bazooka at the ghost.
The creature cried in pain and then in alarm as a portal open right where it was and began to suck it inside. In a matter of seconds, the yowling ghost cat was gone and so was the temporary ghost portal.
Maddie smiled at her husband and said, "Well, I think that's all of them around here."
"Aw," Jack pouted as he walked over to her, the tangled fishing rod-like ghost device in hand, "I wanted to use the Fenton Ghost Fishing Rod! I had just about finished untangling it, too!"
His wife patted his shoulder. "It's alright, Jack. I'm sure we'll find more ghosts elsewhere. Maybe we should head to the peer. There were some reports of ghost attacks there recently."
"Alright! And maybe we will finally find that Phantom punk!" Jack said, his eyes slightly narrowing as he worked to detangle the ghost rod more vigorously with the thought.
But the comment put a frown on his wife's face; and when she sighed, the man gave her a quizzical look. "What's wrong, baby cakes?"
"What if Vlad is right, Jack? What if Phantom really is behind Danny's disappearance? After all, why else would Danny Phantom vanish like that unless he has something to hide?" Maddie asked fearfully, recalling how her husband had told her that Vlad had come to talk to him about the possibility of Phantom and Danny's disappearances being correlated...
"That's why we are going to find the ghost punk and make him give us our son back!" Jack said determinedly.
"But that's the problem! We haven't found him! Not a trace! And worse, we have yet to find a ghost with enough intelligence to interrogate it about Danny Phantom!"
"Chin up, Mads!" Jack said, his confidence not wavering. "That spook and his spooky friends can't hide forever! We'll get them to talk! And if they have something to do with Danny disappearing, then we'll make them sorry and make them give him back to us! And luckily, I already have everything we need to inflict pain on every one of their ghostly molecules!"
Maddie smiled back, still feeling very worried, but now also comforted by her husband's optimism. It was one of the reasons she loved him so much.
Her attention, however, went to two trees several feet away from them when she heard faint squawking sounds. And it was then she also saw something gleam from the shadows casted by the large and thick branches…
"Jack," she said slowly as she narrowed her eyes at what she was staring. "Are those things what I think they are…?"
Her husband turned to see what she was talking about and his eyes widened when he caught sight of three glowing vultures arguing with each other in the trees. Clearly, they were too busy with each other to realize they had been found out.
But Jack, like, Maddie had recognized them as the vultures that had tried to help the Wisconsin ghost that one time he had tried to steal the Fenton Ghost Portal. But why were they here again? Now more interested in catching them, Jack was about to scream out 'Ghost!' and give chase when a smaller hand quickly gripped one of his arms, stopping him.
"Wait. We know from our past experience with them that these ghosts have a sense of logic. Maybe they know something about Phantom, Jack. We can't risk them getting away. Come on, I have an idea…"
"There you are!" one of the two vultures said to the third vulture once they found their companion at the park.
They landed on the tree on which the third ghost was perched, before the second of the two birds added, "Ve have been looking everyvhere for you!"
"Vell, here I am. Still following these two hunters about," the third ghost replied, pointing one of his wings in the direction of Maddie and Jack, who were in the midst of capturing the ghost tiger. "I tell you, these two are dangerous, especially the voman hunter! I think I have lost half of my feathers just vatching them use all those painful contraptions on other Ecto-Americans!"
"They don't look that tough! You're just always afraid of everything," the first vulture said.
But the third vulture quickly glared and snapped, "I am a creature of darkness! I am not afraid! Besides, you two vere the ones to go off on some adventure leaving me here to do all the vork!"
"Vould you two stop running your beaks?!" the second one intervened, now annoyed. "Ve can never do anything vithout you two arguing at least once!"
"Vell, then, when ve get back , you make sure to tell Plasmius to never send the three of us on a mission together again!" the first one retorted.
"Vhy do I have to tell him? Vhy don't you? You are the one who alvays causes problems!" the third one jumped in.
"I do---Hey, vhere did the ghost hunters go?" the first one suddenly asked, finally noticing that Maddie and Jack were nowhere in sight.
"See vhat you two did? Now, I lost them again!" the third one said, taking to the air.
The other two glanced at each other, before following after their third companion. Flying low, they looked around the park, trying to spot the ghost hunters.
"So, vhere did you two follow those three kids to?" the third one asked, as if they had never argued at all.
"You are not going to believe it, but ve followed them all the vay to Plasmius home in Visconsin. Ve don't know vhy they went there; but they sure vhere up to something," the second calmly answered.
"Vell, didn't you two follow them inside? I know Plasmius said not go inside any buildings; but I think he'd vant us to make an exception for his house; especially if those kids vere snooping."
The first one frowned. "Ve figured the other ghosts there vould take care of the kids. Plus, Plasmius asked us to vatch those brats and the two hunters. He said nothing about stopping them from doing anything."
"You both really are dolts," the third one muttered with a shake of his head. But the insult only triggered another argument between the three of them and they all but forgot about Maddie and Jack again…
However, during this entire time, the ghost hunters had been watching them from within a large bush. They had seen how the birds had taken sudden flight into the sky shortly after they had hid within this bush. But now, Maddie's brow furrowed even more when she realized that the birds had yet to stop circling this area. It was now clear to her that they were looking for something…
"Jack… If I didn't know better I'd say those ghosts are looking for us… or spying…"
"Nonsense, Maddie! Those spooks are just looking for trouble. Come on, lets get em'!"
"Wait!" she cried, but her husband had already bounded out of the bushes, running towards the vultures with the still slightly tangled ghost rod raised at them. The woman sighed as she saw the vultures shriek in surprise, before easily escaping her husband's attempt to capture them.
"Come on, Maddie! We've got runners!" Jack shouted back at her, before taking off after the vultures on foot.
But Maddie just huffed in amusement before getting out of the bushes. But instead of following after her husband, she hurried to get the Assault Vehicle they had parked nearby. As she climbed in, she noticed that one of the ghost weapons Jack had brought along with them was the Specter Deflector. And realizing it would come in handy right now, she quickly strapped on the currently deactivated ghost device around her waist before finally starting the car and moving to search for her husband.
However, neither Maddie nor anyone else was aware that one of the things Vlad had tampered with during his visit to the Fenton's lab was the Specter Deflector. He had purposely inverted the wires with the purpose of it backfiring on Jack. But since the man had not fallen for Vlad's plan and had not gone to the Ghost Zone as he had wanted, Jack never used the device. No one had. But it looked like Maddie was going to be the first one…
As silly as his actions looked, the woman was sure that he would at least keep the ghosts in his sight long enough for her to get there. And when she caught up to him a small moment later, she smiled at being right. Her husband was not the best ghost catcher, but he helped in so many other ways. Another reason why they made such a great team.
Out of breath, Jack smiled shyly at his wife who stopped the car for him to get in. But not needing anymore words, the man got back to the matter at hand. "Come on, Maddie, we'll head those spooks off at the pass!"
With that, both hunters headed after the birds. And it did not take them long to find them flying overhead, thanks to their ghost detecting instruments. The couple quickly jumped out of the Fenton Assault Vehicle, though Jack did so even before Maddie could bring the vehicle to a complete stop…
"Jack!" Maddie called after him, as he ran at the vultures, ghost rod in one hand and a firing gun in his other.
"Come on, sweet cheeks! We got them now!" Jack replied back as he wildly shot at the three birds.
Now in a panic, the vultures effectively dodged the poorly aimed attacks, before scattering for the safety of some nearby trees.
"Come on, boys!" the first one exclaimed to his companions. "Ve got to high-tail it out of here before that other---"
But a solid blast, this time shot by Maddie, knocked the vulture right out of the sky before he could finish. His other two companions froze, watching the third as it was thrown across the sky before the senseless bird plummeted to the ground below. Now furious, both vultures screeched angrily and dove down for an attack.
Maddie gasped as she barely dodged one of the two ghost bird's sharp talons. But when the other ghost came at her from behind, she barely had time to turn around to see it coming, let alone move out of the way.
But just before the ghost met its mark, a glowing white rope wrapped around its neck, and reeled it back with a jolt.
"Ha! Got ya!" Jack cried in triumph, but remembering his wife he quickly added, "And stay away from my wife!"
Maddie smiled proudly at Jack, but before she could say anything, the first vulture that had tried to lunge at her rebounded its efforts. "Jack, don't let that one go. I'll take care of this one," she said quickly before charging at the ghost with a small ghost gun in her hand and firing it at the incoming vulture.
But this time, the ghost bird dodged the attack and continued down. But just as he made a grab with his talons at Maddie, the woman again dove out of the way. However, the vulture quickly reacted again and grabbed onto the gun in her hand, quickly phasing it out of her hands.
"That's not going to help you, you piece of ectoplasmic slim!" Maddie growled, activating one of her electric chargers on her jumpsuit, and firing it at the bird.
The vulture cried out in pain as it was attacked by the sharp volts; and by the time it was over, the bird slammed into the ground, his smoking body weak and barely moving.
Maddie glanced towards the place she had seen the first vulture fall after she had knocked it down from the sky. But not seeing any trace of it, she turned her attention on the two remaining ones they now had in their hands.
"Hey! Let us go!" the bird caught in Jack's ghost fishing rod demanded, glaring at the two humans.
"Look, Maddie, it really does talk!" the man said to his wife with excitement.
But the woman was looking down at the other bird on the ground, her gun pointed at it as it slowly looked up at her.
"Oh-o," was all the second vulture said, when it realized in how much trouble he was.
"You'll be saying more than that if you move a single ghost muscle," Maddie said darkly, her eyes narrowed at the ghost. "Why were you three looking for us? Or were you spying on us? What do you want?"
"Um…," the bird said nervously, looking over to his companion for help. However, the other ghost bird looked as lost for words as he was. But upon hearing Maddie charge her gun, the vulture on the ground squawked in alarm and quickly said, "Okay! Ve'll tell you! Just don't turn us into ectoplasmic goo! At least, I'm too young to be destroyed!"
"Hey!" the other protested. "You're older than me!"
"Am not!"
"Just answer the question!" Maddie exclaimed, annoyed, while Jack blinked bemusedly at the two birds. They sure were strange ghosts.
"Ve don't have to answer nothing!" the vulture being restrained by Jack quickly snapped at the woman.
Maddie glared at the other bird as she warned, "My son has been missing for close to three months now and I know that Danny Phantom has something to do with it! So, you two are either going to answer our questions the nice way, or we'll get them out of you the not so nice way. And, trust me, after all these months, I'm not feeling remotely nice to anything with ectoplasm in its body."
The restrained bird cringed at her words. Even he knew how dangerous a protective mother was---and more so when she was a ghost hunter that hated his kind. "Vell… maybe ve can answer a few questions," it replied nervously.
"Start by my first one. Why were you three following us?"
The two birds looked at each other again, before the one on the ground sighed and replied, "Look, it's nothing personal. Ve are just doing our job, okay? Plasmius vants us to keep an eye on you two and that's vhat ve are doing. Orders are orders, you know."
"Plasmius?" Maddie and Jack repeated simultaneously, before looking at each other. But they could both see in each other's eyes that neither knew who that was. After all, the two ghost hunters knew 'Plasmius' as the 'Wisconsin Ghost'….
But the woman, remembering that these ghosts were associated with the 'Wisconsin Ghost', quickly said, "Do you mean the Wisconsin Ghost?"
But the vultures didn't recognize their employer by that name, so the one on the ground just stared back confused, before answering, "Uh… who?"
"We don't know any specter named Plasmius," Jack interrupted, "but we do know who Phantom is! So, we want you to tell us everything about him! Where is he? Why did he leave? And does he have our son?!"
"Huh?" the birds replied, even more confused by the way the two humans were talking about Phantom and 'their son' as if they were two people… Did they not know they were the same person?
"Don't play dumb with us, spooks!" Jack exclaimed, tightening the rod around the ghost bird's body. "Talk and I'll shoot you!"
The bird in his hands blinked. "Don't you mean, 'talk or I'll shoot you?"
Jack blinked right back. But then quickly glared and replied, "No! 'Cause even if you do answer all our questions, I still plan on shooting you and dissecting you molecule by molecule, Spook!"
The bird on the ground looked up at the woman hunter and condescendingly commented, "You're partner is not very good vith vords, is he?"
"Neither am I, if you don't talk," Maddie growled back, charging her gun again. "Where is Phantom?! What has he done with our boy?!"
The vulture on the ground gasped and in a panic said, "I don't know vhat you two are talking about! B-But if you are looking for the ghost kid, he's vith Plasmius! He's stayin' vith him now. Don't really know vhy; but I don't care, either. But ve promise ve have nothing to do vith it!"
"Then where can we find this Plasmius?" Maddie demanded to know.
The vulture on the ground opened his beak to reply; but at that instant a screech came from above. And faster than the woman could react, the third vulture that she had believed had been permanently taken out, unexpectedly grabbed onto her hazmat hood, quickly making her drop her gun in surprise.
"Maddie!" Jack exclaimed at seeing his wife under attack by the ghost's sharp talons and beak.
"Jack!" she shouted back as she grabbed the bird's legs, trying to get it off her.
Dropping the ghost vulture he had tied up with the Fenton Ghost Rod, the man ran to her side, ready to defend his wife from her ghostly assailant, who still had his talons firmly secured on the woman's blue hood.
Maddie yelped and began to flail her feet when she suddenly felt them leave the ground. Meanwhile, the other bird that she had been holding at gun point on the ground quickly took the chance to escape.
The vulture flew over to his tied up companion and quickly freed him from the glowing white rope. "Come on, let's get out of here!" he told him.
But at that moment, Jack grabbed his wife's hand and pulled against the vulture trying to lift her higher off the ground. However, the vulture quickly reacted and turned himself and the woman intangible, and Jack lost his grip on his wife.
"No!" Jack shouted as Maddie was lifted even higher now that she was intangible.
But the woman, remembering the Specter Deflector on her waist, quickly activated it, knowing she had to get the ghost to let go before it got her too high up that she would be really hurt if she fell. However, instead of the ghost being zapped by the device's weakening power as she had expected, it turned out that the device attacked her.
Maddie cried out in pain as electrical surges began to jolt her body, the attacks debilitating her with every passing second. But the unexpected light showing from the ghost device jolted the bird holding the woman up and it released her.
Jack, having seen the entire thing, gasped in alarm when he saw his wife drop from the sky. "Maddie!" he shouted again, this time complete fear in his voice. But there was nothing he could do and she soon hit the ground. The combined force of the six foot drop and the Specter Deflector's power instantly knocked her unconscious.
The man ran over to his wife, as the three vultures regrouped. And knowing they now had the upper hand and feeling vengeful, they extended their sharp talons; and with dark screeches they lunged at Jack.
But the man quickly noticed their intentions; and now furious, he glared at them, before switching his course from his wife to the Fenton Bazooka a few feet away.
The vultures quickly followed his change of course, but realized too late why he had switched directions. As Jack whirled around to face the vultures, bazooka aimed at their incoming bodies, he shouted, "No one hurts my family!"
The ghost birds cried in pain as the angry energy slammed right into them. But immediately afterward, a portal opened right in between them, and sucked them all in before they knew what had happened.
Jack hardly noticed his victory. Instead, he quickly went to his wife's side, kneeling right next to her unmoving form. "Maddie!" he called to her worriedly. But the moment he touched her, the man screamed in pain as he, too, was electrocuted by Specter Deflector.
The man gasped as he held his suddenly spinning head. What, what was going on? But he didn't have time to think about it, and took off towards the Fenton Assault Vehicle, knowing that the key for the Specter Deflector was there. He returned to his wife with it in record speed. And with a sharp intake of air, Jack grabbed the ghost belt, ignoring the painful jolts he received as he quickly worked the lock.
With a click, the belt deactivated and Jack threw it aside. "Maddie? Baby?" he called worriedly, scooping her up in her arms.
But the woman did not respond.
Jack was sure he would have panicked if it wasn't for the fact that he could hear her steady heartbeat and breathing. The device had just weakened her badly and he could tell that at least her left arm was broken from the fall.
Getting unsteadily to his feet, the man quickly headed for the vehicle with his unconscious wife, knowing he had to get her to the hospital. He did not understand what had happened to the Specter Deflector, but all he could conclude was that it was somehow his fault…
"Daniel?" Vlad called softly, crouching down in front of the boy fast asleep on his plane seat.
It was past five in the morning and they had just gotten back to Wisconsin. The billionaire really did not want to wake him, knowing how exhausted the teen was----as was Vlad. But he knew Daniel would not appreciate being carried to the car like a child---though to the older hybrid, the younger one was just precisely that….
Vlad sighed when the boy did not stir; and instead Danny buried his face further into the pillow behind his head. The teenager sure was a heavy sleeper.
"Daniel," he called a bit louder, placing a hand on the teen's shoulder and lightly shaking him.
"Leave me alone, Jazz, "Danny grumbled angrily, trying to move away from the man's touch, though he was clearly far from being awake.
Vlad rolled his eyes. But, suddenly, an idea hit him; one that slowly curved a wicked smile on the billionaire's face…
Standing to his height again, the older hybrid turned away from the boy and headed out of the plane to where both his ghostly pilot and driver were transferring the luggage to the black limousine Carl had brought for the short drive back to the castle.
"Carl?" the man called to his driver. "Start the car, please. We will be leaving shortly. And Jim? Would you come here for a minute?" he then asked his pilot.
While Carl did as he was told, Jim blinked at his employer in confusion. But then, he silently nodded and walked over to the man.
"Just stand there," Vlad calmly ordered, once they were back inside the plane. He ignored Jim's bewildered look; and with a smirk, turned his attention to the sleeping boy.
As the older half-ghost had guessed, Danny's ghost sense instantly went off, sending a shiver right down the teen's back. But… in spite of it, the young half-ghost still did not stir...
Vlad frowned. "If I didn't know any better I would say he's dead," he muttered to himself, not believing how much of a heavy sleeper the boy was.
Suddenly, a bit annoyed, the billionaire walked over to the teen again and shook him a bit more sternly. "Come on, Daniel. Wake up. You said to wake you when we arrived; but if you don't, I'm still going to get you back to the castle one way or another."
Luckily, Vlad's more persistent approach finally got Danny to stir.
"Huh?" the teen croaked out as his hazy eyes finally opened. However, instead of first realizing where he was, Danny first realized his ghost sense was going off…
With a sudden gasp, the young hybrid sat up with a jolt; and when his murky mind alerted him of a figure towering over him, the boy's hand came forward and he instantly fired an energy blast.
Vlad's eyes widened; and it was more out of instinct than anything else that he managed to turn intangible in the nick of time.
At that same moment, a cry of alarm left Jim's mouth as the energy blast went right through his employer's head before slamming into the right part of the plane's roof, effectively melting a hole clean through the metal.
"My plane! I mean, your plane! I mean, he just destroyed the plane!" the pilot shouted in a panic, before he glared furiously at the young hybrid who was finally back to his full senses thanks to the ghost's screams.
"V-Vlad!" Danny exclaimed, realizing he had just fired an attack at the man.
The billionaire sighed, "We're here," he said, somehow sounding both bored and annoyed.
Danny briefly watched the man as he grabbed his angry pilot's shoulder and all but dragged the ghost out of the plane with him. But the boy's eyes then went to the hole in the plane's roof and he cringed. "I hope that's fixable," he mumbled.
But, suddenly, he shrugged it off, too tired to care that much about it at the moment. He stood up, stretching and yawning. However, his actions only made him sleepy again. "Why did he wake me up anyways? Oh, right… We're here…"
Drowsily, Danny glanced at his seat and smiled at the pillow there. "I better help with the stuff…. I'll start with this pillow… oh, and my music player… Did I have anything else?"
The boy shrugged again; and not realizing he was barefoot and had left his carrying bag and the box with the water globe right beside his seat, he turned and dragged himself out of the plane. His tired mind didn't notice Vlad or Jim ---nor did they notice him. So, while the two adult males talked and busied themselves with making sure everything was loaded in the limo, Danny headed straight for the back door of the luxury car, got in, and closed the door after him…
"I believe that's everything," Vlad muttered in thought, before looking at his pilot and asking, "Did you grab my carrying bag? I only recall taking my briefcase to the car…"
Jim nodded. "It's done. I put your bag next to your briefcase."
"Odd. I feel like I am still forgetting something important…," the man said with a frown.
"Not sure about it being important, but I think the kid's not in the car yet; and neither is his personal bag," the ghost said dryly.
Vlad quickly looked toward the plane, before sighing in exasperation and grumbling under his breath, "That's it. I'm carrying him into the blasted car."
Glancing briefly at the ghost pilot, he ordered, "Jim, get the boy's things, please."
"Yes, sir," he replied begrudgingly.
However, when they got to the plane, they both were surprise to find the teen was no longer there.
"Did you see him head to the limousine?" the man asked, quizzically.
"No. But it looks like he thinks we're his maids," Jim muttered, pointing at the things on the ground.
Vlad rolled his eyes; and without a thought grabbed the globe box, before putting the teen's shoes on top of it. At any other time, he would have been greatly annoyed with the teenager's disregard. But feeling annoyed took too much energy, which he hardly had right now,
However, Jim had no trouble being downright irritated; especially when he was already ticked off with the hybrid brat for messing up his plane. But even so, he still grabbed Danny's carrying bag and followed after his employer to the car.
As the ghost stored the last bag in the trunk, Vlad got into the limousine, and as the man had expected, Danny was stretched out on one of the car's large leather seats with his pillow, fast asleep again. The older hybrid smiled tiredly at the teen, before he sighed; and with mild amusement whispered, "Sometimes I wonder about you, dear boy…"
He shook his head with mirth, before bending forward a bit to put the box and shoes still in his hands, beside his briefcase on the ground. With a deep sigh, Vlad leaned back against his own seat, waiting for Carl to take off.
But when the ghost driver finally did, the older hybrid, who had just been silently watching the younger one, suddenly sat up a bit and removed his suit jacket. And still without words, he gently draped the makeshift blanket over the sleeping boy…
Translations:
"Good day, That is good! Please; Thanks….Cheese head!"
"Thank you. Pleasure meeting you both."
"Likewise. Have a safe trip, Mr. Masters."
****
Okay, for those who read my comment on DA, you'll know what I'm talking about already. By the way, thanks for those who replied; sure helped me decide what do. But, yes, for those who don't know, I wrote a comment on my DA regarding my updating 'schedule' for my two currently active stories. See, we have about twenty chapters left for this story; and if you consider the amount of chapters posted, you can see that it's not that much left. As much as I---and you guys, being that you're reading CM :) ---love this story, it does need to come to an end eventually. And I think it has been around long enough. I want to finish it. And although I have it all written out, it's not easy to do the editing and posting with school, church responsibilities, and my other story going on at the same time. So, I have decided that I am going to try to focus on CM over DoaS---at least for what's left of this year. It does not mean I am putting DoaS on hiatus. I can't bring myself to do that. But it does mean you will see more updates for CM than DoaS. I will probably be updating DoaS once a month and CM---I hope!---once a week. I just want to finish this story; because, one, it will help me focus on DoaS more once it's done; and two, I have another story coming up this year, which is Cowritten with my lovely beta Truephan. Oh, and, I have one other surprise for you guys in November... Heh. You'll see... So, yeah, my plate is full. So, I need to speed up CM, if only a bit. Plus, I still have its sequel I want to do... *winks*
So, there it is. Sorry if you guys are bum about DoaS. But, like I said, I will not be putting it on Hiatus and I will be moving it faster again by January. Thanks for understanding and your support! One last thing, check out the fanart done by several of my readers. They are all so awesome and I thank them again from the depth of my heart! Links are below and you can also access them directly on my profile! Until next time, my dear readers! My Vlad muse and I bid you adieu!
*Remove spaces and '()'*
Fanart by Fantasy 93 for 'Dawning of a Sun'.
h t t p (:) (/) / fantasy93. deviantart. c om/art/DoaS-Prince-Phantom-140404041
Interactive Flash comic story by E-dante for 'Fate's Lesson'.
h t t p (:) / (/) e-dantes. deviantart. c om/art/Fate-s-Lesson-a-DP-FanFic-140006492
Fanart for Checkmate:
(chisu-chan)
h t t p (:) / (/) chisu-chan. deviantart. c om/art/CM-fanart-Almost-there-140413106
(teribane)
h t t p (:) / (/) teribane. deviantart. c om/art/Checkmate-Fanart-139756437
(Phantomgoddess94)
h t t p (:) / (/) phantomgoddess94. deviantart. c om/art/DP-Be-strong-Little-Badger-139427394
